Code search has become a product category

Code searching, which started just a few years ago with enterprises trying to prise open source code from their files, has become a product category with a variety of business models.

CEO Darren Rush of Koders.Com says tools like his Koders Pro Edition are changing the way teams build software. Koders covers both open source and private code.

"The back end technology connects right to your version control systems," he said. The new software "lowers the barrier to entry" for such code search integration. Koders previously offered only an "Enterprise Edition" engineered into clients' systems and sold on a per-seat basis. A subscription to Koders Pro is just $99/user/year.

Koders also offers a tracking service for firms concerned about "proprietary code leaking into open source."

It's the business model battle which seems most interesting. Google and Krugle are primarily Web-based products, although Krugle has rolled out an enterprise edition and Google may follow it in their enterprise offering, Rush said.

Oh, and if you want exclusive, albeit biased coverage on where the whole industry is going, check out Rush's own blog. They also blog who must manage and sell.