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Contribution isn’t driven by a desire for rewards, but by goodwill. Friction only gets in the way. If the friction is worth it, fine - but what exactly is being

Contribution isn’t driven by a desire for rewards, but by goodwill. Friction only gets in the way. If the friction is worth it, fine - but what exactly is being lost by moving the repository to GitHub?

Aachen 1y ago
> what exactly is being lost by moving the repository to GitHub? Alternatives to github We lament Google's browser engine monopoly, but putting the vast majority of open source projects on github is just the expected course to take. I guess we'll repeat history once microsoft decides to set in the enshittification, maybe one day mobile OSes replace Windows and they're strapped for cash, who knows, but it's a centralised closed system owned by a corporation that absolutely adores FOSS I don't mind any particular project (such as this one) being in Github and I can understand that Mozilla chooses the easy path, they've got bigger problems after all, but it's not like there are no concerns with everyone and everything moving to github
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- lpln3452 1y ago
  Did you ever use the alternatives before GitHub took off? GitLab? It was awful. Slow, and paying for that kind of experience felt like a bad joke. It's much better now but it was borderline unusable back in the day. Or SourceForge, before Git was mainstream? Also terrible. GitHub succeeded because it quickly established itself as a decent way to host Git - not because it was exceptional, but because the competition had abysmal UX. Unlike other lock-in-prone services, moving a Git project is trivial. If GitHub loses its advantages due to enshittification, you just move. Case in point: Mozilla hopping on and off GitHub, as this article shows.
  - Philpax 1y ago
    I believe GitLab post-dates GitHub, but I otherwise agree with the sentiment.
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    - lpln3452 1y ago
      You're right. But as far as I remember, neither GitHub nor GitLab were really mainstream at the time. I think the real competition began around the same time.
  - matkoniecz 1y ago
    > Unlike other lock-in-prone services, moving a Git project is trivial. not really just moving issue tracker and discussions is highly annoying trying to get your users to move is likely hard and you will lose many still, may be easy in comparison
stevekemp 1y ago
The number of emails I get "Your website is vulnerable to clickjacking attacks, PS. how much bounty have I earned?" suggests that there are many for whom a desire for literal rewards is their sole driver. Not to mention the AI-generated security "issues" that are reported against curl, for example, suggests there can indeed be negative value for reports, and contributions.
- lpln3452 1y ago
  You're right. And that's not an issue with any particular platform, but with open source projects that accept issues and PR in general. I don't think this is the place for a debate about the overall utility of open source.
baobun 1y ago
> but what exactly is being lost by moving the repository to GitHub? Contributors who can't use GitHub because either 1) they are fresh and can't activate a new account 2) their old grandfathered account is no longer usable or 3) their old account id doxxed and they can no longer safely contribute under the old identity. Once you trigger phone-number verification requirement your account is globally shadowbanned and support blocked pending SMS code verification. Aside from the privacy issue it's completely blocking people in countries to which GitHub won't even try to SMS/call. Remember that registering a second account would be violating GitHub ToS.

Aachen 1y ago

> what exactly is being lost by moving the repository to GitHub? Alternatives to github We lament Google's browser engine monopoly, but putting the vast majority of open source projects on github is just the expected course to take. I guess we'll repeat history once microsoft decides to set in the enshittification, maybe one day mobile OSes replace Windows and they're strapped for cash, who knows, but it's a centralised closed system owned by a corporation that absolutely adores FOSS I don't mind any particular project (such as this one) being in Github and I can understand that Mozilla chooses the easy path, they've got bigger problems after all, but it's not like there are no concerns with everyone and everything moving to github

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lpln3452 1y ago
Did you ever use the alternatives before GitHub took off? GitLab? It was awful. Slow, and paying for that kind of experience felt like a bad joke. It's much better now but it was borderline unusable back in the day. Or SourceForge, before Git was mainstream? Also terrible. GitHub succeeded because it quickly established itself as a decent way to host Git - not because it was exceptional, but because the competition had abysmal UX. Unlike other lock-in-prone services, moving a Git project is trivial. If GitHub loses its advantages due to enshittification, you just move. Case in point: Mozilla hopping on and off GitHub, as this article shows.
- Philpax 1y ago
  I believe GitLab post-dates GitHub, but I otherwise agree with the sentiment.
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  - lpln3452 1y ago
    You're right. But as far as I remember, neither GitHub nor GitLab were really mainstream at the time. I think the real competition began around the same time.
- matkoniecz 1y ago
  > Unlike other lock-in-prone services, moving a Git project is trivial. not really just moving issue tracker and discussions is highly annoying trying to get your users to move is likely hard and you will lose many still, may be easy in comparison

stevekemp 1y ago

The number of emails I get "Your website is vulnerable to clickjacking attacks, PS. how much bounty have I earned?" suggests that there are many for whom a desire for literal rewards is their sole driver. Not to mention the AI-generated security "issues" that are reported against curl, for example, suggests there can indeed be negative value for reports, and contributions.

lpln3452 1y ago
You're right. And that's not an issue with any particular platform, but with open source projects that accept issues and PR in general. I don't think this is the place for a debate about the overall utility of open source.

baobun 1y ago

> but what exactly is being lost by moving the repository to GitHub? Contributors who can't use GitHub because either 1) they are fresh and can't activate a new account 2) their old grandfathered account is no longer usable or 3) their old account id doxxed and they can no longer safely contribute under the old identity. Once you trigger phone-number verification requirement your account is globally shadowbanned and support blocked pending SMS code verification. Aside from the privacy issue it's completely blocking people in countries to which GitHub won't even try to SMS/call. Remember that registering a second account would be violating GitHub ToS.