Traumwind - good ideas, bad code

Steffano Mazzochi: 'anyway, it's a design pattern: Good ideas and bad code build communities, the other three combinations do not. This is extremely hard to understand, it's probably the most counter-intuitive thing about open source dynamics.'

This a very interesting observation, and I agree with Chris that this can be applied to any field, not only Open Source. Actuall I don't find it so very counter-intuitive once you start thinking about it: There is this outstanding idea, this brilliant concept. And there is a few implementations. But none of them is actually good code, or does the job 100%. So on the one side you have the desire for a solution, and on the other the opportunity to change something. And the need to do so. Think about it the other way around: A compelling idea and a product that implements it 100%... where's the need to get involved? Where's the motivation? The product is already there, good enough.

There's a analogon from the world of SciFi writing: They say Larry Niven would not only have inovative ideas, but he'd also write the 'one and all' story about it. Saying it all, and dealing with the idea in all consequence. So later no other write would pick up that idea because 'it has all been said' already.

So maybe this is the lesson to be learned: 'If you want others to participate in your product/field/idea, then let some questions unanswered, some features missing, some work for others to do.'

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Martin Spernau
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Big things to come (TM) 30th Dez 2002

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