Why shall it die?

Anton Korzunov
Aug 22, 2017 · 3 min read

When you are going to use some library, you better ask yourself — “Why should I use it?”. But when you are maintaining some library, you better ask yourself — “Why should it exists?”

Sometimes — you will not found any reason.

Windows 10 replaced Windows XP, XP replaced MS DOS, React replaced jQuery and jQuery replaced vanilla JS(ha!).

This is evolution.

And your creation might be the next. The next species for extinction.

Imposted syndrome

And strange thing, named “Imposted syndrome” will help you survive.

Lets imagine — you have created a cool product — DropBowl, and also release a cool UX library — Dreact.

You have millions of customers, and 10k stars on GitHub.

Without imposted syndrome you will think —

“wow, I am sooo cool. I am the coolest one. Next week I will conquer the whole world, fuck you all.”

There will be no “next week”. You are not looking for reasons to stay alive.

Instead

With imposted syndrome you will think —

“dam, I am not the chosen one. Product of company X is much better, and Dreact is so ugly…”

Next week you will improve your own product, and release a new version of Dreact with new features.

You will trying to be better. And if, one day, you will not spot reasons in your project to keep it alive — you will add them, invent them, implement them. You will evolve.

Competition is seen as a state which produces gains for the whole economy, through promoting consumer sovereignty. Thank you Wikipedia.

Facts

Let me tell you a little story: one my friend, one day created JSCS. The quite popular library, even jQuery used it.

Few years later, he ask himself — is JSCS better than ESLint. So:

Should JSCS exists. To be or not to be?

He found no reason, and kill his great project.

Since that time JSCS and ESLint are the same.

Without that desision — we will have not one, but two products. And both — twice less powerful.

Way to improve

This is the way you might live. Good photographer can see hidden beauty everywhere. Musician — can hear harmony in chaos.

You can, in each competition, can see an opportunity.

I do have some libraries on GitHub. Some of them, like rewiremock, are just cool. Some of them, like 3166–2-db are way better that competitors. Some of them, like regions, are unique. And they all are bad. I even feeling some shame leaving that links here.

But I am always in search in ways to improve them. Quality and count.

And each time someone asking me “What have you done, mate”. I just knew — I’v done some shit. No idea why so many people are using some of my projects for so many years.

PS: One of my personal project having 3kk MAU. But I will not leave a link.

First — I have to become better. Or my projects will extinct as many other projects already do. Including dozens of mine.

But this is evolution. This is competition. The fun.

)
    Anton Korzunov

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