Helge EichhornFeb 14, 2023
Valentin Sawadski

Holy Crap, this message from the #corejs maintainer is something else!

“I wanted to make the life of all JS developers easier and in November 2014, I published core-js as an open-source project. Maybe it was the biggest mistake in my life.”

You have to read the rest of his story yourself. Let’s just say it’s crazy he suffered through so much, while maintaining one of the webs most popular libraries for free!

https://github.com/zloirock/core-js/blob/master/docs/2023-02-14-so-whats-next.md

#opensource #oss #funding

core-js/docs/2023-02-14-so-whats-next.md at master · zloirock/core-js

Standard Library. Contribute to zloirock/core-js development by creating an account on GitHub.

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Feb 14, 2023 at 7:15amWeb
Show threadShriram KrishnamurthiFeb 14, 2023

@vsaw Amazing.

The Creative Commons NC (NonCommercial) option seems like it would be really useful here. You can use it…non-commercially. If you want to use it commercially, license it. All these major companies can figure out how to extricate themselves from the dependency hell that leads to packages like this, or…pay up.

Show threadValentin SawadskiFeb 14, 2023
@shriramk Maybe. I’m just always surprised how difficult it is for some #opensource software to capture some of the value that they helped create. #cURL is another example of a hyper successful software that runs on an incredibly small funding compared to its popularity https://mastodon.social/@bagder/109625493511308495
Show threadShriram KrishnamurthiFeb 14, 2023
@vsaw Yeah, I shouldn't have made it sound like it's as easy as "slap this on and hey presto", but it at least offers some legal standing that corporate lawyers would notice, maybe a pro bono case (in the US) could sue for, etc.
Show threadSteve F.Feb 14, 2023
@shriramk @vsaw this would de facto make the library non free and unusable by js frameworks. As this is a library that most people don’t use directly it would not solve his problem.
Show threadSörenFeb 14, 2023
@shriramk @vsaw CC advises against using it for software https://creativecommons.org/faq/#can-i-apply-a-creative-commons-license-to-software
Frequently Asked Questions - Creative Commons

Show threadbrianshalerFeb 14, 2023
@vsaw A whole new take on Bus Factor I hadn't considered before.... what if the single point of failure is *driving* the bus?
Show threadValentin SawadskiFeb 14, 2023
@brian Never really liked the term bus factor anyway, regardless who gets hit it's disrespectful IMHO. I'd rather give a term closer to single point of failure or resiliency score or whatever 🙂
Show threadRobert AtkinsFeb 14, 2023
@vsaw @brian “Lottery factor” isn’t quite so macabre.
Show threadAlexandre Hannud AbdoFeb 14, 2023
wow...
Show threadHonza MachalaFeb 16, 2023
@vsaw Read this post. Stearong wheels on web are in problems. Please help and support him together with me.
Show threadHonza MachalaFeb 16, 2023
@vsaw Here is my contribution to him on Patreon #corejs https://www.patreon.com/posts/78760666?utm_medium=sharesheet&utm_source=sharesheet&utm_campaign=postshare_fan&utm_content=join_link
Show threadjustin fergusonFeb 16, 2023
@vsaw Wow. I was sort of vaguely aware of the drama about him being in prison, but most of the things I saw implied it was "obviously" his fault and he was probably some kind of cyber-criminal. I'm glad he's putting this out there.
Show threadvarx/techFeb 16, 2023

@vsaw I would absolutely support him moving to a split-license model, where there's an open-source version that's AGPL and if companies want to use it in a way that AGPL would not allow, they can pay for a commercial license.

He would get a ton of hate, but I don't see another option.

Show threaddobesvFeb 19, 2023
@vsaw on the one hand, it's a tragic tale. But also open source has always been a kind of volunteer or hobby effort so the fact he insisted on trying to live off it is kind of his own level of insanity. If it's truly that valuable then if he lets things slide then people will contribute to scratch their own itch.
Show threadVanessaFeb 21, 2023
@vsaw I had no idea and I know we also use that library 🤯