You're misunderstanding what I was saying. You gave the example of VLC being a superior open source video player, compared to other video players. I pointed out that VLC has been in development for a lot longer, so has had a lot of time to become as loved as it is. It wasn't embraced in the earlier years of its existence the same way it is today.
Once Darktable has been in development for longer, then it can be compared the same way, not to VLC, but to other photo management software.
I went from Guelph to Toronto recently for a baseball game with my partner. Via rail was somewhere between $40 and $50 (I forget the exact amount) per person each way. We drove instead.
In short, make transit a more viable option and maybe more people will use it.