Version 0.0 — An invitation to co-create
End-user open source software, as a user-centred product, was supposed to be open to the user. However, since the way developers work and code donating mechanism, it inherits the unintentionally centralized technology authority of the open source community, which stays very developer-centered and lets actual users remain structurally excluded from the processes.
UX issues rarely appear as clear failures. Instead, they build up as small frictions, extra effort, and decision fatigue over time. These are hard to notice and even harder to compare. So UX feedback often comes from very different personal perspectives, which makes it difficult to align or prioritize in the open source.
We are not satisfied with merely granting users the right to run, copy, distribute, study, and modify software. We strive to ensure that users also enjoy the freedom of using software effectively, regardless of one's technical knowledge or expertise. We call for a new collaboration among developers and designers and users themselves so that different roles can meaningfully cooperate and negotiate. Every step we take is aimed at reducing the cost of use and narrowing the distance between technology and the people who rely on it.
We are here to propose building a platform that strengthens the role of users in open source, enabling UX decisions to be discussed, compared, and negotiated, forming an auditable chain of evidence that can be traced and reviewed and easily translate users' feedback into concrete, actionable directions for change.
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