Fallacies of Distributed Computing OpenSource Contribution

1. The network is notifications are reliable;
2. Latency is zero;
3. Bandwidth is infinite;
4. Topology doesn't change;
5. Transport Maintenance cost is zero;
6. The network is repositories and issues are homogeneous;
7. The party you are communicating with is trustworthy;
8. My contribution is important.

Mostly, the fallacies result in delays in reviews.

The Notifications are Reliable

In the K8s repository, there have been ~81K pull requests over ten years -- about one PR per hour. Maintainers usually receive notifications per email, resulting in 24 emails daily, not including comments or updates on existing PRs. Notifications can easily be overlooked.

Latency is Zero

Reviews take time. Ignoring this fact can cause frustration and message (a PR author to maintainers) amplification overwhelming maintainers and causing them to miss important notifications.

Bandwidth is Infinite

Maintainers are limited in number, and pull requests are reviewed one by one.

Topology Doesn't Change

Organisations change, new SIGs emerge, repository owners leave.

Maintenance Cost is Zero

Introducing a new feature or dependency increases the workload for maintainers.

The Repositories and Issues are Homogeneous

In umbrella projects like Kubernetes, some repositories are less active. Pull requests are reviewed according to their priorities.

Review of a pull request with a typo fix in a repository with no activities in the last 6 months will probably be delayed.

The Party you are Communicating With is Trustworthy

This fallacy affects repository owners. Ignoring it can lead to issues with CVSS score 10/10.

My Contribution is Important

No.

---

Original fallacies.