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The majority of people/groups I see selling Drupal stuff sell themes which I see as legitimate... It takes a lot of work to make a well-written theme and once s

The majority of people/groups I see selling Drupal stuff sell themes which I see as legitimate... It takes a lot of work to make a well-written theme and once someone buys the theme, while GPL'ed it's possible to redistribute for free but why would you want someone else to use "your look"? Selling modules and functionality on the other hand... well, I suppose it's possible but why do it? Isn't the point of using software like Wordpress, Drupal, Joomla, et al to be a part of a larger Open Source community? I know I would never sell a module or theme rather than release it to the community, because that's what's been done by my predecessors in the community. I would be out of a job if that community didn't exist because by myself I don't have the resources, talent, and myriad of other attributes required to put together as complete and functional a product. There's a good thread here http://drupal.org/node/237682 http://drupal.org/node/237682 discussing just this and the general consensus seems to be that it's possible but generally harmful to the community. I think this applies not only to Drupal but to every Open Source project in general.

ktsmith 16y ago
> The majority of people/groups I see selling Drupal stuff sell themes which I see as legitimate... It takes a lot of work to make a well-written theme It takes an equal amount of time and effort, and in many cases significantly more, to make a module. As a developer it's hard to argue that the time spent isn't worth something. If that project is the only project worked on by a developer continued work and development may not even be possible without charging for the software. Certainly their work can then be redistributed for free, but that's a risk the developer can choose to take and offset with value added services such as official support for the module. When the module doesn't work for someone that got it for free they then also have the option of turning away support requests from that person or trying to sell them support. I don't see how this is any less legitimate than making themes. > Isn't the point of using software like Wordpress, Drupal, Joomla, et al to be a part of a larger Open Source community? I've been involved with a bunch of open source projects and the majority of the users don't really seem to know or care where the software came from. They care that it works the way they want. The fact that it's "free' is a bonus typically but many would willingly pay for it. That's part of the reason Red Hat makes money and other companies supporting open source make a lot of money. > I know I would never sell a module or theme rather than release it to the community, because that's what's been done by my predecessors in the community. That's great, and that's a choice that works for you. It likely doesn't work for everyone. One of the nice things about the GPL is that it allows each end user of the software to use it as they see fit so long as the same rights are extended to the next person it is shared with. > There's a good thread here http://drupal.org/node/237682 http://drupal.org/node/237682 discussing just this and the general consensus seems to be that it's possible but generally harmful to the community. I think this applies not only to Drupal but to every Open Source project in general. Unfortunately that thread, like so many others, is filled with a lot of incorrect information about the GPL and it's very hard to find the valid information within all the noise. Selling open source software has worked extremely well for a large number of companies. There are and have been numerous companies that have helped grow open source communities and projects through their charging for open source software or addon services. Red Hat, Cygnus, VA (Research/Linux/Software/Whatever they are this week), etc. I would recommend reading the gnu.org page on the philosophy of selling open source software. One of the key lines is: > Distributing free software is an opportunity to raise funds for development. Don't waste it! http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/selling.html http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/selling.html
- jacobroufa 16y ago
  Thanks for providing (a) detailed response(s). I really appreciate the time you took. I know that one of the reasons I value the communities I'm a part of is for what you just demonstrated. As Mike would say, "I am but an egg" and I need the others in the community to point out where I have an opportunity for growth and explain why. I definitely appreciate the gnu.org link. I guess where I disagree with all of this is in my implementation. I choose to provide services (as a consultant) rather than goods (in the form of modules or themes). I can't disagree with the result though, as the end is often the same. Sorry for my attack on the thread; I suppose what I really wanted to do was ask a question and I didn't know how. Thank you ktsmith for being patient enough to help me along. :)

ktsmith 16y ago

> The majority of people/groups I see selling Drupal stuff sell themes which I see as legitimate... It takes a lot of work to make a well-written theme It takes an equal amount of time and effort, and in many cases significantly more, to make a module. As a developer it's hard to argue that the time spent isn't worth something. If that project is the only project worked on by a developer continued work and development may not even be possible without charging for the software. Certainly their work can then be redistributed for free, but that's a risk the developer can choose to take and offset with value added services such as official support for the module. When the module doesn't work for someone that got it for free they then also have the option of turning away support requests from that person or trying to sell them support. I don't see how this is any less legitimate than making themes. > Isn't the point of using software like Wordpress, Drupal, Joomla, et al to be a part of a larger Open Source community? I've been involved with a bunch of open source projects and the majority of the users don't really seem to know or care where the software came from. They care that it works the way they want. The fact that it's "free' is a bonus typically but many would willingly pay for it. That's part of the reason Red Hat makes money and other companies supporting open source make a lot of money. > I know I would never sell a module or theme rather than release it to the community, because that's what's been done by my predecessors in the community. That's great, and that's a choice that works for you. It likely doesn't work for everyone. One of the nice things about the GPL is that it allows each end user of the software to use it as they see fit so long as the same rights are extended to the next person it is shared with. > There's a good thread here http://drupal.org/node/237682 http://drupal.org/node/237682 discussing just this and the general consensus seems to be that it's possible but generally harmful to the community. I think this applies not only to Drupal but to every Open Source project in general. Unfortunately that thread, like so many others, is filled with a lot of incorrect information about the GPL and it's very hard to find the valid information within all the noise. Selling open source software has worked extremely well for a large number of companies. There are and have been numerous companies that have helped grow open source communities and projects through their charging for open source software or addon services. Red Hat, Cygnus, VA (Research/Linux/Software/Whatever they are this week), etc. I would recommend reading the gnu.org page on the philosophy of selling open source software. One of the key lines is: > Distributing free software is an opportunity to raise funds for development. Don't waste it! http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/selling.html http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/selling.html

jacobroufa 16y ago
Thanks for providing (a) detailed response(s). I really appreciate the time you took. I know that one of the reasons I value the communities I'm a part of is for what you just demonstrated. As Mike would say, "I am but an egg" and I need the others in the community to point out where I have an opportunity for growth and explain why. I definitely appreciate the gnu.org link. I guess where I disagree with all of this is in my implementation. I choose to provide services (as a consultant) rather than goods (in the form of modules or themes). I can't disagree with the result though, as the end is often the same. Sorry for my attack on the thread; I suppose what I really wanted to do was ask a question and I didn't know how. Thank you ktsmith for being patient enough to help me along. :)