[-] mietkiewski_dev@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

Right — that’s why I’m calling it source‑available. I’m mainly testing user behavior around distribution, not trying to define what’s ‘open’ or not.

[-] mietkiewski_dev@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

I’m not trying to prove which license is better — too many variables, like you said. I’m just testing how different models change user behavior: who clicks, who downloads, who ignores. It’s more about distribution patterns than software quality.

[-] mietkiewski_dev@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

Thanks for the perspective — I’ll take it into consideration. I still need to learn more about licensing and monetization models anyway.

[-] mietkiewski_dev@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

Thanks for the perspective — I definitely need to learn more about licensing and how these things work in practice.

[-] mietkiewski_dev@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 week ago

For this project I’m mainly testing distribution models. My only restriction is redistribution — people can read and modify the code for personal use. I’m also cautious about someone copying or commercializing it, so this is mostly a learning exercise for me.

[-] mietkiewski_dev@lemmy.ml 3 points 1 week ago

My main restriction is redistribution — people can read and modify the code for personal use. Since the default with no license is already “all rights reserved”, this project is mostly a test for me. I’m also cautious about someone copying or commercializing it, so I’m treating this as a learning exercise about licensing and distribution.

[-] mietkiewski_dev@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

Thanks for your perspective. From my point of view, making the code visible gives users the ability to read it and modify it for their own needs — the only restriction is redistribution. For this project that felt like a reasonable balance while I’m experimenting with distribution models.

[-] mietkiewski_dev@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

Source‑available still lets people read and modify the code for personal use — they just can’t redistribute it. For me that’s a reasonable model for small tools, even if there’s always a risk someone will copy it. This project is mainly a distribution experiment.

[-] mietkiewski_dev@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

For me the closed‑source vs source‑available vs open-source choice is mainly about learning distribution models, not about AI‑authored code. I wrote and understand the code — I just wanted to test a model that allows distribution and PWYW, which open‑source doesn’t really support.

42

I’m trying to understand which licensing model makes the most sense for small personal tools — not as products, but as experiments to learn how to distribute software before working on a larger project.

To explore this, I released a tiny utility as source‑available rather than fully open‑source. The code is visible, but the license is restrictive. GitHub here works only as a landing page, not as a full FOSS repo.

Here’s the project I’m using as a test case (not promoting it — just showing the model I’m experimenting with): https://github.com/Mietkiewski/MPomidoro

My goal isn’t to push the tool itself — it’s just a way to understand how people interpret these categories:

Is source‑available meaningfully different from closed‑source?

Do you expect small tools to default to open‑source?

Does hosting something on GitHub imply a FOSS expectation?

For someone planning a larger ecosystem later, which model is the most reasonable starting point?

I’m genuinely trying to understand how open‑source communities see these distinctions before I commit to a long‑term direction.

[-] mietkiewski_dev@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

Just to understand you better — what counts as ‘AI‑authored’ for you?

[-] mietkiewski_dev@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago

It’s not really “closed‑source” — the code is source‑available on Gumroad. GitHub here is more of a landing page / documentation than a code host. The tool itself is tiny and console‑based, but the whole point of this project is the distribution experiment. I’m trying PWYW 0$+ to learn how small tools can be shared, not to monetize a Pomodoro timer.

6

I’ve been experimenting with building very small personal tools to help myself stay focused. Recently I wrote a minimal terminal‑based Pomodoro timer because I was struggling to start my side projects and wanted something simple that just works.

While building it, I realized I also need to learn how to distribute small projects properly. Right now I’m trying a simple approach: closed‑source, pay‑what‑you‑want, no DRM, and users just get the right to use the tool.

Since I’m still learning how licensing, expectations and “fairness” work for tiny solo projects, I’m curious how other developers see this model. Is this a reasonable way to distribute small tools? What would you expect as a user or developer?

For context, here’s the project I’m experimenting with.

GitHub: https://github.com/Mietkiewski/MPomidoro

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