Watching it fall apart

THE FAILURE ANALYSIS covers:

Technical disasters:

  • Blocking async calls (server hangs under load)
  • SQLite concurrent writes failing (migrate to PostgreSQL at 5 sites)
  • Database connection pool exhaustion
  • Timezone bugs destroying your timing data
  • Coordinate system confusion (standardize on J2000 ICRS, decimal degrees)
  • ASCOM/INDI fragmentation (Windows vs Linux split)
  • USB disconnects and serial port conflicts

Volunteer failures:

  • 60% dropout in year 1 is normal
  • No feedback loop = people leave
  • People who never submit one observation: 60% leave in months
  • People who submit at least one: 82% retention
  • Entitlement behavior will burn you out (set boundaries early)

Financial reality:

  • Base costs: ~$200/year
  • Your time at $50/hr = $26,000/year opportunity cost
  • Plan for 2+ years unpaid before any funding

Burnout patterns:

  • 73% of developers experience burnout
  • 60% of open source maintainers consider quitting
  • Warning signs: dreading GitHub, not responding for days, resentment