Most people on this list will be aware that the rather idiosyncratic 3D/animation package Blender disappeared earlier this year when its parent company Not a Number went bankrupt. In July an agreement was reached whereby Blender would be open-sourced by a newly-established Blender Foundation if 100,000 euros could be raised to "buy" it from what remained of the original NaN holding company. The campaign fund was opened on 18 July (www.blender3d.com), and 5 weeks later the total raised is 88,000 euros, with some more in promises. This is quite an interesting development - there are various views on NaN's business plan before it went bankrupt, but resurrecting it like this, where its supporters have actually placed a monetary value on the cost of the code, will give it a second chance. It may also be a useful precedent in arguing for the open-sourcing of other closed-source programs which are no longer in development. If anyone wants to make a donation, the details are on the above webpage. Kevin