Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!bonnie.concordia.ca!uunet!news.larc.nasa.gov!tadguy From: tadguy@abcfd01.larc.nasa.gov (Tad Guy) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.datacomm Subject: Re: Handshake2.20 is at ab20.larc.nasa.gov!!! Message-ID: Date: 13 Feb 91 15:40:00 GMT References: <1991Feb8.035928.29972@news.iastate.edu> <1991Feb10.202236.1953@bilver.uucp> <1991Feb12.153248.3291@disk.uucp> Sender: news@news.larc.nasa.gov (USENET Network News) Organization: NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA Lines: 50 In-Reply-To: sparks@disk.uucp's message of 12 Feb 91 15:32:48 GMT In article <1991Feb12.153248.3291@disk.uucp> sparks@disk.uucp (John Sparks) writes: > tadguy@abcfd01.larc.nasa.gov (Tad Guy) writes: > >commercial software is not permitted in comp.binaries.amiga, and the > >distribution section of HandShake.doc is unclear wether HandShake is > >commercial (ie, you *must* pay for it) or `free' ware (pay for it if you > >want to, but you're not obligated to do so) > > > >It's safer to err on the side of caution and not post it, though it > >will continue to be available via anonymous ftp from ab20. > > If Eric says you have to pay for it if you use it, it shouldn't be > considered 'commercial'. It is still free in the sense that you can > download it and peruse it for free. If you like it, you pay, if you > don't like it, just delete it. But you're obligated to pay, which makes it commercial. Sure, you don't pay before you get the software, but that's not different than test-driving a car. The bottom line is that you *must* pay. Software that asks for payment is not the same, since payment is not required. The distinction is subtle. You'll notice that `payment required' shareware is still available via anonymous ftp, at least... The difference between comp.binaries.amiga and FTP is the transport. USENET is a passive transfer medium, where articles arrive all the time, even if no one wants them. FTP is an active medium, where the user must go get something that interests him. When a user retrieves a shareware program via FTP, he must go directly to the archive site and get it. No (visible) intermediate sites are involved. A posting of `required payment' shareware over USENET means that sites that have no interest in the software are helping to distribute the software; and eventually someone will pay the author for the software, yet the sites that propagated it get nothing. There are sites that object strongly to this. > Look over at the IBM binaries section, they are always sending > through shareware stuff. If they can do it, we should be able to do > it also. There's plenty of truly free software for the Amiga, and while that's the case let's let comp.binaries.amiga concentrate on it. When there's little free software for the Amiga, then I'll consider posting shareware that requires payment. But I sincerely hope there's never a time when there's no free Amiga software... ...tad