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I agree with the author that we can make local changes, and I think we should. However, I disagree with the author on global changes. I think we can do them. I

I agree with the author that we can make local changes, and I think we should. However, I disagree with the author on global changes. I think we can do them. In fact, I think local changes can grow to global ones, or close to it. Here's my personal plan: like many of you, I want to make money off of my FOSS projects. However, instead of going the donation route, I'm taking an entirely different tack. I am setting myself up as a professional. This includes accepting some liability for my software. You can bet that if I'm accepting liability, I will be testing my software until it screams. But the flip side of being professional means crafting software that is fast, and I'm going to do that too. Yes, I'll be expensive, but that software should be a massive lever as a result. The bigger the lever, the more likely that that software will help my clients out-compete their competitors. Helping them do so is my goal because if they do, their competitors will have to start caring about performance. And once people care about performance in one thing, it starts to disgust them to have to use slow software in other things. So it may be slow (over decades), but I'm hoping that my work will help performance go viral.

zabzonk 4y ago
what on earth do you mean by "professional"? and how can your software be "expensive" if it is also FOSS? or is this satire?
- JohnFen 4y ago
  FOSS in no way means "free of cost". We use a piece of FOSS software where I work, and it costs 4 figures per seat.
  - zabzonk 4y ago
    what is it, how many seats, why not maintain it yourself if it is so useful? i can't believe that there is no closed source doing the same thing FOSS means free, depending on what you want from the software - if you want more than the FOSS offering does, you may have to pay for improvements, or you may not.
    - JohnFen 4y ago
      All good questions, asked by all the devs here. I'm not about to defend the use of this particular product. I was just pointing to an example of FOSS that not only isn't free, it's very expensive.
      - zabzonk 4y ago
        sorry, but i really can't believe this. to start with how can foss manage a per seat license? i get needing support, but if you have the code (which you must else it is not foss) why can't you strip out the per seat code (which is a no-no in my experience on closed code) and just pay a one-off/per problem support contract?
        JohnFen 4y ago
        We could, of course. But it would be a license violation and legal wouldn't stand for it. We can each use it without charge for our own, personal purposes, of course -- just not for the company's purposes. I can't help you with your disbelief, but it is true that nothing in the FOSS philosophy prevents companies from charging for their work.
        zabzonk 4y ago
        of course, you know your business far better than i do. and as you say nothing stops people making money off foss - i've done it myself. but the normal route for this is via people finding the software useful,consultancy, support and adding paid-for features. i have never, ever seen per-seat licenses for foss software. if this software actually exists, you could at least point to its web page.
        bpowell 4y ago
        My guess would be something like Docker Desktop for Mac. It's free for personal use, but if you are using it from a company standpoint, it is not free
- justincredible 4y ago
  [dead]
- Normal_gaussian 4y ago
  You open source it, but offer a commercial license with warranty and support contract. Many organisations require support contracts, so won't use the free version even if they are internally capable.
  - zabzonk 4y ago
    yes, i know that but unless in the unlikely event that this guy's FOSS software meets their requirements, they will not do that.
- gavinhoward 4y ago
  Normal_gaussian got it right. The support and liability contract would be the expensive part, not the FOSS. Notice that I said that I will be expensive, not the FOSS. I meant that my services will be expensive.
  - zabzonk 4y ago
    unless you are very, very lucky - dream on
    - gavinhoward 4y ago
      The world is changed by unreasonable people with dreams. So yes, I will. Thank you.
      - zabzonk 4y ago
        i would say it is changed by reasonable people with a plan

zabzonk 4y ago

what on earth do you mean by "professional"? and how can your software be "expensive" if it is also FOSS? or is this satire?

JohnFen 4y ago
FOSS in no way means "free of cost". We use a piece of FOSS software where I work, and it costs 4 figures per seat.
- zabzonk 4y ago
  what is it, how many seats, why not maintain it yourself if it is so useful? i can't believe that there is no closed source doing the same thing FOSS means free, depending on what you want from the software - if you want more than the FOSS offering does, you may have to pay for improvements, or you may not.
  - JohnFen 4y ago
    All good questions, asked by all the devs here. I'm not about to defend the use of this particular product. I was just pointing to an example of FOSS that not only isn't free, it's very expensive.
    - zabzonk 4y ago
      sorry, but i really can't believe this. to start with how can foss manage a per seat license? i get needing support, but if you have the code (which you must else it is not foss) why can't you strip out the per seat code (which is a no-no in my experience on closed code) and just pay a one-off/per problem support contract?
      - JohnFen 4y ago
        We could, of course. But it would be a license violation and legal wouldn't stand for it. We can each use it without charge for our own, personal purposes, of course -- just not for the company's purposes. I can't help you with your disbelief, but it is true that nothing in the FOSS philosophy prevents companies from charging for their work.
        zabzonk 4y ago
        of course, you know your business far better than i do. and as you say nothing stops people making money off foss - i've done it myself. but the normal route for this is via people finding the software useful,consultancy, support and adding paid-for features. i have never, ever seen per-seat licenses for foss software. if this software actually exists, you could at least point to its web page.
      - bpowell 4y ago
        My guess would be something like Docker Desktop for Mac. It's free for personal use, but if you are using it from a company standpoint, it is not free
justincredible 4y ago
[dead]
Normal_gaussian 4y ago
You open source it, but offer a commercial license with warranty and support contract. Many organisations require support contracts, so won't use the free version even if they are internally capable.
- zabzonk 4y ago
  yes, i know that but unless in the unlikely event that this guy's FOSS software meets their requirements, they will not do that.
gavinhoward 4y ago
Normal_gaussian got it right. The support and liability contract would be the expensive part, not the FOSS. Notice that I said that I will be expensive, not the FOSS. I meant that my services will be expensive.
- zabzonk 4y ago
  unless you are very, very lucky - dream on
  - gavinhoward 4y ago
    The world is changed by unreasonable people with dreams. So yes, I will. Thank you.
    - zabzonk 4y ago
      i would say it is changed by reasonable people with a plan