the state of the literature. We develop a framework for organizing the literature based on the input-mediatoroutput-input (IMOI) model from the small groups literature. We present a quantitative summary of articles selected for the review and then discuss findings of this literature categorized into issues pertaining to inputs (e.g., member characteristics, technology use and project characteristics), processes (software development and social processes), emergent states (e.g., trust and task related states) and outputs (e.g. team performance, FLOSS implementation and project evolution). Based on this review, we suggest topics for future research, as well as identifying methodological and theoretical issues for future inquiry in this area, including issues relating to sampling and the need for more longitudinal studies.

Robot projects are often evolutionary dead ends, with the software and hardware they produce disappearing without trace afterwards. In humanoid robotics, a small field with an avid appetite for novel devices, we experience a great deal of “churn” of this nature. In this paper, we explore how best to make our projects stable and long-lasting, without compromising our ability to constantly change our sensors, actuators, processors, and networks. We also look at how to encourage the propagation and evolution of hardware designs, so that we can start to build up a “gene-pool ” of material to draw upon for new projects. We advance on two fronts, software and hardware. For some time, we have been developing and using the YARP robot software architecture [11], which helps organize communication between sensors, processors, and actuators so that loose coupling is encouraged, making gradual system evolution much easier. YARP includes a model of communication that is transport-neutral, so that data flow is decoupled from the details of the underlying networks and protocols in use. Importantly for the long term, YARP is designed to play well with other architectures. Device drivers written for YARP can be ripped out and used without any “middleware. ” On the network, basic interoperation is possible with a few lines of code in any language with a socket library, and maximally efficient interoperation can be achieved by following documented protocols. These features are not normally the first things that end-users look for when starting a project, but they are crucial for longevity. We emphasize the strategic utility of the Free Software social contract [15] to software development for small communities with idiosyncratic requirements. We also work to expand our community by releasing the design of our ICub humanoid [25] under a free and open license, and funding development using this platform. Key words: humanoid robotics, free software, device drivers, ICub humanoid, YARP

Previous literature on open source software (OSS) mostly analyzes organizational issues within communities of developers and users. This paper focuses on profit-oriented organizations that release software products under OSS licenses, and argues that variations in their endowments of intellectual property rights, namely patents and trademarks, help to determine which firms will tend to incorporate OSS into commercial products. We develop a theory to explain whether and under what conditions preexisting stocks of intellectual property rights can be useful complementary assets that allow firms to benefit directly or indirectly from commercializing OSS products, and test this theory on a novel dataset built on firms ’ announcements of OSS product releases in the specialized press during the period 1995-2003. We find that (a) firms with large stocks of software patents are more likely to release OSS products; (b) firms with large stocks of software trademarks are less likely to release OSS

Code reuse is a form of knowledge reuse in software development, which is fundamental to innovation in many fields. Yet, to date, there has been no systematic investigation of code reuse in open source software projects. This study uses quantitative and qualitative data gathered from a sample of six open source software projects to explore two sets of research questions derived from the literature on software reuse in firms and open source software development. We find that code reuse is extensive across the sample and that open source software developers, much like developers in firms, apply tools that lower their search costs for knowledge and code, assess the quality of software components, and they have incentives to reuse code. Open source software developers reuse code because they want to integrate functionality quickly, because they want to write preferred code, because they operate under limited resources in terms of time and skills, and because they can mitigate development costs through code reuse.

Abstract not found

This paper discusses the meaning of open source in an industrial context. Building a grounded theory from an industry-driven R&D project, our analysis shows that open source in an industrial context is multifaceted. We find that the meaning of open source must be established in the context of the individual organization.

at Boston University, ETH Zürich,

1 Content 1. Kulwer Academic Publisher Editorial – An Update from OCP-IP ……3 2. ARM Column- Cortex-R4, A comparison with the ARM9E processor family

A newly introduced product or service becomes an innovation after it has been proven in market. No one likes the fact that market failures of products and services are much more common than commercial successes. The ideas introduced in this paper are applicable to the evaluation of the innovativeness of planned introductions of design changes, products, and services. In fact, blends of products and services could be the most promising way of bringing innovations to the market. The most important toll gates of innovation are a generation of new ideas and their evaluation. People have limited ability to generate and evaluate a large number of potential innovation alternatives. The proposed approach provides a number of such alternatives and evaluates them from the market perspective. 1.

Do firms take part in the projects of the OS community? Some preliminary evidence and a research agenda