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Ever since Facebook bought Oculus I've really hoped something like this would spring up. I really really want it to succeed and would be happy to back it on Ki

Ever since Facebook bought Oculus I've really hoped something like this would spring up. I really really want it to succeed and would be happy to back it on Kickstarter or similar. How do we ensure that these projects don't end up being bought out by Facebook or Google?

TheRealSteel 6y ago
If we make sure it's licensed properly, that's not possible, right? They could hire certain people but if it's all open source, we can at worst just fork it. According to the GitHub it appears to be under GPL v3. I'm not qualified to state whether this applies to the hardware design or just the software. I certainly wouldn't want to put any effort in to a project where the IP can be bought.
- vinceguidry 6y ago
  Being under an open source (the term you’re really looking for is free software) license isn’t enough to protect a project. You have to maintain forward momentum. A company can buy the trademark, and the company or group of people providing that forward momentum, like Oracle did with Sun, and then, like China assimilating Hong Kong, it’s just a matter of time. Solaris died, Java got wholly corporatized and free software mostly moved on. Stallman, of course, realized this a long time ago and started a group of people, in the legal form of a charitable foundation, to keep that forward momentum going. To his telling, his Hail Mary was phenomenally successful. If what you want is to work on a platform that will stay free no matter what, your best bet is to align with the FSF. They have the most momentum, the fewest corporate threats, and a long enough memory to keep it that way.
  - johnyzee 6y ago
    > Java got wholly corporatized and free software mostly moved on ?... The Java community was completely unaffected by the Oracle transition and is as strong as ever. Of course, Java wasn't open source (or "free") to begin with.
    - vinceguidry 6y ago
      Sun released the JVM under the GPL in 2006. Oracle bought them in 2009. Sun always intended to release Java as free software, they just needed to make their money first, and were a big user of dual-licensing, which is endorsed by the FSF. It's a pattern they replicated across their entire product stack. Of all the big names in the technology space that made their buck from tagging along the free software train, Sun was far far far from the worst offender. When they got bought, I have friends that were personally extremely offended, they had built their professional lives around expertise in Sun tech. And, as to "stronger than ever," if you're a new coder, are you going to learn and use and love Java, or Golang? Java is what you do for your job. The only reason it's still a thing is because of the massive existing install base. The company I work with, is already starting to treat their Java projects as legacy and most teams, including mine, are starting up, are moving, or have already moved to Golang.
mark_l_watson 6y ago
I have mixed feelings about the Oculus and FB’s ownership. I would like an open platform but I appreciate both the more than adequate Oculus hardware and some excellent VR experiences created by both Oculus and many 3rd parties. I might still buy a manufactured open platform system, depending on available experiences. I would also definitely buy an “Oculus 2” that had a higher resolution screen and slightly lighter weight. I really like the recent Oculus software update that allows some games and VR experiences to be used without controllers by recognizing hand gestures. I hope there is a lot of exploration of new ideas based around no controller use. Hopefully open platform VR headsets will be adopted by university research teams as well as commercial content creators. Hobbyists creators are to be encouraged but they are not enough to get widespread adoption.
- moron4hire 6y ago
  You mean 3? We're already on Oculus' second generation.
  - mark_l_watson 6y ago
    Thanks, I meant "Quest 2" - I only kept my Oculus Go for 1 week, then gave it to my grandson. I get a lot of value from my Oculus Quest which I bought last year.
    - Tijdreiziger 6y ago
      The Quest 2 is rumored to be releasing this month, but you'll be forced to log in with Facebook to use it.
      - mark_l_watson 6y ago
        I will probably get it. I just spent 20 minutes playing the Quest ping pong game - amazing game physics and general gameplay.

TheRealSteel 6y ago

If we make sure it's licensed properly, that's not possible, right? They could hire certain people but if it's all open source, we can at worst just fork it. According to the GitHub it appears to be under GPL v3. I'm not qualified to state whether this applies to the hardware design or just the software. I certainly wouldn't want to put any effort in to a project where the IP can be bought.

vinceguidry 6y ago
Being under an open source (the term you’re really looking for is free software) license isn’t enough to protect a project. You have to maintain forward momentum. A company can buy the trademark, and the company or group of people providing that forward momentum, like Oracle did with Sun, and then, like China assimilating Hong Kong, it’s just a matter of time. Solaris died, Java got wholly corporatized and free software mostly moved on. Stallman, of course, realized this a long time ago and started a group of people, in the legal form of a charitable foundation, to keep that forward momentum going. To his telling, his Hail Mary was phenomenally successful. If what you want is to work on a platform that will stay free no matter what, your best bet is to align with the FSF. They have the most momentum, the fewest corporate threats, and a long enough memory to keep it that way.
- johnyzee 6y ago
  > Java got wholly corporatized and free software mostly moved on ?... The Java community was completely unaffected by the Oracle transition and is as strong as ever. Of course, Java wasn't open source (or "free") to begin with.
  - vinceguidry 6y ago
    Sun released the JVM under the GPL in 2006. Oracle bought them in 2009. Sun always intended to release Java as free software, they just needed to make their money first, and were a big user of dual-licensing, which is endorsed by the FSF. It's a pattern they replicated across their entire product stack. Of all the big names in the technology space that made their buck from tagging along the free software train, Sun was far far far from the worst offender. When they got bought, I have friends that were personally extremely offended, they had built their professional lives around expertise in Sun tech. And, as to "stronger than ever," if you're a new coder, are you going to learn and use and love Java, or Golang? Java is what you do for your job. The only reason it's still a thing is because of the massive existing install base. The company I work with, is already starting to treat their Java projects as legacy and most teams, including mine, are starting up, are moving, or have already moved to Golang.

mark_l_watson 6y ago

I have mixed feelings about the Oculus and FB’s ownership. I would like an open platform but I appreciate both the more than adequate Oculus hardware and some excellent VR experiences created by both Oculus and many 3rd parties. I might still buy a manufactured open platform system, depending on available experiences. I would also definitely buy an “Oculus 2” that had a higher resolution screen and slightly lighter weight. I really like the recent Oculus software update that allows some games and VR experiences to be used without controllers by recognizing hand gestures. I hope there is a lot of exploration of new ideas based around no controller use. Hopefully open platform VR headsets will be adopted by university research teams as well as commercial content creators. Hobbyists creators are to be encouraged but they are not enough to get widespread adoption.

moron4hire 6y ago
You mean 3? We're already on Oculus' second generation.
- mark_l_watson 6y ago
  Thanks, I meant "Quest 2" - I only kept my Oculus Go for 1 week, then gave it to my grandson. I get a lot of value from my Oculus Quest which I bought last year.
  - Tijdreiziger 6y ago
    The Quest 2 is rumored to be releasing this month, but you'll be forced to log in with Facebook to use it.
    - mark_l_watson 6y ago
      I will probably get it. I just spent 20 minutes playing the Quest ping pong game - amazing game physics and general gameplay.