On 7 Nov 2011, at 12:57, Arran Cudbard-Bell wrote:
Arran,
thank you for your perspective. I don't fully agree, though:
> I think what the OP was complaining about was the fact that many
> developers external to the Growl project added support because it
> represented an easy, free, and standardised way to distribute alerts
> to their programs users. Growl would not have the popularity it enjoys
> today without the time and hard work of developers outside of the
> Growl project,
An interesting hypothesis that bears some (biased) analysis. (I would submit
that the OP is not a developer who invested time to support growl, so from his
perspective the point is moot.)
As a developer myself, I can positively state that even if Growl was commercial
we would have supported it. It's not that there are alternatives (paid or free)
available. For example, our software also supports the (paid for)
SpaceNavigator, without getting any kickback. As a developer you support
software that enhances your product - paid or free. I know of no fellow
programmer who would have balked at supporting growl if they made the front-end
paid from day zero. More to the point: I submit *more* professionals would have
supported a PAID Growl in the beginning - simply because a steady revenue
stream indicates that support of the software can be guaranteed for the
foreseeable future, and your investment risk is smaller.
So, no, I don't think interpreting the OP's point that way has any merit
either. There is no 'fact that many developers' added support growl because it
was free. I think the majority did it in *spite* of it being free. They took
the risk because it was the easiest alternative and provided a standard - just
like you state.
> but those developers will not benefit from the app
> store revenue.
No reason they should. If I support iPhoto, Aperture or some other app (as we
do), I don't expect any benefit other than the fact that my software has
another unique selling point. You do it because it *adds* to *your* product.
Not the other way around. Have you tried to implement a global notification
system for your app without growl? Perhaps used Apple's horrid Notification
Manager? Growl was a godsend that cut 40 hours from our development project.
That is direct value in the 2-4k range (depending on what you pay for
cocoa/carbon dev per hour). Do you really think that a pro (i.e. for-profit)
software title supports growl just to show support for growl? If so, they have
their business sense in serious disarray. Pros support growl because they see
the value it represents to them - and couldn't care less how much growl's
creators make.
And that is what gets me so riled. I *know* of the tremendous value growl has
for developers *and* customers. Growl's devs chose not to tap that well until
now. Now they try to put Growl on secure financial footing, and perhaps some
bread on their tables. Instead of getting praise for not charging in the past,
they get hated on by freeloaders who think they are entitled to freebies.
> Open source software is usually a collaborative enterprise, more of a
> socialist system than a capitalist one, and as a contributor to
> multiple open source projects, the switch kind of grates.
Well, I definitely disagree on that. To me, OpenSource has nothing to do with
socialism, but everything with sharing of scarce resources - for those
involved; definitely not the end user. I need to feed my family, and I code for
money. I have utmost respect for people who donate their time to an open source
project.
But I have only exasperation for people who think that software should cost
nothing (I think Stallman is an idiot who confuses wishful thinking with
ethics), software based on open source should cost nothing, or that simply
because it used to cost nothing, it should remain that way.
The OP, ignorant as he may be, openly called out the dev team to be ashamed for
something they should be praised for. To me, that was unacceptable.
-ch
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