Open Source: Origins - a community development idea exchange concept sketch

I can code a little, basic Arduino. C/C++ basics, can create a custom library with a bit of online guidance, can code an imperative microcintroller sketch in the simplest of C, without much need for references to how-to pages. Brain's getting old and glitchy, no patience for learning, struggle with the whole in-crowd culture of the programming world, where even "beginner" tutorials assume higher than my level of understanding. That I've successfully coded anything, let alone, say, a MIDI controlled robotic drum kit. (Still got to finish that, but no room in the "secret lab" right now.) Languages like Go or Rust look doable, but see above for "culture," while the whole javascript world seems designed by people deliberately trying to make it impossible for beginners while teasing us with statements like, "JS is easy!" Yeah, pig's arse.

Now, before we go further, if you read further than this paragraph, "The Contract," you are agreeing to the terms that the ideas in the following paragraph are mine exclusively and you further agree that, if you read any paragraph below this one, you are agreeing to credit me this idea and will not charge your users anything for any app you decide to create from it. If you do read further and use the idea, I will embark on a campaign to out you in public as an IP theif, insofar as the law allows. If you have no intention of using or copying the idea, you may read further but, if you choose to copy the idea without credit and a share in subsequent profits to me, you will be in breach of these terms for reading this page in full. You have been warned, reading further is agreeing to the contract inherent in this paragraph.

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Proceed further ONLY if you agree to the above contract.

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But it occurs to me that, others have managed to master all the programming languages, while I and others have ideas but not so much the skills to realise them. So, if there are many who can program, and many like me, who can't, how to bridge the gap for those like me who have tried and tried and tried to learn, but still have ideas. Fiver? No way. Just no. Never.

My ideas will be realised as open source, or not at all. I'm just not paying some guy to write an alpha version, steal my idea and suddenly I'm getting the cease and desist letters. This attitude has worked well for my robotic drum machine and my attempt to recreate a metronome that's something like the venerable antique, the Boss Dr Rhythm. Meanwhile, I have bigger ideas. Ideas beyond my coding ken, but not beyond my scoping ability. So, in the shower this morning, where all my great, yet often unrealisable, ideas seem to happen, I thought of a bold idea, with the Hollywoodesque title, "Open Source: Origins."

An online community, where non-coder members scope an idea, and coder members, committed to only undertake any idea as an equal patner to the idea's originator, sticking to the idea originator's preferred licence terms, being...

• Free Open Source Only - FOSS
• Open Source (With Commercial Capacity) - OSS
• Commercial with equal Developer/Originator Rights Share - ODRS

You can't patent ideas, only physical proofs of concept, eg, for code a demonstrator version of an app or a prototype mechanism. Likewise ideas are equally ephemeral with copyright law. Copyright only applies to the wards or images used to depict an idea, not the raw imaginings of it. So, say I describe my app, my words are mine, but the app isn't. If I patent its user interface, described in diagrams, and operation, described in words, I own it. If I code it, I own it. What is needed, in between patenting (expensive) and coding. (Rather hard for the uninitiated.) What is needed is a secure repository for ideas, where signing an agreement to comply with the terms of the idea's originator would be required before viewing the idea. A contract becomes the idea's (and its orinator's) protection.

For example...

I *name* *address* *email* *photo of drivers licence* agree to the terms set by *name*, presenter of *the idea* and agree to not disclose the idea to others, breach the terms of the viewing the idea or develop the idea as my own original work, without including the idea's originator equally in the profits of the work.

I'm not a lawyer, but you get the idea: being allowed to see the idea scope is premised on agreeing to a contract to hold respect the now contracted moral right of the idea's originator. The originator would also contract to accept associated risks and responsibility for their decision to share the idea.

In this approach, we make it possible for those with the required skillset to realise an idea, as a developer, now contracted to respect the idea-rightsholder' IP in the idea, with both to equally share any arising benefit, or to keep it free for social benefit, depending on the terms set by the idea's originator.

The irony of my idea for this community app is it may be something I may not have the resources to establish. However, there maybe some sort of reddit-like or discord-like webapp that could be adapted to purpose and installed on a server. And I think I might be investigating this further.

But why?

How many ideas die because the holder of that idea, while intelligent and of a useful skillset to organise a project, can't realise the physicality of the project or safely connect with a contractor to realise it? Imagine you have such an idea, but no money. Or maybe the idea has an important, social potential, so should remain free and open source in its realised app form. The latter of these two possibilities can require a massive budget, yet may not be of commercial value, or worse, may be of commercial value, but that value might lock the underprivileged out of it. Say it's an app to help the homeless, but some commercial developer makes it subscription based. Ideas arise from knowledge, but how does knowledge cross the skills barrier if not backed by money?

So, that is the idea that is "Open Source: Origins" the app. Lodge an idea that people, including the admins, cannot see unless they contract to the viewing terms: that the idea's originator will be credited and eligible for a share in any profit, if the idea becomes commercially viable product, where allowed.