Oslo's Modeling Language 'M' To Be Published Under Open Specification Promise

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"Oslo" is the code name for our platform for model-driven applications. The goal of "Oslo" is to provide a 10x productivity gain by making model-driven applications mainstream with domain-specific models, a new language, and tools. Community Technology Previews (CTPs) of the three components of Oslo through MSDN:

  • The declarative modeling language known as "M" 
  • A new visual modeling tool known as Quadrant
  • The Oslo repository

"Microsoft is also going to publish the ‘M’ language specification, including MSchema, MGrammar and MGraph, under the Open Specification Promise (OSP). This will facilitate the interoperability of the ‘Oslo’ declarative modeling language, codenamed "M," with prominent industry standards such as WS* specifications," according to Sam Ramji, Senior Director of Platform Strategy, in his blog Port 25.

The OSP is a licensing arrangement that allows any third party to implement a Microsoft specification and do their own version. XAML [Extensible Application Markup Language] is another specification offered through OSP.

You can get started with Oslo on MSDN. You can start learning about how to write your own domain-specific programming language (DSL) using Olso with the tools in the Oslo Development Center. You'll find videos, links for the Oslo SDK, and articles about M. ISVs are using DSLs to automate a lot of their code writing and simplifying development, increasing productivity.

In addition, a new site, Models Remixed, demonstrates the renewed relevance of modeling. The site displays a lighthearted video that depicts modeling through the ages, including cavemen writing on tablets, early Egyptians modeling pyramids, model rocket builders and more.