Hacker News Reader

Comment by rubymamis | Hacker News Reader

As a FOSS maintainer myself, I recommend you to charge (a small amount of) money for the app. People could always compile and run the app themselves still, so paying for the app is a clear way to support the project. I see that you have donation on your page, but it rarely happens that people donate. Just my 2 cents.

View on HN

Thanks for the suggestion. I do plan to publish the app on Google Play as well. While much of the audience is FOSS-oriented, there are also users who aren’t familiar with open source or compiling apps themselves, like here: https://github.com/CompassMB/MBCompass/issues/48.

For them, donations are a simple way to support the project, and they’re definitely appreciated.

Some projects offer the app for free on Fdroid and charge a small fee on Play. Might be an option as well.

Thanks! MBCompass will stay fully FOSS and free. Donations are extremely rare (tbh, I've not received a single one), especially from the Foss Android community, but they’re still very helpful for long-term sustainability (given Google's non-sense Play monthly policies) and greatly appreciated, especially for users new to open source.

> (tbh, I've not received a single one),

Not true anymore! \o/ I don't use Android anymore, but I agree a lot with the principles you've shared here, so it's a thank you for sharing that. And I know how difficult it is to get the first donations, and after you get the first, it's much easier to get the later ones. So best of luck, and I hope you'll remain steadfast with your principles when it'll matter! :)

Thank you, that really means a lot. Consistency has been important to me, whether it’s shipping regular releases with real improvements (https://github.com/CompassMB/MBCompass/releases) or writing about Android development and FOSS alongside the project. I really appreciate the encouragement and support.

You might add Bitcoin, Lighting or Monero to your donations page. Would've gladly dropped you a few bucks but I don't use any of the services you're offering.

Thanks for the suggestion, that’s a fair point. I currently rely on a couple of mainstream platforms mainly to keep things simple, but I do see the value in more open and permissionless options like Bitcoin/Lightning or Monero.

I’ll definitely consider adding at least one of them going forward. Really appreciate the willingness to support.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com