This morning Rackspace announced the release of OpenStack, an open source software development model for cloud computing. The company is pushing the envelope of open source by releasing the code behind Rackspace Cloud Files and Rackspace Cloud Servers to the public and collaborating with more than 25 companies to leverage technologies. Rackspace is releasing two open source products; OpenStack Object Storage ( available starting today) and OpenStack Compute (released later this year).
Tech blogs and forums are exploding with the release of this news, so we will leave in-depth detail to the professionals. Great discussions on the implications of announcement are available by following Rackers like Robert Scoble (@Scobleizer), or visiting the comment sections on TechCrunch and Hacker News.
Win $500 in Rackspace cloud services from SocialDevCamp!
In celebration, Rackspace is letting us give away a small piece of the cloud. One lucky person who registers to attend this week will win $500 of CLOUD SERVERS! Follow these steps to be eligible:
- Register for SocialDevCamp before Thursday, July 22 at 11:59 PM CST.
- Suggest a discussion topic for the Rackspace sponsored Unconference (complete the form at the bottom of the page).
- Tweet “Hey @SDCChi, I am registered for the event and hungry for some Rackspace cloud services! http://bit.ly/aoEhSH“
Interview with Rob La Gesse of Rackspace
Rob La Gesse
We were also able pull strings to secure a brief conversation with Rob La Gesse (@kr8tr), Chief Disruption Officer and Manager of building43 at Rackspace. Rob – an industry veteran involved in the development of WiFi and early applications for the Newton – provided some insight into what OpenStack means to the developer world. The OpenStack project, Rob says, allows developers to make the cloud better without branding themselves as a exclusively connected to Rackspace. “Developers of tools for clouds will be able to focus on one cloud that will allow them to support more customers, increase product features and reliability, and more easily drive revenue,” added Rob.
Rackspace has been working on the development of the OpenStack code for years, investing tens of millions of dollars. The decision to open source, however, did not come until a few months ago. Partnerships with organizations like NASA, Dell, Citrix and more than 20 other companies, will hopefully increase the speed of innovation in cloud computing. Congrats to Rackspace, businesses, and developers on this groundbreaking news! Make sure to attend our unconference sessions with Rackspace team members if you want to learn more about the OpenStack project.
