>I think your analogy, while a good one, is quite a bit off on scale there.
According to wiki.answers, it took 300 people just over two years to build the Eiffel Tower.
Now compare that to Linux, or Gimp, or any other large OSS project and tell me the scale is still off. Or were you claiming that I was off in the other direction? In which case... I might agree with you. ;-)
> But if I wanted to attempt to build my own Eiffel Tower in my backyard, why is it bad that I wish to do so? Maybe I just want to do it to see if I can accomplish it?
It depends entirely on your motive and goal. If your goal is to build it yourself, if your motive is just "see if I can build this with my own power" then there is nothing at all bad. I applaud that. If your goal is to make the best software to fill a certain gap, if it's to make the world a better place with the highest change/effort ratio, then I would argue that adding your knowledge & power to an already existing project is the better way.
According to wiki.answers, it took 300 people just over two years to build the Eiffel Tower.
Now compare that to Linux, or Gimp, or any other large OSS project and tell me the scale is still off. Or were you claiming that I was off in the other direction? In which case... I might agree with you. ;-)
> But if I wanted to attempt to build my own Eiffel Tower in my backyard, why is it bad that I wish to do so? Maybe I just want to do it to see if I can accomplish it?
It depends entirely on your motive and goal. If your goal is to build it yourself, if your motive is just "see if I can build this with my own power" then there is nothing at all bad. I applaud that. If your goal is to make the best software to fill a certain gap, if it's to make the world a better place with the highest change/effort ratio, then I would argue that adding your knowledge & power to an already existing project is the better way.