Hey, devs! I used to think that open-source is needed only for those who want to show their skills to job recruiters. But, as I progressed in my journey, I encountered many open-source projects and wondered why people would share their work for free. Having done more research on this topic I found out that this actually goes far beyond showing one’s skills.

Open-source projects appear to foster communication with other developers, let one develop skills used in a real-world workplace, gain more popularity, ease the developer’s work, and may even bring money.

However, I don’t believe that one should open-source their work just because they use a lot of free stuff and owe the community, or that the primary motivation for open-sourcing is pure altruism.

I’ve shared what I found out in more detail in the comments. But I can’t tell that for sure because I have no experience of work on a decent open-source (or proprietary project). That’s why I want to call experienced developers to share their thoughts. Here are my questions and topics for discussion:

• What are the pros and cons of open-sourcing your work, whether it be a learning project aimed at gaining experience and creating something valuable or a commercial one that could be reimagined as an open-source venture?
• I’ve always dreamt of working on a team with friends. Open-source seems to be one of the ways toward that dream. Is it really possible to make friends or create a team in this way?
• I would love to hear about your experiences.
• When not to open source your project?