The announcement of Flock, a fork of Flutter aimed at addressing desktop and web frustrations, reflects a genuine desire to improve the development experience. The intention to fix bugs and enhance usability is commendable, but forking may not be the most sustainable path forward. Instead, we propose a collaborative approach that builds on the strengths of Flutter while respecting the efforts behind Flock.

Why Collaboration is Better than Forking

1. Unity Drives Progress
   A unified developer community has more resources, momentum, and visibility to tackle challenges. Contributing directly to Flutter allows all developers to benefit from improvements without fragmenting the ecosystem.

2. Upstream Changes Are Hard to Mirror
   Maintaining compatibility with Flutter’s rapidly evolving framework is a monumental task for any fork. By contributing fixes and enhancements upstream, developers ensure long-term stability and reduce maintenance overhead.

3. Strength in Numbers
   The Flutter team and community already have extensive knowledge and infrastructure. Pooling efforts into a single project maximizes impact, especially for addressing platform-specific bugs or introducing new features.

4. Reduce Community Confusion
   A fork risks dividing the user base and creating uncertainty about which version to adopt. By keeping improvements within Flutter, developers and businesses gain confidence in a consistent, shared framework.

Respecting Flock’s Intentions

The creators of Flock are passionate about fixing real issues, particularly for desktop and web applications. This drive highlights the areas where the community can focus its collective energy. Here’s how we can integrate that spirit:

• Encourage Contributions: Invite the Flock team to share their insights and fixes directly with the Flutter project. Their experience with specific pain points is invaluable.

• Enhance Collaboration Channels: Improve the processes for reporting bugs, prioritizing fixes, and engaging with contributors. By making Flutter’s ecosystem more responsive, we reduce the need for forks altogether.

• Create Specialized Teams: Form dedicated working groups for desktop and web issues. This ensures that the focus areas of Flock receive the attention they deserve within the broader Flutter community.

Moving Forward Together

Instead of creating separate paths, let’s work together to make Flutter better for everyone. The energy and enthusiasm behind Flock can become a powerful force for progress if channeled into collaboration. By contributing directly to Flutter, we respect the framework’s foundational vision while ensuring its future remains bright, unified, and open.

Together, we can fix bugs, innovate, and build a stronger ecosystem for developers worldwide.