Re: Warez (was Hawk's Dung in Jello)

[Tim Nelson <tcn62@ici.net>]

I don't remember who said it, but a couple of weeks ago, someone made a
very good point: the kind of software we're talking about tends to be
fairly non-mainstream and as such doesn't have a real high profit margin.
The guys who write this sort of soft often as not do it for the love of it,
and aren't usually making much from it. When we make it even harder for
them to get by, pretty soon those "warez" dry up. (I'm talking about the
little guys who're writing cool, specialized apps, not the big guys with
the corporate headquarters, but let's not get into defining where the line
should be drawn between them...)

Stealing is not good. This applies to either end; illegal dupes (usually)
rip off the software writer, and overpriced product rips off the consumer.
One exacerbates the other in a vicious circle. (Had to get a looping
reference in there somewhere!)

Tim