OpenDarwin shuts down: Mac OS X still proprietary

Posted by Daniel Stout on Tue 25 Jul 2006 at 9:25 PM

When Apple first released Mac OS X in 2000, they had the goal of seeding the operating system in open source style. The Darwin project released, and continues to release, the foundations for Mac OS X under an open source license. Anyone can download the Darwin source code and build a Unix-like operating system on top of it.

There were rumors that when Apple switched to the Intel architecture that they were going to discontinue Darwin. Nonetheless, the release of source code continues for both PPC and x86.

But ultimately, the Darwin project seems to have failed to take flight. In 2002, a website was started to house Darwin-related projects called OpenDarwin.org. The website ending up being little more than a repository for Mac OS X projects.

Today the folks over at OpenDarwin announced that they are shutting the site down. They realize that the promise of Darwin remains unfulfilled.

With Apple’s proprietary approach to technology, it’s no wonder that Darwin didn’t take off. Who would want to build a Mac OS X-like operating system when you already have Mac OS X? Also there was no guarantee that Apple would continue the Darwin program. They could cut off the updates of the core system, and then anyone’s OS project would be stuck. With such uncertainty, it seems only natural that the Darwin “community” is shuttering its doors.

In the last paragraph of this blog entry from 28 June 2004, I suggested that Apple ditch the existing foundation and build Mac OS X on top of Linux. Of course that would never work for Apple because the Linux kernel is licensed under the GPL, and Apple would have to make their OS completely open source. I think it’s still an interesting idea though.

With key geeks defecting from Mac OS X to Linux, one wonders what the future holds for open source and proprietary operating systems. I think that as DRM matures that people will be increasingly fed up with it. As open source alternatives arise to the WinMac monopolies, defections will only increase (just think: Firefox). The hard line stance companies have taken towards intellectual property will probably push even further in the next few years, but ultimately I think the advocates for openness will win out.

Tags: apple · darwin · linux · mac os x · monopoly · open source · opendarwin · winmac

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