Open Source Software Institute

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: John M. Weathersby, Director

Open Source Software Institute

jmw@oss-institute.org

(601)266.6034

Open Source Software Institute Releases

Components to eGovernment Web Services Platform

Initiates Working Group for

Open Government Interoperability Standards

Hattiesburg, MS - November 5, 2003 - The Open Source Software Institute (OSSI) announced the release and availability of Project Leopard (Phase 1), the core component of its eGovernment web services platform based on LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP/Perl/Python).

LAMP serves as a foundation upon which powerful and scalable web-based programs can be developed and implemented in an open-source environment.

Project Leopard is a web services application framework that provides fast, efficient access and implementation of LAMP technology for eGovernment programs. Phase 1 release of Project Leopard is now available for free download and evaluation at http://leopard.sourceforge.net.

OSSI also announced the formation of the Open Government Interoperability Standard (OGIS) working group. The OGI Standard will serve as the policy guideline for modules and applications developed using the Leopard program.

Working group members include representatives from government, academic and corporate sectors.

“Our mission is to promote open-source solutions within the government and schools,” said OSSI director John Weathersby. “We've found that state and local government agencies are searching for applications that are affordable, manageable, scalable and provide interoperability. LAMP applications meet these needs and Leopard makes it easy, fast and cost effective.”

OSSI (www.oss-institute.org)is a non-profit organization that promotes the development and implementation of open-source software solutions within Federal, State and local government agencies and academic entities.

“Project Leopard allows system administrators to download and install LAMP and associated applications in minutes instead of days,” Weathersby said.

“The Phase 1 release of Leopard represents a foundation. We have begun adopting and developing modules for Leopard that address the needs that face government agencies," Weathersby continued. "The initial modules focus on databases and interoperability of government software. Other commercial open-source developers and service providers have agreed to adopt and implement Leopard into their new and existing programs developed for government clients."

Modules and applications developed by OSSI will be made available to government agencies through the OSSI website. On-line and call-in support for Leopard modules will also be available at www.ossi-support.org.

Leopard was the brainchild of open-source advocate, Tom Adelstein. He originally targeted the project for state and local governments. The project has found a strong following among academics, federal agencies and commercial enterprises as well.

"In these tough economic times, organizations look for ways to cut costs and increase productivity," Adelstein said. "Adopting open-source programs like Project Leopard is not only a fiscally sound strategy, but it reduces red tape by eliminating proprietary licensing schemes and increases efficiency by allowing organizations like government agencies to standardize and interoperate.

"We received an enormous number of inquiries on Project Leopard and are confident that people will find the initial release works very well. As an open-source program, we encourage anyone to adopt and use the Leopard program to meet your needs," he continued. "That's the beauty of open-source. Put it out there and watch it grow."

The Leopard development team is lead by Matthew Schick, a programmer and system administrator at the School of Computer Science at the University of Southern Mississippi (USM). OSSI is an affiliate of USM and maintains offices on the USM main campus in Hattiesburg, MS.

“We were able to use several existing open-source technologies in the building and maintenance of the Leopard environment,” Schick said.

“The Gentoo Portage package management system was used to build all the required software with a minimum of bloat, which in turn maximizes the efficiency of the environment as a whole,” Schick said. “The Python language was chosen as the standard for all system programs due to its speed and extensibility. PHP and Perl are included for ease of web application development, with web page serving provided by Apache.”

About Open Source Software Institute
The Open Source Software Institute is a non-profit organization comprised of industry, government and academic representatives whose mission is to promote the development and implementation of open-source software solutions within Federal, State and local government agencies and academic entities. For additional information visit OSSI's website at www.oss-institute.org.

About Project Leopard
Project Leopard (LAMP eGovernment OpenSource Project Augmented Relational Database) offers state and local governments a free and open-source, web-enabled system for use in quickly setting up public information and government-to-government web sites.

Project Leopard utilizes Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP/Perl/Python (LAMP) to build generic eGovernment web delivery systems. Project Leopard is sponsored and maintained by the Open Source Software Institute and is available for free download at http://leopard.sourceforge.net.

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