Profile: Apache Software Foundation
Authors
- Caleb Coffie
- Wyatt Winters
Rationale
There are so many subjects you could choose to profile, so why did you choose this one? What drew you into wanting to know more about the organization? How did you/your group decide on and agree?
We had heard of the Apache Software Foundation before just never really knew too much about it. So we just wanted to look into it more.
Organizational Details
Is the subject of your profile a corporate entity?
Yes
What type?
The Apache Software Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. (http://www.apache.org/foundation/)
When was it founded?
They were incorporated in 1999.(http://www.apache.org/foundation/)
By whom?
Brian Behlendorf, Ken Coar, Mark Cox, Lars Eilebrecht, Ralf S. Engelschall, Roy T. Fielding, Dean Gaudet, Ben Hyde, Jim Jagielski, Alexei Kosut, Martin Kraemer, Ben Laurie, Doug MacEachern, Aram Mirzadeh, Sameer Parekh, Cliff Skolnick, Marc Slemko, William (Bill) Stoddard, Paul Sutton, Randy Terbush, Dirk-Willem van Gulik (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apache_Software_Foundation)
Original founder(s) still active?
Many of them are still active but not all.
Publicly Traded? Since when? Initial Stock Price? Current stock price?
No.
Has the company made any acquisitions? If yes, which companies, and what were their core products?
Not so much acquisitions but they have funded many projects. Too many to list here. Look here https://projects.apache.org/
Has the company made any investments in other companies? If yes, which ones.
Number of Employees?
No employees but many volunteers (As many as 2663 volunteers http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apache_Software_Foundation)
Where is HQ?
Forest Hill, Maryland
Does it have any other offices or locations?
None
Website?
Wikipedia?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apache_Software_Foundation
Does your organization file any annual reports? Please include links to any relevant documents (i.e. 990, Annual Report,
http://apache.org/foundation/news.html
Communications
Social media for Apache Software Foundation
Does your subject participate in social media? If yes, please list a URL for each account, and reach within that community.
- Twitter @theasf - 61.9K Followers
- Facebook - Seems dead, no updates since 2010, 17K likes
Communications channels for Apache Software Foundation
What communication channels does your subject use to reach their public? Briefly describe and include a URL for each.
As the ASF is more of an oversight body, communications are generally done on a project level.
Apache Software Foundation Conference Participation
Does your subject organize or participate in any conferences? If so, list them here, and provide links to any relevant sessions, keynotes, or content.
Yes, they organize Apachecon, and have since 2000.
Community Architecture
Your subject likely runs or contributes to one or more Open Source products or projects. Choose one (or more) of these and answer the following questions (provide links is applicable).
The project's IRC Channel
#apache on freenode (https://wiki.apache.org/general/IRC)
Source Code repository
Mail list archive
https://www.apache.org/foundation/mailinglists.html
Documentation
https://wiki.apache.org/general/
Other communication channels
Project Website and/or Blog
Describe the software project, its purpose and goals.
“The Apache Software Foundation provides support for the Apache community of open-source software projects, which provide software products for the public good.” (https://www.apache.org/)
Give brief history of the project. When was the Initial Commit? The latest commit?
N/A, as the ASF is an oversight body covering a vast number of projects, each with unique commit logs.
Who approves patches? How many people?
There is a fantastically large list of commiters organized by project.
Who has commit access, or has had patches accepted? How many total?
There are 4,253 people listed on the commiters page.
Has there been any turnover in the Core Team? (i.e. has the top 20% of contributors stayed the same over time? If not, how has it changed?)
N/A. The Apache Software Foundation has an elected board of directors.
Does the project have a BDFL, or Lead Developer? (BDFL == Benevolent Dictator for Life)
No.
Are the front and back end developers the same people? What is the proportion of each?
N/A, as the organization doesn't really have a front end or back end.
What have been some of the major bugs/problems/issues that have arisen during development? Who is responsible for quality control and bug repair?
N/A, the overseeing body doesn't really have bugs, since they don't really write code.
How is the project's participation trending and why?
Up, the number of current members is quite large. It may be that they don’t demote users for inactivity, so it is a false sense of growth.
In your opinion, does the project pass "The Raptor Test?" (i.e. Would the project survive if the BDFL, or most active contributor were eaten by a Velociraptor?) Why or why not?
Yes, the foundation is mainly run by the community so many people would be able step and take over the role.
In your opinion, would the project survive if the core team, or most active 20% of contributors, were hit by a bus? Why or why not?
Yes. The Apache Software Foundation board of directors is elected.
Does the project have an official "on-boarding" process in place? (new contributor guides, quickstarts, communication leads who focus specifically on newbies, etc...)
There is a “Get Involved” landing page that directs users to further information: https://www.apache.org/foundation/getinvolved.html
Does the project have Documentation available? Is it extensive? Does it include code examples?
The ASF has a “top-level” wiki. “This General Wiki is a top-level overview of other wikis at the Apache Software Foundation, as well as overall Foundation-level information, at the bottom of this page.” (https://wiki.apache.org/general/)
If you were going to contribute to this project, but ran into trouble or hit blockers, who would you contact, and how?
IRC would likely be the first place to go.
Based on these answers, how would you describe the decision making structure/process of this group? Is it hierarchical, consensus building, ruled by a small group, barely contained chaos, or ruled by a single or pair of individuals?
Consensus building.
Is this the kind of structure you would enjoy working in? Why, or why not?
The ASF has extensive documentation and guides to getting started on any of the numerous projects it oversees - it seems inviting and friendly.
Technology/Product
Section adapted from EFF Worksheet
Who invented, created, or sponsored the technology?
The Apache Foundation is funding many different projects from donations.
What is the technology designed to do? How is it used?
- provide a foundation for open, collaborative software development projects by supplying hardware, communication, and business infrastructure;
- create an independent legal entity to which companies and individuals can donate resources and be assured that those resources will be used for the public benefit;
- provide a means for individual volunteers to be sheltered from legal suits directed at the Foundation's projects; and,
- protect the 'Apache' brand, as applied to its software products, from being abused by other organizations. (source)
Who would benefit from using this technology?
Open Source Projects
What kinds of companies or organizations (stakeholders) might have been concerned about the development of this technology? Why?
The open source community and companies that use Apache licensed software.
Does/Did an aspect of copyright law play a role in controversies about the technology? How?
No.
Business and Revenue Model
How was this organization funded originally?
Donations
How does this organization make revenue?
Donations
Which specific Open Source Revenue Models are utilized?
Donations
What investments/acquisitions has the organization made?
The ASF invests in individual projects, so I suppose those could be counted as such.