If on a major update your desktop (GNOME, Plasma, Cinnamon, i3, etc) opened a popup asking you to donate, it only appeared once and if you don't ever want to see it there was an option to fully disable it, would you be opposed to this? #Linux#OpenSource#FOSS
@BrodieOnLinux -- voted yes on this. Not that I don't think FOSS developers shouldn't have the opportunity to get paid. But because I think that having direct donate links in software is a can of worms. Each app in gnome may have dozens of contributors. Who gets paid? Will each app have it's own account or Bitcoin wallet address? Who manages that? What about apps that are boring, but critically important (files, calculator....)? Etc.
@BrodieOnLinux Couldn't be more annoying than update popups, so I see no problem with it. Besides, I always do try to donate when I visit their websites and they're asking for donations. (well, when I have money to spare, at least)
@BrodieOnLinux I am currently (for two to three weeks now) trying to establish #Linux instead of #Windows as my daily driver.
One of the main reasons for me to do that is things I did not ask for popping up on my computer.
I keep hearing how #Windows is showing more and more ads to users, and that's an #OperatingSystem that you're effectively already paying for.
I know you said it'd be a one-time popup, but it sets a precedent that I'm not comfortable with. What if down the track they want to ask for contributors, or advertise one of their paid services/features...?
I see this opening a floodgate of sorts, and I don't like where it could go.
@BrodieOnLinux I voted but this only under the assumption that disabling them would be easy and simple (like just a "don't show me this again" button or a "remove this line from the default config ask_for_donations=allow" disclaimer for stuff like i3)
@BrodieOnLinux I'm not opposed to donation requests, but they have to be done in a way that's actually effective, otherwise it's not worth the annoyance.
An example of a method that does not seem effective is the messages in Libre office after every update. You learn to click them away as soon as possible. Or worse, you're too lazy to click them away, leaving you with reduced screen space and a worse experience
@BrodieOnLinux personally, a huge and emphatic no from me. BUT thats just for me personally.
I would accept it better during installation or introduction tour and not as a pop-up.
@BrodieOnLinux Foss software relies on donations and I feel it’s fair to ask for them here and there. People put hundreds of hours into code, anyone can grab and use for free. They deserve financial support.
@aes__ There's certain packages where it's really hard to do tasteful donation solicitation, but I don't take issue with how Thunderbird has done it for example
@Nuuskis If it has a welcome screen that's obviously the most logical place, I'm not focused on the specific implementation because that's a matter for the individual desktops
@popey When I asked this over on Youtube a lot of people didn't like the idea of a forced popup, so I'd say a good few percent are people who can't read. A few people thought this was the start of every single project opening a donation popup constanstly, but there's always going to be a few people completely opposed to any sort of monetary support.
@BrodieOnLinux there are a ton of people (the majority) who don’t contribute to FOSS in any meaningful way whatsoever. Not just financially but via translations, documentation, design, let alone code or code review.
@BrodieOnLinux@popey I wonder if it's also that people assume the larger projects have funding?
Plus it's not a normalised thing to ask for donations as there's an assumption that the money will come from somewhere.
We all need to talk about project sustainability more and developers also need to be more comfortable with the idea of fundraising for sustainability. Both being the fundraiser and being the person asked.
Some of us are not comfortable with this idea, we need to get comfortable.
@BrodieOnLinux@popey We know crowdfunding can work, we see it with Wikipedia, Internet Archive and Archiveofourown.org.
We need to normalise the idea of a funding drive. But with that also comes the need for transparency and accountability. If you want people to support you, they have skin in your game.
Which could also be a reason for reluctance to fundraise.
Many of us don't like a pop-up for good reason. So this is the point everyone needs to consider, how to fund FOSS?
Not only have we to become comfortable with asking for money.
We also have to become familiar with the thought of branding ourselves and/or our products/projects. Without falling into a person cult.
Maintaining a relationship means taking time to listen. You see many creatives rather chipping away on their creative work.
Especially the TTRPG subculture appears to have figured out how to fundraise while help mutually (with cross-promotions, knowledge exchange, lending an ear and so on).
Of course you have to first make people realise we are in this together. Not fight each other for attention.
@popey@BrodieOnLinux I would be opposed to pop-ups asking for donations after every update, even if you could disable permanently. If it were only the desktop environment asking you, then fine. But if this became common practice, every app you install on Linux might start asking for donations on every update, and then you would have to click "never ask again" on quite a lot of app donation request dialog boxes indeed.
(Also, the question was confusing. I almost clicked "no" as in I don't want this, but I caught myself and clicked "yes, I would be opposed to this." Lesson learned for how to phrase questions for online polls: don't phrase questions in the negative and ask "yes" or "no", ask "opposed" or "not opposed" instead.)
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