UNIX was initially created in 1969. By its fourth edition, in 1973, it had been rewritten in the C programming language that is still prominent today. In 1984 the University of California Berkeley released 4.2BSD which introduced TCP/IP, the networking specification that underpins the Internet. By the early 1990’s, when Linux development started, different companies developing UNIX operating systems realized their systems needed to be compatible, and they started working on the X/Open specification that is still used today.
Over the years, computer scientists and the organizations that employ them have realized the benefit of systems that provide familiar tools and consistent ways of accomplishing specific tasks. The standardization of application programming interfaces (APIs) allows programs written for one specific UNIX or Linux operating system to be ported (converted) relatively easy to run on another. So, while proprietary UNIX systems are still in use throughout the world in environments where “certified” solutions are preferred, the interoperability of these systems alongside Linux computers is valued by industry, academia, and governments that use them.
The importance of standards organizations cannot be overstated. Groups like the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) and POSIX (Portable Operating System Interface), allow professionals from different companies and institutions to collaborate on specifications that make it possible for different operating systems and programs to work together. It doesn’t matter if a program is closed or open source, simple or complex, if it is written to these standards others will be able to use and modify it in the future. Every innovation in computing is built on the work of others who came before. Open source software is a collaboration of different people with different needs and backgrounds all working together to make something better than any one of them could have made individually. Standards are what makes this possible, and the many organizations that create, maintain and promote them are integral to the industry.