How can I write freely available open-source software and make a living from it as well?
Let me share some experiences. I have been earning a full-time salary writing Free and Open Source code since January 2009. I do this by myself. I did not get hired by a big company who likes my skills or project. I derive my income from several sources, some of which have already been pointed out by other people in previous replies. 0. Executive summary In order to make money as an independent FOSS developer (i.e. not just hired by a big company) you need more than development skills. You need business and networking skills to gain and keep clients, and you probably need to be able to offer more than just your own coding projects in order to satisfy them. 1. Write code under sponsorship At the moment I derive about 70% of my income from sponsorships, grants and bounties. These people are not just throwing money at me, the way you might expect from the word “sponsor”. They do expect results. There are a lot of people, companies, institutions and governments that would like to see certa
