Uninstall this! Open source team at Microsoft powers installers

by on April 29, 2006

What's possibly the most used piece of software developed at Microsoft? The WiX toolset. It is used by Windows, Office, and even MySQL, among many other products, to install. What's even better is it's done by an all-volunteer team and it's open source too. I videoed the team a while back and just put the video up. Rob Mensching of the team is here at MindCamp.

Speaking of MindCamp, I am uploading an occassional photo on my Flickr feed.

  • Paul
    Some teams at Microsoft need to learn how to package their software correctly (i'm talking Windows Installer packaging, not retail box). The Office package is brilliant - easy to make MST's without PackageStudio/AdminStudio. WMP9 is awful. Somebody tell them about WiX!
  • I would say it is the beginning of a lot more open source material from Microsoft.

    A really great example is all of the built in ASP.NET Providers that were recently released:
    http://weblogs.asp.net/scottgu/archive/2006/04/...

    This adds a tremendous value to the community, as creating custom providers is something a lot of people will want to do (to work with their own database, etc), but the process can be a little complicated. By opening the source to the "official" providers, you get to see exactly how Microsoft intends your providers to be written.
  • So, is this the beginning or the end of a trend to open source Microsoft software?

    Can we expect Microsoft to more officially test the open source waters in the near future?
  • if they make MS an open source... then... how can MS earn money?

    their sole existance is to make profit out of nothing... :(
  • Daniel
    off topic but ... it would be great if you "interview" more designers at microsoft.

    the talk with jenny lam was amazing!
  • That's dedication. If it's worth doing, it's worth doing for money. Making a million is easy. Losing a million, that's difficult. Some problems are bigger than others. Code is getting cheaper and more plentiful. I'm here pulling on wrenches and busting knuckles under the hood. No volunteers are showing up.
    It's me, the motor and some old iron. Ever uninstall a small block V-8? Get a little greasy and go for the G0-J0, if you got M0-J0. With fuel to burn and roads to grind, keep on rocking and rolling in the USA. Or sit there banging the keyboards all day.
  • Robert, why doesn't Microsoft open-source more tools, like the terrific Log Parser? This seems like it should be a no-brainer.
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