Quote - > Quote - Substitute 'Antonia' for 'Linux' and 'figure' for 'OS' and you've got the idea.

 

Err, sorry, but not quite. I get the community aspect, but unless it becomes licensed under the GPL, it's nothing like Linux.

Read the GPL sometime. It states that not only must the original binaries and source remain free, but that all modifications must also be released under the same license, and the same terms. I'm very sure this isn't the case.

As for marketshare, Linux holds the largest share among all OSes. Of course, you have to go beyond desktops and include all devices that hold an operating system (even as firmware): this includes servers, mainframes, embedded (where the bulk of it lives), etc. 

Getting away from the metaphor for a moment, there is something else to consider.

Without sufficient public support, a community project will eventually die. In order to get that support, you have to have... well, people. Not marketshare mind you, but mindshare. Even open source projects are not immune to this. For proof, go look up the Linux Agenda PDA (I used to have one). It died off in 2001 due to not having enough participation from the community. The distro called Linux Familiar (for Compaq PocketPC PDAs) eventually died off for the same reason. The Fluxbox desktop environment for Linux died off due to lack of participation, as developers decided to settle on Gnome or KDE. 

So Wolf was right on the money... without support and participation, the project will die.

See also Neftoon Gal, Apollo Maximus, Alexa, Sara, Terai Yuki, Kururu, Natalia, Aiko (the original mesh, not A3), F-202, Dina, Aeon, Koshini, and (the just released) Mariko at Animotions... there's a whole heap of 'em in there, now long lost and rarely if ever supported. 

All of them started with a bang, many of them whipped up some support, but like the rest, they mostly died from lack of mindshare. Some held out longer than others (Apollo and TY2 still hang on somewhat), but let's face it, they're pretty much dead to all but a few. 

Unless you want Antonia to end up with the same fate, I strongly suggest getting out there, advertising, and making a buttload of freebies that are useful. I would also suggest reaching out beyond your comfort zone; e.g. get your ass onto Renderotica (a few of you hang out there) and make stuff for it along those lines. IMHO, make the face a lot more flexible, without charging for it. 

 

Getting back to the metaphor, Linux gained in strength because for the first few years of its existence, you didn't pay a dime to get the whole distro, and all of its add-ons. Only only had to pay something if you wanted custom code for your own needs, in which case you had someone do it for you for a fee.  For the very longest time (up until around 5 years ago), the only practical way to make money from Linux was to give everything away and charge for support. Even now, that business model comprises the bulk of Red Hat's income (RH being the most successful pure Linux corp out there).

If you want Antonia to succeed, I suggest getting up a larger core of stuff that the community gets for free. DAZ can charge for things like Morphs++ packages because they have a customer base willing to pay for it. OTOH, you guys don't (yet) have that luxury.

I've been asked to keep myself nice. So I will. But you don't get the point.

Monterey/Mint21.x/Win10 - Blender3.x - PP11.3(cm) - Musescore3.6.2

Wir sind gewohnt, daß die Menschen verhöhnen was sie nicht verstehen
[it is clear that humans have contempt for that which they do not understand] 

Metaphor of Chooks