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From: tdn@K.GP.CS.CMU.EDU.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: Red Ryder _10.2_ is on Genie NOW!!
Message-ID: <277@PT.CS.CMU.EDU>
Date: Mon, 2-Nov-87 01:02:11 EST
Article-I.D.: PT.277
Posted: Mon Nov  2 01:02:11 1987
Date-Received: Wed, 4-Nov-87 19:45:04 EST
References: <377UD069225@NDSUVM1> <172@ut-emx.UUCP> <297@ur-tut.UUCP> <2442@usceast.UUCP> <218NETOPRDC@NCSUVM> <32335@sun.uucp>
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Organization: Carnegie-Mellon University, CS/RI
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In article <32335@sun.uucp> chuq@sun.UUCP (Chuq Von Rospach) writes:
>In article <218NETOPRDC@NCSUVM> NETOPRDC@NCSUVM.BITNET (Daniel Carr) writes:
>Yes, he would. 10.2 is a commercial product, and to get into the SIG that it
>is posted on you have to be a registered user. Just posting it to this
>network defeats that.
>
>>Personally speaking, if I think it's better that 9.4, i will pay for it.
>>If I don't, i'll trash it.
>
>Red Ryder is no longer a shareware package as of 10.0. You don't get this
>option anymore. If more people had paid for their shareware versions, Watson
>might not have had to make this decision....
>
>chuq

It is my impression that Scott Watson has done quite well by the shareware
versions of Red Ryder.  His boast that Red Ryder had outsold all the other
Macintosh terminal programs combined with the strong sales MacTerminal has
enjoyed, Watson's low advertising/distribution costs, and magazines giving
Red Ryder as an example of successful shareware do not add up to a lack of
paying users forcing him to make the product commercial.

I think the real reason that he took Red Ryder commercial is that he thinks
he can make even more money by doubling its price, now that he has $$$ from
shareware fees to finance the startup period of a "real" commercial product.
In fact, Watson made comments on the Freesoft roundtable to the effect that
he thinks shareware is a great way to raise startup capital!  It's a slight
miracle that Red Ryder 10.2 can be downloaded from the FreeSoft roundtable;
the comments that he and other Freesoft Roundtable operators made when 10.0
was announced sounded pretty mercenary (like claiming that the promises Red
Ryder manuals and registration forms made are not really legally binding on
Freesoft/Watson, despite their wording and his acceptance of the money).

                                        -- Thomas Newton