Feb 14, 2018 | By Benedict

One of the most active developers of 3D printer firmware Marlin has set up a Patreon account in order to continue coding. Marlin firmware is used in both RepRap and commercial printers, and is fully open source.

The principles of open source have been central to the 3D printing community since its rapid rise a few years back. Without open source there would be no RepRap, and many commercial desktop 3D printers would be much worse than they currently are. Sharing is caring, and the 3D printing world has reaped the rewards from its mass collaboration.

The problem, of course, is that everyone has to pay the bills. And for those putting the most hours into open source projects with no funding, making ends meet can be tricky. Scott Lahteine [thinkyhead], a Marlin firmware developer and the principal content writer of the Marlin website, has set up a Patreon account to raise funds for his coding efforts.

“Given the rapid pace of innovation in the 3D printing community, just keeping Marlin in step is a full-time job,” Lahteine explains. “While I've always given my time freely and without reservation to projects I'm passionate about, the amount of attention that Marlin requires does strain my limited resources."

(Images: Scott Lahteine)

“My ‘Patreon wish’ is to be able to focus my attention on Marlin through the next release and beyond, and to be an integral part of bringing it forward as Arduino and 3D printing evolves. When I see the amazing things that personal 3D printing is bringing to the world, I feel certain that there must be many in the world of 3D printing who appreciate the value of the work that goes into Marlin.”

Those who have used Marlin, which was derived from Sprinter and grbl and is licensed under GPLv3, may consider lending their support to Lahteine, but the developer’s appeal should also serve as encouragement to others in the 3D printing community who have put hours into helping others’ additive projects come to life.

Many remain skeptical of platforms like Patreon, but if people are willing to pledge funds to, for example, famous YouTubers, they should also be willing to help out those who supply the building blocks of 3D printing.

 

 

Posted in 3D Software

 

 

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Moke wrote at 2/15/2018 9:24:47 PM:

https://www.patreon.com/thinkyhead

Philippe wrote at 2/15/2018 9:49:05 AM:

Would be nice to have a link to the Patreon page ...



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