Rebirth 08: Equipment God

Chapter 311 I Too Can Go
In the programming world, the term "open source" is not uncommon, but the business model is rather vague for Cheng Mo.

The two can only be mechanically linked together, after all, he is an undergraduate who has never worked.

Seeing that Ge Qiaoqiao was also looking up, waiting for him to continue, Zhai Da simply said, "How about I give you an example?"

First and foremost, it should be emphasized that "open source" does not mean "free".

This does not mean that there is no "copyright".

It simply means "allow access, modification, and use".

Zhai Da pointed to the beer glass in front of Cheng Mo.

"To be considerate of my senior, I'll start from a broader perspective. For example, Cheng Mo's family has passed down a 'Brewing Manual,' which is quite valuable. He opened a tavern with it, so his primary task is to continuously provide services to customers, which is to say, 'wine.' The tavern's customers will occasionally offer suggestions, and he will then improve the process to brew better wine, or add other categories, or even hire some resident singers, hoping that the tavern will grow bigger and bigger and make more and more money. It's easy to understand at this point, right?"

Ge Qiaoqiao nodded.

Cheng Mo thought the president had excellent speaking skills, and that the analogy was very apt.

"If this approach is called 'closed source,' then the corresponding choice for open source is to completely disclose the 'Brewing Bible' and invite everyone to use it."

"Let's take pubs as an example again. Since there is no concept of space on the internet, we can assume that all pubs are located together. You will find that there are many more pubs around you. They will all use your 'secret recipe' to brew wine and sell it to customers, and they will do whatever they want to save money. Some are quiet bars, some are nightclubs, and some are barbecue."

“Each of them will have their own employees and customers. All these people will work together to improve and revise the ‘Brewing Bible’, making its content more and more comprehensive and better. It has even gradually become an industry manual that can solve all the problems of opening a store. This means that the ‘Brewing Bible’ is being optimized at a speed of ten times or a hundred times.”

Ge Qiaoqiao asked curiously, "Then how do you make money? I mean, the original owner of the manual."

Cheng Mo was also waiting for what would happen next. He was curious about how the chairman would connect the term "open source," which is currently almost exclusive to the programming world, with a business model.

Zhai Da raised a finger: "Cheng Mo set a few rules for all users of the manual: First, no matter how many times it is modified, how much content is added, or who made the modifications, the copyright of the manual will always belong to him. Of course, he also promises that he will never charge any fees afterward."

"Second, for a newly opened tavern, if you want to use his increasingly perfect and convenient manual, you must first pay him a technical service fee. He can provide basic guidance on opening the store, and at the same time ensure that his manual is deeply integrated into the store, so that the other party cannot easily kick you out."

"Third, all taverns operate on their own, but certain core services, such as brewing ingredients, must be purchased through the platform he establishes. The POS system must also be centrally managed by him and then distributed to everyone, with him taking a cut in the process. Some advertising spaces in the shops must also be distributed according to his arrangements, but the advertising fees can be shared with the taverns."

The two seemed to be thinking about something.

Han Qi brought over a plate of fried squid rings. Seeing Zhai Da's three fingers, she thought to herself that Brother Da was secretly teasing Brother Yue again.
Zhai Da picked up a piece and put it in his mouth: "There are also many hidden sources of income. For example, because you can influence countless taverns to a certain extent, suppliers will try to please you in return. Manufacturers that provide wine glasses, tables and chairs, and light bulbs (hardware) will come to you. If you can win them over, you can win over countless others. There are many ways to play this game."

"This is the basic logic of an operating system that is open source and profitable. Of course, all the 'benefits' are released first, and all the 'constraints' are gradually increased. The goal in the early stage is to promote users, and then the pie is gradually sliced ​​off. Everything is like this."

"If you don't mess things up, for example, if you become part of the mainstream market, then it becomes what is often called an 'ecosystem' in business. Joining you means having mature resources, while being independent means having to 'rely on your own' in every way, and having to circumvent your ever-thickening 'manual'."

"Users have developed 'drinking habits' over the years. They don't feel good and it's troublesome to drink at other places. Bar owners also have 'user habits.' They have become so used to opening bars only under your rules. If they want to break away from you, they have to start from scratch."

The two frowned in thought.

This "open secrets" business model was quite counterintuitive in 09, and while it resembled open source in the programming world in form, it was not the same in essence.

Zhai Da gave them some time to process what was happening.

For Zhai Da, he needs to seize the opportunity.

If the timeline were a few years earlier, he might have chosen the path of Apple, building his own kingdom with products and systems that transcend time, rather than taking the open-source route to create an ecosystem.

The problem is that both systems within the mechanical core have already been discovered in reality.

iOS was released in 07. Although the legendary first shot, the "Apple 4," had not yet appeared, the system was still so immature that it seemed to be designed more for music playback, with its biggest application being the iPod (a high-capacity MP4 player).

Android, on the other hand, was released in 08 and was even worse than Symbian.

But both were on the verge of a complete eruption. From that point on, every year that passed, the things in Zhai Da's hands would become more and more troublesome. A few years later, they might still have value, but they would no longer be usable for Zhai Da.

Without market space, they are also easily exposed and dealt with legally.

If you start figuring out "groundbreaking products" from a hardware perspective now, by the time they're released, the market will be completely different.

He can only take the path of "rapid development" in open source, involving more free labor in the improvement work and building an ecosystem as soon as possible.

If there isn't enough time to make a phone, then the only option is to try to define a phone.

My dad makes mobile phones.

In the next decade, if we're talking about industrial upgrading, the mobile internet will undoubtedly be the only global focus, creating countless jobs and opportunities and nurturing numerous large enterprises.

However, many people haven't even grasped the importance of the "operating system ecosystem," let alone the importance of the "mobile internet." Cheng Mo understood immediately and added, "Therefore, we now need a basic 'brewing manual' to attract more people to use it! It should ideally have some unique advantages!"

Zhai Da snapped his fingers: "Correct!"

But Cheng Mo quickly added with concern, "But President, mobile operating systems are tied to mobile devices. How can we convince those major mobile phone manufacturers to use our system?"

When it comes to "business" issues, this programming genius quickly reverts to the level of knowledge expected of an undergraduate, always finding it difficult.

Do we have to visit them one by one?

Zhai Da shrugged: "Don't think too highly of these companies. There are several mobile phone manufacturers struggling to survive, such as Motorola, Ericsson, and Bird. These are remnants of the last era that were crushed by Nokia. They dream of having a good operating system."

"In addition, there are not many barriers to getting in touch with mainstream domestic manufacturers such as Zhongxing, Coolpad, and carrier contract phones. When it's time to raise our flag, we can raise it. Our alma mater can help us promote it, and I will also try to find resources myself."

"However, I don't like to offer benefits out of the blue. I prefer things to happen naturally. So, this is the ideal place for me to start testing the waters first."

Zhai Da placed his phone on the table; it was a knock-off phone he hadn't changed since his rebirth.

The huge, declining market for counterfeit mobile phones has always been dominated by miscellaneous operating systems and fragmented operations.

Like Motorola, they were struggling on the brink of survival, making a difficult transition to "smartphones".

The open-source business model is a perfect fit for these guerrilla groups.

“We can support not only pubs, but also street vendors. When the beer brewed by street vendors is better than that of pubs, the pub owners will come to us on their own.”

The reason why Android was able to overtake Symbian within three years was not entirely due to its strong sales capabilities, but rather because it was born at the right time and took several key steps correctly.

Just then, the door to the Misty Tavern was pushed open, and a stranger peeked in, saying, "Boss, I run a nightclub in Shengjing. I heard you have a craft beer here. Can we talk about getting some?"

Zhai Da smiled, ignoring the man, and said to Cheng Mo, "See, isn't that the truth?"

Cheng Mo raised his fist: "That makes sense!!"

Giving Han Qi a wink, signaling her to deal with this uninvited customer, Zhai Da stood up and said, "Come on, I'll show you what that friend sent, although it's not complete."

Cheng Mo quickly got up and followed, but after the door was already open, he suddenly said with some concern:

"President, there are two last questions, really the last two. Part of what that person wrote is based on iOS and Android. Even if it's unpublished personal work after leaving the company, there are still some legal risks, right?"

Zhai Da shrugged: "You can learn from it instead of copying it, and you have to use the rules instead of fearing them. Since these things are all unclaimed in this space-time, then it's first come, first served."

Should we go through all that trouble to acquire future technology and give it to Apple and Google now? Are we acting like saints and treating them like innocent lotus flowers?
This business model is far more valuable than code that cannot be used directly; the former is the core competitive advantage, while the latter merely helps Zhai Da "save effort."

Cheng Mo nodded and said, "I will pay attention. So, regarding the second question, we are, after all, Chinese. In the future, the company you register will also be a Chinese company. In areas where you need to deal with global companies, I'm afraid you will be at a disadvantage, right? Can we Chinese really develop operating systems?"

Zhai Da was taken aback; he hadn't expected Cheng Mo to be thinking about this.

In fact, this is a doubt that lingers in the minds of every ambitious young person in this era.

Even a genius like Cheng Mo is an example.

How many people have given up on themselves because of this? How many have chosen to leave their hometowns? And how many have been knocked down by unfair treatment?

What is harder to overcome than being denied is self-denial.

For some reason, Zhai Da suddenly remembered a famous saying his teacher had said decades ago.

"Foreigners can do it, but Chinese people can't? Are Chinese people inferior to others?"

He originally intended to use this sentence to comfort Cheng Mo.

But then I suddenly remembered what my teacher said: each generation has its own path.

So he changed to his own style, smiled, and pushed open the door:
"If the enemy can go, so can I!"

All that remained was the clear sound of the copper bell and Cheng Mo, his face flushed and head held high, chasing after them.

Inside the tavern, Ge Qiaoqiao stared blankly at the departing figures of the two men, so much so that she forgot to say goodbye.

For a fleeting moment just now, the president's appearance seemed to change.
Has it been misjudged because it shows some signs of being a dragon?
　Minor tweaks, programmers please don't nitpick. If there are discrepancies, just consider it a parallel universe.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)