2005年6月14日，Sun启动了开源项目OpenSolaris。一段时间以来关于Sun开放Solaris源代码的争论，这时似乎应该落下帷幕了。

在大型主机流行的时代，Sun靠“Solaris+硬件服务器”挣了不少钱。1995年的Sun，意气风发、踌躇满志，野心勃勃也霸气十足地推出了Java，欲图在软件领域独占鳌头。虽然Java给Sun带来了95亿美元的现金收入，但在Java平台的软件大战中，Sun无疑是失败者。在Java十周年的当口，Sun开放J2EE SDK，是要放弃“我们是软件公司”的旗帜吗？

Solaris有点不同。显然它已经无法成为支撑Sun发展的增长点。在Windows和Linux的夹击下、遭遇类似Google采用的“低成本大规模”分布式方案，“Solaris+Sun服务器”太昂贵了。在这样一种尴尬的局面中，开放Solaris源代码，可以说是Scott McNealy苦心孤诣的一着险棋。

不妨随便想想，如果有一天，微软开放Windows源代码……

下面是Sun社区负责人Jim Grisanzio致开发者的一封公开信。有兴趣的读者，可以访问http://www.opensolaris.org，获取更多信息。

Hello,

I'm happy to tell you that the OpenSolaris project is now open, and we welcome your participation at our new community site: www.opensolaris.org

When you visit the site you'll see we have the OpenSolaris source code, a new source browser, build tools, documentation, a community portal, mailing lists, blogs, and much more.

There are many ways for developers to immediately start contributing to the project, such as testing code, fixing bugs, documenting processes, and suggesting RFEs. You can also follow the technical conversations among Solaris engineers and the community on the long-term co-development model. Additionally, Sun is collaborating with the OpenSolaris Community Advisory board (CAB) on the overall governance proposal — which will be debated, iterated, and ratified in the open right on opensolaris.org.

There are also 145 OpenSolaris Pilot Program participants from around the world who have been working with Sun for nine months on the project. They have detailed knowledge of the code and tools, so many of them — in collaboration with engineers at Sun — can help educate new community members. The best place to meet these developers is the project's main discuss list.

The OpenSolaris source base is large, around 10 million lines, but if you go to http://blogs.sun.com you will see hundreds of OpenSolaris engineering blogs from across Sun's engineering community explaining in detail the code they have written. The amount of technical content in these engineering blogs is impressive, and you can expect even more as we go. You can also find those blogs, as well as the pilot community blogs, at opensolaris.org.

And finally, we have tried to make the OpenSolaris project a place where engineers talk directly to engineers. But this is just the first step in the process, and we welcome your involvement. This is a community that takes collaboration and quality seriously. It's a community that has a lot of offer, and it's a community that's open minded. Come join us.

Best,

Jim Grisanzio
Community Manager, OpenSolaris
http://blogs.sun.com/jimgris