shared QA, eyeballs on code, consultancy funnel, freemium software, simple ego kicks, getting a proof-of-concept in front of a bunch of people interested in that specific sort of thing, the list goes on...
FOSS, itself, is the necessary lego kit the entire web (and to a lesser extent mobile and desktop etc) rns on...
are you suggesting that everyone go buy Coldfusion or ATG Dynamo? the 90's called and want their time machine back...
Steady revenue stream, financial incentives and unlimited initial ways to monetize your venture beat your entire list, which are definitely not necessary for a successful project, given by the numerous non-FOSS successes in the real world.
I honestly don't care that people work for free, it just saddens me that it takes so long for these people to realize how important financial incentives are. It is clear as day that this model rarely produces any financial results for the developer, even if people and companies are actively using and profiting from your work. That stuff seriously makes me wanna puke.
The reason why it doesn't work is because it violates a very basic business principle. You don't wait for someone to "give" you money for your product, because noone is going to do that. As a manager it is incredibly painful for me to go through the entire chain of command to give you money "for maintenance". Instead you should "take" it by making me wanna buy it.
The strawman part of your argument i will avoid, since it is a clear nonsensical trap.
FOSS, itself, is the necessary lego kit the entire web (and to a lesser extent mobile and desktop etc) rns on... are you suggesting that everyone go buy Coldfusion or ATG Dynamo? the 90's called and want their time machine back...