Shaver succeeded Mozilla founder and open source advocate Jamie Zawinski, who resigned on the eve of Mozilla's first anniversary in April last year. Zawinski left Mozilla expressing frustration that after a year of work the project had failed to produce a full-featured, usable browser. Shaver said his departure should not be seen as a vote of no-confidence for Mozilla. Six or eight months ago, the commentary on our builds was pretty negative, but now well over half the comments are positive. I certainly think Mozilla is in great shape, and that's one of the reasons I want to stay involved.
Nobody wants to keep involved with a project that's failing.
AOL has had difficulty retaining key Netscape talent since the acquisition. Departures have ranged from high-level executives to key figures in client development. Shaver, who posted notification of his impending departure to the Mozillazine news and discussion site, will serve through Jan. 31. Inc. All rights reserved.