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Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by DC-3 on Monday July 30, 2018 @09:32AM (#17644266)
> And if the tool is meant to be used by devs, still describe your tool in a way a non-developer can understand

Why?

Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by corobo on Monday July 30, 2018 @09:41AM (#17644327)
Off the top of my head - different skill levels, different language barriers, different purchasing power, different management layers to sign off on a product
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by KineticLensman on Monday July 30, 2018 @09:55AM (#17644416)
The description could include features, advantages and benefits:

- Features - what the tool does;

- Advantages - how are the features better than the competitors';

- Benefits - why are the advantages useful to my business.

Users (devs) are typically interested in features but the people who make usage/purchasing decisions (often non-devs) are more interested in benefits.

Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by pjc50 on Monday July 30, 2018 @09:57AM (#17644426)
The dev-specific explanation will often be dull and hyper-specific, narrowing your target market even among developers.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by matte_black on Monday July 30, 2018 @10:13AM (#17644510)
And at the same time, don't make the explanation sound too patronizing or infantile, or litter your landing page and docs with stupid little memes. Strike a professional tone.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by wastedhours on Monday July 30, 2018 @09:35AM (#17644286)
Devs are often not (although sometimes are) the ones that hold the company credit card or are the gatekeepers of organisation power.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by krageon on Tuesday July 31, 2018 @06:38AM (#17652007)
Any extra effort I have to expend to understand your thing within the first five minutes of seeing your webpage means I get closer to closing the tab and never looking at it again. I'm capable of following extremely dense developer-oriented information, but I won't do so without an extremely good reason. I'd much rather speedread through a paragraph of information that had some effort put into making it legible.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by emodendroket on Monday July 30, 2018 @10:00AM (#17644444)
Even if your audience is a developer they'll probably more easily grasp a plain-language explanation than a technical one as they skim search results.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by DC-3 on Monday July 30, 2018 @10:31AM (#17644601)
This isn't true though.

Here's the description for, to take an example, Rust:

> Rust is a systems programming language that runs blazingly fast, prevents segfaults, and guarantees thread safety.

Succinct and understandable, and exactly what a developer chancing upon the project wants to see.

Were this to be made accessible to non-developers it would need to read something like this:

> Rust is a programming language for developing computer systems and applications that runs blazingly fast and prevents errors when programs try to access the wrong memory, or attempt to work with that memory in two different places at once.

It would be less readable and less appropriate for the primary audience of the product.

Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by emodendroket on Monday July 30, 2018 @10:33AM (#17644613)
Well, to use a hoary old saw, things should be explained as simply as possible, but no simpler.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by DC-3 on Monday July 30, 2018 @10:37AM (#17644644)
In broad terms, I'd agree with this adage - and to bring us back to my original point, I'd argue that 'as simply as possible' is in some circumstances not understandable to non-developers and that's ok.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by pdonis on Monday July 30, 2018 @10:52AM (#17644780)
> Were this to be made accessible to non-developers it would need to read something like this:

No, it could read:

"Rust is a systems programming language that runs blazingly fast and is more reliable and secure."

Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by DC-3 on Monday July 30, 2018 @10:54AM (#17644797)
Which is an even worse description because 'reliable' and 'secure' are just adjectives that can mean almost anything you want them to mean and thus tell the intelligent reader almost nothing about the product at all.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by pdonis on Monday July 30, 2018 @11:03AM (#17644883)
> Which is an even worse description because 'reliable' and 'secure' are just adjectives that can mean almost anything you want them to mean

To a non-technical user, they basically mean "good", which is all the non-technical user really cares about. To a non-technical user, "prevents errors when programs try to access the wrong memory, or attempt to work with that memory in two different places at once" is just as much word salad as " prevents segfaults, and guarantees thread safety". They don't know what either one means or why it's a good thing.

And the first question the technical user is going to ask is "what makes it reliable and secure?"--which is what the technical description is for.

Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by vkou on Monday July 30, 2018 @12:11PM (#17645523)
To a non-technical expert:

> prevents errors when programs try to access the wrong memory

Reads as "Prevents errors when <wizardry>"

Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by deugtniet on Monday July 30, 2018 @09:35AM (#17644290)
Maybe to explain the decision to a non-dev colleague?
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by DC-3 on Monday July 30, 2018 @09:38AM (#17644307)
Why should they have to do this? Is a carpenter required to explain to an interior designer why they have a preference for a particular type of chisel?
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by pjc50 on Monday July 30, 2018 @11:08AM (#17644916)
This entire subtree of discussion has convinced me that developers should not be trusted with metaphors, let alone chisels.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by DC-3 on Monday July 30, 2018 @11:17AM (#17644992)
If it gets me into webshit weekly it'll all have been worth it.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by corobo on Monday July 30, 2018 @09:41AM (#17644334)
If they're asking the interior designer to buy it over some other chisel, probably
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by grosjona on Monday July 30, 2018 @11:00AM (#17644847)
Why would a carpenter ask an interior designer to buy a chisel? I'm pretty sure that the interior designer just wants the furniture and trusts the carpenter to have the right tools to make it.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by corobo on Monday July 30, 2018 @11:54AM (#17645348)
I don't know, it's a poor metaphor.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by emodendroket on Monday July 30, 2018 @09:59AM (#17644441)
He does need to justify his choice of materials and his approach -- certainly by the time he is bringing in heavy machinery. This metaphor is too muddled to tell us much.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by thecatspaw on Monday July 30, 2018 @09:58AM (#17644437)
I did have to explain jrebel (java class reloading while running) to a manager lately, so it definitely happens
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by personjerry on Monday July 30, 2018 @09:42AM (#17644341)
Yes, of course. This chisel damages my designs on the table, can we use a softer one? No, we can’t because the material the table is made of won’t be malleable to any softer chisel.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by DC-3 on Monday July 30, 2018 @09:44AM (#17644354)
That's not a problem with the chisel, that's a problem with the carpenter. The chisel should be wholly abstracted away from the designer's perspective.
Re:Why isn’t someone using my software product or open sourc... by matte_black on Monday July 30, 2018 @10:15AM (#17644521)
That requires a higher level of trust in the carpenter to simply do the right thing.

In the absence of sufficient trust, a definitive explanation is always required for a party to be at ease.