[tluyben2]

As OSS dev this very often not true for instance: there is a lot of OSS having a positive effect on a huge amount of people and yet the authors scraping by. Paying for OSS should be a tax write off aka charity. Would stimulate more people to just open source it all.

[dnautics]

You assume that the value in this case is created merely by its existence but software in a vacuum is worthless. The value in software is also created by orgs that choose to use the software, by distribution networks. It must be reduced to practice.

As a software dev that can be a hard pill to swallow.

[tluyben2]

Yes, agreed. But does that change the case?

[dnautics]

Yes? I am asserting that you are overestimating the value of the programmer, which is one axis of the correlation I suggest.