🚀 go-pugleaf

rockwell@socrates.umd.edu (Raul Rockwell) writes:
> Mathew:
> > Suppose the development cost for a piece of specialized software is
> > $100,000.  With your suggested way of working, company X has to pay
> > programmer Y $100,000 to get a solution to the problem.  Nine other
> > companies then grab copies of the software and use it.
> >
> > The alternative (non-GNU) method sees company X pay $10,000, and
> > the nine other companies all pay $10,000 as well.  Since company X
> > is in business to make money, it will prefer the non-GNU method.
> 
> (1) Why are there no savings for using GNU software?  What is GNU
> being used for?  (An advantage of GNU is that you don't have to start
> from scratch each time you come up with a new product, no?)

You don't have to start from scratch each time you come up with a commercial
product.  You can use PD code, code developed in-house, or code licensed or
purchased from elsewhere.

> (2) The nine other companies don't get service contracts if they don't
> pay for them.

I want to write software which is so good the users don't need service
contracts.  GNU would seem to discourage this.

My example was working on the basis that none of the companies wants a
service contract.  After all, many don't so it makes no sense to assume that
they will.

>  (What was that $100,000 for, anyways?)

If you mean "What was it spent on?", then the answer is designing, writing
code, debugging, documentation, and so on.


mathew