nixCraft 🐧Apr 4, 2024
The xz fiasco has shown how a dependence on unpaid volunteers can cause major problems. Trillion dollar corporations like Microsoft expect free and urgent support from ffmpeg volunteers. They posted on a bug tracker full of volunteers that their issue is "high priority". After politely requesting a support contract from Microsoft for long term maintenance, they offered a one-time payment of a few thousand dollars instead. Full story here https://x.com/ffmpeg/status/1775178803129602500?s=46
FFmpeg (@FFmpeg) on X

The xz fiasco has shown how a dependence on unpaid volunteers can cause major problems. Trillion dollar corporations expect free and urgent support from volunteers. @Microsoft @MicrosoftTeams posted on a bug tracker full of volunteers that their issue is "high priority"

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Show threadnixCraft 🐧
Microsoft is the same business that is investing 100 billion dollars in openai for generative AI to build the giant AI supercomputer and steal every content created ever without paying anyone anything. They refuse to buy support contracts for open source projects where they used project work exclusively to build the MS Teams product. They are abusing the system. This shaming is necessary.
Apr 4, 2024 at 8:48amWeb
Show threadOcéaneApr 4, 2024
@nixCraft Looks like Bill Gates's “open letter to hobbyists”, but predictably reverse.
Show threadOcéaneApr 4, 2024
@nixCraft Looks like Bill Gates's “open letter to hobbyists”, but predictably reverse.
Show threadKenneth HenderickApr 4, 2024
@nixCraft I wonder whether support contracts would be good for the maintainers. Not sure about the maintainer structure behind ffmpeg, but if there are a couple of volunteers, it might be hard to organise a support contract, as this might force some obligations to individuals that for example have a full time job and family besides ffmpeg. Maybe a recurring sponsorship without obligations for the maintenance team together with short-lived paid contracts for fixing certain bugs would be better
Show threadThomas CasteleynApr 4, 2024
@nixCraft Wasn't it also an employee from that same company who discovered and disclosed the xz 'fiasco'?
Show threadOblomovApr 4, 2024
@nixCraft BTW to add insult to injury the closed caption decoding is needed for the AI stuff.
Show threadGrum999 Apr 4, 2024
@nixCraft
Show threadArthurApr 4, 2024
@nixCraft similar to this tweet
https://twitter.com/AdamRackis/status/931195056479965185
Adam Rackis (@AdamRackis) on X

Company: "We'd like to use SQL Server Enterprise" MS: "That'll be a quarter million dollars + $20K/month" Company: "Ok!" ... Company: "We'd like to use Babel" Babel: "Ok! npm i babel --save" Company: "Cool" Babel: "Would you like to help contribute financially?" Company: "lol no"

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Show threadmiket330Apr 4, 2024
@nixCraft They ruthlessly crush or buy their competitors...phuck windoze!