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I’m constantly amazed by the quality and consistency of the open source community. Can you think of any other industry where massive companies are built on top

I’m constantly amazed by the quality and consistency of the open source community. Can you think of any other industry where massive companies are built on top of free infrastructure?

tamrix 6y ago
OpenSource software isn't free. It costs people's time to develop and maintain. Calling it 'free' devalues the projects and their maintainers by giving the impression their time isn't worth anything. We as the OpenSource community need to start moving towards a more sustainable approach to OpenSource development. First step: Stop calling it free.
- phist_mcgee 6y ago
  Oh god this is the same argument rolled out by opponents of socialised healthcare. If it's free then you are forcing the doctor to work for no pay! Stop splitting hairs over the meaning of 'free' in this context. It is free to the end user, it is not free to the developer or maintainer. I make christmas hampers for the poor, I call them free hampers. Of course they are not free, but to the end user they are. And no, people are not going to start using the word libre, it is not an English word and it is not used widely enough outside of computing and it will probably not catch on. /endrant
- jfax 6y ago
  I feel like calling Free software 'open source' devalues the project and their maintainers by giving the impression their work can be exploited for non-Free software.
- f1refly 6y ago
  Yes, I agree, open source software isn't free. Anyone can take it, close it off and steal the fruits of my work to do whatever with it. Calling it "free" devalues the projects and their maintainers by giving the impression they'd rather use a questionable license model than create software for humanity. We as the free software community need to show people who call it open source the door and have them escort out by security so they stop ruining the whole affair. ...what was that money thing you where rambling about?
LeonB 6y ago
There's certainly nothing like the open source community. But if you generalize it sufficiently, all businesses are somewhat like that. Take banks for example. They rely on there being a functional society, with most transactions being honest, and with police/justice systems enforcing safety of depositors, etc.
dahfizz 6y ago
I wonder why that is? I guess the relative ease with which software is created and published? Do civil engineers have the opportunity to create the bridge version of Linux as their masters project? I think the physical limitations of bridge building means that there isn't a great analog to Linux in the civil engineering field. The only field I can come up with that could behave similar to software is art. Why don't artist release art "open source" for others to use and transform? I could certainly see compensation as a factor: artists are famously underpaid so they are not willing to work for free. Or maybe it's a cultural thing, where lots of people using your open source library translates into respect for the author, but lots of people ripping off an artist could have the opposite effect?
- TheKarateKid 6y ago
  > Do civil engineers have the opportunity to create the bridge version of Linux as their masters project? I think the physical limitations of bridge building means that there isn't a great analog to Linux in the civil engineering field. That may be true to build final product, but to even become interested or explore the field of engineering (and other professions) has a lot of roadblocks and expenses that software developers don't have to deal with. Imagine having to pay $2000 for a Windows Server + MS SQL license to develop your small website. Whoops! I forgot the $500 license for Visual Studio just to get your code to compile. The availability and power of free, open-source software greatly lowers the barrier to entry for anyone and everyone: hobbyists to make and release a project, startups to create their product on low/no budget, curious people interested in trying programming. The fact that this free and open software rivals and often beats its paid equivalents is absolutely amazing. It's why despite the problems in our industry, I am so proud to be a part of it.
runarberg 6y ago
I don’t have insider knowledge, but sewing and baking comes to mind. The fashon industry probably relies heavily on established patterns that are free to copy, alter and use (quite often even from a competitor). And the baking industry can do similar with free recipes.
KSteffensen 6y ago
Volkswagen don't build the highways themselves and I'm not aware of Boeing ever building an airport.
- runarberg 6y ago
  Indeed. High skilled labor and research is also often trained for free by universities, so we can put pharmaceutical companies, mining companies, etc. there too. Hospitals often provide free healthcare for the workers, and municipalities often provide waste management for a very modest fee. In fact—as you point out—the average company in most industries relies heavily on state provided infrastructure, that they get to use for free (or a really modest price).

I’m constantly amazed by the quality and consistency of the open source community. Can you think of any other industry where massive companies are built on top of free infrastructure?

tamrix 6y ago

OpenSource software isn't free. It costs people's time to develop and maintain. Calling it 'free' devalues the projects and their maintainers by giving the impression their time isn't worth anything. We as the OpenSource community need to start moving towards a more sustainable approach to OpenSource development. First step: Stop calling it free.

phist_mcgee 6y ago
Oh god this is the same argument rolled out by opponents of socialised healthcare. If it's free then you are forcing the doctor to work for no pay! Stop splitting hairs over the meaning of 'free' in this context. It is free to the end user, it is not free to the developer or maintainer. I make christmas hampers for the poor, I call them free hampers. Of course they are not free, but to the end user they are. And no, people are not going to start using the word libre, it is not an English word and it is not used widely enough outside of computing and it will probably not catch on. /endrant
jfax 6y ago
I feel like calling Free software 'open source' devalues the project and their maintainers by giving the impression their work can be exploited for non-Free software.
f1refly 6y ago
Yes, I agree, open source software isn't free. Anyone can take it, close it off and steal the fruits of my work to do whatever with it. Calling it "free" devalues the projects and their maintainers by giving the impression they'd rather use a questionable license model than create software for humanity. We as the free software community need to show people who call it open source the door and have them escort out by security so they stop ruining the whole affair. ...what was that money thing you where rambling about?

LeonB 6y ago

There's certainly nothing like the open source community. But if you generalize it sufficiently, all businesses are somewhat like that. Take banks for example. They rely on there being a functional society, with most transactions being honest, and with police/justice systems enforcing safety of depositors, etc.

dahfizz 6y ago

I wonder why that is? I guess the relative ease with which software is created and published? Do civil engineers have the opportunity to create the bridge version of Linux as their masters project? I think the physical limitations of bridge building means that there isn't a great analog to Linux in the civil engineering field. The only field I can come up with that could behave similar to software is art. Why don't artist release art "open source" for others to use and transform? I could certainly see compensation as a factor: artists are famously underpaid so they are not willing to work for free. Or maybe it's a cultural thing, where lots of people using your open source library translates into respect for the author, but lots of people ripping off an artist could have the opposite effect?

TheKarateKid 6y ago
> Do civil engineers have the opportunity to create the bridge version of Linux as their masters project? I think the physical limitations of bridge building means that there isn't a great analog to Linux in the civil engineering field. That may be true to build final product, but to even become interested or explore the field of engineering (and other professions) has a lot of roadblocks and expenses that software developers don't have to deal with. Imagine having to pay $2000 for a Windows Server + MS SQL license to develop your small website. Whoops! I forgot the $500 license for Visual Studio just to get your code to compile. The availability and power of free, open-source software greatly lowers the barrier to entry for anyone and everyone: hobbyists to make and release a project, startups to create their product on low/no budget, curious people interested in trying programming. The fact that this free and open software rivals and often beats its paid equivalents is absolutely amazing. It's why despite the problems in our industry, I am so proud to be a part of it.

runarberg 6y ago

I don’t have insider knowledge, but sewing and baking comes to mind. The fashon industry probably relies heavily on established patterns that are free to copy, alter and use (quite often even from a competitor). And the baking industry can do similar with free recipes.

KSteffensen 6y ago

Volkswagen don't build the highways themselves and I'm not aware of Boeing ever building an airport.

runarberg 6y ago
Indeed. High skilled labor and research is also often trained for free by universities, so we can put pharmaceutical companies, mining companies, etc. there too. Hospitals often provide free healthcare for the workers, and municipalities often provide waste management for a very modest fee. In fact—as you point out—the average company in most industries relies heavily on state provided infrastructure, that they get to use for free (or a really modest price).