Ask HN: Feedback on my Idea

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9877702

by bluerail • 11 years ago

1 1 11 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

I am thinking of developing an web app for requesting open source library ports. Basically, people can post existing libraries in a language and request for an port to any language, others can vote it or provide any existing libraries already available. Also, people can assign themselves to work on a project and others can also work along with them.

What do you think of it? any existing solutions already out there?

HelloNurse• 11 years ago

The only problem you could solve is recruiting new contributors who want to port open source projects, as pressuring the current developers is highly counterproductive, doing the porting without help doesn't need any social networking, and collaboration on the software development itself is going to use different, established tools (most likely those of the existing project: forums, mailing lists, public source repositories).

This niche of making people port open source projects to different platforms is better served by more general software developer recruitment approaches (why focus on porting?): for paid work (I want a port of this library but I don't want to do it myself) there are existing employees who might be just assigned to do it, general-purpose job/contracting boards and targeted announcements and advertisement to experts of the involved platforms.

For the delusionally small niche of volunteer work (If you don't know what to do, maybe you'll decide to port these great libraries to neglected platforms) interested parties are perfectly able to research what would constitute a good porting campaign for them in terms of effort, utility, learning opportunity, etc.

Ask HN: Feedback on my Idea

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