Scarf
Web and SaaS
open source monetization platform
SHOW HN2019
167points
58comments
#244of 2,195 in 2019
Top 12%of 2019 by points
How HN took it
RoastedHalf or more of the comments are critical
3 positive, 7 neutral or asking, 1 mixed, 14 critical, out of 25 comments about the project. Thread score -0.40.
Idea: 1 for, 6 againstDesign: 0 for, 5 againstPrivacy: 0 for, 3 againstDocs: 1 for, 0 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Support for the goal of compensating open-source developers.
From 2 comments
This is awesome. I love open source projects and the developers behind them all. This is really cool and I'm installing now!
garysahota93 on HNIgnore Scarf's success for a moment, and focus on it's goal. Do you think FOSS developers should be compensated for their work? If so, how do we make that happen?
greggirwin on HN
Objections
Telemetry in packages is a privacy concern and could be spyware.
From 3 comments
So from a developer point of view the more popular your package is financially the less insight into its use you get? And a user point of view is that my usage data is now a…
weego on HNThis is a terrible idea. I like the idea of paying money to not be spied on--I wish more companies adopted that model--but turning your opensource project into spyware and…
bogwog on HNThis reminds of the internet explorer toolbars which counted installs, collected other stats and phoned that home. Those companies put wrappers around installs. Scarf also…
mmgutz on HN
Monetizing via install or usage conflicts with open-source principles.
From 2 comments
I like the idea of Scarf allot. This solves a very good problem of getting analytics on features that get released. And these insights would certainly help improve the software.…
itsmefaz on HNYes. It ceases to be open-source and ends up becoming software as a service.
itsmefaz on HN
Forks can remove the telemetry or payment layer.
From 2 comments
If the software is open-source, it will just get forked in a branch that removes usage metric uploading. If you want to make money with software, just release proprietary…
vortico on HNThis is a terrible idea. I like the idea of paying money to not be spied on--I wish more companies adopted that model--but turning your opensource project into spyware and…
bogwog on HN
Site requires JavaScript and shows nothing without it.
From 2 comments
Just wanted to mention that the site does not show anything at all with 1st-party JavaScript or 3rd-party JavaScript (stripe) disabled. It would be nice if there was some…
danieldk on HNPlease consider making it work without JavaScript, or at the very least label your JavaScript files so it will work with LibreJS.
mattl on HN
Pricing model and fees are unclear on the site.
From 1 comment
I like the idea; if someone wants to make some money off of customers who are more willing to pay than to make efforts to avoid paying, it's nice to have an easy way to do that.…
human20190310 on HN
Requests
Make the site work without JavaScript or use first-party scripts.
From 2 comments
Make it first-party, then. At least for your landing page. I don't expect to have to load third-party scripting from a commerce website just to be able to see something other…
misterdoubt on HNPlease consider making it work without JavaScript, or at the very least label your JavaScript files so it will work with LibreJS.
mattl on HN
Clearer documentation of money flow and fees.
From 2 comments
I like the idea; if someone wants to make some money off of customers who are more willing to pay than to make efforts to avoid paying, it's nice to have an easy way to do that.…
human20190310 on HNWhat would also be great is to create a link to your terms of service so they can be reviewed before creating an account.
tssva on HN
Link to terms of service before sign-up.
From 1 comment
What would also be great is to create a link to your terms of service so they can be reviewed before creating an account.
tssva on HN
Show popular packages on the front page.
From 1 comment
Some site feedback: It would be cool to see popular packages on the front page. Otherwise it looks like there are zero. Also, searching then searching again messes with back…
xgulfie on HN
Questions
What data is captured and how is abuse by malicious package authors handled?
From 2 comments
I haven't tried this yet, but poking around the site, I'm wondering what mitigations you have for potential abuse? I'm concerned specifically about transparency to the end user…
undoware on HNThis reminds of the internet explorer toolbars which counted installs, collected other stats and phoned that home. Those companies put wrappers around installs. Scarf also…
mmgutz on HN
Is the telemetry sending command arguments or secrets?
From 1 comment
This reminds of the internet explorer toolbars which counted installs, collected other stats and phoned that home. Those companies put wrappers around installs. Scarf also…
mmgutz on HN
Alternatives named
Tidelift
From 1 comment
I understand where this is coming from, and it's definitely from a good place, but honestly I think the solution is a bit naive. Developers are not going to be able to sustain…
jaboutboul on HN
Patreon and consulting
From 1 comment
I think Patreon-esque approaches + consulting is doing a decent job.
cheez on HN
Bitcoin addresses in README
From 1 comment
A customer who wants to get money to a FOSS developer, is hard enough for developers to manage. (One success of the Apple store is that it makes getting paid easy and is easily…
fragmede on HN
GitHub package registry
From 1 comment
nice work! I have a similar project https://ligit.dev we took the approach of letting the developer do everything as they usually would except for the license. How are you guys…
andrewpierno on HN
ligit
From 1 comment
nice work! I have a similar project https://ligit.dev we took the approach of letting the developer do everything as they usually would except for the license. How are you guys…
andrewpierno on HN