Sometimes it is interesting to look at adjacent communities. I found that tools in game creation communities are an interesting case:
- Like open source software, they are for a community of people the creator is part of…
- …but they are often focussing on end users/non-programmers
- Like open source software, there is an emphasis on creation, creativity…
- …but not in code, but via music/graphics/animation.
- Most likely, these apps don’t have dedicated roles like designers, an explicit roadmap and other indicators of “good” design practice.
Interestingly, some of the free tools share their source code, but not all of them do. I guess, in a community with a large proportion of non-programmers, it might not be that interesting. The tools seem also created by single creators; the collaboration that FOSS promises might not be as useful to them and/or pose a significant overhead. (Seems this community’s view on licensing is also different, even for the creative works in graphics and music; the similar-to-FOSS Creative Commons Licenses are rarely used; instead a brief paragraph stating creator’s wishes about commercial use and attribution are common)