Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!newstop!sundc!potomac!jtn
From: jtn@potomac.ads.com (John T. Nelson)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: Morality of creating crippleware
Summary: crippleware
Keywords: Cripple hypercard
Message-ID: <8388@potomac.ads.com>
Date: 22 Feb 90 19:00:17 GMT
References: <4300@helios.TAMU.EDU>
Distribution: comp.sys.mac.hypercard
Organization: Advanced Decision Systems, Arlington VA
Lines: 29


I have only a few qualms with crippleware:

1) Unless it's advertised as such, crippleware can confuse the
machine's administrator and user when his or her machine crashes
unexpectedly.  Oh... gee it must be this shareware thing I got off the
net.  Or MAYBE it's a virus.  Or maybe the disk drive has gone bad.
How can we tell?  If it IS advertised as such well then caveat emptor.

2) Crippleware discourages the distribution of freeware/shareware.
When enough people become frustrated with crippleware they will begin
boycotting the good stuff (freeware/shareware).  Distributing
crippleware seems like a good way to insure your development time
however it can also have the effect of discouraging the use of network
derived software.

3) Gee did *I* REALLY destroy your file system?  If the crippleware
programmer makes a mistake in the code that either disabels or
destroys itself, and ends up wiping away your file system then you can
expect to see some pretty heated flames coming your way.  Crippleware
that inadvertently destroys a user's data is tantamount to a trojan
horse.

Worse, a programmer who DELIBERATLY tries to distribute trojan
horses/viruses could hide behind the claim that "oh it was just
crippleware.... so sorry hee hee."


That's my $0.2.