Abigail Austin

About me

I am a self-taught programmer with over 10 years of experience. I have been continuously learning everything I can in this field since the age of 10 and I plan to continue learning until I die. I also have a particular interest in compilers and metaprogramming.

Why did I start Summersweet Software?

I started Summersweet Software to address many gripes I’ve been having with the software industry as a whole. Generally, tech companies are only out to make as much money as they can. This is fine until it comes at the expense of their audience and their employees. In our current environment, its hard to find a company who isn’t exploiting their employees or their customers.

Employees are almost never benefiting from the fruits of their labor. They don’t get bonuses for doing a good job. They are almost never a part of the top level of decision making. They may get project-level responsibilities, but never are able to express concerns or ideas from the business side of things.

I want Summersweet Software to act differently than all of the other companies out there. I want to avoid SaaS, predatory pricing, and exploitation of employees. I want members of the organization to have a true sway in what the organization does. I don’t want to simply profit off of the work of my peers, I want us all to come up together. Software has always been collaborative and it should remain that way. This is the reason we publish so many libraries!

Of course, it wasn’t until I began talking with my friend, “Ducky”, that these ideas were fully realized. Ducky taught me about workers cooperatives as a concept and has helped me try to put those ideas into practice. Without him, I don’t think Summersweet Software would be a cooperative. Yes, our mission would remain similar, but its execution would not be nearly as robust. I owe a lot to Ducky.

Links

Github: ArachnidAbby