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FSG, OSDL Collaborate On Enterprise Linux Standards

The Free Standards Group (FSG), a nonprofit organization dedicated to developing and promoting open source software standards, and the Open Source Development Labs (OSDL), a global consortium dedicated to accelerating the adoption of Linux in the enterprise, announced a collaboration to accelerate enterprise adoption of the Linux Standard Base (LSB) with new services to support software vendors developing applications for Linux.

"At OSDL, we realize a standard for Linux is an essential component of Linux's continued success in the enterprise," said Stuart Cohen, CEO of OSDL. "The Free Standards Group is leading that standard with the announcement of LSB 2.0. We are pleased to work with the FSG to further extend and test the standard in enterprise settings. Our two organizations are united behind one goal -- accelerating the adoption of Linux."

The two organizations already work closely with Linux distribution and independent software vendors. FSG partnered with OSDL on a new open project called the OSDL Working Set that aims to identify and quantify the most commonly-deployed packages with Linux in enterprise production environments. FSG also helped create the conference program for the upcoming January OSDL Enterprise Linux Summit in Burlingame, Calif. At this Summit, FSG will conduct a tutorial on developing LSB 2.0 compliant applications.

"OSDL has a four-year track record of helping make Linux more enterprise-ready," said Jim Zemlin, executive director of the Free Standards Group. "We are thrilled to partner with them on bolstering support and services behind standards for Linux. Their facilities, staff and knowledge of enterprise Linux will only make the LSB more powerful and more accessible to Linux software vendors."

With this announcement, the two organizations are combining some efforts to further the adoption of Linux. OSDL will provide infrastructure and outreach support staff to software vendors who are writing LSB-compliant applications for Linux.

The Free Standards Group will work with OSDL to capture their feedback and enterprise requirements for future releases of the specification. In addition, OSDL and FSG will work together in Europe, Asia/Pac and the Americas to expand memberships of both organizations.