Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!netsys!killer!ninja!sys1!trsvax!don
From: don@trsvax.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.software-eng
Subject: Re: Free Upgrades and Bug Fixes -- A Po
Message-ID: <228800001@trsvax>
Date: 28 Jan 88 15:10:00 GMT
References: <4082@june.cs.washington.edu>
Lines: 27
Nf-ID: #R:june.cs.washington.edu:4082:trsvax:228800001:000:1273
Nf-From: trsvax.UUCP!don    Jan 28 09:10:00 1988


> What is the consensus about software vendors offering free upgrades
> and bug fixes?  It seems to me that other industries have always
> charged for upgrades, especially in a consumer environment.  For
> example, dish washers are not upgraded each year for free -- if you
> want a bug fix, you buy a new one.

I don't think the analogy applies too well.  If I buy a dishwasher which
malfunctions due to manufacturer error, I expect the manufacturer to
cover the cost of repairing or replacing the product.  By analogy, a
software vendor should cover the cost for replacing software which fails
to perform its specified function, i.e. "The program crashed when I tried
to ...."

However, if software comes out which adds functionality rather than fixes
bugs, I see no reason why the vendor could not justify charging the full
rate to owners of previous versions.

I am not a software vendor myself, so I make no claims about the analogy
holding up, in fact I find practices in software quite different from
what one would expect in other industries.

Don Subt
Tandy Corp.

The opinions expressed above are strictly mine, not my employer's.  I hold
no copyright on the opinions, and waive all rights to any personal profit
which I may accrue as a result of the above text.