Adderbox76

I want to say the Natron compositing software, but I could be misremembering.

I seem to recall it losing it’s only maintainer and therefore being updated or maintained anymore. I want to say this was back in 2018, but since it’s not a piece of kit I use often, I don’t really think about it enough for it to stick in my head. Anyway…point being. It posted a fairly large update in 2022 and has been doing updates since then.

The full saying is “Free as in Speech, not Free as in Beer”

Basically the “Free” in free means that it’s free to do with as you please, modify, etc… But not free as in “here’s a free product…like getting a free beer”

I’m not really talking about development as simply programming. There are a lot of aspects that go into development, yes…programming is a big aspect.

But there’s also bug reporting (every user should know how to report bugs because it’s contributes to making the program better).

Heck, you can even download the documentation and give it a proof-read if you’re good with grammar and spot some errors if you don’t want to commit to helping to write it.

I know a lot of people who spend a lot of time in the various subs for the software, taking care to answer questions from other users who need help doing this or that. That again, is contributing.

Then there’s simply what we’re doing right now. Bringing attention to the projects online getting them more visibility.

Development of a successful FOSS app isn’t just about programming. And even small contributions count. If you can donate some coin, great! If you can’t, or don’t want to, there are a thousand other things that you can do to contribute to that apps community.

I emphasized the word community because that is exactly what it is. The ethos of Open Source; what makes it different than Propietary software, is that the users are an inherent part of the development process in ways both big and small. In propietary software, there is a distinct line between the developers and the users. Developers have multiple stakeholders of which the user base is certainly one, but also include advertisers, software makers, hardware makers, etc…

FOSS software, in contrast, is much more a communitee effort with the involvement of the community in the way of bug reports, literature, education and even simply championing the project because they don’t have millions of dollars in advertising budgets.

Sorry, I get a little passionate, so this is longer than I intended it to be.

But tl;dr, contributing isn’t just about money or just about programming. There’s a thousand ways big and small, and my issue isn’t with people not “paying” necessarily. But people who use it for free and don’t bother filing bug reports, don’t join the community online to help answer user questions, etc…

A good FOSS citizen should be an active part of the community. Or donate money to the project if they’d rather not.

This software is extensively free (as in beer)

No…it’s not. It’s free to download and to use, but the expectation that people contribute in exchange for using it is how FOSS has always worked.

That doesn’t necessarily mean monetary. But contributing can be helping with user guides, or making youtube tutorials, or even just extending the reach of the program to friends and family by talking about it.

There are many ways to contribute, and money is one. But the notion that Open Source software is “free as in beer” has never been correct. Users have an expectation to contribute…period.

Unfortunately, there has always been the issue that a not-insignificant percentage of users of FOSS software believe the FREE part means “free as in beer” and take umbrage when asked to contribute.

I’ve long been a proponent (and I know I’m in a minority) that has advocated for a shift in the marketing of FOSS applications from “donation based” to “value based”. Meaning that the expectation is that if you enjoy the software, you pay an amount that you believe is commensurate to your use. This is voluntarily of course…if you can’t pay, than please use it and enjoy it. But those who can pay, should pay…at least a little bit, to offset the costs for those who can’t.

It’s more or less that the wording of FOSS apps needs to change so that you are expected to contribute if you can.

Just my opinion. Like I said, I know I’m in the minority. Just not a fan of the percentage of users that has always existed that (falsely) think that asking for money for your project is somehow anathema to the Open Source ideal and whine whenever they’re asked to contribute.

Hard to pin a number on it, percentage-wise.

• Desktop and laptop are both running Linux.
• Chromebook wiped and running Linux.
• Most software, but definitely not all. Steam, Resolve being the two biggest non-foss items on my desktop, while my ex-Chromebook has a proprietary screenwriting program, as well as OnlyOffice instead of LibreOffice because I need much better Excel compatibility for work and LO still isn’t quite there for it.
• Phone android. But not entirely de-googled. Replaced drive with syncthing, keep with Joplin, photos, phone, and messenger with their Fossify equivalents and disabled the originals. Replaced gboard with heliboard, etc…

But can’t/won’t completely replace the OS yet because both google pay and android auto are essential to me and getting them working on most replacements is still a royal pain in the butt.

So let’s call it 80%, maybe a bit more?

It’s been a long time since I last installed Linux on a two hard-drive system, so take this advice as “likely not necessary, but will probably fix your issue”

The installer asks whether or not you want to “replace” the existing OS or install alongside. And if you’re fairly new to linux (like I was at the time) it can be tricky to see at a glance which hard-drive you want to install it to and which you don’t.

So to be doubly cautious and make sure that didn’t happen, I simply unplugged my secondary harddrive during the install so that the installer would automatically be reading the correct one. Then all I had to do was choose “replace” or “install alongside” without worrying about anything else.

The drawback to that was, once the install was complete and I re-attached my second drive, I had to configure it to auto-mount and do some work on that, but at least my computer was working.

If I’m being honest, So many little distros just come and go that I’ve stopped bothering to learn about any of them until they have enough support that I know the devs aren’t going to just vanish in six months.

I hadn’t noticed. but I have no real comparison since I was on Linux long before starting either title, so I’ve never played either on Windows.

They seem to run well enough, so even if its faster on windows and that’s the tradeoff for having no Windows in my house, I’m cool with it.

I’d say yes; with the mods available 2 is still WELL worth it. i n fact I’m doing yet another play through at this moment.

1 is also excellent, especially with the Long War overhaul installed.

Most of mine have already been mentioned; KSP, Rimworld, Stellaris.

So I’ll add one of my all time favourite games and say XCom and XCOM 2. I’ve sunk hundreds of hours into xcom 2 with various mods.

Close second is Crusader Kings 2, and close third after that is Empire Total War.

And of course CIV. It’s not a proper list without CIV.

Yeah, not a high-end business.

You are incredibly naive.

That is very true. Good point.

Yes.

Anyone who says differently is confusing “necessity” with “efficiency”.

When I first started in Linux I rarely used the command line at all. But as time went on and I became more familiar, I found that there were some things that were simply faster to do in the command line.

I can’t think of a single “everyday regular user task” than needs the command line, tbh.

I mean, true…but I don’t think the average user is paying for the service rather than they’re paying for not having to worry about setting up everything needed to get syncthing working.

I don’t consider myself a luddite in any way, but within five seconds of reading syncthing’s install instructions even I basically just said, “yeah…no.” And I say that AS a nearly 12 year semi-advanced linux user. It’s not that it’s difficult. But difficult enough to not be worth it for the average person.

Neofetch reloaded. followed by neofetch revolutions.

I used Crucial brand in both my desktop and my laptop upgrades a few years ago (I don’t remember the exact model…mx500 maybe?) And I haven’t had a single issue.

Absolutely rock-solid.

There are two types of Open Source users; those of us who understand and live by the ethos of FOSS, and users who just want to use a software that they don’t have to pay for and don’t care or understand the underlying ideas behind it.

That second group is the group who, no matter how many times they hear it explained to them, will refuse to believe that “free” doesn’t necessarily mean “no-cost” and therefore develop an expectation of “free” and decry that you’re not allowed to sell your software because it’s open-source, and even asking for donations is forbidden, when in reality neither of those things is remotely true.

Far more important than anything is to change the perception of Open Source to something like value ware; If you value the use you get from the software, pay an amount that you feel is fair. If they can’t afford it, that’s okay, but if they can, then the expectation needs to be that they DO. Even just a few bucks.

Long time Bitwarden user. Never been steered wrong. One of the few apps that I pay for premium not because I need the extra features, but because I value it enough to support the devs financially

I’ve said for years that the very last power we have as consumers is the ability to turn off our internet and still be able to use our devices. That is my minimum expectation of any company.

Fridge needs an internet connection, fuck you. TV won’t work unless it’s connected to the internet, fuck you.

But most especially (and this is why I moved to Linux originally), computer needs to always be connected to the internet even if all I’m doing is opening an office program that has nothing to do online? Go fuck yourself.

The ability to unplug my ethernet cable and still be able to use 99% of my computer with the exception of email and a web browser is the absolutely most basic human right left to us.