Recently [Microsoft Open Technologies](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/openness/default.aspx#home) celebrated their one year anniversary. I just wanted to offer my congratulations on this important milestone.

Now, it could be tempting for some of you to become a little snitty about Microsoft wanting to engage more openly with people, but I believe that this project (as well as the [OuterCurve Foundation](https://www.outercurve.org/); a different but similarly themed entity) should be celebrated. These are important steps in Microsoft evolving into a more open future, and folks such as *Gianugo Rabellino* from Microsoft Open Technologies and *Paula Hunter* and *Stephen Walli* from the OuterCurve Foundation are doing wonderful work in treading these careful steps forward. All three of these folks have been tremendously supportive of Open Source, community (including sponsoring the [Community Leadership Summit](https://www.communityleadershipsummit.com/) multiple times), and demonstrate a real commitment to delivering those values in a historically proprietary culture. I can imagine that this is not particularly easy work, and I commend them for their commitment, and Microsoft for their evolution as a company.

Open Source has had a profound impact on the world, and for a company with such a philosophically different history to commit staff and resources to exploring a more open future, well, I think this is a fantastic step forward for Microsoft, Open Source, and wider interoperability.

The Microsoft Open Technologies team will be celebrating on Thursday in Silicon Valley with their [anniversary party](https://blogs.msdn.com/b/interoperability/archive/2013/04/16/you-re-invited-to-help-us-celebrate-an-unlikely-pairing-in-open-source.aspx). Be sure to head over there; unfortunately I am unable to join due to another commitment.

Congratulations, Microsoft Open Technologies!