14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft plans to open up the .NET Micro Framework to the community by allowing access to the source code. According to the Redmond company, the source code for the runtime, object model and drivers of the .NET MF will be made available. The move comes as the .NET Micro Framework team was left suffering from the latest wave of Microsoft layoffs, and transitioned to the Developer Division. In addition, the software giant will also cut the royalties currently associated with the distribution of the .NET Micro Framework product. With the availability of the source code comes a change in the business model, as the porting kit will no longer come with a price tag.
“The product is moving into the Developer Division (Server and Tools). This is a great fit for the technology and we are really looking forward to it. The move means that we will be fully aligned with the rest of the .NET groups and tools in building the uniform programming model from the sensors to servers,” explained Colin Miller, product unit manager. “The announcement that we are moving to some form of community direction and development including code access is accurate. We will investigate how to do that in the near term so stay tuned. For now however, the current products are available and continue to be supported as before.”
In October 2008, Microsoft released .NET Micro Framework 3.0 SDK Release Candidate 0 (RC0) via Connect. The milestone of the software development kit continues to be up for grabs. All future development of .NET Micro Framework, designed for resource-restricted devices, will be done with the help of the community, Microsoft emphasizes. The Redmond company has yet to create a model or a license for the availability of the .NET Micro Framework source code.
“The evolution of the core code will be managed to insure small size, good performance, quality and consistency. The .NET Micro Framework team will provide the initial guidance and the necessary tools to facilitate the contribution of code at all levels of the stack. With the community participation, we are looking at creating an arbitration process to drive the evolution of the product and the development activity,” added Lorenzo Tessiore, developer manager.