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Here is a summary of conversations between Charlie Schweik and
myself, leading to what I think could be some really interesting
Open Source Research. Anyone interested?<br>
<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://cameronshorter.blogspot.com.au/2015/12/how-much-code-should-open-source.html">http://cameronshorter.blogspot.com.au/2015/12/how-much-code-should-open-source.html</a><br>
<br>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
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display: inline !important; float: none; background-color:
rgb(255, 255, 255);">Which is more effective for building an open
source project? Do you write code, or engage with the community?</span><br
style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
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<span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; line-height: 18.48px; orphans: auto; text-align: start;
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display: inline !important; float: none; background-color:
rgb(255, 255, 255);">My team are regularly asked variants on this
question when called in to review software systems, which include
open source extensions and have been out-innovated by the open
source community.</span><br style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);
font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;
font-size: 13.2px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;
font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18.48px;
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<span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; line-height: 18.48px; orphans: auto; text-align: start;
text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal;
widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
display: inline !important; float: none; background-color:
rgb(255, 255, 255);">Just writing code leads to a development team
of one. It works, but is slow. The illusive promise of open source
is the potential to attract external developers. But to attract
and retain developers you need to connect with them, talk with
them, support them, encourage them. You need to help them achieve
their goals, which might be only slightly related to yours. And
hopefully, after all that, they might contribute back. It is a
tough ask, which is probably why<span
class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><a
href="https://www.thecommonsjournal.org/articles/10.18352/ijc.397/"
style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(136, 136, 136);
font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;
font-size: 13.2px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;
font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18.48px;
orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px;
text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1;
word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">5 out of 6 open source
projects are abandoned</a><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);
font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;
font-size: 13.2px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;
font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18.48px;
orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px;
text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1;
word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; display: inline
!important; float: none; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.</span><br
style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; line-height: 18.48px; orphans: auto; text-align: start;
text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal;
widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
<span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; line-height: 18.48px; orphans: auto; text-align: start;
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display: inline !important; float: none; background-color:
rgb(255, 255, 255);">So what percentage of time should be
dedicated to communication in order to build a successful open
source community? My gut feeling, after a decades contributing to
open source, is around 20% to 40%. But I'd love to find some solid
research to back this up.</span><br style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);
font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;
font-size: 13.2px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;
font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18.48px;
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text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1;
word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
<span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; line-height: 18.48px; orphans: auto; text-align: start;
text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal;
widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
display: inline !important; float: none; background-color:
rgb(255, 255, 255);">An extensive study by Schweik and English,
sponsored by the U.S. National Science Foundation,</span><a
href="https://www.thecommonsjournal.org/articles/10.18352/ijc.397/"
style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(136, 136, 136);
font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;
font-size: 13.2px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;
font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18.48px;
orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px;
text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1;
word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">researched the factors that
lead some open source projects to ongoing success, while others
become abandoned</a><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);
font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;
font-size: 13.2px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;
font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18.48px;
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!important; float: none; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.
Key attributes of successful projects included:</span><br
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Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; line-height: 18.48px; orphans: auto; text-align: start;
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<ul style="padding: 0px 2.5em; margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height:
18.48px; color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px;
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background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">A clear vision</li>
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">Leaders who lead by doing</li>
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">Good documentation and a quality web presence</li>
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">Fine scaled task granularity, making it easier for new
users to contribute</li>
</ul>
<span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; line-height: 18.48px; orphans: auto; text-align: start;
text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal;
widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
display: inline !important; float: none; background-color:
rgb(255, 255, 255);">However, I'm unaware of studies, including
Schweik and English's, which have mined communication archives,
such as email lists, to correlate communication styles with
project success. Why is that? Communication is the lifeblood of
any organisation, so you'd think that by now there would be
evidence based guidance on optimising our communication
techniques. Especially considering how much value could be easily
mined from these archives.</span><br style="color: rgb(34, 34,
34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;
font-size: 13.2px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;
font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18.48px;
orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px;
text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1;
word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
<span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; line-height: 18.48px; orphans: auto; text-align: start;
text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal;
widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
display: inline !important; float: none; background-color:
rgb(255, 255, 255);">Here are some indicators I'd like to see
mined from communication archives and then correlating with
project success rates:</span><br style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);
font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;
font-size: 13.2px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;
font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18.48px;
orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px;
text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1;
word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
<ul style="padding: 0px 2.5em; margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height:
18.48px; color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px;
text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1;
word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">What is the frequency, response-rate and response-time to
conversations?</li>
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">What is the proportion of experienced verses
in-experienced people initiating and responding to topics?</li>
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">What is the "signal to noise" ratio? Do people write
concisely? </li>
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">Is communication constructive? Do topics lead to practical
actions or implementations?</li>
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">Is communication respectful and supportive? (This might be
hard to measure, but I'd argue that practicing mutual respect is
key to community building.)</li>
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">How much time do people spend coding compared to the time
they spend communicating? (This could be roughly calculated
based on lines of code written vs lines of email composed).</li>
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">Which communication mediums are more effective? Email,
IRC, twitter, blogs, other?</li>
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">What styles lead to communities becoming more or less
engaged?</li>
</ul>
<span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; line-height: 18.48px; orphans: auto; text-align: start;
text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal;
widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
display: inline !important; float: none; background-color:
rgb(255, 255, 255);">Based on results of the information mining,
I'd expect to discover that successful open source projects:</span><br
style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; line-height: 18.48px; orphans: auto; text-align: start;
text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal;
widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
<ul style="padding: 0px 2.5em; margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height:
18.48px; color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Arial, Tahoma,
Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-style:
normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing:
normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px;
text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1;
word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">Have core contributors responding quickly to community
questions</li>
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">Have a community who are supportive of each other,
resulting in many community members having the confidence to
answer new user questions</li>
<li style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; text-indent:
0px;">Having new ideas being initiated, discussed and then
implemented from many members of the community</li>
</ul>
<br>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">--
Cameron Shorter,
Software and Data Solutions Manager
LISAsoft
Suite 112, Jones Bay Wharf,
26 - 32 Pirrama Rd, Pyrmont NSW 2009
P +61 2 9009 5000, W <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="http://www.lisasoft.com">www.lisasoft.com</a>, F +61 2 9009 5099</pre>
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