On Communication
I'm a fan of the phrase, “It's better to ask forgiveness than permission”. I'm not sure how well that works out in the real world, but I'm a fan.
For projects at work, there's a legal team. If anything goes wrong, the company is in trouble. I've been told when you get into open source, the first thing to do is register an LLC. I don't have an LLC yet 😨.
Did you know GtkSpell has a patent concern section on their site? These types of things interest me, and ignite a fire of fear within. I always thought Open Source was the land of the free and the do what you want with it. The more I look into it, the more I want to remain in corporate development environments.
The road to ruin is paved with good intentions, is a phrase I'm not a fan of. It's also the phrase I feel I've been acting on.
I've found that a lot of developers (open or closed source) are pretty open to communication. Like asking for a recipe at a restaurant, it's sometimes awkward. If the chef gives you the recipe, you're ecstatic.
Communication isn't just for getting the secret sauce or permission, it's also so someone will possibly say “Stop” before it's too late. Not that hopes offer legal protection.
I've been having a lot of fun working on open source though. In a time of quarantine, it's been fun finding new communities.
My company these past few months has been Persona 5 Royal. I'm on the final month of the game... it's all ending too soon, and I need to reconnect with real people 😝. I'm just kidding on that last part.
To be completely honest, trying to find a sense of purpose during the Coronavirus has been tough. Communication and work in the open source community has been somewhat checking off that box.