Linked by Thom Holwerda on Tue 19th Jul 2005 19:42 UTC
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open source does not mean that the developers work for free. there lots of good programmers well paid for working full time on open source projects.
this kind of thing such as "Open Source has the potential to be the DEATH of programming as a marketable skill." is lack of open source understanding.




Member since:
2005-07-06
I still say Open Source has the potential to be the DEATH of programming as a marketable skill.
Most programming does not take place in big software houses such as Microsoft or Adobe. It takes place as in house developmnent often in companies whos products are not related to software, and the in house programming is made to streamline the sales of such products. This means that the programmers are still paid.
If such companies start out their programming projects using free software the entry cost will be lower. This means that there likely will be more such projects, so I don't see any risk of unemployed programmers.
If I sold schrink wrapped software I would be worried though. As it not customized to fit a specific customer I would almost certainly have to move my business to some low wage country where you can get a few lines of code for a bowl of rice.