Before we delve into the realm(Tea Protocol), let’s start with a quick refresher on Software basics.

Even if you’re a tech wizard, remember that most of us are just trying to fix a jammed printer!

Basically, a computer has two main parts: hardware (the physical bits) and software (the brains).

“Software is a set of instructions that tells the computer how to perform a task.” — Microsoft

“Software is a great combination between artistry and engineering.” — Steve Jobs

1. Open Source Software

2. Proprietary (Closed Source) Software

• Proprietary Software: Managed by major enterprises like Apple and Microsoft, these companies have strong revenue models and integrated ecosystems to fund ongoing software development and maintenance, eliminating the need for additional external funding.

• Open-Source Software: Managed by a diverse group including developers, community contributors, and maintainers, open-source projects depend on voluntary support. Unlike proprietary software, these contributors often receive minimal recognition and compensation

• Impact on the Industry

  • Enterprise Software: The multi-billion-dollar enterprise software industry relies heavily on open-source projects. Although enterprises profit greatly from these projects, the developers who maintain them often get little financial reward or acknowledgement.

  • Value Capture: Open-source software functions as a public utility, but developers struggle to capture the value they create. This lack of financial reward persists despite their crucial role in supporting major enterprise software.

  • Money continues to flow into the coffers of proprietary software firms, mainly due to their self-contained setups. Open-source software, though forming the backbone of a lot of enterprise-built software, doesn’t offer the same economic perks to its contributors.

    Do you see the irony here? It’s like baking a delicious cake and forgetting to pay the baker. The role open-source software plays in winning an enterprise’s favour is paramount, yet those developers who keep these projects running and invent fresh applications get the short end of the stick, both in terms of money and acknowledgement for their imperative work.

    • Consequences of Insufficient Recognition and Rewards:

    • Quality Decline: Software may become poorly maintained, vulnerable, or of low quality.

    • Contributor Issues: Lower motivation, increased exhaustion, and possible project abandonment.

    • Growing Concern: If this trend continues, there is an increasing risk of a potential collapse within the open-source community.

    • The Creator of “Homebrew” Has the Answer: Tea Protocol

      Max Howell

Let me introduce you to Max Howell, creator of Homebrew or ‘Brew’, as it’s known. Since its inception in 2009, Brew sped its way to fame, equalling big names such as Java, Python, and Linux in terms of growth and popularity. Even with this incredible, Max tended to Brew like a sideline, while holding a job at Apple to make ends meet. It’s a typical scenario for open-source developers — creating marvels yet still requiring a steady paycheck.

**“What’s fascinating is that Max Howell, who created Homebrew, is also the CEO of Tea Protocol. It’s incredible to see someone who’s revolutionized open-source software in one way now leading the charge to improve it even further.”**

• The tea Protocol is an independent and autonomous system designed to address this discrepancy by allowing open-source contributors to capture the value they create. This approach ensures and enhances the sustainability and integrity of open-source software.

• tea harnesses Web3 innovation to enhance open-source software. Using Proof of Contribution, a Web3-based algorithm, it fairly assesses and rewards the impact of projects in the OSS ecosystem. The decentralized model ensures transparency, trustlessness, and autonomy in recognizing developer contributions, and also allows community members to offer insights and feedback on projects and developers.

• It functions as an incentive layer by integrating with all the major software package managers — including Homebrew, npm, APT, Crate, PyPI, RubyGems, and pkgx.

• Tea is a game-changer for OSS and is set to transform the software industry as we know it.

• In the subsequent section, we will delve into the inner workings of Tea’s core mechanisms and explore how contributors, whether developers or non-developers, can engage with and support this initiative, earning incentives through active participation.

  You can join the Incentivised Testnet: https://tea.xyz/subscribe