All about Shareware

There's a lot of rubbish talked about Shareware, and many RISC OS users are a bit unclear as to what it actually is, so I shall describe briefly the ideas behind it.

If you are writing Shareware, in particular if you have tried to write Shareware without sucess (and by this I mean that you haven't made any money) then do read the second section. You just might learn something, and it may help you to actually earn some money from your programs.

First, here's what it isn't.

• Shareware isn't free software. You have to pay for it like any other commercial software.
• It's not (or shouldn't be) demo or cut down versions of 'normal' software.
• It's not 'cheap' software, though it may be 'low cost' as the system is far more cost efficient that the normal distribution method.
• It's not 'a sort of PD or Freeware' though it will often be available on compilation and magazine CDs and via the internet like PD and Freeware.

So, having stated what it's not what actually is it?

Shareware is not a type of software at all, it's a method of distributing commercial software.

The idea is that the greater part of the price you pay for your software isn't actually the cost of the software at all, it goes towards distribution, dealer margins, advertising, promotion, packaging, etc. etc. Only a tiny fraction of the money you hand over goes to the people who produced it. Shareware is a means of cutting out the middle man (or middle men).

The idea is that the program is freely available, often nowadays via the internet, and you can obtain and try it without payment. What you get isn't (or shouldn't be) cut-down or crippled. It will be a fully working program complete with documentation.

So, you've got the program, you've got the manual (well, a textfile or HTML version), you're using it and it does what you want. That's it then.

Not quite.

Shareware is essentially a try before you buy distribution system. What you have is a commercial product but you will (normally) only be licensed to use it for 30 days. That's the usual trial period. After this time you do not have a licence to use the software unless you Register. This means sending a registration fee to the author. How much this is and how it's done will vary, as will what you get for it. Sometime you just get an acknowledgement, sometimes you get the latest version of the program, extra material, printed manuals, etc. However what you always get is the full licence to use the program. Without this at the end of the trial period you are effectively using a pirated program. There's no difference between using a Shareware program outside the trial period and a pirated copy of any other commercial program. Not only is there no moral difference, there's no legal difference either. Both are software theft.

From the users point of view this is a great system. You have a chance to try the program in the privacy of your own home and see that it does what you want before you part with your money. But don't forget that last part. This is commercial software. You are obliged to pay if you continue to use it. If you don't want to pay then just stop using the program before the trial period expires and delete it from your computer and that's it. You only have an obligation to register if you continue to use the program outside the trial period.

How to make money from Shareware

You're an experienced programmer with a series of successful titles to your credit, all of which have been sold through 'normal' software houses and you'd like to release your new baby as Shareware. It's absolutely fantastic and (surely) everyone will want it. You've put it on your web site and announced it everywhere and you sit back and wait for the money to roll in. Nothing happens.

What's wrong?

Most inexperienced Shareware authors make a series of mistakes. I'm assuming that the program is fine, and that it works perfectly, but there's a lot more to it than that. Writing good Shareware requires a different approach from writing software that's going to be distributed by conventional methods. If you don't appreciate this you will never be successful with Shareware.

Other people unlikely to prosper are those who have written a series of successful PD or Freeware programs and think that all they have to do to make some money is to declare that their next offering is Shareware and ask people to send money. This almost never works. Shareware is not just a matter of tacking a bit on to the !Help file of a Freeware program saying This program is Shareware - send me £10.

This is a critical point. It is up to you to make sure that the user is fully aware of what Shareware is and their obligation to pay. Don't say Please send £10 if you like this program. That's not how you do business. In a restaurant they don't say if you've enjoyed your meal please pay the bill, you are given the bill and you are expected to pay it. Similarly with Shareware, you don't plead for your money, you explain the users obligation to pay and simply describe how they do so and what they will get from you in return. Be polite, but be firm.

Remember it's up to you to make it clear what Shareware is and that the user is obliged to send the registration fee. Tucking it away in a ReadMe file somewhere won't do. Never give the user the opportunity to say but I didn't know it was Shareware. This is where banner screens are so useful. If you have a start-up banner that clearly declares that the program is Shareware and that the user is obliged to pay then they might still not register but they'll never be able to pretend (to themselves or others) that they didn't know.

Writing Shareware requires a different approach by the programmer. It has to be better, easier to use, and do more of what the user wants than conventional software. With a conventional program the user pays their money 'up front' and then, somehow, has to make the program work. If it's got a steep learning curve, if it has a few annoying glitches, if the sales literature and adverts glossed over some of its less appealing 'features' - tough. They've paid, so unless it's absolutely horrendous they'll just have to live with it or pay more money for another program to do the same job that might not be any better!

With Shareware the scenario is somewhat different. Your (prospective) customer can get his hands on your program before they part with their money. They'll find out all about it - bad points as well as good. If they can't get the hang of it very quickly, if it's not attractive and easy to use, if it doesn't work 'as advertised' - it will go in the bin and you've lost a sale. Unlike normal software they won't have any need to make it work.

Think about it. Think about it hard. It's whole new game. You can't hook your customer with glossy brochures, flashy adverts, sympathetic reviews, demos at shows that don't point out the things it can't do. You have to hook them with the program. The program must promote itself. It must be easy to learn - and the documentation must be very well written. No steep learning curve - your customer must be 'up and running' right away and you want them hooked within a few minutes. If you can't achieve this you've lost. You've probably got about ten minutes to get your customer enthused, if it takes longer than this then you've almost certainly lost a sale. People will come back and persevere with a program they've paid for, they won't persevere with a Shareware program.

Very few normal commercial programs would survive as Shareware. This is a simple fact. It doesn't mean that the programs are no good, it just means that they wouldn't pass the test described in the previous paragraph.

Finally, but extremely important, never, never, try to make people register. Don't time limit or include intrusive banners or do other things that annoy. Fact - you can never force anyone to register. Almost anything you try, including 'crippling', limited documentation, putting messages on printouts, etc. has been tried before and it doesn't work! It's all counter productive. You have to acquire a mindset that lets you stop worrying about all those people that will (inevitably) be using your program without registering. Don't worry about it. There's nothing you can do. If they don't want to pay you can't force them, if you try they'll just bin your program and use something else, or, even worse, hack it. Remember - someone using your program without registering is still a potential customer. One day they might register. Someone who's binned it because your attempt to 'persuade' them to register was too annoying is a lost sale.