CentOS Project Administrator goes missing

[lim (x³-7x²) = ∞]

www.centos.org

On July 30, 2009, the developers of CentOS published an open letter on their website detailing their concerns about the future of the distribution. The letter cited the absence of Lance Davis from recent affairs as a problem that needs to be fixed. It states that the IRC channel and website are solely owned by Davis, which in their words is "not proper." The letter ends with a plea to Davis, saying that "clearly the project dies if all the developers walk away," and asking him to contact any of the signers of the letter as soon as possible.

http://linux.slashdot.org/story/09/0...ator-Goes-AWOL

[hitmancode47]

Lol,

Couldent they telephone him?

[unp]

They did, he didn't answer
Very irresponsible behaviour on his part.

[Razasharp]

Let's hope they resolve it. CentOS is one of the most used distros for servers.

[Dody]

I run my servers with centOS. I really hope they fix it, because I am not into shifting OS as I ran centOS for years now.

[Dean C]

I run my servers with centOS. I really hope they fix it, because I am not into shifting OS as I ran centOS for years now.

Did any of you even read the link?

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.

Nothing will change, other than maybe the domain.

[Dody]

Did any of you even read the link?

yes

Please do not kill CentOS through your fear of shared management of the project.

Clearly the project dies if all the developers walk away.

[Razasharp]

What he said ^^

[Razasharp]

An update:

Facts Regarding CentOS and the Open Letter to Lance Davis
# 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.

Last Update: July 30, 2009 20:45 UTC by Donavan

[Wayne Luke]

They'll just rename it the "2centOS" and move to a new domain. It is open source and linux though. The world will not suffer if we lose one of the several hundred linux distributions out there.

[Razasharp]

CentOS is probably the most used distro for servers - almost everyone I know with a webserver uses it, if it did die, it would be one of the few distros that would be sorely missed.

Must say I was never keen on the name !

[Wayne Luke]

CentOS is probably the most used distro for servers - almost everyone I know with a webserver uses it, if it did die, it would be one of the few distros that would be sorely missed.

And before Redhat Enterprise went commercial, everyone used it. They moved to CentOS when that happened. If CentOS dies then they will just move to the catchphrase distribution of the day that is dubbed its replacement. The cycle of Linux will continue. It doesn't have a fate that rests on a single distribution.

Besides, Debian and its derivatives has been gaining quite the server following lately.

[Razasharp]

Of course they did. Which is why CentOS is so special.
And of course people will find a new distro if they have to, thank flip for Linux eh!

It's just that CentOS is a very, very, very, good distro, and will very sorely be missed if it does go.

[Wayne Luke]

It's just that CentOS is a very, very, very, good distro, and will very sorely be missed if it does go.

It won't. It is opensource. The whole point is anyone can pick up the distribution and maintain it. Whether or not they keep the name is their choice.

Heck, you can take it and rename it "Razasharp's Super Awesome OS" and start distributing it today if you want. You can even combine it with the best parts of other popular distributions under opensource and distribute that.

[Razasharp]

Yes but it needs developers - if they decide it's too much hassle or whatever, and leave it, chances are it would die.

But I don't think that'll happen. Probably the worst is they'll change names - and I think that'll actually be good.