Lucky us–OSJ editorial

A few weeks ago, I had a chance to catch up with a friend from university days. Inevitably, we ended up talking about our jobs. We both had a little moan about the amount of work we have to put in.
I can honestly say that not a week goes by where I start something in the office and simply have to continue working on it at home; not because I must, but because it is so bl**dy interesting that I cannot wait until the next day. We are all very lucky to work in a field where work can be so fascinating that it stops being work and becomes play.
However, this play quickly turns into frustration when you have to use something that you paid for, that the vendor says should work, but doesn’t. Closed source, anyone? If a closed source component doesn’t work, I can report a bug to the vendor, but what next? Sit around and wait for a response? Hack together a workaround in my free time? No thanks, I’d much rather be out in the Peak District.
By all means, go ahead and moan about work with your friends, it is therapeutic. But know that we are lucky to be able to work with open software!