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From: samt@pro-europa.cts.com (Sam Theis)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple
Subject: Re: re: RE: Piracy
Message-ID: <8905211959.AA07191@crash.cts.com>
Date: 21 May 89 17:32:24 GMT
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Network Comment: to #2679 by pnet01!crash!cornellc.cit.cornell.edu!STEVENS%SENECA.BITNET

When was the last time that a car dealer sold you a car that many of the basic
functions and options didn't work, then when you complained, you were told
that you will have to get next year's model at a 30% cost differential.
 
Software Publishers are in general a bunch of pirates in the same league as
those that steal their software.  They demand that they have the right to sell
poorly written, poorly documented, poorly performing software packages "AS
IS".  The only responsibility that they want to shoulder is to take your
money.  It is to their advantage to put out half-baked programs.  They can
then fleece their customers for some more money for "upgrades".  
 
How would it be if the next time you went to the bookstore and purchased a
$250 book, then took it home, opened it up and started looking at it, found
that it was missing several pages, had several pages with messed up printing,
etc.  Then when you called the publisher, they said that you had the first
edition and it had a few bugs; if you would send them the cover and $50 they
would send you the second edition which would fix a few of the problems, some
of the other problems won't be fixed until a future edition.  
 
That is a little more like the software business since both books and software
deal with "intellectual property".
 
When the software industry cleans up its act, then maybe it will get a little
more sympathy.
 
Sam