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100 sats \ 1 reply \ @kepford 26 Apr \ on: Corporate Open Source is Dead opensource

I read the transcription of this video yesterday. I like Jeff but I don't see how it is dead nor did I read a solution. Maybe I'm missing it but it didn't stand out to me. Please tell me if I missed it.

As free money dries up and profits slow, companies slash headcount almost as fast as community trust.

Classic fiat boom bust cycle as bitcoiners know all to well.

But it's totally different when you build your product under an open source license, foster a community of users who then build their own businesses on top of that software, then yoink the license when your revenue is affected.

That's called a bait-and-switch.

Indeed. But the reality is that IP (intellectual property) is not property. These licenses are all constructs that those with connections to the state use to control people with the threat of violence. IMO this is the root of all of these issues.

I think at the heart of Jeff's and other folks frustration is that their work is being used and profited off of by others in way that is dishonest. People feel good about contributing when it seems like everyone benefits in a somewhat equal fashion. What when many contributors have added quality to a project and then the license is changed and then the company behind it cashes in on it for billions... people get mad. I get it.

People in the free software community correctly identified the danger of calling free software 'open source.'

I don't think we have to be so dogmatic about it, but there is a fundamental philosophical difference between the free software community, with organizations like the Free Software Foundation and Software Freedom Conservancy behind it, and the more business-oriented 'open source' culture.

Open source culture relies on trust. Trust that companies you and I helped build (even without being on the payroll) wouldn't rugpull.

In bitcoin we often here, "Don't trust, verify". Maybe open source devs need to start becoming more dogmatic and radical? Maybe they need to change their expectations.

Maybe it's time for a new open source rebellion. Maybe this time, money won't change company culture as new projects arise from the ash heap. Maybe not, but at least we can try.

Its not really about money. Its about incentives. Money is just the way value is communicated. Open source devs seldom are paid well for their work. It makes perfect sense to me that we see open source projects "selling out". Can you blame them? Again I think the actual issue is IP law.

I highly recommend devs read Against Intellectual Property | Mises Institute. Its not like reading this will change the world but it might help to understand how ridiculously anti-logical this whole thing is.

92 sats \ 0 replies \ @kepford 26 Apr

One thing that frustrates the life out of me is when I hear complaints around open source and money... while most open source devs seem to hate bitcoin. It is incredibly frustrating.

You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete

~ Bucky Fuller

If we really wanna fix open source we are gonna need to fix money. The good news is its already fixed. We just need to acknowledge that fact, and start using it. The more people that use it, the harder it will be for the state to fight it. We (plebs) are far more powerful than we realize.