> > Don't the OpenBSD developers already work hard enough, that now we > > are supposed to do even more boring business oriented things for you > > all? > > > > Every release, more people download OpenBSD and fewer people buy OpenBSD. > > But the solution is not to make OpenBSD developers "web businessmen". > > That is a road to slower development. > > The solution is not to complain about users not buying something which > ostensibly takes pride in being available for free; it is to take > advantage of good ideas when they are offered. This is such an idea.
Wow, free advice as to how I can spend my time. Aren't you kind? Want some advice from me? > a) Demonstrate concretely to vendors the number of OpenBSD users > who are interested in and who purchase their products, by giving them > a hard number of how many times each product is being examined by a > potential purchaser, and maybe even how many times each product is > actually being purchased. The vendors whose products are "sort-of- > supported" due to the vendor's reluctance to provide decent > documentation will then have a good metric for exactly how unwilling > they should be to continue their asinine behavior. You can do this. > b) Obtain new toys and docs for the OpenBSD project, using a). When > Vendor B is contacted and told that their competitor Vendor A's latest, > greatest Turbotron 2000 SATA controller is on the OpenBSD virtual store > and has logged 100,000 clickthroughs to Vendor A's online store, Vendor > B will want to get his DynaMaster II SATA controller up there to > compete. Vendor B can then be told that the requirement for this is a > full set of non-NDA documentation plus N samples for the developers. > If Vendor B does not acquiesce, Vendor B can go pound sand and watch > Vendor A's sales go through the roof. Perhaps Vendor B will be more > cooperative next year when the OpenBSD team calls again. You can do this. > c) Help out your users. Help them figure out what they can actually > use, help them stop fucking around looking for parts that they "think" > will work. I know that frequently, the sole basis on which _I_ make > _my_ purchases is "Is this supported under OpenBSD?" That requires a > LOT of research beforehand to answer "Yes" or "No", and many times > doesn't have a satisfactorily clear answer. The vendors sure don't > help. "Windows drivers, click here. We support Linux, too." "What > about OpenBSD?" "Huh?" Having a place where users can just go and find > what they need makes their purchasing decisions a LOT easier. All other > things being equal, when purchasing is easier, more purchases are made. > When more purchases are made, the effect of a) and b) increases. Some > vendors may even be willing to proactively contribute money or other > hardware to the developers to accelerate development on the strength of > a) alone. I don't think Linux users have such a thing. I do know > many people who seek open-source compatible hardware; they try OpenBSD- > supported stuff first, because OpenBSD tends only to support the most > open, most ubiquitous, and least brain-damaged hardware around. YMMV. You can do this. > I think you discount the amount of clout the OpenBSD team has in its > users' purchasing patterns, and the amount of clout with the vendors > that that could become with a relatively small investment in > coordinating those user purchases. A "virtual store" would provide > the force multiplier to make the "Give us documentation NOW, or SUFFER > THE CONSEQUENCES!" thumbscrews really effective. If you want support > from the vendors, then you'd better be prepared to make it worth their > while. Creating "Santa Theo's List of Good Vendors' Products Which Are > Fully Supported in OpenBSD" in a nice, easy-to-use Web-store interface > is one step down that road. You have had some success with this, > but only recently, and only because you did a metric shitload of work. > Did you like dealing with those wireless-card yahoos, languishing in > the Sisyphean hell of trying to get them to cooperate with you? No? > Then let your users do your work for you. The only thing you have to > do is make it the slightest bit easy, and they will. > > Oh yeah, and it will probably cut down on the number of times you see > messages of the form "Is <XXXXX> supported on OpenBSD <blah>?" You can do all the above. I am too busy. I hope appreciate my advice; look at all the good ideas I just gave you for things you can do!
