RISC OS Open Ltd. (also referred to as ROOL)[1][2] is a limited company engaged in computer software and IT consulting.[3] It is managing the process of publishing the source code to RISC OS.[4] Company founders include staff who formerly worked for Pace, the company which acquired RISC OS after Acorn's demise.[5]
The source code publication was initially facilitated by a shared source initiative (SSI) between ROOL and Castle Technology (CTL),[6] prior to a switch to the more widely recognised Apache licence in October 2018.[7] ROOL hopes that by making the RISC OS source code available for free it will help stimulate development of both the RISC OS source code and the platform as a whole.[8][9]
ROOL set initial goals to make the source code easily available (on the web), and also to establish a wiki, forum and bug tracker.[10] These have been available since December 2006.[11]
Operations exist to facilitate tasks related to ROOL's goals. Additionally, staff undertake development work on the code themselves. Since early 2009, ownership, development and sales of the Acorn C/C++ tools were transferred to RISC OS Open.[12] As an extension to the initial goals, in 2011 ROOL introduced a bounty scheme to encourage further development.[13]
Attendance at RISC OS computer shows is often arranged, with other knowledgeable coders sometimes standing in when ROOL staff are unavailable.[14] A Facebook page and Twitter feed was created in 2012 to communicate events via social media.[15][16]
A number of book titles have been published starting in 2015 with the RISC OS Style Guide, a three book set in support of the Desktop Development Environment, BBC BASIC Reference Manual and the RISC OS 5 User Guide.
Online discussions take place on the forum. Developers can seek technical assistance with writing software, debugging, and porting the operating system to new hardware. End users can seek assistance with applications, emulation, and enquiries of a more general nature. A common area exists to make announcements that are broadly related to the theme of RISC OS, and discussion of future wish list features or applications.
RISC OS Open Limited (ROOL) [...] can author software for an existing hardware design or develop a complete hardware and software solution.
RISC OS Open (ROOL) is an organisation run on a largely voluntary basis. We are managing the process of publishing the source code to RISC OS [...]
As a divisional director, Richard Nicoll, of Ely, Cambridgeshire, oversaw the 'information appliance division' in Cambridge at Pace. [...] RISC OS Open director and company secretary Steve Revill owns a 20% stake in RISC OS Open, as do each of fellow ex-Pace and ex-Tematic engineers Ben Avison and Andrew Hodgkinson [...]
[...] the shared source initiative - which is designed to get the source code to RISC OS 5 out into the open for free [...]
RISC OS Open Ltd (ROOL) are hugely proud to [...] republish the source code to this popular niche operating system under the Apache 2.0 License, in a move aimed at removing existing barriers to entry for developers [...]
We really want to stimulate development both in and around RISC OS
The whole project is based on the fundamental premise that the software will die out if there are no developers.
According to Steve Revill at the South East Show, RISC OS Open Ltd. has been formed to achieve a number of goals: Provide an interface for people to get at the source code of RISC OS; Manage developer forums; Manage a faults database; Provide a wiki for people to contribute to
RISC OS Open are pleased to announce that their new web site has now gone live.
RISC OS Open has taken over sales of the Acorn C/C++ development suite, known as the Norcroft compiler, which is used to build RISC OS.
The RISC OS Open bounty scheme allows the community to sponsor development of features and fixes in RISC OS.
[...] talk was by Robert Sprowson who was representing RISC OS Open Ltd.
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