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0 pointsswiftcoder2mo ago0 comments

> If one library has 1,000 stars and the other has 15, I'm going to default to the 1,000 stars.

There are clearly inflection points where stars become useful, with "nobody has ever used this package" and "Meta/Alphabet pays to develop/maintain this package" on the two extremes.

I'm less sure what the signal says in-between those extremes. We have 2 packages, one has 5,000 stars, the other has 10,000 stars - what does this actually tell me, apart from how many times each has gone viral on HN?

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2 comments · 2 top-level

bigiain2mo ago

At the 10,000 star level, my worry is going to be how tempting a target it is for a supply chain attack. (Most likely via one of it's dependencies.)

bonesss2mo ago

If the goals relate to maintenance and viability, we’re looking for a minimum threshold of implementation. Amazon and Microsoft have a lot of stars, both have ‘more than enough’ to care.

If the goals are marketing or targeting or mass-market appeal or hiring pools then those stars say something else.

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