If you put just one open-source software package to work in your small or medium-sized business, I can tell you exactly where to begin. And as much as I like Linux, I actually have something else in mind for you.

With the rare exception, most of the open source database vendors have declined to storm the castle, believing - correctly - that they were not in a position to compete effectively in such markets.

This is a slide show that runs through the 15 most influential people of the FOSS business world according to eweek.com. There are brief bios given for each. No RMS though... I guess he doesn't count as influencing business or maybe it's because he isn't a businessman. Or maybe it's because it's "Open Source business influencers" not "free software business influencers".

According to a talk by Benchmark Capital's Rob Bearden at this week's Open Source Business Conference (OSBC), the nature of open source business models are changing. He says open source companies should strive to become the "enterprise standard" in their market space in order to effectively monetize their commodities.

News that IBM is among the new investors in EnterpriseDB has already been remarked upon by our own Matt Asay.

So who is Doug Mahugh of Microsoft anyway... really?

11 leaders from the open source and vendor communities discuss the current open source climate and outline the challenges and opportunities ahead