Open source and free software is not only a choice of license – it is much more. In an ideal world, it is the equivalent of humanitarian projects, translated into software and technology. Where doctors without borders use their knowledge selflessly around the world to help those in need, where food banks support those from our society who need it the most, and where student exchange programs transport knowledge and learning into the world, open source projects have similar values and ideals in mind.
It is about working around the globe with likeminded people, who bring in their skills and talent for a common goal and for the benefit of society. Diverse, inclusive, welcoming, with higher goals in mind, independent of age, language, culture, profession or religion.
With the ongoing professionalisation and commercial value of projects, upholding such ideals can become a growing challenge.
Open source has arrived in people’s heads and minds and has become “business as usual”. Where there is money, politics grow, so FLOSS values and ideals can quickly clash with economic necessities and demands.
Have values changed? Have we changed? How can we, and do we want to, go back to the “good old values”, if they ever existed?
Based on over 21 years of experience with free and open source projects, this talk aims to shed some light into how the landscape has changed over the past two decades, and what challenges a FLOSS project can face.
