This is a spin-off of the Where is Nokia... thread

Executive summary: Do you want to improve this community? Then choose one project and become a regular contributor. Without this step, posting more in web forums like this will barely help.

I don't know if overlaps and gaps are the essential problem and I'm not sure whether management is the solution to whatever is the problem.

In a Sunday morning and 100% with my community shirt, for me a problem is the amount of community energy just wasted in threads where everyone seems to have an opinion about the things that are out of their reach (and actually their deep knowledge). In the meantime, issues within a reach for concrete contributions and change remain open or even unnoticed.

The advice I got when I started getting involved in free software projects was to concentrate on a couple of topics and help out there until getting something done. Sounds simple? It's damn though. But so gratifying every time you succeed.

Here in ITt there are plenty of discussions going on but how much of this talk ends up in some kind of fruitful improvement? Everyone: look your last 10 posts. Look also to random posts you wrote 3, 6, 12 months ago. Reach your own conclusions.

Overlaps. What is the problem with overlaps. Make your choice and help your preferred project improve and prevail. If there are nasty frictions highlight them. Choose one and help fix it.

Gaps. Which gaps? Be precise in use cases and concentrate your energies in those most relevant to you. Find the closest project(s) and help covering/porting the features needed. Or create a new project if needed (although with 763 projects only in garage.maemo.org and plenty of stuff in the free software community you may suspect not being the first one having that great idea and trying to do something about it).

Management? These projects need help! Being no coder is not an excuse. Testing, ideas, mockups, promotion, documentation, user support... and above all continuous support and regular commitment in the smallest tasks. All this leading to tangible results being reflected in new versions with increased download rates and more happy users.

Next time you feel like telling to a corporation how to do business, how to design devices, how to make technology selections, how to launch products, how to watch the competition... think it twice. I'm not saying you are wrong: it's just an invitation to consider where are your skills and energies better invested. Maybe in the meantime there is a single developer of a piece of software you actually like, needing much more your attention and your time.