Heartbleed turned out to be a blessing in disguise. The discovery of the bug generated more monetary support for the OpenSSL project. But the future may hold new complications. The open source business model—or lack thereof—makes it difficult to guarantee funding for important projects. You can donate to the OpenSSL project through their website, but there are many more software tools out there lacking the support to survive.
If you’re interested in supporting open source projects, here’s where you can start:
- Find the project website or GitHub page
- See who the contributors are
- Check to see if they are accepting donations
- Share the project with others
- Consider becoming a contributor
InMotion Hosting deploys hundreds of open source programs of all sizes and complexities with their hosting products and wishes to express their gratitude for the people behind the scenes who make it all possible by donating their time and intellectual resources.
Open source projects start up and fade away all the time. Without support from community volunteers or a sustainable business model, your favorite project might disappear. So get involved today.