Open Source Does Not Imply Open Community – Makefile.feld
2 days ago
- #github-criticism
- #open-source
- #maintainer-burnout
- Open source software started before DVCS with basic hosting like HTML pages, FTP servers, and email.
- Early collaboration involved mailing lists and unofficial IRC channels without modern features like pull requests or communities.
- Platforms like Sourceforge later provided free CVS/SVN and mailing lists, making open development easier.
- Git won the DVCS wars, leading to Github's dominance, which transformed open source into a demanding, unpaid job for maintainers.
- Maintainers now face issues like tickets, meetings, politics, and burnout, similar to a paid job but without compensation.
- The author advocates returning to simpler, old methods: turn off issues and pull requests, work with trusted people or alone.
- Open source doesn't require open development; focus on coding freely without community management burdens.