Guiding Principles

Below is a list of Guiding Principles for the OpenSearch project

• Great software. If it doesn’t solve a user's problem, everything else is moot. It shall be software you love to use.

• Open source like we mean it. Contributors shall be invested in this being a successful open source project for the long term. It’s all Apache 2.0. There’s no Contributor License Agreement. Easy.

• A level playing field. Contributors shall not tweak the software so that it runs better for any vendor at the expense of others. If this happens, call it out and the contributors shall fix it together as a community.

• Used everywhere. The project goal is for as many people as possible to use it in their business, their software, and their projects. Use it however you want. Surprise the community!

• Made with community input. Project maintainers shall ask for public input on direction, requirements, and implementation for any feature built.

• Open to all contributions. Great open source software is built together, with a diverse community of contributors. If you want to get involved at any level - big, small, or huge - the project maintainers shall find a way to make it happen.

• Respectful, approachable, and friendly. This will be a community where all will be heard, accepted, and valued, whether a new or experienced user or contributor.

• A place to invent and innovate. You will be able to innovate rapidly. This project shall have a stable and predictable foundation that is modular, making it easy to extend.