I've been thinking about creators and distributors. picture a woodworker who crafts a perfectly balanced, minimalist chair. a furniture store loves it and starts selling it. but, to "match their brand", the store paints every chair bright green
customers see a green chair. they don't know the store painted it. they just assume the original artisan loves making bright green chairs. the creator's original intent and aesthetic are completely lost in translation, and their reputation is now tied to a choice made by someone else
this happens so often in FOSS. upstream developers create the "wooden chair", and downstream distros often paint it "green". there's nothing inherently wrong with that, but it creates a gap where users blame the artisan for the paint job. it makes you think about where creative ownership truly lies
#FOSS #OpenSource #Philosophy #UserExperience #UX #Upstream #Downstream #DigitalOwnership
