What is the OpenSource policy for CML?
We intend to make robust, stable code available openly in an immutable form. Developers are free to build modules which interoperate with this code but not to change it. I believe that the current architecture allows this, through Java Patterns and similar approaches. Code requires a gestation period before it can be reasonably offered as Open. In some projects (e.g. Apache) the code is openly mounted and collaborators accept that nightly builds, etc. may have bugs. The success depends on the discipline and critical mass of the collaborators. Ideally this approach should be adopted for CML/JUMBO. However it proves much more difficult to get critical mass. Opening buggy code to the community can cause disillusionment and criticism, and the authors get flooded with calls for help. We have therefore created an “early adopter” policy where organisations and individuals can have access to later versions with greater functionality and access to the source code. See the section of development
