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Massachusetts Backs Off OSS Pledge | |
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| Time: 12:22 EST/17:22 GMT | News Source: WinInformant | Posted By: Robert Stein | ||
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After talking big about dropping proprietary software and moving to open-source software (OSS) solutions, the state of Massachusetts finalized its IT acquisition policy this week and says it will concentrate on open standards rather than OSS. The difference is hardly subtle: A move to OSS would have been extremely damaging to the state's current software suppliers, most notably Microsoft, which has set up itself as the poster child for proprietary software. Now, because the company has been pushing its move to open standards for years, Microsoft will likely continue to be the primary benefactor of Massachusetts' software purchases. | ||
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| #1 By 19992 (68.69.127.171) at 1/17/2004 11:59:59 AM |
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Interesting, absolutely wrong, but interesting. The official policy of Mass was never to go Open Source all the way. Someone (I think the attorny general) made some comments about moving away from closed software, but last time I checked attorney generals have no involvement in determining the goals of the I.T department in any state.
ClosedStandards - You could not be more wrong. This is not a crushing blow for Linux nor is it the end of Linux. This has nothing to do with Linux per se. Open Source does not begin and end with Linux. Have you ever looked at a page that uses PHP? Guess what, that's open source. Of course the server is probably running Apache (open source). The question I would have about this, is if they are going open standards, isn't that going to make using AD a bit difficult? If I recall correctly Windows AD is not an open standard and their DNS implementation (this may have changed with 2K3) definately does not adhere to published standards. This is intended as an actual question, not a troll.... |
| #2 By 135 (208.186.90.91) at 1/17/2004 2:17:42 PM |
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happyguy - I'm curious why you think their DNS implementation does not adhere to the published standards. Considering Microsoft helped write the RFC's for DDNS that was introduced in Win2k I find that hard to believe.
And I would disagree. It is a crushing blow for Linux. Linux may still survive, but it means that the people promoting it are going to have to work harder, actually promote it based on the qualities of good software instead of enforced through legislation. |
| #3 By 19992 (68.69.127.171) at 1/18/2004 12:16:32 AM |
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#13
I'm curious why you think their DNS implementation does not adhere to the published standards. Considering Microsoft helped write the RFC's for DDNS that was introduced in Win2k I find that hard to believe. DNS names are restricted to the characters A to Z, digits, and the hyphen(-). The first character of a DNS label can be either a letter or a digit according to RFC 1123. Microsoft's machine naming is based on Netbios names which supports a much wider character set including curly braces ({}), the underscore (_), and the exclamation mark (!) among others. AND And I would disagree. It is a crushing blow for Linux. Linux may still survive, but it means that the people promoting it are going to have to work harder, actually promote it based on the qualities of good software instead of enforced through legislation. Once again, it wasn't being enforced through legislation in this case (it may have been in others, I don't know). Linux will not be crushed by this deal, no more than MS will be crushed by the Munich deal. To state otherwise really doesn't count as anything more than wishful thinking. #14 At least one Senator in Massachussetts disagrees with you: And the people who are at the heart of the "controversy" disagree with him. Massachusetts will focus initially on open standards to increase interoperability of systems, upgrade legacy systems and cut costs before considering open-source software or systems, said Eric Kriss, Massachusetts' administration and finance secretary. "We want to put more focus on thinking about where open-source products can fill some of our needs. That does not mean we are kicking out proprietary products," Kriss told Washington Technology. Massachusetts wants to gradually begin using products whose standards are not proprietary to a company and are open to peer review, Kriss said. With this approach, standards such as HTTP , XML and SSL might form the basic underpinning of the state's infrastructure, he said. "[Massachusetts] officials are really saying that they are going to be 'considering' open source and using it where they can," Gregg Kreizman, director of public-sector research for market research firm Gartner Inc. said. "This is prudent. They are not requiring the use of open source, which would be going overboard right now." Kriss is trying to allay vendors' fears. Many large organizations, including federal and local governments, are thinking through the future evolution of their infrastructure and weighing the use of open source and standards, he said. "We're not doing anything new. But we are trying to press forward in more of a top-down consolidation vision, making sure that these standards are in place rather than doing it in a random, decentralized pattern," he said. "And we're carefully evaluating open-source standards, rather than treating them like someone's stepchild they had forgotten." http://www.washingtontechnology.com/news/18_15/security/22000-1.html And from the article you linked to. As for Secretary Kriss, he has complained that his comments have been misinterpreted causing a misunderstanding. Late last year(2003), he met with members of the Massachusetts Software Council to explain his IT policies. Members attending the meeting said Kriss allayed their fears on the issue. The Software Council has not taken a public stance on the issue. This post was edited by happyguy on Sunday, January 18, 2004 at 12:13. |
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