In the wake of the OpenAjax initiative, set to ensure the easy delivery of rich Ajax user interfaces, Glyn Moody makes some observations on what the Eclipse project will grow to in the coming years. Calling it open source’s best kept secret, Moody says Eclipse stands in the same relations to Microsoft's Visual Studio development tools as GNU/Linux does to Windows, and OpenOffice.org to Microsoft Office. Aimed at developers, Eclipse has followed a very similar trajectory to GNU/Linux, forming a union of companies around a common open standard. “This illustrates another huge - and unique - strength of open source: the fact that it represents neutral ground that even rival companies can agree to support together. The mutual benefit derived from doing so outweighs any issues of working with traditional enemies.”

Moody then goes on to predict the future of Eclipse. “Even though Eclipse is relatively little known at the moment, at least in the wider world, it is not a particular bold prediction to see it as becoming the most serious rival to Microsoft's Visual Studio, and the third member of the open source trinity that also includes GNU/Linux and OpenOffice.org.”