Oxite: Just MIX and Serve

The thing is called Oxite, and Microsoft released the code to its CodePlex site on Dec. 5 but made the announcement today. Oxite is labeled an alpha, and as of this posting a whopping 344 people had downloaded the software. Let's not rush to give up Movable Type or WordPress, shall we?

The official Web site claims that "Oxite is an open source, standards compliant, and highly extensible content management platform that can run anything from blogs to big web sites." Well, Microsoft's definition of "open source" sure isn't the same as mine, or the GPL's last time I checked. Microsoft is quick to make "open this" and "open that" statements that just aren't true.

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I've long wondered why Microsoft hadn't released some kind of blogging software. SharePoint is the only good reason that makes sense to me. Microsoft bet on its proprietary content management system, which was blogging software enough. But it was never enough. With the Web's gravity pulling developers away from Windows, long ago Microsoft should have made developing a blogging system an absolute priority. For the good folks at Microsoft, ASP.NET was blogging framework good enough, not that pieces for blogging released years ago got much adoption beyond hard-core enthusiasts.

ASP.NET is back, with a lot more oomph (no pun intended). Microsoft built Oxite using ASP.NET MVC (Model View Controller). I haven't downloaded the code and can't say how complete it really is. In a blog post today, Microsoft evangelist Jeff Sandquist described the code release as a "lightweight sample." Lightweight was what made the last ASP.NET blogging sample too little. Keep your fingers crossed that this will be better. If you're one of the 300 or so downloaders, please do tell in comments or by e-mail.

The Oxite Web site describes the code:

Oxite was developed carefully and painstakingly to be a great blogging platform, or a starting point for your own web site project with CMS needs. Its line-up of sexy attributes includes: provider-based architecture allowing you to swap out database and search providers (SQL Server DB, local and Live search providers included) ... [and] built to take full advantage of ASP.NET MVC but broken into assemblies.

Well, those defaults make a little more sense out of Oxite. Jeff's blog post goes on and on about "open standards," but the code is all set up for Microsoft services. Of course, Microsoft is going to do this. Do parents favor their kids over the neighbor's? But it looks like Microsoft is ready to take in the neighbor's kids, by supposedly building an architecture that supports competing software or services.

Open standards doesn't mean open tools. ASP.NET is a decidedly Microsoft Web development framework—and one desperately needing a lot more company executive love. Oxite puts a fresh development face on ASP.NET, and Microsoft has got Expression Studio 2 and Silverlight 2 for all your design needs. Those are tools run on Windows.

As of this writing, Microsoft lists only one site using Oxite: MIX Online. But that's enough. Jeff writes:

Oxite began as a side project of Adam Kinney and Duncan Mackenzie and is a subset of the Channel 9 source code. When it was time to do a reboot of the Mix Online web site Duncan and his team created an experience where they could release the source code (a popular customer request of Channel 9) that used ASP.NET MVC to have 100 percent control of the resultant HTML. Yes, Virginia, you too can support web standards with the Microsoft Web Platform.

Oh yeah? Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. Seriously, MIX Online is the right place to use Oxite. MIX after all is Microsoft's Web development conference. What better place to showcase what Oxite can do?

By the way, the MIX team deserves more praise than it probably gets. My MIX RSS feed buzzes with content throughout the year—yes, even between conferences. The `09 site is colorful and lively and, damn, if I don't really like the Oxite logo.

[Please send your tips or rumors to watchtips at live.com].