OStatic

Let's face it: developing open source software is a thankless and usually profit-free endeavor. While self-congratulatory award shows for actors and TV programs aren't that big a deal to most people, open source award programs are often all the recognition some community members get.

On the heels of the recently concluded SourceForge Community Choice Awards comes the announcement of the 2009 Open Source CMS Awards sponsored by technology book publisher Packt Publishing. Winners and runners-up from each of the five categories will win from $500 - $4,000 and take home a share of prize money totaling $24,000. Six 8 GB iPods will also be awarded at random to individuals who have visited the Packt's Web site to nominate their favorite projects.

Discussion forums may seem antiquated in a world of 140-character conversations but they're still a vital part of online group communication. If you want to add a place for your Web site visitors to meet and chat, then have a look at the open source discussion forum CMS, Vanilla.

Earlier this week I wrote about ways museums are turning to open source software as one way to deal with declining attendance and lack of funding to cover operational costs. Of course, there's more to running a nonprofit organization than managing collections or scheduling volunteers to run exhibits.

Web-based open source constituent management solution Orange Leap (CMS) helps nonprofits maintain and manage relationships with the patrons, sponsors, and community members whose donations help keep their doors open.

Since the buzzwords of the day seem to be microblogging and lifestreaming, it seems like good, old-fashioned blogging is a thing of the past -- but it isn't. In fact, user-friendly blogging software applications have turned into full-blown content management systems (CMS) thanks to Web 2.0? technology.

Tried-and-true CMS options like Drupal and WordPress will always play a big part in the world of blogging, and do a great job of adapting to the changing needs of bloggers. If you're looking for an option that's new and fresh, however, Habari is an up and coming next-generation blogging package that's worth keeping an eye on.