> At least we used to pay lip service to that ideal.
When was that? For as long as I can recall, a core mantra of free/libre software has been that it was provided "AS IS" without warranty of any kind. Decades ago the dominant response I recall was one of gratitude and a little amazement that ad-hoc communities of volunteers were making real software that wasn't just academic but on par with commercial offerings. Some of those communities chose to adopt a user-friendly posture because they wanted people to like them but plenty did not and just did their own thing. As long as they could attract contributors they kept going.
Personally what concerns me is this growing expectation that volunteering to maintain an open source project also means you are "morally or ethically beholden or responsible" to anyone who uses it. In practice that seems to mean maintainers must respond to user requests or end up on the receiving end of a great deal of vitriol. It's no wonder so many volunteer maintainers who have internalized this responsibility are burning out, and how many more potential maintainers are dissuaded by seeing what is happening to the current maintainers.
Well, concurrent with this decline in stewardship has been a decline in graciousness towards volunteers, so I see your point.
I remember when I was younger, every volunteering experience I had was a delight; people thanking me for my time, getting me free coffee "just because", etc. Some of my more recent volunteering experiences have been less pleasant.
When was that? For as long as I can recall, a core mantra of free/libre software has been that it was provided "AS IS" without warranty of any kind. Decades ago the dominant response I recall was one of gratitude and a little amazement that ad-hoc communities of volunteers were making real software that wasn't just academic but on par with commercial offerings. Some of those communities chose to adopt a user-friendly posture because they wanted people to like them but plenty did not and just did their own thing. As long as they could attract contributors they kept going.
Personally what concerns me is this growing expectation that volunteering to maintain an open source project also means you are "morally or ethically beholden or responsible" to anyone who uses it. In practice that seems to mean maintainers must respond to user requests or end up on the receiving end of a great deal of vitriol. It's no wonder so many volunteer maintainers who have internalized this responsibility are burning out, and how many more potential maintainers are dissuaded by seeing what is happening to the current maintainers.