Devin wrote:
"
1.) Developer releases software.
2.) Users download software.
3.) Users don't give feedback, or give very little feedback, on software.
4.) Developer doesn't continue to develop software because (s)he's
unmotivated to continue due to a perceived lack of community interest
and/or because his/her requirements for the software are satisfied.
5.) Bit-rot ensues.
"
This is very interesting because it displays that Linux, as a hobbyist operating system, has a very different motivational set. While on Windows developers won't typically start writing software unless they have researched the market and are sure it will be used, on Linux a developer usually writes software for himself.
In fact, I think even bigger software, like Qtractor, is written as a hobby (Rui, correct me if I am wrong).
In other words, software on Linux is usually developer-driven, not user-driven. And this constructs a totally different community and attitude and method of communication. Linux, at its core, is an operating system for developers, for people who want to write their own stuff.
To rephrase it, I would also say that Linux Audio as an environment lacks competition. You don't have to worry your software is out of date or that someone else introduced a new feature. What is seen as duplicating features by many is really a mechanism for quality and innovation. Here, on Linux, there is no such thing as market competition. And thus - no natural selection of software, so to speak.
L.V.