[fpc-devel] [RFC] fpdoc output comment from the source

[Felipe Monteiro de Carvalho]

On 12/19/05, Michael Van Canneyt <michael at freepascal.org> wrote:
> It's not so much the 'hard' that is the problem.
>
> As with the PR thing: The core developers really don't have time for this.
> It takes a lot of effort: prepare, go there (costs again money), follow-
> up. You need some kind of legal entity etc etc etc.

Would they like to have time for this?

Look at my experience. I work for the University of São Paulo. I am
not developing the Virtual Magnifying Glass
(http://www.braillevirtual.fe.usp.br/temporario/magnifier.png) as a
hobby, althought it is so much fun that I would. I am a *paid open
source developer*.

One of the guys that work with me called Microsoft and one of their
directors went to where we work to talk about another project we
develop. We didn´t even had to go there. We did not prepare a formal
presentation, we only had a reunion. He even offered software /
hardware to sponsor us! The same with Macromedia.

Companies like to have their names on projects with big visibility,
and that´s where the marketing thing comes.

You need to find companies interested in Pascal and companies
interested in Open Source and then ask them for support.

I would start with IBM. Many companies support open source. Google
does. HP does. Apache, the linux kernel, all started as free time
projects and ended up with paid developers.

If you guys wouldn´t like to code for Free Pascal as your main
activity perhaps you can ask the enterprises to hire someone else to
help. Similar to this is:

* Sending a propolsal for Google "Summer of Code" for them to pay
someone to help develop Free Pascal.

* Send a propolsal for IBM to pay propaganda for you as part of the
Linux on Power project http://www.linuxonpower.com/

etc, etc, etc, etc

> We've looked at the people on the mailing list many times, but we've
> never seen people sticking out their neck and actually doing something
> along these lines. It takes long-range commitment, which is probably
> what scares many people off...

I can even send propolsas for IBM / Google / etc for them on those
projects (althought I need you guys to formally support this things),
but reunions and things like that have to be done by someone from
"inside". You can´t just say: I like free pascal and I would like you
to sponsor it. You have to be a developer to ask for that.

--
Felipe Monteiro de Carvalho