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From: rick@ameristar (Rick Spanbauer)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: An issue for the entire Amiga Community.
Summary: Shareware, PD, alternate suggestion
Message-ID: <1990Jun3.163532.12083@ameristar>
Date: 3 Jun 90 16:35:32 GMT
References: <20930@snow-white.udel.EDU>
Organization: Ameristar Technology, Inc
Lines: 87


NOTE: 	I am including text from a posting seen recently in c.s.a.  This 
	posting is not directed at the author of the comments I've included
	here - it is directed at the genre of postings that read something
	like "Wouldn't it be nice if software cost $0-99 ...".

>     Whereas this would remove a workable compiler from the PD, I
> would like to see Patrick Quaid finish the program, and market it
> in the $40 range.  Finishing it would be to work out the current

	$40 probably isn't a realistic price point for any product that comes 
	with support, especially a language product.  Even if the guy moves 
	2000 units a year through direct sales that is only $80K gross - not 
	enough to manufacture the product, pay a salary, run the phone, 		advertise, etc.  I'm not sure that the net profits from sales on a such
	product would be worth even investment of evenings/weekends hacker 
	cycles.

>     I love the Amiga public domain.  I'd hate to lose the wealth of
> software I have access to.  But it is true.  You can't compete with
> free.  I'd rather see these talented programmers compete with comercial
> programs by undercutting their price with better quality, not by offering
> a free, "almost as good" product.

	PD has its place for any machine.   There is probably no better way 
	to learn how to (or how not to) program any machine than by looking 
	at PD sources.  PD helps manufacturers who market non traditional 
	machines (eg the Amiga) get their first year of sales going before 
	developers come on line.  However, realize that there are people who 
	derive all their income from sales in the Amiga market (I am _not_ one 
	of those people) - prospective PD software authors should 
	perhaps stop and think before they launch freeware that will affect 
	a commercial package - if YOU were deriving all your income from a 
	particular product, how would YOU feel about some person cutting the 
	legs out of YOUR product.  

	Here's a suggestion: rather than going for PD glory/hacker recognition, 
	take your clone of a commercial product and actually try to compete 
	with it on a fair footing with the other guy.  One could approach 
	the usual software houses with the product and get them to sell it,
	for example.  You'll derive quite a few benefits from such a move:

		1. You'll get an education in what it costs to do things
		   commercially.  The collective voice of sanity in Amiga 
		   product pricing will have won another convert ;-) If you 
		   follow the engineering rags these days it quickly becomes 
		   apparent that the industry will chew you up and spit you 
		   out around age 40 unless you've aquired some business 
		   acumen by then.  Until I got into doing Amiga stuff 
		   commercially, I didn't realize how naive I was about most
		   real life business matters.  I don't mean ECO101 & simple 
		   interest formulas here.

		2. You'll make more money than you would doing the same thing
		   shareware.  If you choose to hype your products through
		   magazine interviews like some do in the Amiga market, then 
		   you'll get more glory too.

		3. If your clone is technically competitive, then you'll help
		   the user community by making your competitor do his thing 
		   better.  (He will be encouraged to do better rather than
		   run because he knows you are operating under the same
		   forces of natural selection he is)

		4. With your new found revenue stream you may then have the
		   bucks + positive reinforcement to do the Amiga a favor
		   by continuing to produce software for the machine.  

		6. Depending on where you land next, it may be a good resume
		   stuffer.

	In summary: the "right" thing is to distribute significant works and 
	all clone works commercially.  Right for you, right for the user 
	community, right for the machine itself.   And hell, it is considerate 
	of other people too.  

	If you choose to ignore what was said in this posting then consider 
	this:  sooner or later the day will come when you graduate from 
	college and the reality of paying off your loans, getting a mortgage, 
	paying rent, insurance, raising a family, etc is waiting for you 
	at the door :-)  The unfortunate truth for all us computer dweebs is 
	that banks negotiate transactions in terms of dollars, not lines of 
	PD software.  

	IMHO, all the usual disclaimers, etc.

					Rick Spanbauer
					Ameristar