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The Most Influential People In Open Source

Posted by Soulskill on from the surprising-lack-of-beards dept.

mmaney writes "As part of its 2009 open source best practices research, MindTouch asked C and VP level open source executives who they thought are the most influential people in the industry today. The list is ranked by the effect these individuals have had on the open source industry. Over 50 votes from executives in Europe and North America were cast. There were a few surprises from outside of the open source industry. Steve Ballmer got a mention because of his negative remarks on the open source industry and its subsequent positive impact. Vivek Kundra was mentioned because of his contributions to the industry inside the US Federal Government. Notably absent, however, are any influential women." Relatedly, Matt Asay (who is also on the list) writes about the decreased need for open-source evangelism, noting that several people on the list are there "not because they're open-source cheerleaders, but because they have helped vendors and customers alike understand how to get the most from open-source investments."

8 of 189 comments (clear)

  1. WTF? by jcr · · Score: 4, Insightful

    How can these people be "influential" when nobody's ever heard of them?

    -jcr

    --
    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
    1. Re:WTF? by epiphani · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I think they were shooting for influential in business, in relation to open source. Still, I think they missed their mark considerably.

      There are plenty of people we would all recognize that should be on a list of influential on open source.

      --
      .
  2. Fifty votes from "executives"? by jcr · · Score: 4, Insightful

    So, no votes from anyone who's actually, you know, writing any open source code?

    -jcr

    --
    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
    1. Re:Fifty votes from "executives"? by jcr · · Score: 5, Insightful

      it is the business side of the company that matters the most.

      That's the kind of thinking that destroys companies.

      -jcr

      --
      The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
  3. Linus Torvalds is missing.... by Ritz_Just_Ritz · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I'd say he's still fairly influential in the open source community.

  4. Re:My Open Source Hero: John C. Randolph by jcr · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Well, thanks, but I don't see how my experience with NeXTSTEP and the Mac make me any kind of hero, let alone an "open source hero". I've given a little bit of code away in my time, but it's not like it's any kind of mission I'm on.

    As for GnuStep, it's a nice try, but once Apple and NeXT merged and the danger of NeXTSTEP vanishing altogether was alleviated, that really took the wind out of GnuStep's sails. The Linux crowd doesn't care about it, and the Mac crowd doesn't need it.

    they should be focusing on replicating the NeXT/Apple experience.

    I have to disagree with you on that. Trying to match any existing system is shooting too low. I remember when Visix was very proud of bringing "the Mac level of UI to UNIX" back around 1987 or so. I interviewed with them, and told them that unless they were looking to substantially exceed what the Mac offered, they shouldn't bother.

    What I'd love to see happen with the Linux desktop is some serious re-thinkng of how a UI should be done. Trying to make it like Windows is tragic, and trying to make it like the Mac is just never going to be good enough.

    -jcr

    --
    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
  5. Re:My Open Source Hero: John C. Randolph by pherthyl · · Score: 4, Insightful

    >> What I'd love to see happen with the Linux desktop is some serious re-thinkng of how a UI should be done.

    Why? The UI is more or less a solved problem, sort of like the controls of a car. Yes there are some minor innovations here and there. Someone adds some taskbar effects or a nicer way of moving through open windows, or someone adds a steering wheel control for the radio. These little tweaks will go on for a long time, but the basic idea of a desktop is a solved problem, and doesn't need re-inventing. Just like the car, where our standard design is almost perfect for most people, and all of the radical attempts at revamping it have failed because they offer no significant advantage.

    The desktop UI isn't going anywhere until we move away from our current interfaces. The next major step will happen when we're no longer tied to a keyboard/mouse combo. Until then why whinge about the state of the UI? It fits the application just fine.

  6. Top two "influencers" are MIndtouch board members. by Vellmont · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Take a quick look at the people in the article:

    http://www.mindtouch.com/blog/2009/10/27/most-influential-people-in-open-source/

    Now take a quick look at the people on their board (scroll to bottom).

    http://www.mindtouch.com/About_MindTouch
    Notice any two names and pictures in common, like say the top two ranked people in the article?

    Now, I guess you could think "Wow! these guys must really be a great company since they have the TOP TWO OSS influencers on their board!". A less naive person might have some other thoughts on that.

    This article is little more than marketing masquerading as news. It was written by the companies sales guy. The reason why nobody has ever heard of these people is that the article isn't about actual people of influence, it's an attempt to sell a product.

    --
    AccountKiller