No, “Open Source” does no longer imply “Entails Free Relieve”

Right here’s a paraphrased conversation I’m having methodology to veritably, costing me methodology too remarkable time, keeping me from doing issues which will likely be methodology extra principal:

User: Hello, I could maybe probably well treasure to report a worm to your utility.
Me:   Sizable! Please commence a enhance notice, then.
User: Nonetheless, it appears to be treasure I must pay for that?
Me:   So?
User: I aesthetic desire to enable you to know that your app is broken, so that you just would be in a position to fix it.
Me:   Yes, that's a enhance request, please commence a notice.
User: ...

From there it veritably derails into a whiny tirade about me being a crappy two bit developer who doesn’t give a shit about his code (which is ridiculous, since, genuine satisfaction apart, I in fact maintain every incentive to fix bugs, to prevent my inbox from getting flooded) and aesthetic wishes to rip off his customers.

Within the previous, I veritably gave in (when it sounded treasure something will likely be scary). I checked out the scream of affairs and almost continually found that nothing become as soon as broken, aesthetic didn’t work as anticipated (which is de facto to be anticipated for every fairly complicated portion of tool). The person aesthetic didn’t bother discovering out the doctors and tried to bypass the charge by masquerading the enhance request as a worm report. So, this day my policy merely is: no enhance notice, no provider. This kind of request goes straight to the trash folder without even being checked out.

Why am I such an asshole?

Right here’s the express: I write commence source tool to solve my field. I imply that you just would be in a position to say my recommendations because that comes at zero designate for me (well, almost, I mute must pay for the website online, you are downloading from. You are welcome, by the methodology). I furthermore provide the source code, so that you just would be in a position to kind issues your self, must mute my acknowledge change into deplorable. On the opposite hand, whereas you come to me with a “bugreport” that doesn’t furthermore embody a patch (or no less than very exactly pinpoints the field), then you are on the total asking me to glimpse at your field. At this point, it’s no longer zero designate for me and that’s the plan for why I am charging you money: you are asking me to frolicked to your behalf. That is recurrently known as work. And surprisingly ample, work is what people ask to be paid for.

Don’t catch me scary. I’m happy to attend. Promoting enhance is what retains the lights on here (did I mention the designate of running a webserver?). Nonetheless coming to me below faux pretense and/or waiting for that I must provide free provider on high of a tool I gave away for gratis is no longer going to take you any favours.

It stops being free, when it begins costing me! My time is treasured. While you wish a portion of it, I desire money in return. Interval.

UPDATE: Appears treasure this post has struck a nerve and triggered about a misunderstandings. Clarification on my salvage here.