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It seems to me that the author of TextMate is in a rather interesting position. he has created an editor with a cult like following that he has neither the time

It seems to me that the author of TextMate is in a rather interesting position. he has created an editor with a cult like following that he has neither the time, manpower, or interest in updating. I am sure that version 2 will be completed at some point, but at what cost to his sanity? Imagine for a moment if he just gave up and released the source for free. Hundreds of itchy fingers across the net dig into the source, enhancing it, expanding it, fixing it, porting it to everything from Linux to the Nintendo DS. The cult of Textmate grows with each new release, finally bringing another contender to the editor wars long raged by vi and emacs. Since Mr. TextMate dude no longer has a source of income, he decides to write a book about his experiences developing the app and his eventual burnout. It is an instant hit with geeks everywhere. He rakes in tons of money doing speaking engagements. After a few years, the itch to code returns. Mr. TextMate's new app, TextyMatey - an editor that converts everything you type into pirate speak, becomes the first ever text editor to hit 1 million downloads in the first day. DVD sales of Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy skyrocket, prompting a visit from Johnny Depp. Mr TextMate and Johnny become fast friends and spend the rest of their days as men of leisure on the French Riviera.

petercooper 16y ago
I want some of what you're drinking ;-) Seriously though, I think the picture you paint would work out very well for him, but judging from bits and pieces I've read over the years, I suspect the Textmate code base is not particularly well structured and that he might even be a little embarrassed for others to see the code (I'm just guessing based on scraps, but I think most of us have been there). It's clear he's made a few million euros from Textmate and I've read that he has a few pet projects he enjoys working on (for some reason I think I saw DHH say this). Perhaps he doesn't want that fame or the big bucks. I could certainly survive full time with a few million in capital and a residue of sales each month.. (even if he sells a mere 100 copies a month now, that nets far more than the median European salary).

petercooper 16y ago

I want some of what you're drinking ;-) Seriously though, I think the picture you paint would work out very well for him, but judging from bits and pieces I've read over the years, I suspect the Textmate code base is not particularly well structured and that he might even be a little embarrassed for others to see the code (I'm just guessing based on scraps, but I think most of us have been there). It's clear he's made a few million euros from Textmate and I've read that he has a few pet projects he enjoys working on (for some reason I think I saw DHH say this). Perhaps he doesn't want that fame or the big bucks. I could certainly survive full time with a few million in capital and a residue of sales each month.. (even if he sells a mere 100 copies a month now, that nets far more than the median European salary).