Can Mozilla be bigger than Facebook?

Mozilla has made a name for itself by taking on Microsoft Internet Explorer in the browser market, claiming as much as 30 percent of the global market with its open-source Firefox browser. Mozilla's second act, however, promises to be much more difficult, with increased competition from Microsoft but also from open-source competitors like Google Chrome.

What should Mozilla do next?

"More of the same" probably isn't going to cut it for the open-source foundation. Though Mozilla's progress is admirable (and, in some ways, amazing), it's also "an anomaly," as Mozilla executive Mitchell Baker has opined, … Read more

Apple's free pass with the iPad

For years, Microsoft set the agenda for anything and everything related to personal computers. Linux tried, and largely failed, to make a dent in the Windows hegemony. Back then even Apple couldn't get past the infallible "But it's not like Windows!" argument.

In recent years Apple has created its own reality distortion field, similar to the one created by Microsoft, by virtue of a steady stream of winning, innovative products.

Sure, people still say "But it's not like Windows," but now they mean that as a reason to use Apple products, rather than … Read more

IBM patent claims show open source has arrived

At least no one can accuse IBM of playing favorites when it comes to open source.

IBM, a longtime defender and advocate of open-source software, took a shot over the bow of the open-source community in March when it sent a cease-and-desist letter to the company behind the OpenHercules open-source project.

Has Dr. Jekyll IBM just met its Mr. Hyde?

On March 11, 2010, Mark Anzani, vice president and chief technology officer within IBM's System z business unit, sent TurboHercules a letter asserting its patents against the OpenHercules open-source project. In it Anzani expresses surprise that TurboHercules wouldn't … Read more

Apple's iPad: A beginning, not end, to innovation

Cory Doctorow believes the iPad signals an end to innovation. It doesn't. Apple's iPad actually points to a beginning of innovation in personal computing.

Where Doctorow and I likely agree, however, is that such innovation won't come within the confines of Apple's beautiful iPad device, but rather at its margins.

Doctorow writes:

I believe--really believe--in the stirring words of the Maker Manifesto: if you can't open it, you don't own it. Screws not glue. The original Apple ][+ came with schematics for the circuit boards, and birthed a generation of hardware and software hackers who … Read more

When will cloud computing start raining cash?

Open-source cloud vendor Eucalyptus is rumored to be raising venture money at a $100 million valuation. Meanwhile, an Under The Radar conference dubbed "Commercializing the Cloud" is set for mid-April at which a host of new start-ups will talk about how they're set to shake the clouds free of billions of dollars in sales.

It can't come soon enough. For all the talk about cloud computing, the business of cloud computing is still in its infancy.

When will it grow up?

There's no shortage of exceptionally cool cloud technology. The most recent company to get … Read more

Apple: Simplicity taken too far?

Innovation gets the headlines, but it's ease-of-use that dominates markets. From Microsoft to Apple to Google, the key to making billions is very simple: the easier technology is to use, the more people will buy it, provided the price is right.

Microsoft became the biggest software company in the world by creating an ecosystem of software that works well together. Google has upped the ante by reducing complex algorithms to a simple box that yields everything from search results to FedEx shipment tracking to...you name it. Just Google it.

Apple, however, takes ease-of-use to an entirely new level, … Read more

Mickos: What's bigger than open source?

When Marten Mickos resigned from Sun Microsystems after selling MySQL to Sun for $1 billion, I asked him what he was going to do next. He answered with a question, "What's bigger than open source?" and then suggested that his search for an answer would lead him to his next job.

One year later, Mickos has rejoined the open-source world...but not really.

As the new CEO of open-source cloud vendor Eucalyptus, Mickos isn't looking to merely mimic his MySQL success. This isn't Open-Source Start-up Part II.

Rather, Mickos wants to reach for the clouds, … Read more

Bad economy is a gift that keeps giving to Red Hat

Someone should tell Red Hat that the world has been muddling through a global recession for the past few years. While others' earnings went into a deep freeze throughout the recession, Red Hat has consistently posted strong numbers.

Red Hat's fiscal fourth-quarter 2010 earnings, announced on Wednesday, are no different. Does the company ever get bored of reporting double-digit growth and record billings?

Apparently not.

Red Hat notched its fourth consecutive quarter of exceeding analyst expectations for profits. Highlights from Red Hat's earnings include:

$195.9 million in total revenue, up 18 percent from the year ago quarter. … Read more

Microsoft's mobile strategy should learn from Android

Microsoft just closed the door on Firefox development for its new Windows Phone 7 Series. It didn't overtly discriminate against Firefox developers. Instead, it did what we increasingly see platform owners like Apple do:

Microsoft set up rigid development parameters that favor its own technology over alternative approaches.

I don't think Microsoft did this because it's evil. I suspect it simply wants to create an Apple-like experience where everything "just works" because the experience is tightly controlled.

But that doesn't make the decision wise. And it's not actually consistent with Microsoft's past, … Read more