[long and acrimonious discussion, at present ending with this message, clipped]
Let's recall that once this ``situation'' is resolved, the list of volunteer members/coders will likely increase. Many, I'm sure, myself included, have held back.
I am following this discussion with some alarm, and I am sure that many others who rely on everyone involved in this acrimony to keep our sites running are too. I think competition is very important, and the sort of internal competition you lot are involved in is crucial to the continued speedy evolution of the critical software you are making ( for us users, please be reminded). Those who rely on your skills and expertise--in other words, the vast majority of Apache users, which means, apparently, some 50% of the active Web at this point, NEED you, all of you, as a group. to continue to share your brains and their collective product, with us. Because the vast majority of us couldn't do what you do if our lives depended on it. I use mod_ssl, purely because it seemed easier to install and compile than Apache_SSL, and I really like Ralf's installation notes, not because I formed any judgement about the relative excellence of mod_ssl over Apache_SSL. I am not capable of making that judgement--I rely on YOUR assessments! I really don't care if it actually is easier to install or not; --from my point of view, I honor Tim Hudson and Ben Laurie, Ralf Engelschall and all the less public members of the Apache Group equally. Each of you contributes in a different way to make my life, and therefore livelihood, simpler and more pleasant. Part of my skill set is political consulting--if there's anything I've learned, it is that mud not only sticks to both the flinger and flingee, but also clouds all the subsequent issues between both parties to a remarkably large degree.