Races to the bottom to … do work exclusively for free and not make any money out of the hopes that they become the most popular OSS toolkit, with an end goal of … what?

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altairprime 4 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Validation, often. Stars and installs make self-worth integer go up, etc.

Greed, sometimes. Gotta get those usercounts high to get acquihired / to sell out / to flip on the paid subs for formerly free features.

I can’t remember the word for “prosocial through lowering cost to zero” is but sometimes that too.

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RetroTechie 3 hours ago | parent | next [-]

> I can’t remember the word for “prosocial through lowering cost to zero” is but sometimes that too.

Wiktionary:

Benevolent, altruistic, unselfish, beneficent, philanthropic, selfless

	▲	altairprime 3 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Philanthropic! Thanks.

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simonask 4 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

This works for a while. Then you - the programmer - grow up.

Wise customers know this.

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saulpw 3 hours ago | parent [-]

But a programmer is born every minute.

	▲	altairprime 12 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		Not so much these days.

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jarym 5 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

End goal of complaining that no one pays for their efforts.

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embedding-shape 7 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> at they become the most popular OSS toolkit, with an end goal of … what?

Look at how any "FOSS + VC + for-profit" company in the last 5-10 years worked out, and you'll see the playbook.

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codercowmoo 9 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

bait and switch

	▲	fragmede 2 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Xz