The recently released Who Writes Linux kernel contributor list reveals that some of the usual supporters of Linux — Red Hat, SUSE, IBM, Intel, Oracle — remain firmly behind the open source OS.
There has also been a lot of attention on the other contributors, which now include Microsoft. What I find most fascinating about the Linux contributor list — beyond the increasing rate of code change, with some 10,000 patches from 1,000 developers representing 200 companies in each quarterly kernel release — is the new direction and potential of the processor players.
Pushing Performance, Saving Power
ARM processor technology, which promises to deliver improved performance with increasingly critical power savings, is one example of significant kernel activity and involvement from contributors who are leaders in their respective parts of the industry.
They include Analog Devices, Broadcom, Freescale, Fujitsu, Marvell, Nokia, Qualcomm, Texas Instruments, and Wind River.
These vendors are focused on ARM and other processor technologies that are pushing performance while saving power and space. It is a healthy sign for Linux that so many are so intimately involved in advancing the Linux kernel and its communities.
Other interesting players on the latest list include Samsung, which may be among those to benefit most from deeper Android developer support and integration into the Linux kernel, as well as cloud computing and HPC players such as NetApp and Parallels that are leveraging Linux in their strategies and technology development.
Microsoft’s Place
Of course, there was quite a bit of attention on Microsoft’s appearance among the top 20 Linux kernel contributors. I’ve already made the case that Microsoft is among the broadest supporters of Linux in the industry, so it’s not too surprising to see Microsoft among the top contributors to Linux.
While this may seem antithetical to the Microsoft known for badmouthing Linux and for limiting it on the desktop and in mobile devices, Microsoft appreciates that it can win more customers and satisfaction by supporting Linux alongside Windows and other Microsoft technologies.
Microsoft’s moves with Linux and open source today are typically customer-driven and in the interest of both Microsoft and its customers. Linux vendors, as well as popular server automation frameworks such as Chef and Puppet, are also increasing their support for Windows and other Microsoft technologies as they move further and deeper into the mainstream enterprise market.
To Canonical’s Credit
Whenever the Linux contributor report comes out, there is typically some focus on those who use the Linux kernel code but do not appear on its list of core contributors.
One of the most frequent names to come up in this regard is Canonical, the backer of the popular Ubuntu distribution. For its part, Canonical provides some of the icing on the Linux cake.
This may not seem important to some kernel hackers and open-source software developers who feel that Canonical should appropriately and proportionately contribute actual code and developer hours to Linux. There is validity to the criticism, and Canonical would likely benefit from a greater investment and contribution at the kernel level.
However, I’ve always thought that Ubuntu and Canonical have done quite a bit to expand the ecosystem and market for Linux, which used to be practically unusable on the desktop. By aspiring to a better, easier, and more polished UI, Ubuntu has lifted other Linux distributions and their UIs along with it, in my opinion.
Again, this does not absolve Canonical of the responsibility to engage in upstream kernel work and contribution, and the company stands to gain more than it loses by putting resources toward Linux.
Still, Canonical deserves credit for its contributions that are critical to an important but frequently overlooked party: users.
Another overlooked contribution from Canonical is its solid community management and release schedule. The Linux kernel and its backers announced a Long-Term Support Initiative at the end of 2011.
Designed to provide a more stable, predictable base for developers, particularly those in the embedded space, this initiative follows a paradigm Ubuntu set more than five years ago with its release of a Long Term Support version, which continues in parallel with more regular, semiannual releases.
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In your article seem to equivocate on Canonical’s responsibility to FOSS:
You state repeatedly that Canonical should contribute more resources to the kernel, in spite of the following:
"[…] I’ve always thought Ubuntu and Canonical have done quite a bit in expanding the ecosystem and market for Linux, which used to be practically unusable on the desktop. By aspiring to a better, easier and more polished UI, Ubuntu has lifted other Linux distributions and their UIs along with it, in my opinion."
Given that, why should Canonical contribute more to the kernel?