Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!sdd.hp.com!hplabs!pyramid!lstowell
From: lstowell@pyrnova.pyramid.com (Lon Stowell)
Newsgroups: comp.misc
Subject: Re: MOST Shareware is junk
Message-ID: <154724@pyramid.pyramid.com>
Date: 8 May 91 00:01:20 GMT
Sender: daemon@pyramid.pyramid.com
Reply-To: lstowell@pyrnova.pyramid.com (Lon Stowell)
Organization: Pyramid Technology Corp., Mountain View, CA
Lines: 82

In article <22247@duke.cs.duke.edu> kds@physics.phy.duke.edu (Kevin Stokes) writes:
>  I wouldn't want my autoexec.bat or config.sys messed with either,
>but why would you object to a program keeping track of the date, by
>re-writeing its own .EXE file?
>  This is the scheme I use in my shareware product.  I think it works
>well, because it doesn't nag the user, and lets them try the full featured
>product for a reasonable period.  
>  I will also say from experience, that shareware with no protection brings
>in almost nothing.  The trick is to put the protection in, but in a way
>that doesn't annoy users.
>
>
   You are a writer, I am a user.  We might just have
   drastically different opinions on what is or is not annoying.

   Your experience is counter to my practice or that of most
   acquaintances.  Perhaps we all tend to pay for GOOD shareware
   because we are "in the business" of computers....and possibly
   also because it is pretty rare.

   If you DO put in expiration, it sure would be nice to note it
   in REAL big letters when you first fire up the program.  The
   consequences of expiration should be polite and benign.
   Overwriting ANY file on a drive could result in some pretty
   ticklish legal issues....and most corporate buyers won't
   tolerate this kind of software.

   You might try what some commercial vendors do....unregistered
   software is strictly demo grade.  You would restrict the
   scale of capabilities or the ability to save useful work.
   (Why corporate buyers tolerate this rather than the "Too Bad,
   Code Expired" type software is a mystery to me as well...)


Some more pet peeves:  (I am not accusing you of these, but it
is really discouraging how many shareware authors cannot deal
with humans...and their programs show it.)    

   o  If I need to input filenames to run a program, the least
      you can do is allow me to request a directory (and change
      drives, etc.) from WITHIN your program.  If I have to exit
      to do this, your source floppies get formatted.

   o  If I want to view info about you, this program, and your
      registration procedures, I'll expect to look in a file
      called "Foo.info" or AboutFoo.  Put it on my screen
      unsolicited and I get annoyed.  Make me sit thru this
      every time I run the program and floppies >> dev/null
      again.

      I will admit that creative, particularly animated, adverts
      while you load up files or initialize resources do get
      more than a few points.          

   o  I bought a mouse and joystick because I don't LIKE
      carpal tunnel syndrome.  Don't attempt to cause it by
      pretending you don't know what these devices are!

   o  When I attempt to exit, unless I have work in progress
      that I have forgotten to save, I usually mean I want to
      exit.  I know that you really feel that the only proper
      persuit of man is to spend time using your program, but
      asking me to confirm a request to cease this frivolity is
      really quite annoying.  

   o  RAther than mess with my environment files, how about
      noting the needed changes and let ME make them?  We might
      just have differing ideas about how we would like to run
      our computers.  

Off soapbox.


        _   /|
	\'o.O'
	=(___)=
	   U

     THPTH! ACKHH!

Support Bill the Cat in the president's 
War against MS/DOS!