The Web Wizard’s Guide to Freeware/Shareware

1. The Web Wizard’s Guide to Freeware/Shareware Chapter One Software on the Internet

2. Chapter Objectives • To understand how the Internet has influenced programmers and the process of software design • To understand the difference between shareware and freeware • To learn how software licenses protect software authors as well as software users

3. The Early Internet • The earliest ancestor of the Internet was called the ARPAnet. • Funding came from the Department of Defense, but the ARPAnet was created primarily by university researchers and computer science students. • Universities encourage open communication and shared ideas, and ARPA encouraged shared resources via the ARPAnet. • The Internet was created by people who wanted to share their ideas and computing resources, including their computer programs.

4. Commercial Software • Shrink-wrap (commercial) software is a for-profit commodity. • Shrink-wrap software is sold in retail outlets, but the same software is usually available on the Internet. • Software sold in stores is packaged with CD-ROMs and primted documentation. • Software distributed over the Internet is less expensive because it is not packaged and involves less overhead. • When you purchase software over the Internet, you can always get the most recent release available.

5. Non-Commercial Software • Programmers working at universities have always shared their own software creations with other programmers at no cost, and the easiest way to share software is to post is on the Internet. • Anyone can distribute their own software over the Internet, including students and amateur programmers. • Professional programmers who work for commercial software companies can also distribute their own software as long as it was developed on their own time, using personal equipment, and does not violate any propietary agreements.

6. Special Edition Software • This is a free sample of a larger commercial software package. • Special Edition software is often found bundled with other commercial software, on CD-ROMs, pre-installed on new computers, and at commercial Web sites. • Some key feature or capability is usually missing from the special edition version.

7. Freeware • Freeware is software that is distributed at no cost to the end user. • Special Edition software is one type of freeware, but not all freeware is associated with commercial, for-profit software. • Some freeware is full-featured software that is simply available to the public at no cost.

8. Shareware • Shareware is software that can be evaluated during a trial period at no cost. • After the free trial-period, users are asked to either discard the software or pay for it. • The terms of a shareware agreement are impossible to police, so shareware authors rely on an honorable user population or technological devices (nags or ads) that encourage honorable behavior.

9. Nagware and Adware • Nagware is shareware that keeps reminding the user to pay for it after the trial period expires. • Adware can be run at no cost indefinitely, as long as the user doesn’t mind seeing advertisements. • When a user pays for shareware, the user receives a registration key that terminates any built-in nags or ads.

10. Software Licenses • All software, including freeware, should have a software license. • When you purchase a piece of software, you don’t become the owner of the software: you are actually purchasing the right to use the software subject to its licensing agreement. • Software licenses are difficult (but not altogether impossible) to police.

11. Your Legal Responsibilities • When you install software on your computer, you are subject to the terms of the software license, whether you’ve read it or not. • The act of installing the software enters you into a legally binding contract. You should take the time to find out what that contract says.

12. Site Licenses • If you are an employee or a student, you may be able to obtain commercial software at a reduced price through a site license. • Check with your business or school to find out what software they have been authorized to distribute via site licenses.