Ha! Check it out. StackOverflow just released a Documentation project :). http://stackoverflow.com/tour/documentation
It's not the end game, for sure; but it's a big step in the right direction. With this, we may be able to converge on StackOverflow as a central source for support (as we've converged on github as a central source for repository management), thus increasing visibility of support options and directly exposing the services of reputable user-providers with reputable user-consumers. (I.e., someone who's willing to pay a lot can just directly contract the support services of one of the major contributors to the centralized documentation.) Kael On 08/01/2016 03:13 PM, Kael Shipman wrote: > > Thanks for the feedback! > > You make a good point, and I think it can be well-addressed by several > elements that already exist: > > First, and for me, most important, is customer service. Open Source > has been way behind in this, but there's an obvious and easy solution: > the third-party support network (like some of what Red Hat does). > Things like Stack Overflow need to be formalized into infrastructure > (i.e., vendor-independent services) that offer users the opportunity > to make a living as experts answering questions. Again, this reflects > the new level of economic democratization demonstrated already by > other latent-supply businesses like Uber, et al. (To be clear, a > "latent supply service" takes normal people with extra assets, like > cars, time and knowledge, and gives them an opportunity to turn those > assets into immediate income.) > > As for marketing, I'm still mashing this around a bit. Most > interesting to me is that in a future where everything is open, > "marketing" would serve to unify products, rather than divide them. In > other words, you wouldn't have GnuCash vs Quickbooks -- you would > GnuCash AND Quickbooks, each providing a unique interface over a > common, standardized data storage mechanism for extended business > data, of which financial data is a part. > > This would allow users with different personalities to use whatever > program (i.e., interface) they want without having to force other > users to use the same. That is, it would eliminate the classic "Asana > vs Basecamp", "Quickbooks vs Quicken", "MS vs Libre", "Google vs > Dropbox", etc. Because collaboration infrastructure would provide very > low barriers to standardization and because culture would provide high > pressure to comply (already indicated by the Convergence of the Web > Browsers and the availability of APIs on paid services like the > above), a world where programs are siblings (i.e., interchangeable > units) in a "functionality hierarchy" seems perfectly conceivable to me. > > This is effectively like "programming the real world": You take > standard OOP patterns and principles like inheritance, encapsulation, > polymorphism and composition and apply them to organizations like > businesses, government, nonprofits, unions, etc.... Each "class" > (i.e., organization) becomes increasingly specific > (single-responsibility principle), the elements of the system become > more interdependent, and the sharing of common knowledge resources > among organizations of the same essential category allows > organizations to effectively "inherit" from and "compose" with others. > > Maybe I'm going a little crazy here :), but programs are the purest > representation of ideal systems that we have, and it makes a lot of > sense that humans would be evolving to more tightly mimic ideal > systems design. The result of this evolution would be greater group > cohesion, fewer resources wasted in conflicts, and greater efficiency > in converting resources to benefit -- i.e., greater success for the > human race (and arguably, eventual disaster for the planet). > > As a final note, I agree, products like LibreOffice desperately need > investment, and not just in the specific program components that make > it work. All of what it needs -- the marketing, documentation, > customer service, etc. -- can be funded through a service like > BountySource (well, BountySource in 5 years when it's really useful). > At the end of the day, the user has to pay one way or another -- we > just need to connect those dots, and that's not that hard. > > Kael > > On 08/01/2016 11:49 AM, [email protected] wrote: >> *Gentlemen, >> If you believe that the future of Open Source should be in the >> application area, your example of using a small portion of Quick >> Books revenue to improve an Open Source product are missing the >> entire process of having users.... Commercialization, advertising, >> Customer service, documentation, help systems... at the end of the >> entire process is the technical product (program). The technically >> most important part of a product, is almost the least important part >> of bringing a solution to the real world. Try looking at the almost >> non-existent market penetration of Libre Office / Open Office is due >> to the price, FREE, means nobody telling me why I want to use the >> product, nobody telling me the product exists (NO advertising), no >> training seminars for VARS, no product co-commissions = NO REASON I >> SHOULD Hustle my users into the product. I will get to service the >> product and get nothing for recommending it. >> >> John A. Ward >> >> * >> >> >> >> >> -----Original Message----- >> *From:* [email protected] >> [mailto:[email protected]] >> *Sent:* Thursday, July 28, 2016 09:00 AM >> *To:* [email protected] >> *Subject:* Osdc-list Digest, Vol 71, Issue 5 >> >> Send Osdc-list mailing list submissions to [email protected] >> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit >> https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/osdc-list or, via email, >> send a message with subject or body 'help' to >> [email protected] You can reach the person managing >> the list at [email protected] When replying, please edit >> your Subject line so it is more specific than "Re: Contents of >> Osdc-list digest..." Today's Topics: 1. DRAFT: Manifesto for an >> Open Future (Kael Shipman) 2. Re: DRAFT: Manifesto for an Open >> Future (Bryan Behrenshausen) >> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- >> Message: 1 Date: Wed, 27 Jul 2016 21:28:32 -0500 From: Kael >> Shipman To: OSDC List Subject: [Osdc-list] DRAFT: Manifesto for >> an Open Future Message-ID: >> <[email protected]> Content-Type: >> text/plain; charset=utf-8 Hey all! I've been playing with a >> project for the last few weeks and I'm at a point where I'd >> really love some feedback and/or help on it. As the subject >> implies, it's a manifesto that attempts to describe what the Open >> Future might look like. I'm creating it as a way to inspire a >> shared vision to use throughout the community as we develop >> technologies, software, protocols and business ideas. My dream is >> that once it's done (i.e., once we've managed to put it through >> the wringer as a community and come out with a document we can >> all more or less agree on, if that's possible), I can use it to >> guide the work that I do now and into the future, and perhaps >> others might find it useful for that as well. For example, when I >> look for jobs, I can look for companies that represent an >> opportunity for me to build a small piece of the open future, or >> when I look for education, I can look to cultivate skills that >> will better allow me to contribute to it. The manifesto itself is >> an attempt to provide three elements: 1) convincing evidence that >> an open future is inevitable; 2) an image of what it might look >> like and how it might work; and 3) a set of concrete steps we can >> take now to hasten its arrival, including building certain pieces >> of infrastructure. I'm writing it in response to the frustration >> that I've felt in trying to drive open principles forward today. >> Many of these principles don't quite work yet because, >> personally, I don't believe we have realized quite where we're >> going with it all, or just how much infrastructure we'll need to >> get there. Just as a basic example, Quickbooks Online now pulls >> in $30,000,000 every month. If even 1/10th of the customers who >> pay for Quickbooks online instead put a single QBO payment into >> GNUCash instead, we'd have a product far better than Quickbooks, >> and the whole world would benefit from it -- not just those who >> paid. The ROI on this proposition is obvious enough that even a >> child could grasp the implications -- yet we don't have systems >> in place to leverage it. The action item, then, is to fortify our >> systems for linking payments to features (BountySource is an >> open-source start to that, but has a long way to go), and to >> start getting progressive businesses (probably starting with the >> ones we work at) to redirect their software budgets to >> open-source projects. There are a number of other concrete things >> like this that we can do to start moving in the direction of the >> Open Future, and I think having a manifesto in hand that helps us >> remember what that future looks like and what we can do to >> encourage it would be extremely useful. So, without further ado, >> here is the unfinished draft so far: >> >> https://raw.githubusercontent.com/kael-shipman/Manifesto-for-an-Open-Future/master/Manifesto%20for%20an%20Open%20Future.fodt >> (you'll have to download it and open it in LibreOffice) And >> here's the full github repo: >> https://github.com/kael-shipman/Manifesto-for-an-Open-Future I >> look forward to hearing what people have to say! If anyone wants >> to help, please do shoot me a line. The irony of drafting a >> document like this alone is far from lost on me ;). Thanks for >> your time, Kael ------------------------------ Message: 2 Date: >> Thu, 28 Jul 2016 10:32:42 -0400 From: Bryan Behrenshausen To: >> [email protected] Subject: Re: [Osdc-list] DRAFT: Manifesto >> for an Open Future Message-ID: <[email protected]> >> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252 Hi Kael, Neat! I >> look forward to reading and exploring this. Openness needs more >> manifestos, for sure. In that vein, you might also consider >> checking out Robert David Steele's similarly-titled project: >> >> http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12998524-the-open-source-everything-manifesto >> Bryan ------------------------------ >> _______________________________________________ Sign-up for our >> weekly newsletter: http://opensource.com/email-newsletter >> Osdc-list mailing list [email protected] >> https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/osdc-list End of >> Osdc-list Digest, Vol 71, Issue 5 >> **************************************** >> >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Osdc-list mailing list | This is a place for our readers, writers, >> moderators and artists to discuss matters concerning Opensource.com and >> otherwise do the work that makes this a community practicing the open source >> way. >> >> Sign-up for our weekly newsletter: http://opensource.com/email-newsletter >> >> Send a message: [email protected] >> Change preferences: https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/osdc-list >> Unsubscribe: https://www.redhat.com/mailman/options/osdc-list >
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