---
title: "1 Commons Quotes By Tim O'Reilly"
description: "1 Commons quotes by Tim O'Reilly. Plus more from Tim O'Reilly and more Commons sayings from other authors."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dad/tim-o-reilly-7147_act_you-grow-great-crops-in-great-soil-and-t_1089765.jpg"
---

> [You grow great crops in great soil. And the soil is the commons. Increasingly, we have monopolistic companies that try to take as much as they can for themselves. And we have a patent and copyright regime that makes sure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/you-grow-great-crops-in-great-soil-and-the-soil-is-the-commons/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dad/tim-o-reilly-7147_act_you-grow-great-crops-in-great-soil-and-t_1089765.jpg)

## More by Tim O'Reilly

> [Empowerment of individuals is a key part of what makes open source work, since in the end, innovations tend to come from small groups,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/empowerment-of-individuals-is-a-key-part-of-what-makes-open-source/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [In social networks, you gain and bestow status through those you associate with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/in-social-networks-you-gain-and-bestow-status-through-those-you/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [Programming is how we talk to the machines that are increasingly woven into our lives. If you aren't a programmer, you're like one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/programming-is-how-we-talk-to-the-machines-that-are-increasingly/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [When you have to prove the value of your ideas by persuading other people to pay for them, it clears out an awful lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/when-you-have-to-prove-the-value-of-your-ideas-by-persuading-other/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [Anyone who puts a small gloss on a fundamental technology, calls it proprietary, and then tries to keep others from building on it, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/anyone-who-puts-a-small-gloss-on-a-fundamental-technology-calls-it/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [We often get blinded by the forms in which content is produced, rather than the job that the content does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/we-often-get-blinded-by-the-forms-in-which-content-is-produced-rather/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [It's hard to make something as large as a government change. It's a little bit like building the transcontinental railroad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/it-s-hard-to-make-something-as-large-as-a-government-change-it-s-a/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [The problem for most artists isn't piracy, it's obscurity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/the-problem-for-most-artists-isn-t-piracy-it-s-obscurity/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [We were the first people to do advertising on the Web. I actually saw in 1993 that the ad could be the content, the destination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/we-were-the-first-people-to-do-advertising-on-the-web-i-actually-saw/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [Obscurity is a far greater threat to authors and creative artists than piracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/obscurity-is-a-far-greater-threat-to-authors-and-creative-artists/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [You have to pay attention to money, but it shouldn't be about the money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/you-have-to-pay-attention-to-money-but-it-shouldn-t-be-about-the-money/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [The thing we should all be looking for are people who want to make a difference. I'm a big believer in the Silicon Valley…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/the-thing-we-should-all-be-looking-for-are-people-who-want-to-make-a/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [Amazon is now the definitive source for data about whole sets of products - fungible consumer products. EBay is the authoritative source for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/amazon-is-now-the-definitive-source-for-data-about-whole-sets-of/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [Everybody's enamored of the iPhone, the Google phone. But the applications are going to change. You know, we're going to start using our phones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/everybody-s-enamored-of-the-iphone-the-google-phone-but-the/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

> [Being too early is indistinguishable from being wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/being-too-early-is-indistinguishable-from-being-wrong/)

[Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/)

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