Docker putting downloads behind a login wall

In regards to issue https://github.com/docker/docker.github.io/issues/6910, Docker putting links to download Docker CE behind a login wall. The comment thread is long, and people are, in my opinion, rightfully put out by the move.

Yeah, the issue is that they are not being transparent or real about the reasons why they put the download behind a login wall. All they needed to do was tell the truth, and then this wouldn't be an issue. As it is now, they used marketing double speak and it came off disingenuous, and imo, rather pathetic.

I know that this can feel like a nuisance, but we've made this change to make sure we can improve the Docker for Mac and Windows experience for users moving forward.

This is simply not true.

They are not doing this to improve the experience of users, as has been explained several times in the comments. No, they are doing this because they are scrambling to collect data to figure out how to monetize a closed source product that they gave out for free. Now the expectation in the community is that the product is free which puts them in a weird position. However, honesty and transparency will go a lot further than lies and deception do in these sorts of things. Just gotta be honest with your user base. There is no harm in that. A simple message like; "hey so we messed up and in order to continue to provide Docker and support etc, we need to 1) understand the user base that is downloading the docker tools, and 2) identify ways to generate revenue to continue to develop and support the tools while maintaining a free core product. In order to do this we want to collect some data using these methods…" and so on. I'd have so much respect for a company who could say those things.

Maybe I am reading a lot into hiding the link, but at the end of the day if it feels sneaky and shady, it probably is. I do not trust that they actually had the users experience in mind when making this change. Therefore, I do not trust Docker, and would seriously consider the alternatives for my future endeavors.