[TriLUG] Can open source solutions be viable companies?

[Mike Mueller]

Thanks for your reflections.

On Thursday 04 July 2002 23:46, Tom Bryan reputedly wrote:

> 3) fear that some competent programmer at the customer site will see the
> code and say, "This code sucks!" 

I learned a lesson from a colleage that had a 2 year tech degree who was the 
most prolific hardware designer that I've known.  His designs were criticized 
as sucking by the more educated and experienced.  He, however, is financially 
comfortable because the company he helped form was bought out.  I figured out 
that his revision 0.0 circuits that came out lightning fast were more 
commercially valuable than the elegant subsequent revisions of the same 
circuit.  I learned to appreciate sucky code that works if it's an early 
revision.

> If I ran a business and didn't understand much about software, then I just
> want to make sure that my software vendor isn't trying to screw me.  If
> your customers don't understand why they might want the source, then
> they're not very good businessmen.  ;-)  They should want to avoid vendor
> lock-in through standard open file formats, open protocols, and open source
> (when they can get it).  If they can buy it from you and then hire someone
> else to support it, they're in good shape.  Not that they would want to! 
> It's just too inconvenient.  But if you ever go under, they still have the
> code.  If you jack up your support costs to something they can't or won't
> afford, they can take your code and go shopping around for someone who will
> support it for less.  They don't care about the code.  They care about the
> business.  I'm not sure whether you want to explain all of this to them. 
> If they're happy enough with your software to buy it and pay for support
> and keep you in business, then from the business side, you're done.

Mind if I re-use your words?

> If you haven't done so, you should probably read Raymond's "The Magic
> Cauldron" at http://tuxedo.org/~esr/writings/magic-cauldron/.  Whatever
> your opinions of ESR and his work, it may add some fresh ideas to your
> license conversations.

I've read some of ESR's work but not this one.  I once wrote to ESR for help 
on the OSS question as it applied to commercial applications but there was no 
reply.  I think OSS in its most well-known form applies when you can find a 
community that will benefit equally from the effort required to make the 
product.  I wonder how OSS works when there is a distinct and separate group 
of producers and consumers which is the situation I find for ss7box.  The 
rational behind the direction I am taking is that I trust that the consumer 
is disincented from becoming my competitor and incented into keeping me alive.

Your story of your customer making changes and attempting to get you to 
support them is educational.
-- 
m