[illumen]

This happens from time to time in OSS projects. Some users kick up a big stink. Often times their issues get fixed.

However, it's a shit way to do it and tramples on a lot of people... and in the mid to long run can damage a project greatly.

A more constructive way for a user to get a feature in is to either pay for it, or code it. Setting up a 'bounty', or helping to get funding is a better way to try and get these novel writers to help with the project.

Get these passionate writers working for the project by directing their energies towards getting funding. Telling them to shut up and submit a patch won't work... since they are not capable of writing code sometimes. However they do care greatly about the issue, and have time to send off emails and write blog posts.

[pyre]

In this case, it seems like the user is more interested in trolling than anything else. He claimed that one of the features was 'easy' to implement and that he would submit a patch, but then never did. Presumably because it was too busy writing a blog post about how the developer was being 'difficult' because they asked him to write a patch for such an 'easy' feature (e.g. "encryption is easy, right? you just take a piece of information and then you encrypt it! Pow! It's done! Easy as pie! What's so hard?").

[km3k]

There was an "Arch Bounty" system for funding things like this. It died with only one donation. It wasn't well promoted, but it did exist and was mentioned on the Arch Linux website in various places. Info is available from an Arch Linux developer at http://archlinux.me/dusty/2010/01/22/death-of-arch-bounty/

Notice the dates. The "Arch Bounty" system was born and died while people complained. People who were complaining about this could have asked for a bounty for this feature and paid for it, but they didn't.