While it'd take many hours to figure out how to make some random FOSS code to do what I want if what I want is anything particularly interesting, finding out wh

While it'd take many hours to figure out how to make some random FOSS code to do what I want if what I want is anything particularly interesting, finding out where to comment out the code that eg phones home, or makes annoying noises, and then sharing that patch with everybody else is much easier and more realistic. Sure, it doesn't entirely remove the power of the developers and particularly the people who control the official releases page, but it feels like a real, meaningful check on their power. It becomes even more meaningful if you're not just some rando but maybe the "user" in question is an org who can actually devote resources to maintain changes to some FOSS code, saving you from having to enter into some sort of partnership with the developer.