An Open Letter on Open Source ☺
The progress on our open source roadmap has been slow but has never stopped. And now what will look like a large step is really the result of numerous people, both inside and outside of Cyan Worlds, slowly cutting the rock into shape…
Today we are announcing that the sources for the MOULA client engine and development tools (CyanWorlds.com Engine) will be made available as open source. At the same time, MOSS which is a MOULA server replacement (written by a’moaca’ and cjkelly) will also be released. Both open source projects will be hosted on OpenUru.org.
The goal of the open source CyanWorlds.com Engine and the MOSS server is to provide a “playground” where new writers can learn their craft, and new maintainers can inspect it, and new cartographers can map it. The Cyan Worlds MOULA servers will continue to provide a (relatively) safe environment for the D’ni faithful to mingle and share.
The path forward from here seems fairly obvious and very exciting – with amazing parallels to the D’ni universe itself. As new writers arise with new books, the books are tested and documented – and books that are approved by some new kind of maintainers guild will (hopefully) find their way to the MOULA server where the public can enjoy new worlds once again.
These are exciting times, but not without risk. The tools and skills are new and need to be sharpened. There will be disagreements and strongly expressed opinions. And there will be decisions and mistakes. But keep in mind that the big picture is a lot like rebuilding a long dead civilization – and the forest of common goals far outnumber the few trees of differences. Let’s keep it civil. ☺
There have been numerous people cutting on the rock, and they’ve kept this project alive. We sincerely thank all of them for the wonderful help. Specifically there are a few people who went above and beyond – JWPlatt, a’moaca’, Mac_Fife, cjkelly, rarified and Chogon.
Thanks again for the continued support!
Shorah,
Rand
It looks like I may have to bring back my “I am Uru and so can you” title.