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> Compare the derision and skepticism hurled at would-be video game developers to the praise people working countless hours on pointless "portfolio side project

> Compare the derision and skepticism hurled at would-be video game developers to the praise people working countless hours on pointless "portfolio side projects" on github or whatever get Ok: one is fun, ~100h spread out over any period you want (e.g. a year: 2h per weekend), completely 100% beholden only to yourself, no strings attached. The other... well, I’ve never worked there, but I’ll quote someone who seems to know: “certainly being exploited, often in ways that violate labor laws.” Are you honestly comparing what people are describing here to side projects? honestly: what side project have you ever worked on that treated you that way?

sidlls 9y ago
The amusement is from the comparison to the use of side projects as a proxy/signal for "passion" as part of the job application process and resume support, not side projects in general. Of course more generally the exploitation of open source work by commercial entities is also ignored in this context, which is also amusing. The number of side-projects that are used for free by commercial entities profiting off them dwarfs the number used to generate income by consulting or as a business. But that's just fine because "open source."