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Real Name For Open Source Development?
An anonymous reader writes "Do you contribute to open source projects under your real name or a nickname? The openness of open source can be encouraging, but software patents you have never heard of can become a nightmare if a patent troll sues for implementing 'their' scroll bar. A real name also means you end up in the big index we call search engines. An assumed name could be an additional layer of protection, but what are its pros and cons and is it worth the hassle when asked to participate in a meatspace meeting?"
Right now the only project I actively contribute to is my own. Of course I have my real name on the project site and in the copyright headers. However, my username (on the site and the repository logs) is more of an online nick. The downside of this is that I get lots of e-mails and forum posts where people assume that nick is my real name.
Of course once I'm at the point where I care about liability protection, I'd rather form some sort of LLC to contain my efforts. I really do want to contribute in a way that people know its me, since what's the point of contributing to a project you can't personally claim credit for?
> Do you contribute to open source projects under your real name or a nickname?
Real, of course. Why would I want to hide?
> The openness of open source can be encouraging, but software patents you have never
> heard of can become a nightmare if a patent troll sues for implementing 'their' scroll
> bar.
As a pure unpaid contributor of source code you have no patent liability.
> A real name also means you end up in the big index we call search engines.
I've been using my real name on the Net for more than twenty years. I don't see the problem.
Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
It won't be easy to prove to a potential employer that you work(ed) on the project, so you might as well not include it on your resume unless you're tenacious about it.
I never use my real name online, or at least as little as possible. The reason is I don't want future potential employers to be able to Google up any dirt - real or perceived - on me. If I want to bring some of my OSS work to a prospective employer's attention I can do that. I can also pretty much prove that I am responsible for this feature on that program, or that my contributions are legit.
Having you real name associated online with just about anything is IMO a bad idea. The risks are high and the benefits are almost nonexistent. The odds are 10-1 (I just pulled that number out of my ass) that dirt will outrank achievments if you use your real name and someone Googles for you. That one time you got drunk and went off on some insane rant 5 years ago WILL come back to haunt you no matter how many other positive things there are.
just because it won't stand up in court doesn't mean that you will have the funds to litigate it successfully...
Either as a user or developer, if you have enough money/influence that the patent holder cares to sue you, it won't matter much if you post anonymously: your real name in all likelihood will be discovered in due course.
In that situation, you should not contribute to open source projects, especially not anonymously. The code you write is intellectual property of your employer and unless said employer agrees to contribute it under the license chosen by the open source project, the presence of the code in the open source code base is a major liability for the project. It doesn't help that the project can not shift blame to you when your employer finds out about it because you inadvertently used insider knowledge in your design. That's why big projects will not accept patches unless the author identifies himself and declares full authorship.
Well, that's easy enough to ignore. ._. It's easier to get people to look at the code if they think you're a guy... They don't patronize then.
#fuckbeta #iamslashdot #dicemustdie
In the open source community it really does seem that either one is fine. This isn't like the old days of D00DZ and WAREZ and C0DEZ where you used your handle to keep the feds from figuring out who you really were. Nowadays it's more of a tradition. Most people are going to be able to match your real name and your screen name, and that's fine. I do a lot of development using both, and people are generally cool with it.
That's strictly in the online sphere, though. If you're sitting in someone's office working out a consulting contract to build some open source software then yeah, your business card had better have your birth name on it if you want to be taken seriously.
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I use my first name and my initial, as well as my email, that way you can still reference it when applying for a job (whereas you'd look like an idiot claiming that you did excellent coding work but never gave a real name or used your regular email)
From that early moment on, all contributions have been pretty darn anonymous
But what happens if someone finds out? The project is still in just as much risk. That's honestly not very kind either.
Far better is to clarify and modify that contract you are about to sign. Even the lowliest peon can easily ask to have a clause put in along the lines of "The IP section does not cover inventions made using my own equipment outside of company time" (have a lawyer write the real thing). Because otherwise by blindly agreeing, even your posts here on Slashdot are owned by your employer under the typical agreement.
ALmost any company will let you add an addendum like that to your employment contract. Do not be overawed by contracts, they are simply a starting point.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
of course one should check to make sure that such clauses aren't negated by their state laws.
such as non-compete clauses in california.
Of course, if you use the same alias everywhere it is only a matter of time before someone can put two-and-two together. :)
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
Just because you sign a contract doesn't mean you can be legally held to it. You can't be legally held to kill someone after signing a contract to carry out murder.
Employers may think that they have dominion over an employee's life simply because they're paying them, but they actually don't. If they aren't directly paying you for the work, there's a reasonable expectation that it is yours. Does the company also own part of your house if you did repairs on it yourself?
My blog. Good stuff (when I remember to update it). Read it.
Reiser brutally murdered his wife. That's not funny at all.
Heck, you could use the SHA1 hash of most near anything. The fact that you have the correct input string to yield that SHA1 hash should be enough to convince just about anyone, provided it's not something stupid like "password1".
That said, your name would be easy to remember...
Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
Not reliably - all that proves is I'm someone with commit access.
with a particular username