2016 in Review: The Year of Open Source and the Cloud
A look back at the defining technology trends of 2016. From Microsoft's historic open-source pivot with the release of .NET Core 1.0 to the mainstreaming of Docker and the rapid growth of AWS, we review a year of transformative change.
2016 was a year of profound transformation in the software development world. The major trends of the past few years—cloud computing, open-source, and containerization—didn't just grow; they became the default for how modern applications are built. This was the year that the new way of building software firmly took hold.
Let's look back at the most significant trends that defined 2016.
Microsoft's Open-Source Revolution: .NET Core 1.0
The biggest story of the year, especially for the Microsoft ecosystem, was the official 1.0 release of .NET Core in June. This was a historic moment. With .NET Core, Microsoft released a completely redesigned, open-source, and cross-platform version of its flagship development platform. For the first time, developers could build and run .NET applications on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
This release, along with the new, lightweight ASP.NET Core web framework, represented a fundamental shift in Microsoft's philosophy. The company that once viewed open-source as a competitor was now one of its biggest champions, developing its most important new platform in the open on GitHub.
The Cloud Becomes the Default
If there were any remaining doubts, 2016 was the year that cloud computing became the default for new applications. The agility, scalability, and cost-effectiveness of the cloud became undeniable. Amazon Web Services (AWS) continued its dominance as the market leader, constantly releasing new services and features. The conversation shifted from why you should move to the cloud to how you should build for the cloud.
Docker and Containers Go Mainstream
Docker and containerization exploded in popularity. The concept of packaging an application and all its dependencies into a single, portable container solved so many problems in development and operations that it became an essential tool for modern development. While the "container orchestration wars" between platforms like Kubernetes, Docker Swarm, and Mesos were still heating up, the underlying value of containers themselves was no longer in question.
The Rise of Serverless
A new and radical architectural paradigm began to gain serious traction: serverless. Pioneered by AWS Lambda, the serverless model allowed developers to run code in response to events without provisioning or managing any servers. This Function-as-a-Service (FaaS) model, with its pay-per-execution pricing and automatic scaling, offered a glimpse into a future where developers could focus solely on their code, leaving all infrastructure concerns to the cloud provider.
Python 3.6 and the Focus on Developer Experience
The Python community got a preview of Python 3.6, which was set to be released at the end of the year. The headline feature, f-strings, promised a new, more readable, and more efficient way to format strings, continuing Python's long tradition of focusing on developer happiness and code readability.
Looking Ahead
2016 was a year of groundbreaking change. The walls between platforms and ecosystems came down as open-source and cross-platform became the new standard. The cloud solidified its position as the center of the technology universe. The foundations laid this year, particularly with the release of .NET Core and the mainstreaming of containers, have set the stage for an incredible period of innovation. As we move into 2017, the pace of change shows no signs of slowing down.