July 30, 2009 Linux 0

Read this site:

Planet CentOS.

It turns out the CentOS project is under the control of one person and that person has decided to disappear..for over a year.  All monies that got donated did not go to CentOS but to the founding individual.  This type of thing can happen anywhere but this type of thing is what gives anti-open source folks tons of ammunition.  They may have to rename the project or merge with another one.  I will be watching developments as they unfold.  I personally am now researching other distros to migrate to since I can no longer be assured of the stability or longevity of CentOS.


*UPDATE*

I have been following the mailing list as well you can find the mailing list entries here.

*UPDATe 2*

the following was posted on the sidebar of the centos homepage:

  • CentOS is not dead or going away. The signers of the Open Letter are fully committed to continue the CentOS Project. Updates and new releases will continue.
  • The issues raised in the Open Letter have been raised privately literally for years and a voluntary resolution had been hoped for and worked toward. But progress requires follow through. We have tried contacting Lance in private for a long period of time before this Open Letter. While we received promises, there was no real response or follow through from him on promises made. We are sure he is not dead, on vacation, or sick. Once we all decided there was no movement in the matter we created the Open Letter. This is not something that appeared just recently.
  • We would really like to continue the project using the centos.org domain. That is one of the reasons for the Open Letter. But the developers will move to another domain if there is no other option. Protective backups are in place; hot machines exist to allow for a cutover with a simple one time installation of one RPM package. We continue to refine our plans if this might be the case, to make the transition as smooth as possible.
  • We thank the people who have stepped forward and want to donate to the CentOS project to hold off for now until issues surrounding the centos.org domain and donation policy are resolved. Selected donations will be privately solicited by the signers of the Open Letter on some transition matters. We will post general instructions on how you can help the project as matters become resolved.
  • The CentOS project is run completely by volunteers and we are aware that this requires a different management style. We have been and continue to work to prevent issues like these from occurring in the future. We will continue this effort in the future, but the matters mentioned in the Open Letter prevent us from moving forward at this moment, as they need to be resolved first.