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IDEA: Morse Code as You Type
mouser:
i should also point out that the idea of having a program which can be configured to play specific sounds when specific keys are pressed (whether morse code or speaking the letter, which might be fun for kids) has been suggested in the past in our coding snacks section and still seems like a fun idea and a program we will eventually write as freeware if no one else here does it as a coding snack, and could easily be used to implement this morse code program as well.
kfitting:
Let me just say that I agree with datamystic and mouser on this one. While the continual griping about paying money for software is definitely out of line, free programs are ok as well. For example, Microsoft is hated by many for their handling of Windows. Many claim an OS should be free. My thoughts are that an OS is an extremely involved piece of software and the developers deserve their money. to that end, I am more than willing to pay for the software. My problem with Microsoft is their extremely high pricing; $300 for an operating system and $400+ for an Office suite that doesn't even work together... come on!
That being said, I pay for software that I find extremely well done. I paid for Opera and an Opera upgrade solely because Opera was (and still is) the best browser I have ever used. Firefox, IE, etc are fine, but Opera was worth the money.
My statement regarding MorsePilot came from mouser's point of view: $25 for a program that plays morse code while you type is a tad high. Also, as mouser pointed out, their other programs are definietly interesting and if I had money to throw around I would consider buying a few.
But, America has set up a system based around competition and that means that some people aren't going to make money (our system demands a rich AND poor class, for example). Software that has had a lot of thought put into it and had the edges smoothed deserves to be paid for. But, if there were no competitors, you would wind up with the lack of innovation currently seen at M$ (not in the past, mind you!).
Just a few thoughts. I do agree that merely ripping another program and advertising it for free (same interface, same features, etc) is mildly ridiculous.
Kevin
Veign:
Also if you think about almost an idea you can come up with has been done before in some way, shape, or form. Very hard to come up with a truly unique application given the way its so easy to distribute applications over the internet. Also, for every freeware application there is probably at least two developers selling it...
My feeling is freeware developers are an integral part of the software devlopment food chain. Remove it, ban it, stop it, and everything comes crashing down. I know nobody mentioned stopping freeware but I wanted to point out how important, I feel, freeware is.
I don't search out applications to write based on a competitor as I write my applications for my use first (very important to have some sort of vested interest in the application) but once I have an application that I consider matured I search out every top competitor I can find and study their applications. I try and figure out why a user would download their application, what features do they have that I don't, do I need to add these features, and should I even continue with the development of my application.
I might even find an application I like and say "hey I can do that better" or "that looks like it would be fun to code" and then I start. You would be surprised how many partial applications I have that has never been seen by anyone else: iLoc, xMail, NT Broadcast, DomainXL, Direct Print just to name a few that made it far enough to get a name..
Anyway, just poking my head in...
mouser:
Also if you think about almost an idea you can come up with has been done before in some way, shape, or form. Very hard to come up with a truly unique application given the way its so easy to distribute applications over the internet. Also, for every freeware application there is probably at least two developers selling it...
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agree 100%.
also, in the world we live, 90% of the game is marketing. it amazes me how often people are selling software that is clearly inferior to the freeware equivelant, but marketing money lets them dominate the market.
also,
id say that just as often ideas flow from freeware to commercial arena.
take a look at this commercial program (URL Helper) that came out a couple years after my Url Snooper:
http://www.streamingstar.com/urlhelper.htm
not only did they directly copy my user interface, but they actually had the nerve to copy and paste the text from my help file as their home page text]!!!!!!
kind of insane. but there is no point in me trying to complain. i just feel bad for people who buy their program.
I might even find an application I like and say "hey I can do that better" or "that looks like it would be fun to code" and then I start.
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yep. or often its out of a combined sense of excitement and frustration. you find an app that shows you something good, but is lacking in a way that you really feel needs to be addressed. if authors were more amenable to listening to feature requests i might just wait for the feature to be added, but when it seems like they aren't going to add it, then i might code it myself.
also a word of advice to commercial software authors, and this came up when we did the screencasting tools review. if you price your program out of the range of normal users, you are basically daring the freeware community to come out with a free alternative. this came up also in the discussion of tools for blind users.
Veign:
If you price your program out of the range of normal users, you are basically daring the freeware community to come out with a free alternative.
-mouser (October 06, 2005, 11:22 PM)
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Thats also a great point.
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