Linked by Thom Holwerda on Sat 21st Jul 2012 23:06 UTC
Okay, so this is entirely new to me. Sparrow 
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RE: How to live from open source.
by Gone fishing on Sun 22nd Jul 2012 09:31
in reply to "How to live from open source."
Member since:2006-02-22
RE[2]: How to live from open source.
by moondevil on Sun 22nd Jul 2012 09:50
in reply to "RE: How to live from open source."
Member since:2005-07-08
"This is the reason why most open source desktop applications suck.
Like Firefox, Thunderbird, GIMP, VLC, Mplayer, K3b, Libre Office
and Windows shareware is noted for its excellence? "
Most of the Firefox, Thunderbird developers work for Mozilla.
GIMP, VLC, Mplayer are developers get their money from other sources and lets be honest they are way off what professionals expect.
Nero runs circles around K3b.
Libre Office only got so far thanks to Sun's money.
As for shareware it depends where you look.
RE: How to live from open source.
by WorknMan on Sun 22nd Jul 2012 18:59
in reply to "How to live from open source."
Member since:2005-11-13
At the end of the day the developers need to bring money home, and there is none to be had when your software is 100% available for the others to take, and you cannot sell services on top of it.
This is a good point, as it is likely that Sparrow would never have existed as an open source app, because you're not going to make money like that by selling support services, or coffee mugs. And hey, not everybody wants to work for free.
And anyway, I recently read that an open source email app (Thunderbird) has had its development stopped recently, except for bug fixes and security updates. Will anybody fork it and continue working on it? Who knows. But really, how many open source projects have died on the vine because the developer got bored with it, or didn't have the time to work on it anymore.
The point is that whether you're using open or closed source apps, there's really no guarantees one way or the other, unless you personally plan to work on an open source app if it gets abandoned. Personally, I'd rather use an app where the developer gets paid for it, because then you know his livelihood depends on the continued development of the app, vs 'I just had a kid so I don't have time to work on this in the evenings anymore.' Sure, he may get bought out and the app killed, but like I said, there are really no guarantees one way or the other.
RE: How to live from open source.
by ricegf on Sun 22nd Jul 2012 19:23
in reply to "How to live from open source."
Member since:2007-04-25
Sure there are lots of benefits in using open source applications, even I use lots of open source applications.
Don't feel bad. Even hardcore open source haters use open source now. It's unavoidable.
Open source only works in products where the developers can get the money by selling services on top of it, or hardware that makes use of the said software.
Most large successful and high-quality open source products work because they receive corporate backing.
Android Linux is probably the best example, with IBM and Red Hat providing steady revenue for the kernel, Sun for the VM (at least pre-Oracle), and Google for the userland. Google also largely funded Firefox, which kicked proprietary monopoly IE's tail from Scranton to LA, and then Chromium, which made the browser market a three horse plus change race.
Small indie developers sometimes make good and change the world, of course (BitTorrent, anyone?), but the big names in large open source projects are funded by corporations that profit from them - for better or worse.
RE[2]: How to live from open source.
by moondevil on Mon 23rd Jul 2012 07:14
in reply to "RE: How to live from open source."
Member since:2005-07-08
"Sure there are lots of benefits in using open source applications, even I use lots of open source applications.
Don't feel bad. Even hardcore open source haters use open source now. It's unavoidable. "
Why should I feel bad?
My employer is able to charge the same consulting prices as with proprietary tools, but get the source code and the project tools for free, without giving anything back, thus increasing profits.
Edited 2012-07-23 07:16 UTC
RE[2]: How to live from open source.
by zima on Sat 28th Jul 2012 23:59
in reply to "RE: How to live from open source."
Member since:2005-07-06
Even hardcore open source haters use open source now. It's unavoidable.
Now, if only some OSS-devotees - who likewise absolutely can't avoid depending on closed software behind large part of our modern world (perhaps even to a more fundamental degree) - would stop hatin'...
Edited 2012-07-29 00:08 UTC
News
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/19/13 22:28 UTC
"A snippet of code in the Steam digital distribution platform has revealed that Valve may be planning to let users easily share their games with friends in the future. The Verge has verified the code's authenticity, which was originally spotted by a member of the NeoGAF gaming forum; the code references a 'shared game library' and a notification that would alert a user when their games are currently in use by a borrower." This would change the, uh, game.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/18/13 22:33 UTC
Official Apple statement on PRISM and privacy: "Regardless of the circumstances, our Legal team conducts an evaluation of each request and, only if appropriate, we retrieve and deliver the narrowest possible set of information to the authorities. In fact, from time to time when we see inconsistencies or inaccuracies in a request, we will refuse to fulfill it." This is basically Apple re-publishing their earlier statement in a more official manner. You either believe it, or you don't.
Linked by Anonymous on 06/18/13 22:26 UTC
The open source Contiki operating system and its commercial Thingsquare distribution are making strides towards the connected home. According to a Computerworld article, a new LED light bulb manufacturer is putting small computers into their light bulbs. Each computer runs the Contiki OS, which gives each bulb an IP address and allows them to be controlled with a smartphone application. To connect the bulbs to the application, the bulbs use both Wi-Fi and the much lower power IEEE 802.15.4 mesh technology.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/18/13 22:25 UTC
"Google asked the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court on Tuesday to ease long-standing gag orders over data requests it makes, arguing that the company has a constitutional right to speak about information it's forced to give the government. The legal filing, which cites the First Amendment's guarantee of free speech, is the latest move by the California-based tech giant to protect its reputation in the aftermath of news reports about sweeping National Security Agency surveillance of Internet traffic." Draining the ditch after the cow has drowned in it.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/18/13 17:45 UTC
"I can't find one person who has been using the Nexus 7 for an extended period of time, and hasn't seen a massive downgrade in performance. Just what kind of downgrade are we talking here? I cannot pick up my Nexus 7 without experiencing problems like a lag of ten seconds, or more, just to rotate the display; touches refusing to acknowledged; stuttering notification panel actions; and unresponsive apps." Fully and utterly agreed. My Nexus 7 was blazing-fast and awesome for a few months, and at some point, it just started sucking. Just like that. I've tried loads of ROMs, and nothing helps.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/18/13 17:32 UTC, submitted by poundsmack
A new release of the hobby operating system MenuetOS! The release notes are a bit non-descript, but you'll have to take what you can get: "updates and improvements (picview, httpc, ehci, ...)".
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/17/13 17:58 UTC
"The Internet is one of the most transformative technologies of our lifetimes. But for 2 out of every 3 people on earth, a fast, affordable Internet connection is still out of reach. And this is far from being a solved problem. There are many terrestrial challenges to Internet connectivity - jungles, archipelagos, mountains. There are also major cost challenges. Right now, for example, in most of the countries in the southern hemisphere, the cost of an Internet connection is more than a month's income. Solving these problems isn't simply a question of time: it requires looking at the problem of access from new angles. So today we're unveiling our latest moonshot from Google[x]: balloon-powered Internet access." Insane.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/17/13 17:52 UTC
"MineAssemble is a tiny bootable Minecraft clone written partly in x86 assembly. I made it first and foremost because a university assignment required me to implement a game in assembly for a computer systems course. Because I had never implemented anything more complex than a 'Hello World' bootloader before, I decided I wanted to learn about writing my own kernel code at the same time. Note that the goal of this project was not to write highly efficient hand-optimized assembly code, but rather to have fun and write code that balances readability and speed. This is primarily accomplished by proper commenting and consistent code structuring." Just cool.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/14/13 21:03 UTC
Jon Rubinstein, former CEO of Palm: "Well, I'm not sure I would have sold the company to HP. That's for sure. Talk about a waste. Not that I had any choice because when you sell a company you don't get to decide that. Obviously, the board and shareholders decide that. If we had known they were just going to shut it down and never really give it a chance to flourish, what would have been the point of selling the company? I think the deal we had with Verizon really hurt us, but who knew that at the time? These things are all hindsight."
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/14/13 20:46 UTC
"And so it is with Dell's Alienware X51 R2, a small form factor gaming PC in console digs. It's shaped similar to Microsoft's Xbox 360 Slim, and though it's slightly larger than either a 360 or PlayStation 3, the X51 R2 would be right at home in a living room setting nestled next to a large screen TV. Indeed, it's adept at running Steam's Big Picture mode, and if your primary objective is to play games in the living room, go ahead and consider the X51 R2 a hybrid game console." This is obviously not the only machine like this - still, these are very valid console alternatives even for those that don't like being hunched over with a cramped WASD-claw. Also, PC gamers among us: could you get away with the $699 model for gaming?More News »
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Member since:
2005-07-08
Sure there are lots of benefits in using open source applications, even I use lots of open source applications.
Having said this, as someone that works for leaving doing software I wouldn't sell my applications open source.
Open source only works in products where the developers can get the money by selling services on top of it, or hardware that makes use of the said software.
At the end of the day the developers need to bring money home, and there is none to be had when your software is 100% available for the others to take, and you cannot sell services on top of it.
This is the reason why most open source desktop applications suck, as they are developed by developers on their free time until they loose interest. Most earn money doing something else.