🚀 go-pugleaf

In <1992Aug21.201734.20379@PA.dec.com> reisert@sttng.mlo.dec.com (Jim Reisert) writes:


>I understand the differences between Shareware, Freeware and true
>public-domain software.  My main concern is this:

>People ask for recommendations of shareware to do a job.  It seems to
>me that some piece of commercial software might do the job also.  For
>example, "Please point me at a PD Fortran compiler".  Now I don't know
>of too many PD Fortran compilers, certainly no free ones, but I'm sure
>there are at least several in the commercial market.  So why ask only
>about PD Fortran compilers?  Either the person has another source of
>information about commercial software (strange, since I'm sure a lot
>of us have experience in that area, and could offer good opinions), or
>is unwilling to consider commercial software for some reason.  

You only asked about Shareware.  The question you cite here, however,
specified PD.  I would say this person simply doesn't have the $500 or
so to sink into a Fortran compiler.

>I was
>just trying to understand the reasons that PD software (including
>Freewrae and Shareware) is sought after, above and beyond commercial
>software.  To me, given equal functionality and comparable prices, the
>only difference I can see is that one doesn't necessarily have to pay
>for shareware in order to use it, but one does have to pay for
>commerical software.

Usually it's the money.  Plus, there is the caveat with Shareware that
you can look at it and see if it does what you need before you pay for
it (evaluation of commercial software isn't the same, since usually
only 'professionals' do this, you don't know what they did, how long
they worked with it, etc.).  Unfortunately, there are quite a few
people who use Shareware and don't pay for it.  However, I'm sure that
Shareware authors are aware of this phenomenon.

>My comment about 'buying the best software, regardless of its origin'
>just means that if I have a need (like an address book, for example),
>I want software that will perform the task in the way that is most
>suitable for me.  In fact, I have registered two shareware packages
>(Names & Dates, and NameBase) just for this purpose (N&D won't run
>under OS/2).  I don't have tons of money to spend on software either.
>But I'd rather buy one good $100 commercial package than spend a lot
>of time evaluating a bunch of crappy ones (yes, time *is* money to
>some people).

Some people don't have the 'spare change' to make that tradeoff,
though, Jim.  The world is full of poor, starving students.


-- 
"Insisting on perfect safety is for people who don't have the balls to live
 in the real world."   -- Mary Shafer, NASA Ames Dryden
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Fred.McCall@dseg.ti.com - I don't speak for others and they don't speak for me.