“While we can only speculate about Sun’s motivations, it is fair to point out that emulation is a sign of respect. We emulate mentors, teachers or role models. Imitation, on the other hand, is a sign of flattery. We imitate rivals or competitors. Perhaps, in the long run, this distinction will provide all the insight we need into Sun’s decision.” Read the editorial at LinuxInsider.
Can Sun Emulate Linux by Open-Sourcing Solaris?
About The Author
Eugenia Loli
Ex-programmer, ex-editor in chief at OSNews.com, now a visual artist/filmmaker.
Follow me on Twitter @EugeniaLoli
This is just a hail-Mary ploy to inject Solaris into markets it can’t compete in otherwise – namely, the low end server and the desktop. In this market, Solaris pretty much brings to bear about as much as FreeBSD – namely, kick-ass linux compatibility. But if linux ABI support is all you want, why not go native?
No one is disputing that Solaris is more effective on esoteric hardware. But also understand that people buying million dollar hardware aren’t that hung up on getting the OS for free.
Despite all the lies solaris is based on sys V and sco or novell has rights over that. sco has confirmed that. solaris cannot be open sourced. plain and simple. it can be probably be under a restricted read only source license like shared source stuff from MS but definitely not open source.
solaris is good on sparc machines and high end stuff not on comodity stuff. it simply doesnt fly there.
Huh? Since when do “emulation” and “imitation” mean two different things?
The GPL is why Linux is more popular than BSD.
The fact is that people who work in Open Source and give their own time and efforts appreciate the fact that GPL software will always be free and available to everyone, and there is no chance of anyone “stealing” their work and efforts without having to give back to the community.
That sense of everyone working towards the benift of the entire community is what draws people to Linux more than BSD.
No hobby programmers are going to feel good about a company taking their hard work, making it propetary and then making it so they cant use what that company made out of their own work.
That’s the fact jack.
So, unless it’s GPLed, they will get little results compared to Linux.. most likely it will have some support but more on the lower order of community interest that is directed at the BSD’s.
Yeah, the mid-range server market is a dying. AMD/INTEL caught up to where the price/performance ratio is ‘no brainer’.. Thats why Sun bought that Opteron server company, they see the writting on the wall. SUN is dying with their bloated product line and proprietary hardware. Open Sourcing Solaris isn’t going to do anything for the stockholders..
Instead of speculating about motives, the author just got down to the question of what can be deduced from Sun’s statements etc.
I doubt myself that Sun will release Solaris source code under any BSD-type license – it’ll be something more like the Mozilla one, where they can fold the source contributed back into their own proprietary “distribution”, in the mode of Netscape 6/7.
The GPL is why Linux is more popular than BSD.
More popular among Linux geeks perhaps. The BSDL has made BSD more popular with almost everybody else who cares about things like this. It’s why you’ll find BSD code in everything from Windows, Mac OS X, Solaris, and yes, even Linux itself.
First time I read the headline I thought it said “eliminate” ( I do that sometimes), I said “riiiiiiiight..”
Solaris will have to branch out to about 259 different active versions if it intends to emulate Linux. They might be better off splitting into 3 large “flavors” and try emulating BSD; it’d be more realistic to hit that number.
“The BSDL has made BSD more popular with almost everybody else who cares about things like this. It’s why you’ll find BSD code in everything from Windows, Mac OS X, Solaris”
the total value hasnt increased because of this. allowing everything to use bsd license makes it a weak license. its anarchic.
the total value hasnt increased because of this.
The GPL has essentially closed GPL’d code off from the rest of the world. Yeah, you can use it if you’re also a GPL’d project, but the real beauty of the BSDL is that it empowers everyone who has the skills and desire to use it, and doesn’t play favorites, it doesn’t discriminate.
I should have said ‘incorporate it,’ instead of ‘using it.’
bsd is close to public domain and anarchic. gpl intents to create a software commons pool. bsd is free for all and no restrictions.
I just love it when you talk nonsense. BSD is everywhere, and therefore it is the ‘commons’ of which you speak. GPL’d code has isolated itself from everyone else and it’s really a shame that you just cannot see past the misinformation that RMS has been spreading for the past twenty years.
(I am not against the GPL. I’m against the idea that it’s more free than it really is. I hate that people have turned an interesting idea into a misleading religion.)
” just love it when you talk nonsense. BSD is everywhere, and therefore it is the ‘commons’ of which you speak. GPL’d code has isolated itself from everyone else and it’s really a shame that you just cannot see past the misinformation that RMS has been spreading for the past twenty years. ”
buddy. read what i said properly. i said software commons pool. which means contributing back to what you took from. bsd doesnt require that. what if its everywhere?. keep rms away from this. he is just advocating what he believes. if you dont specify why. dont attack people. argue with your own ideas. basics of discussions 101
“I hate that people have turned an interesting idea into a misleading religion.)”
how a license is termed as a religion by you is beyond me. it can be called political or idealogical never religious. call it that is plain silly.
buddy
I’m not your buddy. You’ve not said a single interesting thing in the entire time I’ve been unfortunate enough to experience your uninformed ramblings.
read what i said properly. i said software commons pool. which means contributing back to what you took from. bsd doesnt require that. what if its everywhere?
Ubiquity counts for something. This code has come to bennefit more than just a small group of people who develop and used the original code. And people damned well do contribute back to it, why do you think it’s where it is today? Magic?
keep rms away from this. he is just advocating what he believes.
So am I, but I guess I’m not allowed because I’m not a GPL freak.
if you dont specify why. dont attack people. argue with your own ideas.
I am arguing my own ideas. You think I’m arguing someone else’s? Please. Get a clue.
”
Ubiquity counts for something. This code has come to bennefit more than just a small group of people who develop and used the original code. And people damned well do contribute back to it, why do you think it’s where it is today? Magic?
”
ubiquity is not commons. people develop contribute to it not those Microsoft or others who have taken code and never contributed back. everyone contributing is called commons.
so again ubiquity!= commons.
bye
ubiquity is not commons. people develop contribute to it not those Microsoft or others who have taken code and never contributed back. everyone contributing is called commons.
But “everyone” isn’t contributing to this commons of yours, because the GPL prevents them from doing as they wish with the code, greatly diminishing their interest in having anything to do with it.
so again GPL != Free.
bye
And yet you’re still here…
“But “everyone” isn’t contributing to this commons of yours, because the GPL prevents them from doing as they wish with the code, greatly diminishing their interest in having anything to do with it.
so again GPL != Free.
”
i have told you before. gpl is free as in freedom for the user not giving away code. free as in free country. are you going to tell me that because people cant do whatever they want in any part of the world that the world is non free. thats laughable. get lost
“bye
And yet you’re still here…
”
again you have already accepted this as a reasonable way to end the conversation. so shut up