Open Source

Quite a chunk of open-source software, including Drupal, is dependent on MySQL for its database back-end. So it's kind of unsettling, to say the least, when the ownership of this free software passes into the hands of its main commercial competitor, Oracle. As Ryan Paul over at Ars Technica explains:

Oracle's recent move to acquire Sun has placed the responsibility for advancing MySQL development into the hands of the project's most prominent competitor. The move is of deep concern to MySQL stakeholders and has created some uncertainty about the future of the popular open source database system.

The article goes on to discuss an interesting alliance of MySQL developers whose purpose is to "insulate MySQL from Oracle's competitive interests by giving the collective MySQL community enough leverage to control the project's destiny." More here...