Texas LinuxFest 2011 call for papers now open

[Lutger Blijdestijn]

Andrei Alexandrescu wrote:

> http://www.texaslinuxfest.org/callforpapers/
> 
> One topic of interest is Open Source Programming Languages. If someone
> could explain to me the various subtle nuances of what an open source
> programming language is, I'll try to make a D-related submission and of
> course I recommend anyone else to do the same.
> 
> 
> Andrei

This is a matter of perspective, I think these are the possibly interesting  
angles and issues for D:

- availability and development of Open Source compilers (OSI compatible 
license)

- cross-platform design, this extends beyond linux but is often a concern 
and goal in the Open Source world

- development process of the language (and std lib) itself: here the 
community participation is important. For D it's an interesting (and 
ongoing) story to tell.

- usefulness and place in the open source ecosystem: I believe D has a 
potential here as a serious alternative for both mono and java. Mono, the 
open source implementation of .net, has loads of potential patent issues and 
for this reason is not supported by some distro's. Java also has it's 
issues. Positioning D as a solution to those problems (rather than an 
alternative for C++ or dynamic languages) will please the crowd, for sure :) 
Interoperability with C is also important here.