I asked Jim Zemlin -- the Linux Foundation boss -- about Microsoft and if he ever could have predicted this would happen. He just laughed, but I could tell he enjoyed the irony too.
The Linux Foundation handles the Linux kernel, so they have a good track record in that regard. They also have worked on some less-successful (but very well-managed) initiatives like Meego and now Tizen.
The members are big corporations and as a result, the auditing process and outlay of funds isn't something I'd be concerned with.
The greater (potential) concern would be over how the corporate sponsors could influence a project. Zemlin assured me that the SOP is not to interfere with existing operational structures or governances of a project -- so they wouldn't have any impact on how the OSF is run, for instance -- and certainly, in the case of the Linux kernel, corporate sponsorship hasn't dictated Linus's direction of the project.
That said, I think the level of influence a corporation could have over a project is probably directly related to how a project is initially structured. Tizen, as an example, is in partnership with the Linux Foundation, but is largely led by Samsung and Intel. That's totally fine, and was that way by design.
I would be concerned about projects that might not have strong leaders (like Linus). Of course, one could argue that if that's the case, the project might have bigger problems than being co-opted by other entities.
There was time ,maybe a year back, where Microsoft turned out to be one of the Top contributors to Linux Kernel. They had to fix some issue on Linux kernel to run on HyperV
There was time ,maybe a year back, where Microsoft turned out to be one of the Top contributors to Linux Kernel. They had to fix some issue on Linux kernel to run on HyperV
Let's be very clear on this subject, though: Microsoft was doing it for their own benefit. It wasn't altruism.
The Linux Foundation handles the Linux kernel, so they have a good track record in that regard. They also have worked on some less-successful (but very well-managed) initiatives like Meego and now Tizen.
The members are big corporations and as a result, the auditing process and outlay of funds isn't something I'd be concerned with.
The greater (potential) concern would be over how the corporate sponsors could influence a project. Zemlin assured me that the SOP is not to interfere with existing operational structures or governances of a project -- so they wouldn't have any impact on how the OSF is run, for instance -- and certainly, in the case of the Linux kernel, corporate sponsorship hasn't dictated Linus's direction of the project.
That said, I think the level of influence a corporation could have over a project is probably directly related to how a project is initially structured. Tizen, as an example, is in partnership with the Linux Foundation, but is largely led by Samsung and Intel. That's totally fine, and was that way by design.
I would be concerned about projects that might not have strong leaders (like Linus). Of course, one could argue that if that's the case, the project might have bigger problems than being co-opted by other entities.