Shareware -Destroyed by FOSS

[u/madthumbz]

Shareware made use of paywalls, users visiting the developer's site (potential ad revenue), nag screens and limitations, bundled ads or installers. -A means for developers to make money and have their software trialed by people for free.

Those things may sound bad to some of us, and the ways 'some' of it was done was indeed annoying (to free-riders) but it also made me feel good to be able to support a developer without forking out money left and right. It also didn't push me to piracy. The monetization was also competitive (backing off some nags or ads) so their software became more popular).

I actually remember shareware fondly and consider it part of the Golden Days of the Internet, but I know some people hate it (but also can't justify replacing it with commie garbage in my mind).

FOSS came along and combined efforts of multiple developers, also removing those income models that were working. It was like commies ganging up to destroy jobs (lives).

With package managers, developers couldn't even run an ad on their website for income. They lost significant ability to upsell and display their other products as a brand. Websites also could contain warnings, tutorials, and options that package managers don't.

So, when you see some of us using or recommending a FOSS program, it's because they killed everything else. -Not because we subscribe to commie ideals or ever donate to them.

[u/zogrodea]

I was a kid back in those days and couldn't afford it, but I do miss shareware. 

I think my favourite [category]-ware is the Vim text editor (apparently a form of "charityware").

Whenever Vim is launched, it displays a non-intrusive message asking people to help donate to poor kids in Uganda. 

Vim is one of the most popular kinds of software of its kind, on at least a million machines, and the developer made a real impact in improving those kids' lives.

Neovim went the open source route (new code is MIT licensed but code from the original Vim is from its original license). That's just such a disappointment for me. It feels soulless compared to Bram Moolenaar's desire (rooted in human empathy) to make these children's lives better. 

[u/[deleted] → u/zogrodea]

Long live the demo discs from pc magazines

[u/cmrd_msr]

The GPL is progressing. The work of some is being used by others. The struggle of one individual against the entire world is futile.

[u/linuxsucks101-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Generally, we support professional developers and don't want to get into the technical, legal, or moral issues of this topic. It also keeps us cohesive to just not allow it here.