Open Source Design in risk?

Stylissimo writes "OSWD.org, the biggest source for free open source web templates, has been offline for several weeks, which has caused a dilemma for the large number of webmasters who rely on open source design. While some of the OSWD.org designers are doing their best to keep the open source design scene alive, others are worried that the absence of OSWD.org will hit the internet hard and maybe even kill the scene. Aaron Nikula, administrator of OSWD.org, has published a statement about the situation and the site may be back again."

Comments

Re:I can't believe this

[Overly Critical Guy]

This is the site that has the capability to cache links and not destroy people's bandwidth fees but just won't do it. Decency? Ha, you're asking the wrong people.

OSS makes no sense for this.

[kuzb]

F/OSS principles say that the advantage of having an open product is that you can fix problems in it if you need to. You're free to do this because the source code is available for you to work on. HTML is a lousy example of something that should *need* to be opensourced. It's *distributed* in source form. Ergo, anyone using it can modify and edit the html as they see fit. I don't see what the point of making a few people do a lot of work so the lazy can profit is. That's all this encourages, is a bunch of people who get to sell YOUR work for nothing. The only time this might make sense is with images, where the final product, and the raw photoshop image are different. I think a site like this is a mistake, and will only aim to create a bunch more clueless webmasters who don't need to understand anything, because the good people at oswd.com are doing it all for you. Thanks guys.

The biggest complaint I hear from freelance designers (who are very good at what they do, unlike the clueless masses of people who think they are web design gods) is that they lose contracts on a regular basis to people who either a) rip sites, or b) use sites like this for their designs. These people have no talent, no skill and no ability. They haven't worked at perfecting any kind of art. They simply take free things and copy/paste them together, and then sell them as their own to people who would otherwise be clients of people who do it for real, and produce a superior product.

I know what you're thinking, that it's a free market, and that people should have the right to choose, but often times what happens is the client only sees the bid value. Of course, the people who use sites like oswd will charge a lot less mostly because after they throw up their stock site, with their stock images, and their stock PHP code, it has taken them less than a few hours of work. On the other hand, it takes a professional a week or more to do something original and worth having.

So, excuse me if I don't shed a tear for oswd. Truth be told, I'd rather see them shut down. They help facilitate the mutilation of an industry that many independants rely on. I'm not talking about large corporations either, but people like you and me, living paycheque to paycheque on their talents and abilities.

Re:OSS makes no sense for this.

[kuzb]

*sigh*. It's hard to change an opinion on slashdot, many have their own opinions and views as to how things should be, and nobody, but *nobody* can change that. Except in a few rare instances where someone produces a really good argument, as you've done now.

I hate the freeloading bastards who make it hard for my friends to find work (I should mention, I'm not a designer, I'm a backend developer, but many people I know are *that good* at design. As a result of it getting too hard to freelance, I now work for a corporation, as do some of these people), but on the other hand, I'm a big supporter of education, and teaching people. I actively participate as a moderator in ##php on freenode. Before that, I was active (as a moderator) in many channels on EFNet helping people with HTML and Javascript related issues. I know, I just said I wasn't a designer. However, there is a big difference between understanding the mechanics of something, and being able to add an overall artistic vision to it. I have a great deal of respect for designers who can grasp both the mechanics, and the vision at the same time.

Perhaps you're right. Maybe I do have it all wrong. Perhaps what we need here is a provision that says you can't use a template (or site theme pack, or whatever you'd like to call it) for a commercial endevour. My goal with my initial post was not to take a learning resource away from people with a genuine interest in trying to figure it all out, but to make people aware that sites like oswd get *abused*. The end result of that abuse is less work for people who really need it. Good HTML/CSS design is not something that it's easy to find a professional course for. Many take to trial and error, and finding people who have 'been around the block', so to speak. Sifting the good information from the bad takes a significant amount of time, effort and energy. Especially considering how browsers have a tendancy to differ. On the other hand, what good is teaching these people how to do it right when they'll face the same problems professional designers do now? If I were to hazard an educated guess, I'd say for every 1 person who really wanted to learn something, there are at least 5 more who will take it for straight profit. Ignoring in the process all the intrinsic value the package has to teach them to do it themselves.

I'll always have a special place in my heart for those who struggle to learn something they didn't know yesterday, and a growing hate for those who try to live off the sweat of others who paid their dues.

Re:OSS makes no sense for this.

[kuzb]

Hey, if you want to work at a 7-11 or McDonalds for the rest of your life, by all means, do it. You won't see me trying to stop you. While many of the designers I know didn't attend any art school (thus making your point somewhat questionable), they have spent many years in self-improvement. You'll know you're starting to do it right when finding people to look at what you're doing gets easier because they're asking you what you're doing out of interest.

As for the whole superiority complex, I don't recall saying that these *people* are superior to *other* people. I *do* recall saying they produce a superior product. They would even be quite happy to help you with some of the harder points in design provided you were making an effort to better yourself. The point here is they've honed a skill - it's a *fact* that anyone who works at something gets better at it. Don't be bitter that some people are better at things than you are because you've failed to invest yourself in to it. If you want it, *invest yourself in it*. Don't sit on the sidelines wishing you could.

I have a lot of other friends who are musicians. The vast majority of people who approach them seem to think they have some secret which, if shared, will make them master musicians too. The *fact* of the matter is, these people *worked* to get where they are with their talent. They sacrificed time for their art. They paid their dues. They've *earned* their talent.

Re:OSS makes no sense for this.

[kuzb]

Essentially, those freelance designers are whining that the value they add isn't important to many people.

No, essentially those freelance designers are complaining because sites like this contribute to their work shortage. Some of them do cut their rates because they recognize that not everyone has $5000 for a new site. However, it forces some of them to have to give up design, and take other jobs. After 5+ years of learning how to do it right, it's hard to let it go without a fight. Imagine how angry you'd be if you were forced to give up something you love, something you worked at, because rank amateurs flooded the market with crap.

On the other hand, following your logic, outsourcing software development to India must be OK too. I mean, there's no value-add to the corporations for developing software in-country. So, I suppose all the people who were rendered jobless by the corporate machines are whiney people as well?

Re:OSS makes no sense for this.

[kuzb]

Sure. As soon as you stop trolling, and log in with a real slashdot account so I know who to add to my 'enemies' list.