Linux is a gift-based economy or “meritocracy.”
The rules are as such….
You make a meaningful contribution by committing some work. The community sees this work and benefits from it. The more work you put out there that helps people, the more the community will want to support you. Social capital is another term for this support. Eric S Raymond described the mechanics of this well in the“How to Become a Hacker” essay. Heck, Jono Bacon, Ubuntu Community Manager, wrote a whole book on how contributions work called The Art of Community.
Good and meaningful contributions are not to be marginalized. Commitments are gifts that come in many different forms like code, documentation, public relations, administration, technical support, and even hospitality. These gifts come from people from all walks of life. Elitism has no place in meritocracy. This is why Moose and I wrote an essay called Open Source Should Be Open To All.
What is my contribution? This blog, the Ohio Linuxfest, countless user group events, hundreds of Linux desktops I have personally deployed, freelinuxbox.org, and the thousands of Linux systems I support professionally or on a volunteer basis. Not bad for one woman.
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You express the right spirit for the gift economy. The gift economy has made significant advances in the digital world. Now let’s bring it on in the physical 3D world where our bodies live.
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