Following on my entry from last week, here is something pretty cool I learned while doing research on what's happening in public sector cloud computing: Forge.mil
From their FAQ they explain: Forge.mil is a DISA-led activity designed to improve the ability of the U.S. Department of Defense to rapidly deliver dependable software, services and systems in support of net-centric operations and warfare.
What really surprised me was the emphasis they place on "early and continuous collaboration" and their embracing of open source software. In fact, in an October 16 memo, the DoD's deputy CIO, reiterated the fact that open-source software "meets the definition of 'commercial computer software,'" and can "provide advantages" given DOD's need to "update its software-based capabilities faster than ever." (source: Wyatt Kash's article)
Here are some high level stats on Forge.mil's usage since it started last year:
- 4,000 Registered users
- 170 hosted projects
- Produced more than 500 software releases
The service itself is broken into two cloud-based offerings – SoftwareForge and ProjectForge. Here are the highlights:
Software Forge
- A free service, open and community source DoD software
- Default is open view access
Project Forge
- For fee, non-community source
- Default is private
- Originally limited to Army & Navy but on Jan 13 it was made available to other military branches and DoD civilian employees and contractors
- Two flavors:
- 'On Demand': multitenant, good for 100 users
- 'Private': single tenant, can brand, 100+ users
Who knew?!
Pau for now…