Re: Kickstarter was not successful... but it did help things...

[Doc O'Leary]

In article <mailman.1906.1378974075.10748.discuss-gnustep@gnu.org>,
 David Chisnall <theraven@sucs.org> wrote:

> On 11 Sep 2013, at 17:58, Gregory Casamento <greg.casamento@gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> > 2) I should have been more realistic in my goals on the kickstarter.  We 
> > are, honestly around 10.3 in some APIs, 10.4 in others and 10.7 in others.  
> > An honest assessment of our states on a class by class, method by method 
> > level is what's really needed.
> 
> I believe that 'compatibility with OS X 10.x' as a goal is fundamentally 
> flawed, for three reasons:

In addition to your reasons, I think it is important to say that, in the 
broader picture, GNUstep is seen as a means to an end.  The "goal" 
should not be improving GNUstep, but it should be clear that GNUstep 
gets improved in the process of reaching the goal (if that makes sense).

>  A better approach would be to find some open source OS X-only applications 
> that only work with OS X 10.x or later and ensure that we have all of the 
> APIs that they need.  This gives the same PR benefits ('FooApp requires OS X 
> 10.x, but runs fine on *BSD/Linux'), and means that the new APIs that we 
> implement get immediate testing.

Not even Mac-only apps necessarily, just apps that Mac users like, such 
that they might be more comfortable in a GNUstep environment if it 
supported them.  Something like Transmission, for example:

http://www.transmissionbt.com

> If we want WebKit (which we do!)

Not as a high priority.  All the really interesting apps have needs yet 
to be met outside of a WebView.

> We should also approach companies like Omni Group and ask them if they can 
> provide a list of APIs that they need to port their products, and if they 
> would be willing to match funding.

Now this is a reasonable goal.  Flagship apps give something to the 
*users*, which are often strangely neglected in these sorts of technical 
projects.  Whether it's Omni, some other company, or open source apps, 
you exercise/engage the full chain.  People who wouldn't pay a dime for 
GNUstep itself might pay $30 to get their favorite Mac or iOS app 
running on Linux or Windows.

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