It's hard to keep up with all the companies joining The Linux Foundation these days, but recently one jumped on board whose name threw a collective hush over the Linux blogosphere.

Toyota, that is -- none other than the planet's largest automobile manufacturer in terms of both sales and production.

Is there really anything else to say? Linux, you're on top of the world.

'The Flexibility We Require'

"Linux gives us the flexibility and technology maturity we require to evolve our In-Vehicle-Infotainment and communications systems to address the expectations of our customers," said Kenichi Murata, a project general manager with Toyota. "The Linux Foundation provides us with a neutral forum in which we can collaborate with the world's leading technology companies on open innovation that accelerates that evolution."

Toyota joined the foundation as a full-fledged gold member, in fact, making it clear that it's betting big on the open source operating system.