Canonical, maker of the Ubuntu Linux Distribution, has joined the Linux Foundation. Canonical has advanced Linux on both the desktop and server and should be a good fit for the Linux Foundation, dedicated to accelerating the growth of Linux. Canonical supports several other open-source projects including Bazaar, Storm and Upstart, and by joining, it should be able to support and benefit from other Linux community members in the Linux Foundation, including IBM, Novell, Oracle, Intel, Red Hat and VMware.
Canonical, maintainer of the Ubuntu Linux distribution, has joined the Linux
Foundation, the nonprofit organization dedicated to accelerating the growth of
Linux.
By joining, Canonical can both contribute to and benefit from the foundation
that features many of the Linux community's leading companies as members,
Canonical and Linux Foundation officials said.
"Joining the Linux Foundation is an indication of our growing presence
within both Linux and the wider open-source community, particularly in the
enterprise space," said Andrew Rodaway, director of marketing for
Canonical. "We believe that Ubuntu is gaining traction in enterprise
deployments at the server level as well as on the desktop, and it's good for us
to have ways to communicate this."
Amanda McPherson, vice president of marketing and developer programs at the
Linux Foundation, told eWEEK, "I think it is significant that Canonical is
joining the Linux Foundation. They have been involved closely with us since the
inception of the foundation. They participate in the Linux Standard Base, for
instance; they attend our Collaboration Summits, and Mark Shuttleworth [founder
and CEO of Canonical] is on the board as an
individual member. By officially joining they are putting resources behind our
work, and, more than anything, showing they value that work."
Not only is Canonical the commercial sponsor of Ubuntu, but the company
supports several other open-source projects, including Bazaar, Storm and Upstart.
However, Ubuntu has become a popular choice for the server and desktop as well
as for the rapidly emerging areas of "netbooks" and mobile Internet
devices.
What does Canonical bring to the Linux Foundation table? "We have a
huge, global user base and tremendous backing from our community, who
ultimately make Ubuntu possible," Rodaway said. "These people have a
strong voice and their advocacy around the world is driving Linux adoption at
all levels, from mobile devices to the cloud."
Moreover, "Membership gives us a voice within a key influencing
organization and visibility to the growing corporate membership of the
foundation," Rodaway said. "We see acceptance of Linux in major
corporations and public sector organizations accelerating, and the Foundation
is doing a great job in supporting that."
Matt Zimmerman, CTO of the Ubuntu project
at Canonical, chairs the Ubuntu Technical Board and leads all engineering
efforts for the distribution.
"The Linux Foundation occupies a critical, noncommercial function in
the use and popularization of Linux around the world. We've always seen the
Linux Foundation's value and are pleased to now become an official member and
support its activities," Zimmerman said in a statement. "We look
forward to working with them to continue the march of Linux in all areas of
computing."
Ubuntu community members have been active participants in a variety of
workgroups at the Foundation, including the Linux Standard Base, Desktop
Architects and Driver Backport groups. With Canonical's support, user interests
for both commercial and community versions of Ubuntu will be represented.
"There is no question that the Ubuntu distribution has advanced the
state of Linux on the desktop," McPherson said. "Their focus on
usability and branding is being felt throughout the industry. We're very
pleased to work more closely with them on neutral, industry and communitywide
initiatives. "
Jim Zemlin, executive director of the Linux
Foundation, said in a statement, "Canonical is an important new member for
the Linux Foundation. Matt and his team have created an exciting distribution
that has taken the world by storm. They have rallied the cause of
cross-industry, cross-community collaboration for years. We are extremely
pleased to work even more closely with Canonical as we push Linux to the next
stage of growth."
Darryl K. Taft covers the development tools and developer-related issues beat from his office in Baltimore. He has more than 10 years of experience in the business and is always looking for the next scoop. Taft is a member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and was named 'one of the most active middleware reporters in the world' by The Middleware Co. He also has his own card in the 'Who's Who in Enterprise Java' deck.
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