  We propose a scheme to prepare a maximally entangled state for two
Lambda-type atoms trapped in separate optical cavities coupled through an
optical fiber based on the combined effect of the unitary dynamics and the
dissipative process. Our work shows that the fiber loss, as well as the atomic
spontaneous emission and the cavity decay, is no longer undesirable, but
requisite to prepare the distributed entanglement, which is meaningful for the
long distance quantum information processing tasks. Originating from an
arbitrary state, the desired state could be prepared without precise time
control. The robustness of the scheme is numerically demonstrated by
considering various parameters.
