Open Mainframe Project Members and Community,
We are all in difficult and uncertain times as we each deal with the impact of the global pandemic. My thoughts and heart goes out to each and every one of you, especially those personally affected by or have loved ones affected by COVID-19. I encourage you to stay safe and ensure you are getting the facts on what’s going on – I highly recommend reviewing this presentation from Stanford professor of neurobiology and bioengineering Michael Lin on what we know about COVID-19 and how to deal with it, with extensive references to the latest research (as of 3/15).
You’ve undoubtedly had numerous messages from companies and organizations outlining their response and actions, so I won’t pile on. What I will say, however, is that open source and diverse collaboration are ways that help us stay connected to each other. Open Source COVID-19 is a resource I came across the other day. This project collects all open source sites related to nCoV/COVID-19. We’re also seeing companies setup and donating open source code and materials to help take on coronavirus, including the Linux Foundation thanks to the generosity of member company Huawei
That all said, what’s Open Mainframe Project doing in light of this epidemic? Let’s dig in…
Helping the mainframe open source community become more virtual
The Open Mainframe Project is intended to serve as a focal point for deployment and use of Linux and Open Source in a mainframe computing environment. That starts with hosting projects and technical efforts that help further the growth of open source on mainframe. With numerous events being cancelled and travel impacted for the foreseeable future, we are here to help.
If you have an open source project on mainframe that needs infrastructure to help collaborate such as web conferencing, video, or other virtual collaboration needs, please reach out to me and I will see how we can help. As a community, we are stronger together – and the Open Mainframe Project is here to facilitate that.
A New Virtual Open Mainframe Project Asset
As there have been numerous events and meetups cancelled that would have brought focus to our project communities, we want to make sure these projects have a chance to get the word out. And as you as a community member, we want to help connect you to projects where you could make a positive impact on.
That’s why on April 17, 2020 at 8 am PST we will be holding an Open Mainframe Project Virtual Event, showcasing the project leadership from Anomaly Detection Engine for Linux Logs, Ambitus, Feilong, Polycephaly, Zowe, and Zorow. In this event, you will learn more about each project; it’s goals, purpose, and focuses. You’ll also learn how you can take part in each project community and contribute to them. Learn more about this event and register for it at https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_e7ubLFYUSRuUEYTgba3cEg. We will also make all the recordings available after the event.
Open Mainframe Summit
The inaugural Open Mainframe Summit is scheduled for this September, and at this time it is still taking place as planned September 16 – 17, 2020 in New York, New York. We That all said we continue to carefully monitor the situation, and put the safety of all attendees first and foremost. You can read more about the precautions being taken at
https://events.linuxfoundation.org/open-mainframe-summit/attend/novel-coronavirus-update/.
Where we go from here…
Weeks ago, I surmised that 2020 will be a busy year for Open Mainframe Project and the entire open source mainframe community. The state of our world might have shifted our activities, but not our spirit.
If you haven’t already, follow Open Mainframe Project on LinkedIn and Twitter to keep up to date on the latest happenings (which can be quite fluid considering the uncertainty in the world ahead). Please also continue to share updates, articles, or blogs, with us at [email protected] – our team is ready to support it through social promotions, digital marketing and more!
Thank you again for your support of Open Mainframe Project!
Thank you,
John Mertic
Director of Program Management – Linux Foundation
ASWF, ODPi, and Open Mainframe Project
[email protected]
+1 234-738-4571
Schedule time with me at https://calendly.com/jmertic
