Scatter is open-source and free because that is how we think the world should work.

Open-source technology is helping me find my path forward. If you’ve always wanted to be part of an open-source project, read on. It may be your path forward, too.

I have been a fan and follower of open-source and free (as in beer) software since 1998, when I first learned about Linux, the GPL, and free thinkers like Richard Stallman and Linus Torvalds.

Once in a while I’d be exposed to using Linux, and subjected myself to a year of it in the early 2000s when it was very rough around the edges. Lately, I’ve been running an Ubuntu Linux laptop for general home use for about three years now and there have been no complaints from the natives. That’s pretty incredible. The fact that people from around the world get together to build free software is beautiful and amazing. We should take a moment to appreciate that for what it is: utopian.

But, aside from some server setups, some basic home use, and some interest in the field, I had never actually contributed in any tangible way to open-source software. I never felt ready. But, man, it felt hypocritical to believe in something so earnestly, and not fulfill my duty.

I always thought that “Someone’s got to pay the bills, so if I’m going to work then it better be for money. It doesn’t matter that you like making software, it only matters that you get paid for it”, but that always left me feeling empty.

My career trajectory over the past two decades has been from lowly design grunt to helping conceptualize and implement working, beautiful software releases. There were a lot of shitty jobs along the way, and some genuinely enjoyable experiences. I felt like the things that were so hard became so easy, and that the things which I thought didn’t mean anything (marketing, I’m looking at you) were actually more important than the work that I did.

A couple of years back, I felt like I had peaked and my trajectory was nose-diving. I wasn’t going anywhere and I wasn’t doing anything. I was just getting a paycheck and it sucked.

I have spent tens of thousands of hours becoming who I am today as a designer, a manager, and a small business owner. I like making software, and I like trying to up the ante from release-to-release to push the outer boundary of what I’m building conceptually is.

If you’ve ever heard someone say that making software is a creative, expressive thing, well, this is that. I’m pretty sure that my brother Nathan feels the same way and it is part of why we work so well together.

Scatter

About 18 months ago I slipped into the deep-end of the pool and decided that what I wanted to do was create free software, make it open-source, and try to make a living from it. I joined Scatter, my brother’s nascent startup, as the first employee. We were going to build a business around the best damned cryptocurrency wallet that we could build. I think that we have done a decent enough job, made some waves, and most importantly made a solid, trusted reputation for ourselves in an ecosystem known mostly for its scammers and financial disasters.

I’ve done a lot of stuff while at Scatter including UX and UI work. Mostly I’ve been trying to put out fires and make order on the business side. I’ve really enjoyed connecting with a larger community of other like-minded folks from around the world.