GOSCON 2010 opened with a general session; “Executive Open Data Roundtable: The State of Open Government“. The Roundtable featured state, city and federal leaders exploring the successes and challenges of the open government directive.

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It has been three and a half years since Software Tech News addressed the topic of Open Source Software (OSS). In that time, as Kane McLean writes in his article, “Military Open Source Community Growing”, its use in the Department of Defense (DoD) has grown significantly, widely adopted and implemented in a variety of systems.

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OSCON has become one of the most important places to make open source related announcements, and to unveil projects and products. Open source is a fundamental principle at the core of many established and emerging technologies, driving the future of the computer industry. At the O'Reilly OSCON,  the open source technologies that are here to stay are explored, along with what will broaden the foundation, and what will lead the way to unexpected places and innovations.  Watch selected OSCON 2012 videos posted ont YouTube.

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Nearly all publicly-available open source software (OSS) is commercial software.  Unfortunately, many government officials and contractors fail to understand this.  This misunderstanding can result in higher costs, longer delivery times, and reduced quality for government systems. Read More »

In the case of software industry standards, morphing transforms a written specification into working code through a mental process conducted internally by programmers and engineers. The end result – functional software – is a created outcome of human intellect that starts with a written specification and ends with a working implementation.

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Software is the fabric that enables planning, weapons and logistics systems to function: it might be the only infinitely renewable military resource. In particular, DoD must have a software environment that is easily adaptable to changing mission needs; this software must also evolve at lower cost and be delivered rapidly so it can be used when it is needed.

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This article summarizes when the U.S. federal government or its contractors may publicly release, as open source software (OSS), software developed with government funds.  This article is intended for non-lawyers, to help them understand the basic rules they must follow.

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This article lays out the basic framework for running an open technology development (OTD) project for the military.  The first section describes how to establish an OTD program once a project proposal has been accepted. The next sections discuss establishing a technical infrastructure for collaboration, communication issues, technical management/​technical criteria, and continuous delivery.   Much more information on how to do this from an open source software (OSS) project perspective can be found in subsequent chapters.

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Continua Health Alliance, an organization of 240-plus technology companies that are developing personal connected health solutions, has struck a "liaison agreement" with the Continental Automated Buildings Association (CABA). The liaison agreement will allow both organizations to benefit from CABA's collaborative research study, entitled "Aging in the Connected Home." The study will examine and determine potential home product, service and business opportunities based on the needs and expectations of the senior consumer market.

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What if open health data were to be harnessed to spur better healthcare decisions and catalyze the extension or creation of new businesses? Todd Park, chief technology officer of the U.S. Department of Heath & Human Services (HHS), has been working to unlock innovation through open health data for over a year now.

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