Hi. I am still relatively new to this forum. I am an independent programmer who has recently gotten into EqEmu. I loved the classic game and its content. When a friend of mine came to me with the idea of running a server, I decided to give it a whirl.
Well, this particular discussion, in my opinion, is very important. Security is a big issue. But I have to agree pyfon on there being a time and place for closed source, as opposed to open source. In my experience a a programmer, I think that first stages of a project should remain closed. But only until you get the ground work finished and have working code. It is very true that if someone wants to get into your code, they will. Believe me, I know from experience, it is impossible to 100% guarantee the security of your source code. Unless you want to use some pretty strong encryptions and lock out the rest of your developers. Sure, if you are a solo coder, encrypt it out the wazoo. But when you have a team, you just can't do that.
SoD, being closed source, has worked for them, that much is true. But they are one of the rare exceptions of closed source success for so long. And by the way, just as a side note, their people are not as insanely loyal as some might think. (Again, I can speak from experience.) Their cookie is crumbling.
In the end, I think each individual team must decide if open or closed is the best choice for them. Not an easy decision to make. Especially in a community of developers. You just can't share with some and exclude others and you can't just hand your source out to the world either without it getting muddled or stepped on and others trying to take credit for work that isn't theirs.
I wish this community the best of luck in their endeavors. And as for those crack pots that tried to steal other people's work....they're lucky they didn't try that on me. I hope you guys stick it to them good. I hate thieves and liars.
Good luck and best wishes to you all.
EQ isn't dead!
|