Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site watrose.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!watrose!cdshaw From: cdshaw@watrose.UUCP (Chris Shaw) Newsgroups: net.micro.apple Subject: Re: An open letter to software pirates (110 lines) Message-ID: <7377@watrose.UUCP> Date: Fri, 22-Mar-85 04:34:03 EST Article-I.D.: watrose.7377 Posted: Fri Mar 22 04:34:03 1985 Date-Received: Sat, 23-Mar-85 00:38:56 EST References: <1180@decwrl.UUCP> <183@osu-eddie.UUCP> Reply-To: cdshaw@watrose.UUCP (Chris Shaw) Organization: U of Waterloo, Ontario Lines: 105 Although the article I'm replying to was well-reasoned and contained a lack of emotionality that other posters should emulate (hint, hint), it seems to me that there are two questions going unanswered (for me, at least): 1) Does pirating occur to such (or any) degree on larger (non-micro) systems, or with systems owned by companies doing a reputable business ? I don't think so. For the mainframe case, it matters a lot that the soft- ware works. I suspect any random user can log on & complain about software not working, and expect to get a response of "we'll fix it", as opposed to "it's a bootleg, so forget it!". If one does get the "bootleg" response, a large system would quickly lose customers / be reported. In any case, the thought of a system manager going out & swapping f77 for rogue (or whatever) at the nearby hacker meet seems ludicrous. The same kind of propriety probably forces businesses to buy micro software as opposed to pirating it. I think that this situation is more likely to cause pirating than the mainframe case, though. 2) Why doesn't the book industry die due to the ease of photocopying ? I think there are at least 3 reasons : 1) Photocopying is harder than disk duplication. 2) Books are nice in their own form, while a binder fulla photos is not so pleasant. 3) Buying a dozen copies of a book doesn't cost 12 * $600, more like 12 * $40, or $7200 vs $480. Now admittedly, it may be hard to sell a little bit of software for $40 per copy and make a profit, due to disk costs, etc... but I think that more than $10 for production costs is silly. (I don't know the hard facts on software prod'n though). In fact, I have a war game published by a large general-software publisher, and they sell public domain games for $7.95 for about 8 or so atari games, $5.95 for p.d. PC software, and $3.95 for Apple stuff. They aren't a charity, so they make some money at this, I'm sure. Basically, the costs for software are not the cost of copying and distribution, but in the large front-end cost of creating the program to start with. It is a mistake, I think, to go into the software business by starting a company, writing one program, then go beating the streets with your one software product in the hopes of making a million. Imagine what would happen if you tried to do the same thing in the book business. You would NOT get away with writing your book, starting a publishing firm, and then going bookstore to bookstore to get orders of 50 copies here, 30 copies there at $299 each!!!! For starters, no bank/whatever would finance you. A lot of people think that getting into the software game is the same as starting a company. I disagree. It is the same as getting into the book-writing business. First, you write a rough draught, take it to publishers, get their interest, then you polish & edit, and hopefully, they publish you. You then sit back & collect 15% royalty and live like a king (or peasant, depending on sales :-). If your program is going to sell, it will have a MUCH better chance in the hands of an ok publisher than it does in your hands. Why ? Because selling software & writing software are not mutually inclusive. The world's best hacker probably doesn't know sh*t about how to mail- proof diskettes, and he probably doesn't know how to manage a company, either. So why take the risk ? Now that I have really dug myself in deep, I'll try to get to the point. One thing that people miss is that software always needs documentation. I used to bootleg programs on my Apple, but I soon stopped when I realized that I was filling up perfectly good disks with programs I'd never use and that I had no idea how to use properly in the first place. It soon hit me that I would have to rip off documentation, as well. So now I have only half my disks with useless crap on them, plus a bookshelf full of various binders with documentation that doesn't match the software & isn't complete, all in lousy photocopy. The good software publisher also sends a good book along with the disk, and to me, it's the book that you really need. The software is probably useless without the documentation, anyway. If you're a really determined thief, you'll steal both the software and the disk. On the other hand, such theives are not so prevalent, since there's no challenge to photocopying, just work. And since you're paying $40-60 for a book, do you think a looseleaf binder with lousy photocopies of a badly-organized manual is acceptable ? Not likely. More likely you want to pay $40-60 for a well-bound paperback, at the very least, and a hardcover as a bonus !! What is needed in the software biz is the realization that happens to all booming but maturing businesses. There will be no more of the old days, and not quite so many young pioneers in the biz that there used to be. From now on (+ 2-4 years) there will be no more one- product software houses that make a small killing. Just as there will be no more huge 1-product car companies, or huge 1-product mainframe makers. There will only be the Borland's of this world, who will make either a large killing or die in the price competition. This isn't say that software writing won't be done anymore, just not the same way. Prices will come down due to real competition, and pirating will stop because there is no more need of it. I welcome any comment on this, but please, no emotionalism, Thank-you Chris Shaw University of Waterloo