{"action":"created","issue":{"url":"https://api.github.com/repos/wp-cli/wp-cli/issues/2743","repository_url":"https://api.github.com/repos/wp-cli/wp-cli","labels_url":"https://api.github.com/repos/wp-cli/wp-cli/issues/2743/labels{/name}","comments_url":"https://api.github.com/repos/wp-cli/wp-cli/issues/2743/comments","events_url":"https://api.github.com/repos/wp-cli/wp-cli/issues/2743/events","html_url":"https://github.com/wp-cli/wp-cli/issues/2743","id":154590827,"number":2743,"title":"Iterating towards a more sustainable future for an independent WP-CLI","user":{"login":"danielbachhuber","id":36432,"avatar_url":"https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/36432?v=3","gravatar_id":"","url":"https://api.github.com/users/danielbachhuber","html_url":"https://github.com/danielbachhuber","followers_url":"https://api.github.com/users/danielbachhuber/followers","following_url":"https://api.github.com/users/danielbachhuber/following{/other_user}","gists_url":"https://api.github.com/users/danielbachhuber/gists{/gist_id}","starred_url":"https://api.github.com/users/danielbachhuber/starred{/owner}{/repo}","subscriptions_url":"https://api.github.com/users/danielbachhuber/subscriptions","organizations_url":"https://api.github.com/users/danielbachhuber/orgs","repos_url":"https://api.github.com/users/danielbachhuber/repos","events_url":"https://api.github.com/users/danielbachhuber/events{/privacy}","received_events_url":"https://api.github.com/users/danielbachhuber/received_events","type":"User","site_admin":false},"labels":[{"url":"https://api.github.com/repos/wp-cli/wp-cli/labels/question","name":"question","color":"bfe5bf"}],"state":"open","locked":false,"assignee":null,"milestone":null,"comments":6,"created_at":"2016-05-12T21:56:55Z","updated_at":"2016-05-13T01:08:30Z","closed_at":null,"body":"A problem that's been on my mind for a while:\r\n\r\n> how do I reduce WP-CLI's [bus factor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bus_factor), and more generally lay a foundation for WP-CLI's long-term organizational stability?\r\n\r\nWP-CLI is hugely important to the WordPress ecosystem. Thousands of developers use it on a regularly basis, and tens, if not hundreds, of companies have integrated it deeply into their business processes. Additionally, I deeply value WP-CLI's a-commercial nature (e.g. not necessarily based towards or controlled by a specific company), and think said nature is in large part why WP-CLI has seen the success it has. I am biased towards doing whatever I can to maintain WP-CLI's a-commercial nature going forward.\r\n\r\nWP-CLI is also solely maintained by me on a ([mostly](http://wp-cli.org/restful/)) volunteer basis. While I don't see this needing to change anytime soon, it is a bus factor I am very cognizant of. Furthermore, we haven't ever had a problem with it, but it would make me feel better if there was a formal organization backing WP-CLI to deal with any trademark difficulties, legal challenges, etc. that might arise in the future.\r\n\r\nPrompted by (hugely valuable) research and [blogging](https://medium.com/@nayafia) @nayafia has been doing, I thought it might finally be time to turn thoughts into more of a public discussion. If you'd like to weigh in on specific questions, here are a few:\r\n\r\n* Is there a certain type of legal organization structure we (I, along with @scribu and @andreascreten if they want to be involved) should considering forming to ensure the long-term health of the WP-CLI project? Our [current governance](http://wp-cli.org/docs/governance/) is essentially nil.\r\n* Would taking donations, sponsorship, etc. through a service like [OpenCollective](https://opencollective.com/) positively contribute to the long-term sustainability of WP-CLI, or negatively impact the project because money has become involved?\r\n* What other open source projects can we learn from, and why?\r\n\r\nI'm also interested in thoughts and opinions on the topic broadly, if you have input that doesn't relate specifically to one of these questions. To pre-empt that too — even if I may disagree with your opinion, I do very much value your input.\r\n\r\nPersonally, I have mixed feelings about getting paid directly for maintaining WP-CLI. By \"paid directly\", I mean a company donates to WP-CLI as an entity, and I take money from that. One hand, I do like the idea of getting paid to contribute to WP-CLI. But, on the other hand, there are a variety of reasons why I feel uncomfortable about it. For instance, I stand on the shoulders of giants, and think it unfair to make money on what others have volunteered their time to produce. Also, while I can comfortably donate ~5 hours/week of time from my own business towards WP-CLI, I'd feel uncomfortable to consider maintaining WP-CLI a profitable venture (which is what it would need to become if I spent more time on it).\r\n\r\nConsider this to generally be an open thread, although we may need to conduct the conversation through some other means if it gets unwieldy. "},"comment":{"url":"https://api.github.com/repos/wp-cli/wp-cli/issues/comments/218927641","html_url":"https://github.com/wp-cli/wp-cli/issues/2743#issuecomment-218927641","issue_url":"https://api.github.com/repos/wp-cli/wp-cli/issues/2743","id":218927641,"user":{"login":"kingkool68","id":867430,"avatar_url":"https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/867430?v=3","gravatar_id":"","url":"https://api.github.com/users/kingkool68","html_url":"https://github.com/kingkool68","followers_url":"https://api.github.com/users/kingkool68/followers","following_url":"https://api.github.com/users/kingkool68/following{/other_user}","gists_url":"https://api.github.com/users/kingkool68/gists{/gist_id}","starred_url":"https://api.github.com/users/kingkool68/starred{/owner}{/repo}","subscriptions_url":"https://api.github.com/users/kingkool68/subscriptions","organizations_url":"https://api.github.com/users/kingkool68/orgs","repos_url":"https://api.github.com/users/kingkool68/repos","events_url":"https://api.github.com/users/kingkool68/events{/privacy}","received_events_url":"https://api.github.com/users/kingkool68/received_events","type":"User","site_admin":false},"created_at":"2016-05-13T01:08:30Z","updated_at":"2016-05-13T01:08:30Z","body":"What if you solicit donations through something like www.patreon.com and use the funds to direct future development and features. "}}