Open Source: Not just for software anymore

An interesting article by Michael Kochanik on how open source development concepts can be applied to SOA practices. I like to read articles like this one because it is exploring the area where I think open source is going to have the biggest impact...process engineering. As much core technical value there is in the software created by the open source community [applications, frameworks, libraries, operating systems, etc. Just as much, if not more value can be found by applying the dynamics of community oriented software development to other areas, not just in IT related fields but any realistic situation.

When we provide advisory services about open source to our clients, we always stress the word dynamics. The reason for doing so, is that a great deal of very smart people don't really understand the characteristics of open source enough to grasp the unseen forces which drive it. Oftentimes they think open source is just magically created, tested and deployed. So I  spend a lot of time educating them on a lot of things that goes into a creating and releasing successful open source software. This oftentimes keeps their expectations about the future direction of the project in line. I have been surprised more times than not at how understanding some of the subtle aspects of the open source development model can cause a client to immediately adjust his/her expectations.

Therefore, we always make it a point to emphasize the fact that there is a whole different set of motivations, approaches, and influences that shape the individuals who constitute open source communities and who ultimately create the software in question. Its by no means an assembly line where people sign up to mindlessly write code that will be distributed free of cost to the user.

This article makes light of that fact by pointing out the processes and procedures that define open source as we know it today. It also talks about how a great deal of those processes and procedures that work for geographically disparate open source development teams can work for those endeavoring to bring about an SOA for their enterprise. I agree with this premise although I think it holds more so true for larger companies and not across the board. Most small to medium size businesses will take a grassroots approach to SOA which won't require a lot of the defined processes stated in the article. Things will be a lot more ad-hoc and patch-as-you-go instead of well-defined and process based. 

Nonetheless, the article still touches on key points such as:

• The need for central code sharing.
• The need for true re-usability across domains.
• Cross firewall collaboration within and external to a company..
• Strong project governance.

As was stated in the article all of the above are issues that can be addressed using open source methodologies. However, the question is whether an organization has the know-how about open source to counter them with the according solution. Unfortunately, very few people within the open source community are capable of applying the methodologies towards the success of an open source project (there are far more disorganized, unfocused open source projects than you would think). Meaning someone outside of the community would have an even harder time applying those methodologies to an entirely different area (SOA).

I am experiencing a very similar situation with an open research & analysis project, called Seneca, that I am coordinating. Its not the easiest thing to apply a given methodology to a totally different subject from the one for which it was developed.  And I have had more than one experience as an open source project owner and as a developer so I have a huge advantage on a great deal of people. It would be all that much more difficult for someone who has no hands-on experience with open source.

However, I still think that the idea behind this article is very good. What would make it all the more appealing is if people who are involved with applying open source development methodologies to other types of projects are able to get together and pool their experiences into written material that could be used as a guide for similar endeavors.

Right now I have begun to log my experiences as owner of Seneca so I can publish it every week, and so others can get a transparent look at the project and the challenges (potential and real) that I face from week to week. Stay tuned.

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