By now you probably know I have a love hate relationship with Olex2. I really want it to be the best thing ever, I want to contribute but I am too slow and too old to help. BUT then of course there is micro-payments. Now you can for a small fee say $15/15Euro (still don’t know where the euro key is on my keyboard) or £15 proper pounds - setup a Flattr account which you can then use to tip the web (another micro-payment website) and of course use that to tip or flattr Olex2. I’ve already done it. In fact my account is set to flattr Olex2 every month automatically. This is great they get a percentage of 3 euros per month depending on how many other projects I flattr (minium monthly flattr amount is 2 euros). I don’t think I am explaining this very well now? Anyhow the down side is that you pay to setup your flattr account then they also take 10% of each months donation from the donated before the flattr’d get their flattry. But other than that it is a great way to show support to the project, the web, well to many other things.

Oddly a long, long time ago H and I talked about all of this. He is all into the micro-payment stuff for pictures. I whinged at O about it more recently but my idea was more to use flattr as a method to focus development. But how?

Well basically you can have a single flattr account but multiple, erm, “things” take my blog, each post is a thing that can get its own flattr donation or the forum is another thing. So what you do is setup a series of things such as:

  • Better void space analysis
  • Better resi control
  • Powder tool
  • Better cif handling and well then you say “you flattr” and the one with the most flattr’s gets the priority coding time - you vote, you pay and you get the thing you want first.

I think the whole thing is great I only wish it could be done where they get 100% of the flattr’d money, etc. Since Olex2 is not for profit per-say this is a great method to keep it opensource, keep it directed and well show the team how much people like the product.

At somepoint I am sure they will setup a proper independent micro-payment system but until then - flattr away!

Saying that at some point they may go the path of Codeweavers and wine and offer a commercial product based on their opensource supported free code where you get the technical support and better management and installation of said product. Basically it is Tesco value verse erm Mark’s and Spencer’s premium range - both will feed you but only one will feed you and make you happy!