FOSSPicks

FOSSPicks

Article from Issue 294/2025
Author(s):

Nate explores the top FOSS, including the shiny new Zen Browser, a secure file eraser, an online office suite, and a very cool team combat game.

Slow Open Source?

As I was scrolling r/opensource this month, I happened across a link to a post by open source developer Lukasz Gornicki entitled "Stop Blaming Open Source Slowness." In it, he talks about how the slow pace at which open source projects change can seem frustrating. User demand sometimes even leads to quick fixes like patches or temporary forks to the detriment of the overall development process.

Lukasz gently reminds readers that there are two principal types of open source developer. One type is those that are employed full time by a company who will prioritize their employer's needs. The other type are volunteers who can only contribute in their free time. As much as his article put things into perspective, back when I was working in tech support, I found customers would often ask, "Why doesn't [proprietary product] do X?" I'd often know open source apps that could easily solve their dilemma but was forbidden from mentioning them.

Lukasz concludes by encouraging end users to make feature requests to the right people. However, he also reminds developers that they should fix code the right way by sending changes upstream and then drive them until they've been merged.

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