OpenOffice's future uncertain in light of Sun-Oracle deal

Advocates for the continued development of OpenOffice have been busy this week, coming up with plans and ideas as to where the open-source suite should head once the Oracle-Sun merger is complete. Some are calling for Oracle to make the suite independent, while others want to see the company roll up their sleeves and dive into development on their own. Oracle, however, has declined to comment on what they have planned.

As the head of marketing for OpenOffice, John McCreesh, has issued a public statement saying that the future of OpenOffice is leading it towards becoming an independent project. He believes that having it completely detached from Oracle, both legal and in development terms, would be beneficial for OpenOffice in that it would enable them to find their own source of revenue and dictate future development on their own.

Others call for a different approach, claiming that Oracle's backing could make potential partners take it more seriously and become a stronger rival to Microsoft, as opposed to simply a free alternative. Ultimately, it’s all up to Oracle. Each proposition has its own benefits, but working independently certainly feels like the 'right' model for an open-source community.