this post was submitted on 09 Jan 2026
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None.
Reason being simply financial responsibility - if something is free, then giving out money for it seems wasteful, like throwing money out of the window. You can argue it's not much, I got value from, it supports the developer, it's the moral thing to do, and you would probably be right. But this is simply not the priority perspective from which I am looking at it.
You're not throwing money out the window though, you're giving it directly to someone. Someone who has used their craft to create something that has value to you. I'm not necessarily criticising you for not donating, I just want to shift your perspective that your money wouldn't be valued by other people.
I know, but if it was that easy to shift perspectives, the world would be a completely different place. I dislike the donation format since it plays a lot on the moral and psychology of the person - how much is enough, how much value does it actually provide me etc. Like I am the one doing the sales for the person. I much rather have a clear price.
Maybe it's just because of donations and the "uncertainty" it makes me feel. I did pay for open source software before (open source != free), guess I prefer just to see a clear price tag.
That's a fair take. I can relate to the feeling of uncertainty. When I make small donations of a couple of euros I have to push away my feelings that the donation could be seen as insultingly low. It's hard to judge what a "fair" price is. But after all, many donation buttons say "Buy me a coffee" so I would hope the amount is appreciated either way.
Found the economist
Not sure what is that supposed to mean? I can only assume it is supposed to be some kind of insult, and can only invite me in the future never to even reconsider donating, seeing how "not doing what I expect you to do" creates toxic comments and bashing.
Care to elaborate?