The micro-dynamics of open source software development activity

This study aims to isolate and identify the properties of FLOSS development insofar as these can be revealed by examining the ecology of SF.net. It characterizes the contrast between the many “lurkers” and a much smaller core of “entrepreneurial” developers who are responsible for launching new projects, and gives an interpretation of the function of platforms such as SF.net as sites that people with a propensity to start open source projects can use to recruit “laborers”. It describes the process underpinning the mobility of those who are recruited among the projects that are launched and provides insights on the evolution of developers’ level and mode of involvement in FLOSS production.