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The Interbase Developer Initiative is a merging of groups determined to ensure that the development of Interbase under open source will proceed in the best conditions possible to protect its high technical quality and guarantee its growth.
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| Sign up to indicate your special interests as an InterBase source code developer |
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| NOTE that the binaries on this site are NOT the full release. We will get them as soon as they are available. Until then, just help yourself from the Inprise site. Downloading is fast and free! |
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What's Happening with InterBase? ?
The community's activity since the July 25 opening of the InterBase sources has been frenetic. Within 24 hours, a source code tree was up. By the end of the first weekend, the Firebird project on SourceForge began. Since then, projects have sprouted from every quarter, as the community launched into the initial wetting of hands.
Unwilling to wait for Inprise to resolve difficulties resulting from the breakdown of negotiations to spin off a support company for OS InterBase?, open source coders set up their Firebird tree as a workshop repository for initial work on platform builds, new ports and tools developments.
Please go to the Projects page for details of projects and coordinators.
Details of the Firebird tree are here.
Meanwhile, Inprise staff have populated another tree at SourceForge - the InterBase project. We will post more news when information becomes available. A merger of the trees is hoped for, once Inprise clarifies its intentions regarding the future conduct of the development process.
Discussions on aspects of the code are flowing freely in IB-build, a mail list/newsgroup set up by Robert Schieck of Mer Systems. More generalized discussion continues in the IB-Architect list at egroups.com.
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ISC Becomes "NewCo" Again
The sudden failure at the end of July of Inprise plans for the spin-off company does not mean the end for our community-driven company.
Because of brand usage prohibitions, the company has temporarily reverted to the nickname "NewCo" until a new company name registration comes through. Ann Harrison and a steering group of fellow IBDI members are working intensely on alternative plans to get the new support company under way and cover the shortcoming of available technical support as quickly as possible.
Ann Harrison is on vacation at present - a working holiday to develop the revised business model. She is communicating actively with the rest of the Steering Committee. The indications are very positive. A necessary part of this process is to supply good estimates of the likely market for paid support, which will provide the company's initial revenue. During the week, Ann posted this catch-up message through the community list forums:
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Ann Harrison
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I want to see InterBase (tm) succeed, not only as an open source project, but also as a reliable, cross-platform database for which users can get top-quality support and new releases that address their needs. I believe firmly in Open Source as the model for software development and distribution in the coming decade. The products that succeed, however, require infrastructure (i.e. people, equipment, high speed lines, etc.) Successful Open Source products must appeal to commercial software developers, people who want a tool to do a job - not a kit for making tools.
To that end, I'm trying to build a business around InterBase(TM). The first step is to determine whether there is a business - no venture angel is going to jump in and give us the money to start marketing in hopes that we'll sell support contracts sometime maybe. We need proof of concept, now.
Starting an organization that can provide excellent support and leadership in product development will not be cheap and I will not start unless I believe it can succeed. We are looking for a total of $500K (US) in contracts - not purchase orders, but a commitment that if the number is reached so we can promise you the services, that you are in the market for services.
Sorry to be so blunt.
Best regards, Ann
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Contact the Community Company Steering Group:
Support contracts:
Investment opportunities:
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InterBase Developer's Handbook
Goes on Hold
During the week, author-editor Helen Borrie announced to the translators' committee that progress on the book would be stopped for a few weeks, until confidence returned to the commercial community and it would once more become possible to secure the necessary sponsorship for the project.
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TOP OF PAGE
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Visit the IB official site and catch up with the new features - Research Center, late-breaking news on rapid changes, feedback opportunities, community contacts
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GALLERY
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The InterBase WebRing now has more than a dozen sites of interest to InterBase developers and customers.
Use the links at the foot of this page to follow these up.
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