Slashdot Mirror
How To Spread Word About My FOSS Project?
An anonymous reader writes "I'm in a bit of a bind with an open source web software project of mine. It's a very small project that I've been developing for over three years. By now it's got a promising feature set, but very few users and virtually no community around it. The problem is that people I have asked to try it refuse to do so because it doesn't have a thriving community. It's an infinite loop: without users, we won't have a community, and without a community, users aren't coming. So, Slashdot, my question is: how can I build a community and help get the word out about a project led by 2 people and with only 5-6 regulars on our forum and IRC?"
1) Post a message to slashdot
2) ????
3) Profit
"The problem with socialism is eventually you run out of other people's money" - Thatcher.
So basically.. this is a Slashvertisement without the name of the project? Brilliant.
I like how when there is a slashvertisement, everyone bitches.
This guy sidesteps, and everyone is complaining because there isn't a slashvertisement. Oh the irony.
-- Lattyware (www.lattyware.co.uk)
Last time I got "friendlier" with one of my users I got into a law suit.
Hi there, I'm The Sharecash Professor. You probably know me from /b/, /k/, and /u/ on 4chan. I've recently entered into giving great advice on 4chan's most recent sections /adv/ and given excellent news on savings for participitating on /new/.
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If you want to by-pass the free questionaires because of your time or difficulty doesn't allow you to abandon the complexity and cares of your life to answer them, then just send $1 to a representive through PayPal and you'll get the content cheaper than an iTunes account.
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As everyone knows, Open Source software is the wave of the future. With the market share of GNU/Linux and *BSD increasing every day, interest in Open Source Software is at an all time high.
Developing software within the Open Source model benefits everyone. People can take your code, improve it and then release it back to the community. This cycle continues and leads to the creation of far more stable software than the 'Closed Source' shops can ever hope to create.
So you're itching to create that Doom 3 killer but don't know where to start? Read on!
The most important thing that any Open Source project needs is a Sourceforge page. There are tens of thousands of successful Open Source projects on Sourceforge.Net; the support you receive here will be invaluable.
OK, so you've registered your Sourceforge.Net project and set the status to '0: Pre-Thinking About It', what's next?
Now you need to set up your SourceForge.net homepage. Keep it plain and simple - don't use too many HTML tags, just knock something up in VI. Website editors like Expression Web and DreamWeaver just create bloated eye-candy - you need to get your message to the masses!
Since you probably can't program at all you'll need to try and find some people who think they can. If your project is a game you'll probably need an artist too. Ask for help on your new Sourceforge pages. Here is an example to get you started:
Thousands of talented programmers and artists hang out at Sourceforge.net ready to devote their time to projects so you should get a team together in no time!
So now you have your team together you are ready to change your projects status to '1: Pre-Bickering'. You will need to discuss your ideas with your team mates and see what value they can add to the project. You could use an Instant Messaging program like MSN for this, but since you run Linux you'll have to stick to e-mail.
Don't forget that YOU are in charge! If your team doesn't like the idea of giant robotic spiders just delete them from the project and move on. Someone else can fill their place and this is the beauty of Open Source development. The code might end up a bit messy and the graphics inconsistant - but it's still 'Free as in Speech'!
Now that you've found a team of right thinking people you're ready to start development. Be prepared for some delays though. Programming is a craft and can take years to learn. Your programmer may be a bit rusty but will probably be writing "hello world" programs after school in no time.
Closed Source games like Doom 3 use the graphics card to do all the hard stuff anyhow, so your programmer will just have to get the NVidia 'API' and it will be plain sailing! Giant robot spiders, here we come!
So it's been a few years, you still have no files released or in CVS. Your programmer can't get enough time on the PC because his mother won't let him use it after 8pm. Your artist has run off with a Thai She-Male. Your project is still at '1: Pre-Bickering'...
Congratulations! You now have a successful Open Source project on Sourceforge.net! Pat yourself on the back, think up another idea and do it all again! See how simple it is?
Add more chicks in bikini's
Shit. My sense of vocabulary is fail. Must be this ice cream. I meant "effervescing."
>_<
Or imprisoned for murdering your wife.
It is so small and unused I thought I would be ridiculous... But here come the link: http://kernel.org/
L.T.
I'm not joking when I say: I love the idea of a lolcats generator! I'm gonna give this some more thought...
"In our tactical decisions, we are operating contrary to our strategic interest."
no one wants to commit to using software that will disappear if you get hit by a bus.
We *are* talking about FOSS here, right? You can always fix it yourself if you depend on it. Besides, most FOSS projects "disappear" in the sense you probably mean because the maintainer(s) lose(s) interest. I seriously doubt that developers getting hit by busses is a serious problem for FOSS users.
"I love my job, but I hate talking to people like you" (Freddie Mercury)
so you're better of getting to know as many people as you know (as you're better of getting to know as many girls as possible)
Do you have any suggestions for a FOSS project targeted at girls? Then getting to know as many of the users and girls would have some great synergy effects.