home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
- Path: cup.portal.com!Gemini2
- From: Gemini2@cup.portal.com (Gary Alan Peake)
- Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.applications
- Subject: Re: Users are selfish Was Re: crippled software
- Date: 14 Mar 1996 09:40:14 -0800
- Organization: The Portal System (TM)
- Sender: pccop@unix.portal.com
- Message-ID: <150963@cup.portal.com>
- References: <150773@cup.portal.com> <4lCkP4eSMV1ZEHpSJ2@transarc.com>
- <ud4ts37sru.fsf@random.pc-labor.uni-bremen.de>
- <4hllsv$gc8@cantua.canterbury.ac.nz>
- <4hmvq7$5qm@senator-bedfellow.MIT.EDU>
- <5r68cgwjsj.fsf_-_@ritz.mordor.com>
- <badger.826246592@phylo.life.uiuc.edu> <paul.428i@serena.iaehv.nl>
- NNTP-Posting-Host: news1.unix.portal.com
-
- >On Fri, 08 Mar 96, Jonathan Badger typed the following line(s):
- >
- >> The real question is *why* people insist on writing
- >> shareware. Shareware is a blight upon humanity --
- >
- >Excuse me? So you rather had I would *not* have released say
- >HTML-heaven to the public but kept it for myself? Now if I
- >ofset the # of registration for that programs against the many
- >hours it took to develop it, my hourly wage would be about $.05.
- >Not much, but it is enough to keep me motivated...
- >
- >< by definition,
- >> shareware authors are amateur programers who program for fun, and not
- >> to put food on their table.
- >
- >Where did you get that definition? As it is incorrect in a lot of
- >cases. Eg. mine and the AWeb author to name but two.
- >
- >> Why not be a freeware programmer instead?
- >
- >I have released freeware stuff, eg. StartDia, TimeCheck and
- >ScanGuide. (to name some little amiga tool)
- >
- >But you seem to be one of those who think all software should
- >be free. Well, developing HTML-Heaven has taken a *lot* of my
- >time and I think I am entitled to at least receive some form
- >of reward for that. Evn if it is just enough to buy a piece
- >of software or hardware for my Amiga. Are you forgetting that
- >SAS C (whihc I'm using to develop) isn't free either. Nor are
- >developer materials such as the RKM's and such...
- >
- >Attitudes such as yours and singh's are what is driving good
- >programmers away. Like John Veldthuis. And FWIW, I am very
- >seriously considering not to release any public versions of
- >HTML-heaven. Development will continue as I use it myself
- >intensively and I respect my registered users. So new versions
- >(and there will be those) might just be usable for the user
- >who has registered and received their key-file. or I might
- >sell it off as a commercial program. So no more 'try before
- >you buy'...
- >
- >Regards,
- >--__
- > /_/ |/ E-mail: paul@serena.iaehv.nl
- >/aul |\olenbrander WWW : http://www.iaehv.nl/users/paul/
- >-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
- >\_ Please finger paul@iaehv.nl to obtain my PGP Public Key _/
-
- I decided not to snip anything because all the comments go to the heart of
- an issue that has consistently hurt the Amiga over the years.
-
- No other computer system has so many PD/Shareware programs available for it
- than the Amiga. That is a blessing that has kept the Amiga alive when we
- had no parent company and the commercial developers were dropping like
- flies in oil. I personally think it goes with the 'attitude' of the Amiga
- that so many people that use an Amiga get so involved as to produce progs
- on it. And without these 'rebels without a cause' we would have been a
- doomed system many years ago. Hell, I can do almost as much with
- crippleware, freeware, PD, and shareware as other users can do with other
- platforms using commercial software. We NEED these guys!!!
-
- Having said that, we should ALL also understand that most of us get out of
- bed each day with a purpose in mind. That purpose (for most of us) is to
- support our families and ourselves in the best ways we see fit, be it
- digging ditches, writing software, selling products retail, information
- systems, or whatever. When a man or woman makes the choice to SELL software
- either thru registrations or commercially, we should respect that choice! I
- do not export goods to Central America for free. I would not bag groceries
- or dig ditches for free, nor will I ever give away ALL of my resources ...
- even if that resource is the ability to write good programming on the
- Amiga ... if these things are what supports myself and my family.
-
- The attitude that 'since it's Amiga, it must be free' is very disturbing to
- me. But, the attitude that NOTHING is free is equally disturbing. What must
- happen with Amiga users and Amiga developers is that we should all realize
- there is a healthy balance that HAS to be maintained. Without that balance,
- we are surely doomed!
-
-
- Gary Peake "Mystic Meg" Fellow AMIGA Users:
- -------------------------------------------------
- Gemini2@cup.portal.com Portal Communications | TEAM AMIGA is a grassroots
- 1:106/7512.1 Club Amiga-Houston,Tx | movement designed to provide
- | support to all AMIGA users,
- Proud supporter of Amiga Technologies | to AMIGA TECHNOLOGIES, and
- Asst Co-ordinator ---> *TEAM AMIGA* | to all AMIGA vendors.
- -------------------------------------------------
- 43 year old Beta-Tester AND Central American Exporter!
-
- ... Was Jimmy Hendrix's modem a Purple Hayes?
-
- -*- ASTG 1.9
-