[silvestrov]

You also get users which don't understand a thing and who send you tons of emails and want A++ personal support.

Sell the same service for $$$ money and suddenly the users (as a group) are a much nicer bunch.

Offering "Free Software" is sometimes like working in retail.

[svachalek]

I've seen this exact effect multiple times. It's really rather amazing, that no one expects as much as someone who's paid absolutely nothing for it. Kind of a divide by zero = infinity in the human firmware or something.

[jdrc]

Let's agree that it's a global tendency of humans to take advantage of other humans who have shown that they are willing to accept it.

[BlueTemplar]

Free software never meant free support, not even for the financial burden of providing source code. (Also why "libre software" is a better term.)

[aseipp]

Go tell that to the people who shit all over the emails and bug trackers of free software developers. The rest of us are well aware.

[BlueTemplar]

I mean the solution to that predates personal computers...

https://kk.org/ct2/heinleins-fan-mail-solution/

[aseipp]

The original complaint was "demanding and petty users flood you and take up your time, through the same channels your good users do", and your solution seems to be "just go ahead and let them take up your time"? What, is Heinlein's Ghost going to pat me on the back if I do? The reality is there is no real "solution" to this problem; there is no solution to "people are annoying." The very premise is completely ill-formed and only possible in a framework that views all human interaction and behavior as completely mechanical.

It's not all bad, though, working on free/libre software, and I'd be remiss to not mention that. Maybe I'm letting it hit too close to home and you're just saying it in jest. But anyone here pretending that you can "solve" these kinds of issues so easily are deluding themselves and telling on themselves at the same time, in my opinion.

[BlueTemplar]

> your solution seems to be "just go ahead and let them take up your time"?

How did you get this from my link ?? I'm suggesting pre-made answers here to the most typical "time-wasters"...