An up-to-date look at free software and its makers

PROJECTS ON THE MOVE

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Split-ups, disputes, and flame wars repeatedly ripple through the open source community. So far, forks have benefitted the community, as illustrated by the reunion of Compiz and Beryl in the Compiz Fusion project.

The open source community is a virtual community in which opposites meet: large enterprises that earn money with free software on the one side and idealists who view the free software development model as a new paradigm for society on the other. In between lies developers with different motivations and diverse cultural, social, and geographical backgrounds.