Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site srs.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!mit-eddie!think!harvard!seismo!rochester!srs!matt From: matt@srs.UUCP (Matt Goheen) Newsgroups: net.news Subject: Re: shareware Message-ID: <174@srs.UUCP> Date: Mon, 4-Nov-85 09:39:18 EST Article-I.D.: srs.174 Posted: Mon Nov 4 09:39:18 1985 Date-Received: Thu, 7-Nov-85 05:09:24 EST References: <182@tolerant.UUCP> <678@stc-b.stc.UUCP> <393@graffiti.UUCP> Organization: S.R. Systems, Rochester NY Lines: 63 Well, well, well. Isn't net.news (& net.news.group) crowded these days. It seems obvious (to me) that net.sources.mac isn't going to go away. It may change it's name (to mod.s.m), but that's about it. I don't see why there is such a fuss over a news group that is so useful to the Mac community. Oh, you say this is for Unix users? Well, why do we have net.politics, net.philosophy, net.etc.etc.etc...? What good do these groups serve. But, I don't really care about those groups (because I don't read them :-) ). However, I DO read, grok, archive, save, browse through, study n.s.m. Of ALL the shareware that has been posted over the last six months, only one is actually going to get money from me (hasn't yet, but will). The rest I find mostly useless and/or poorly written and/or a re-hash of something I already have. What's the POINT of this babble you say? Well: 1) Shareware doesn't REQUIRE payment, even if you do use it. By putting something in the public domain you have no LEGAL claim to ANY money (hell, if it did I would certainly distribute some crap to get rich on; or maybe put up signs demanding money for reading my sign!). 2) Why are we even discussing this when so many other groups contain so much garbage. Maybe we could discuss making n.s.m a moderated group. I would moderate if it came to this, but I really don't feel it's that necessary. Currently on our machine (where we expire news in one week), n.s.m takes a whopping 105K. Compare to net.politics at 435 (inc. net.politics.theory) and net.religion.all at 344K. Net.flame has 346K!!! In other words, although n.s.m has a rather high band width (and, do to the nature of its material it fluctuates rather highly), it generally is lower than many other groups. 3) There is no number three. However, if anyone thinks there is and I've forgotten it, please let me know. 4) Most shareware is not posted by the author. I.E. someone uses a shareware program, thinks it is good and posts it. I mean, it is SHAREware. 5) Shareware can be useful. Shareware can be fun. Shareware can be used as a contraceptive device (well, this one isn't actually true, but the first two are). The ONLY negative point I see in shareware is that the authors are getting something for nothing -> free distribution. However, BIG DEAL. No one is LOSING money because of it. It seems to me that the people that want n.s.m to go away are growing sour grapes...they don't make money from shareware, therefore no one should. It is the benefit I look at, not who is getting what for what. Anyway, the amount of money made in shareware over NETNEWS is slim. That's it. I really don't see why we keep discussing this (except from the "to mod or not to mod" angle) as it is obvious n.s.m is here to stay in one form or another. Geez, some people... Matt Goheen S.R. Systems ...seismo!rochester!srs!matt