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From: alex@eniac.seas.upenn.edu (Edmund Davis)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.apps
Subject: Re: Database licensing
Message-ID: <42001@netnews.upenn.edu>
Date: 25 Apr 91 18:36:48 GMT
References: <1991Mar27.061157.6239@mcs.drexel.edu> <40709@netnews.upenn.edu> <12470@uhccux.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu>
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Reply-To: alex@eniac.seas.upenn.edu (Edmund Davis)
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In article <12470@uhccux.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu> bmartin@uhccux.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Brian Martin) writes:
>In article <40709@netnews.upenn.edu> porten@eniac.seas.upenn.edu (Jeffrey  Porten) writes:
>>
>>I need some information about getting licenses for this project.  Our
>>current plans are to use one of the following three platforms: Hypercard,
>>Filemaker Pro, or 4th Dimension.
>>
>>4th Dimension gets around this problem, I think.  Am I correct in assuming
>>that stand-alone dbases from 4th are free of legal hassles?  Are there
>>any restrictions?  Problme with this is the cost of acquiring a copy (are
>>there non-profit or student rates?), and learning to program in their
>>language.
>
>4th Dimension requires that the user own at least a 4D runtime module. They
>list for $125 each, and can be mail-ordered for as little as $50 each. I'm
>a 4D developer, and have found the runtime licensing issue to be a major
>drawback to developing commercial applications based on 4D.

I would add, in addition, that 4D runtimes only allow those 4D database
to run that _have_ runtime environments prepared.  The User environment
does not exist in a 4D runtime.  Also, runtimes come with _NO_ 
documentation whatsoever, nor can it be bought separately.

alex
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