The Programmer's Fulcrum: 22 November, 2025
Here we feature the latest Symfony Station Communiqué and Battalion "Destroying Autocracy" Post along with their featured articles.
Original 'The Fulcrum' content updates will start in January when I sunset Symfony Station and Battalion.
Symfony Station Communiqué - Stardate: ✦ 21 November 2025 ✦
Get the latest from the Symfony Universe and PHP development communities.
Featured Item
Dries Buyaert writes:
Ten years ago, Acquia shut down Drupal Gardens, a decision that I still regret.
We had launched Drupal Gardens in 2009 as a SaaS platform that let anyone build Drupal websites without touching code. Long-time readers may remember my various blog posts about it.
It was pretty successful. Within a year, 20,000 sites were running on Drupal Gardens. By the time we shut it down, more than 100,000 sites used the platform.
Looking back, shutting down Drupal Gardens feels like one of the biggest business mistakes we made.
The product we should not have killed
I had a Drupal Gardens site back in the day.
Destroying Autocracy – November 20, 2025
Welcome to this week's "Destroying Autocracy". It’s your source for curated news affecting democracy in the cyber arena with a focus on protecting it.
Featured Item
Muni Town writes:
I've been trying to write this piece for years, really ever since I finished the first version of Open Source Explained (a v2 will drop early next year). Every time I get started I'm just overwhelmed with paralyzing visions of the commentariat accusing me of WrongThink.
So I drop it, because I'm tired to the bone of debating the minutae of open source definitions when the conversation we ought to be having is about power: who has it? (oligarchs), how did they get it? (monopolies & corruption), why is that a problem? (platform autocracy), and how do we the people take that power back? (protocols and open software).
Understanding ownership is power
It’s important to understand the codes in your life, because your life is made up of them. Once you understand which codes you already have access to and even the right to inspect, you can see more clearly which other codes you ought to have insight into.
Nothing makes me more anxious than writing about open source licensing because nothing brings out more opinion-havers, the vast majority of whom are speaking from a point of privilege-blindess in the western world. The widespread ignorance of the deeper power struggle at play (which we're losing) has brought the free world to the very brink, so I'm pushing past the discomfort to honor the urgency of our moment.
Let's get Social
Follow us on the Fediverse
Although FYI, we are not active there.