Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cs.utexas.edu!wuarchive!mit-eddie!uw-beaver!ubc-cs!alberta!calgary!cpsc!brucet From: brucet@cpsc.ucalgary.ca (Bruce Thompson) Newsgroups: comp.sources.d Subject: Re: Paying for Shareware Summary: Forcing distributors of UseNet to pay? Keywords: UseNet forcing Message-ID: <2351@cs-spool.calgary.UUCP> Date: 17 Jan 90 07:30:50 GMT References: <1134@utoday.UUCP> <15410@well.UUCP> <17608@rpp386.cactus.org> Sender: news@calgary.UUCP Reply-To: brucet@ksi.cpsc.ucalgary.ca.UUCP (Bruce Thompson) Organization: NovAtel Communications Ltd., Calgary, Alberta, CANADA Lines: 44 In article <17608@rpp386.cactus.org> jfh@rpp386.cactus.org (John F. Haugh II) writes: > > ... Various items deleted ... > >It's only perceived value, and at a cost which the site owner >was =coerced= to pay. The owner of the site didn't have the >option to not pay for Brad's Shareware offering, that's the >issue. Shareware belongs in biz.sources, pure and simple. > Somethings been bothering me during parts of various discussions on the net regarding the cost of people posting stuff, etc. etc. I don't intend to sound like I'm singling out John here, I think that this misconception is extremely widespread. The concept that by posting something to the net I'm FORCING the other sites on the net to spend money on my behalf is a little strange. When sites join UseNet, it should be understood that there's a lot of traffic on the net. By establishing a UseNet connection, a site is FREELY accepting those costs which may be entailed in that connection. By posting something to the net I am not coercing you to pay for it you have already in effect stated that you would! While I agree that efforts to keep these costs down are worthy, I don't think it's fair to use these costs in any argument. If your site does not want to incur these costs then frankly your site can freely disconnect from the net in the same manner that it freely connected. I'm not trying to flame anyone here, it's just frustrating when people complain that others are FORCING them to spend money. In a previous article in this chain an analogy was made to postage-due mail arriving. I don't think that this is a valid analogy for the simple reason that you didn't freely decide that all postage due mail was to be paid automatically, which is in effect what you've done by connecting to UseNet. >-- >John F. Haugh II UUCP: ...!cs.utexas.edu!rpp386!jfh >Ma Bell: (512) 832-8832 Domain: jfh@rpp386.cactus.org ============================================================================== Bruce Thompson | "I've got this terrible pain in all the NovAtel Communications Ltd. | diodes down my left side" - Marvin the | Paranoid Android The opinions expressed are my own, and do not necessarily reflect those of NovAtel Communications Ltd. nor those of The University of Calgary.