This doesn't surprise me at all... Just like bots in games. Selling a service that benefits another. Its shady, but definitely believable.
Also, what if this is an actual viable way to "market" for an open source project?
this post was submitted on 31 Dec 2024
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Why would it be? Software is good based on it's use and recommendations from real folk, not *s. Many project not on github
Yeah, I'd argue that the project can be good and not widely used. Do you think that there are projects with real use case and are great open source software and not widely used because its buried under the *s?
It could be a relatively inexpensive way for niche marketing. Especially if the developer has a payment option with the software. Probably a decent way to get the software out in the open for profitability, no?
That is more down to poor marketing. Here on Lemmy or reddit there are big open source communities where you can extol the values of it.
From a pragmatic standpoint, yeah it would accomplish that goal. However, that discounts the intended purpose of the stars, which is to represent an individuals attribution of personal value and trust. They lose significance and become misleading if you can buy them, which holds true even for good software. When we see a github star is should represent someone who has used the software, finds value in it or who respects and trusts the project.
Just trying to play a little devils advocate. Not saying that its ethical to do it, but if morals/ethics don't play a part in the decision, it could prove useful. Besides, I'd imagine that its already being extorted pretty heavily if there's that much competition for sellers, hah.