4 ms·

I don’t really agree about the causes. The big problem is economic. It’s a business problem not a technology problem. The problem is that good software that or

by api 3y ago

I don’t really agree about the causes. The big problem is economic. It’s a business problem not a technology problem. The problem is that good software that ordinary people can easily use is extremely labor intensive to produce. Software is very expensive. This means you have to have an economic model and there has to be a toll booth somewhere or an indirect way of generating revenue like ads. Centralized services make those parts easy. Everything else can be built in a decentralized manner. Many times it’s even easier to build that way. But how do you build it if there’s no funding available and nobody pays for anything? It can’t all be volunteer. People need to be paid. There’s nowhere near enough volunteer open source labor available to build really polished usable systems for everyone. It’s similar to the dynamic in other areas of media. Media is usually a deflationary race to the bottom. The best media has no funding.

nologic01 3y ago
> nobody pays for anything? We pay for almost everything in tech. Part of the digital hallucination that oppresses us is to have this self-flagellating view. Nobody gets any free hardware of any kind. Nobody gets any free network infrastructure and bandwidth of any kind. Its all paid, by purchases, monthly subscriptions etc. With real, hard earned money by people from all walks of life and economic means. Not to mention that historically people happily paid for newspapers, TV licenses and they still do for streaming. The deceit of big tech is propagating the idea that after you have shelled for the all the above, you really don't have to pay for certain very specific pieces of software and services - oh just pay with your reduced privacy and agency (which you don't even know is important). What is happening is that the masses can't tell they are being ripped off (and the potential risks to individuals and society) and nobody in authority does warn them either. In such a situation it is indeed impossible to have a normal economic model to compete. Bad business models repelled good business models. But there is just the slightest glimmer of light at the end of this dark tunnel. While you are right, the volunteer open source enthusiasts can't substitute for the absence of healthy funding they achieved something very important: they showed that alternatives are possible, they don't require trillions, they just require a society with basic decency.
- api 3y ago
  People don’t pay for software unless they have to, which means they only pay for software that restricts their freedom… because that is the software you have to pay for. This is what I mean. You can build high quality open freedom and privacy first software. Then you will probably go bankrupt. Lots of people will use it but nobody will pay for it. Mastodon is used by millions. I’ve heard the devs make way below market rates and the foundation behind it is cash starved. That’s just one example.
  - nologic01 3y ago
    > Mastodon is used by millions. I’ve heard the devs make way below market rates and the foundation behind it is cash starved. That’s just one example. Yes, the funding situation around mastodon is very transparent and many other interesting projects in this space are total labor of love. I will forever admire those people whether they manage to make the world better or not. Well, politicians could create a healthy market for software overnight by outlawing various targeted advertising practices. Once personal data gathering and use for advertising (and who knows what else - who ever reads and understands these manipulative "terms and conditions") is prohibited, any software supported by generic ad technology will be unsufferable. Ten years ago you could excuse politicians, regulators and the lot that is supposed to work on our behalf as not being informed. Today there is no excuse.

by api 3y ago

nologic01 3y ago

> nobody pays for anything? We pay for almost everything in tech. Part of the digital hallucination that oppresses us is to have this self-flagellating view. Nobody gets any free hardware of any kind. Nobody gets any free network infrastructure and bandwidth of any kind. Its all paid, by purchases, monthly subscriptions etc. With real, hard earned money by people from all walks of life and economic means. Not to mention that historically people happily paid for newspapers, TV licenses and they still do for streaming. The deceit of big tech is propagating the idea that after you have shelled for the all the above, you really don't have to pay for certain very specific pieces of software and services - oh just pay with your reduced privacy and agency (which you don't even know is important). What is happening is that the masses can't tell they are being ripped off (and the potential risks to individuals and society) and nobody in authority does warn them either. In such a situation it is indeed impossible to have a normal economic model to compete. Bad business models repelled good business models. But there is just the slightest glimmer of light at the end of this dark tunnel. While you are right, the volunteer open source enthusiasts can't substitute for the absence of healthy funding they achieved something very important: they showed that alternatives are possible, they don't require trillions, they just require a society with basic decency.

api 3y ago
People don’t pay for software unless they have to, which means they only pay for software that restricts their freedom… because that is the software you have to pay for. This is what I mean. You can build high quality open freedom and privacy first software. Then you will probably go bankrupt. Lots of people will use it but nobody will pay for it. Mastodon is used by millions. I’ve heard the devs make way below market rates and the foundation behind it is cash starved. That’s just one example.
- nologic01 3y ago
  > Mastodon is used by millions. I’ve heard the devs make way below market rates and the foundation behind it is cash starved. That’s just one example. Yes, the funding situation around mastodon is very transparent and many other interesting projects in this space are total labor of love. I will forever admire those people whether they manage to make the world better or not. Well, politicians could create a healthy market for software overnight by outlawing various targeted advertising practices. Once personal data gathering and use for advertising (and who knows what else - who ever reads and understands these manipulative "terms and conditions") is prohibited, any software supported by generic ad technology will be unsufferable. Ten years ago you could excuse politicians, regulators and the lot that is supposed to work on our behalf as not being informed. Today there is no excuse.