Rules of Open Source fallacy
June 30th, 2003 by HenA link that Ceki posted a while back to the Apache lists, but I only bothered to check when James blogged on it. Two of the rules are:
1. Don’t whine unless you are going to implement it yourself.
15. If you like it, let the author know. If you hate it, let the author
know why.
This is one of my prime irritations with the open-source zealot’s mantra. They’re utterly wrong. I’ve seen people say the equivalent of ‘well volunteered’, or ‘where’s the patch’. Sure it would be nice if the person with the complaint supplied a fix, and it’s wonderful when it happens, but complaining about a product is in itself a service to that product and the developers of the product.
One of the things I like about Apache, rather than the Jakarta brand, is that they get the Open in Open Source Software. It’s the most important word and it doesn’t only link to the Source word. Be open in all things, be it receiving complaints, posting mail lists or decision making. While I’ll accept that sometimes you have to deal behind closed doors, they ought to be very much a rarity.
It’s why the JCP and Java are flawed. Not because they are not ‘Open-Source’, and who really gives a shit about open-sourcing Java, but that Java and the JCP are not Open. Let me see the discussions on each JSR, let me hear what the ideas for the future of Java are, stop treating Java like a business plan and treat it more like a community.
July 2nd, 2003 at 2:25 am
Doh. That was meant to be the point, but I ran off down a sidetrack
Or forgot to explain that’s why I chose them.
July 2nd, 2003 at 5:03 am
Interesting that the two ‘rules’ you picked out are kinda at odds with eachother. Telling someone you hate something is basically whining.. interesting.