InfoQ: I saw an article online about Facebook’s open source efforts a few days ago. Facebook likes to share their results externally, and in recent years, they have open sourced many internal projects. From your perspective, why does Facebook do open source? What strategic significance does it have?
Zhao Haiping: It’s not that all companies in the United States are willing to open source. For example, Google is not willing to open source. I think each company has its own considerations when choosing what to open source and what not to open source. Google believes that if it open sources a certain core technology, it will create competitive pressure, so it can choose not to open source. Open source is not a trend. Before open sourcing, you should first consider whether it will have a commercial impact.
If commercially allowed, I personally think open source is very good. After open sourcing, more people will participate in the design of the software, and the community will give you many inspirations, which are very beneficial to the development of open source software.
Also, after open sourcing, the problems in the program are exposed. More people use your project, help you test and fix it, and the project quality can continue to improve. Secondly, open source will bring positive evaluation to the company, and the outside world will appreciate the company’s open mind and more easily understand your leading technology.
It should be noted that the company needs to invest a lot of manpower and material resources in the open source process. For example, someone needs to follow up on user feedback, and someone needs to manage the open source project. It is not easy to run an open source project well. Facebook has someone specifically managing open source, who is very experienced, knows what problems will be encountered in the open source process, and knows how to communicate with the community.
Overall, I think open source has more advantages than disadvantages. As long as commercially allowed, open source is a good thing.
InfoQ: You just mentioned that Facebook has someone specifically responsible for open source. Can you introduce this role in detail?
Zhao Haiping: His position is open source manager, responsible for managing all the company’s open source projects. For example, before the project is open sourced, he will check whether there is code that leaks the company’s core secrets and help solve it. He will handle 90% of external feedback, which can greatly reduce the workload of core engineers. Overall, this person has very rich experience in open source, understands technology, and is also very professional in operation.
InfoQ: After Facebook open sources its internal projects, does it also use the open source version internally?
Zhao Haiping: Yes, the internal version may have more new features, but it is definitely one version. Otherwise, you lose the meaning of open source, and you also want it to be one version so that you can quickly merge new features or patches from outside.
InfoQ: What is your view on the current state of open source in China?
Zhao Haiping: I think open source in China has not yet formed a climate. Now everyone is doing their own thing. In the United States, open source is like a flag. When the flag is raised, everyone will work on it. Finally, when it is put together, it is like a pyramid, very spectacular. We may not have put it together yet, but I think we can take our time. We can learn from foreign open source construction experience, combine it with our national conditions on their basis, and move forward steadily.
InfoQ: How should employees balance participating in open source projects with their regular work?
Zhao Haiping: To be honest, I don’t have a particularly good answer to this. This issue can be elevated to the company level for discussion, and it is also worth discussing. This should be a tacit understanding between the company and employees.
To be honest, if we can mobilize the enthusiasm of employees for technology, it is definitely a good thing for the company. If an employee is willing to be a technical leader in the open source environment, he will definitely be excellent in the company. Excellent people are excellent everywhere. Maybe the company should really give engineers more time to do this.
As you just said, many Chinese employees have a lot of daily work. This is exactly what I want to experience at Alibaba. I want to know what everyone is doing and why there is so much work. This is also something that needs to be slowly experienced and thought about. I can share my experience with you later.
There are a large number of people in the United States whose purpose of going to work may be different from that of Chinese employees. They may think that going to work is for life, while we think that we must go to work to live. This primary and secondary relationship may make them think that open source is a very important thing, while work is secondary. This is also my speculation, related to culture and national conditions.
InfoQ: So companies should appropriately encourage engineers to participate in open source projects?
Zhao Haiping: Alibaba has open sourced many projects, which is very advanced in China, but not every Chinese company thinks so. Some companies may think that what this employee is doing has nothing to do with KPI, so they will prohibit such work. In fact, these things are all related. The process of engineers participating in open source is a learning process. Through open source, his business ability and technical level have been improved. How can it not be beneficial to the company? Even if it takes up a little of the company’s time and doesn’t do the company’s own work, it is meaningful in the long run.
InfoQ: A netizen’s question, you switched from biology to computer science, crossing different disciplines, but still achieved top level. Did you pay a lot?
Zhao Haiping: Everyone who reaches the top level in any industry will pay a lot. Of course, everyone who reaches the top level loves that industry, so they are willing to spend more time than others. And if you can invest more time than others, you will definitely be better than others. When you are better, you will like this thing more. So hobby and effort are a positive feedback process.
Reprinted with permission: Developer Relations »
