Shareware Games Galore!

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──────────────────────────── What is Shareware? What is the ASP? ──────────────────────────── ┌─────────┐ ┌─────┴───┐ │ (R) ──│ │o │────────────────── │ ┌─────┴╨──┐ │ Association of │ │ │─┘ Shareware └───│ o │ Professionals ──────│ ║ │──────────────────── └────╨────┘ MEMBER ───────────────── Some Definitions: ───────────────── You've probably heard the terms "public domain", "freeware", "shareware", and others like them. Your favorite BBS or disk vendor probably has many programs described by one or more of these words. There's a lot of confusion about and between these terms, but they actually have specific meanings and implications. Once you understand them, you will have a much easier time navigating the maze of programs available to you, and understanding what your obligations are, or aren't, with each type of program. Let's start with some basic definitions. "Public domain" has a very specific legal meaning. It means that the creator of a work (in this case, a piece of software), who had legal ownership of that work, has given up ownership and dedicated the work "to the public domain". Once something is in the public domain, anyone can use it in any way they choose, and the author has no control over the use and cannot demand payment for it. If you find a program which the author has explicitly put into the public domain, you are free to use it however you see fit without paying for the right to use it. But use care - due to the confusion over the meaning of the words, programs are often described by others as being "public domain" when, in fact, they are shareware or free, copyrighted software. To be sure a program is public domain, you should look for an explicit statement from the author to that effect. "Copyrighted" is the opposite of public domain. A copyrighted program is one where the author has asserted his or her legal right to control the program's use and distribution by placing the legally required copyright notices in the program and documentation. The law gives copyright owners broad rights to restrict how their work is distri- buted, and provides for penalties for those who violate these restric- tions. When you find a program which is copyrighted, you must use it Shareware and the ASP Page 1 of 7 Korenthal Associates, Inc. SHR-WARE.DOC in accordance with the copyright owner's restrictions on distribution and payment. Usually, these are clearly stated in the program docu- mentation. Maintaining a copyright does not necessarily imply charging a fee, so it is perfectly possible and legal to have copyrighted programs which are distributed free of charge. The fact that a program is free, however, does not mean it is in the public domain - though this is a common confusion. "Shareware" is copyrighted software which is distributed by authors through bulletin boards, on-line services, disk vendors, and copies passed among friends. It is commercial software which you are allowed to try out before you pay for it. This makes shareware the ultimate in money back guarantees. ────────────────────── The Shareware Concept: ────────────────────── Most money back guarantees work like this: you pay for the product and then have some period of time to try it out and see whether or not you like it. If you don't like it, or find it doesn't do what you need, you return it (undamaged) and at some point - which might take months - you get your money back. Some software companies won't even let you try their product! In order to qualify for a refund, the diskette envelope must have an unbroken seal. With these "licensing" agree- ments, you only qualify for your money back if you haven't tried the product. How absurd! Shareware is very different. With shareware, you get to try it for a limited time, without spending a penny. You are able to try it on your own system(s), and in your own special work environment. If you decide not to continue using it, you throw it away and forget all about it. No paperwork, phone calls, or correspondence to waste your valuable time. If you do continue using it, then - and only then - do you pay for it. Shareware is a distribution method, NOT a type of software. Shareware is produced by accomplished programmers, just like retail software. There is good shareware and bad shareware, just as there is good and bad retail software. The primary difference between shareware and retail software is that with shareware you know if it's good or bad BEFORE you pay for it. As a software user, you benefit because you get to try the software and determine whether it meets your needs before you pay for it, and authors benefit because they are able to get their products into your hands without the hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenses it Shareware and the ASP Page 2 of 7 Korenthal Associates, Inc. SHR-WARE.DOC takes to launch a traditional retail software product. There are many programs on the market today which would never have become available without the shareware marketing method. The shareware system and the continued availability of quality share- ware products depend on your willingness to register and pay for the shareware you use. It's the registration fees you pay that allow us to support and continue to develop our products. Please show your support for shareware by registering those programs you actually use and by passing them on to others. Shareware is kept alive by YOUR support! ────────────────── The Virus Problem: ────────────────── We've all heard the horror stories about computer viruses. Unfortunately, we have also heard lots of conflicting statistics and opinions. When it comes to the virus problem, there is a lot of confusion among users and even developers. The sad truth is that some unscrupulous publishers of anti-virus products are using half-truths, over-dramatizations, and outright fabrication to promote sales of their products. They delight in manipulating statistics to support their marketing efforts. While not illegal, these snake-oil tactics are certainly not ethical. To make matters worse, the media has frequently promoted the misinfor- mation promulgated by these unscrupulous individuals rather than the straight facts. While the misinformation may be more interesting than the actual facts, the media is not doing the computer industry any favors by spreading inaccurate information. To be fair, many news- papers, magazines, and news networks are beginning to realize which "virus experts" are reliable and which "experts" say whatever is in their own best interest. One of the most interesting myths that has been promulgated by these snake-oil salesmen is that BBS's (bulletin board systems) and share- ware programs are a major source of virus infections. Some corpora- tions are now afraid of shareware and BBS activity because of this misinformation. In the October 11, 1988 issue of PC Magazine, publisher Bill Machrone's editorial was entitled "Shareware or Scareware?". In his article, Bill Machrone points out, "The truth is that all major viruses to date were transmitted by commercial [retail] packages and Shareware and the ASP Page 3 of 7 Korenthal Associates, Inc. SHR-WARE.DOC private mail systems." That sounds a little different than the claims being made by less knowledgeable journalists! Let's consider for a moment, the distribution differences between retail software and shareware. Company XYZ releases a new version of its retail software product. At the same time that company XYZ ships tens of thousands of copies to its retail distribution channels, it also ships 30,000 updates to loyal users. Most of those loyal users will receive the update within a few days of each other. This can be a big problem if the update happened to be infected with a virus. "Not likely", you say? It has already happened! Several times! There have been seventeen (17) major incidents of virus and trojan horse problems in retail software. Some of these incidents affected tens of thousands of users. What about shareware? To date, there has been one case of a shareware author shipping an infected product. The virus was detected by the disk vendors and the problem was corrected immediately. No users were infected. "But it makes sense that programs which are passed around have a greater chance of virus infections, doesn't it?" Think about it. Who has the most to lose if viruses were spread by BBS's and shareware programs? The BBS operators, shareware disk vendors and the shareware authors, of course. Because of this, reputable BBS operators, disk vendors and shareware authors are very careful with the programs they handle. Think about it. Hundreds (even thousands) of BBS operators and disk vendors are carefully examining the programs they receive and distri- bute. Their business depends on it. This means that any given shareware program can go through hundreds, even thousands of check- points where the program is carefully examined. If a problem is found the word spreads incredibly fast. News travels in the BBS community even faster than the proverbial small town gossip. Programs have disappeared almost overnight as a result of this highly efficient communication network. If a shareware program has been around for a few months, it has been checked for viruses and trojan horses many more times than any retail software could hope to be checked. Retail distributors don't check the disks they sell. Even if the publisher checks their masters for viruses, and few do, that is still far less than the scrutiny to which shareware programs are subjected. Bill Machrone's article in PC Magazine goes on to say, "It's time to recognize that there's nothing to fear in shareware. As a distribu- tion medium, it saves you money and helps you try out new genres of software with minimum risk." Shareware and the ASP Page 4 of 7 Korenthal Associates, Inc. SHR-WARE.DOC Does this mean that we should all start buying shareware instead of retail software? Not at all (though few shareware authors would object). Let's face it, more data has been lost to power failures, spilled cups of coffee, and plain old human error than all viruses, trojan horses, and worms combined! Accurate information and common sense (regular backups) are the best defenses against lost data. Sure, the virus problem is real. Viruses exist. But shunning shareware is not the answer. Shareware and BBS's are, quite simply, NOT a major source of virus infections! Don't let fear stop you from saving money on software. Don't let fear prevent you from trying some of the best software available. Shareware is an important market for software. Take advantage of it. You'll be glad you did! ───────────────────────────────────────────────── The Association of Shareware Professionals (ASP): ───────────────────────────────────────────────── In the early days of shareware, there were no real standards. Inde- pendent authors had no efficient way to learn from each other, or to work together to improve the overall image of shareware. There was no system in place to ensure that users were treated fairly and profes- sionally. There was no way for users to find an address for an author who had moved. In short, the shareware community was disorganized and each author did things the way he or she thought was best. It was clear that if shareware was ever to become a viable and respected marketing alternative, there had to be some standardization. There had to be some guidelines to best serve the users. In 1987 a handful of shareware authors founded the Association of Shareware Professionals (ASP). In forming this industry association, these shareware authors had several primary goals in mind, including: o To inform users about shareware programs, and about shareware as a method of distributing and marketing software. o To foster a high degree of professionalism among shareware authors by setting programming, marketing, and support standards for ASP members to follow. o To encourage broader distribution of shareware through user groups and disk dealers who agree to identify and explain the nature of shareware. o To assist members in marketing their software. Shareware and the ASP Page 5 of 7 Korenthal Associates, Inc. SHR-WARE.DOC o To provide a forum through which ASP members may communicate, share ideas, and learn from each other. The newly formed Association of Shareware Professionals worked together to draft a code of ethics for all present and future members. This code of ethics included several requirements that soon became very popular among users (customers), including: o A member's program (evaluation version) could not be limited (crippled) in any way. In the true spirit of Try-Before-You-Buy, users must be able to evaluate all the features in a program before paying the registration fee. o Members must respond to every registration. At the very least they must send a receipt for the payment. o Members must provide technical support for their products for at least 90 days from the date of registration. A new system was put in place to help ensure that users were treated fairly and professionally. If a user was unable to resolve a problem with a member author then the user could contact the ASP Ombudsman with their complaint. The Ombudsman would then try to help resolve the dispute. For more complete details regarding the Ombudsman, please refer to the "ASP Ombudsman Statement" below. As of March, 1991, the ASP had about 300 author members and almost 200 vendor members, with new members joining every week. For additional information about the ASP, please contact: ASP Executive Director 545 Grover Road Muskegon, MI 49442-9427 U.S.A. or send a CompuServe message via CompuServe MAIL to ASP Executive Director 72050,1433. You may also FAX your request to the ASP Executive Director at 616-788-2765. ────────────────────────────────────── Contacting ASP Members Via CompuServe: ────────────────────────────────────── There is an easy and convenient way to speak directly to many ASP Members (both authors and vendors). Visit the Shareware forum on CompuServe. Simply type "GO Shareware" - or "GO SHARE" - from any CompuServe "!" prompt. Shareware and the ASP Page 6 of 7 Korenthal Associates, Inc. SHR-WARE.DOC Here you will be able to talk to the authors of your favorite shareware programs, learn about other programs, ask questions, make suggestions, and much more. We'd love to meet you online - please come visit us today! ──────────────────────── ASP Ombudsman Statement: ──────────────────────── This program is produced by a member of the Association of Shareware Professionals (ASP). ASP wants to make sure that the shareware principle works for you. If you are unable to resolve a shareware- related problem with an ASP member by contacting the member directly, ASP may be able to help. The ASP Ombudsman can help you resolve a dispute or problem with an ASP member, but does not provide technical support for members' products. Please write to the ASP Ombudsman at: ASP Ombudsman 545 Grover Road Muskegon, MI 49442-9427 U.S.A. or send a CompuServe message via CompuServe MAIL to ASP Ombudsman [70007,3536]. Shareware and the ASP Page 7 of 7