Re: Building An Apple ][ Software Archive

[pausch@saafNOSPAM.se (Paul Schlyter)]

In article <FWRA5.834$j13.84788@dca1-nnrp2.news.digex.net>,
Frank Townsend <ftownsen@iamdigex.net> wrote:
 
> Your preference as I understand it (if I may be so bold) is to use the term
> freeware as a superset that includes "copyrighted freeware," and public
> domain software that is available for free, both as subsets.
 
Correct -- for years I've interpreted "freeware" to mean "software which
legally can be used for free", including both public domain software
and copyrighted freeware.
 
 
> It just seems to me that this nomenclature blurs two dissimilar concepts by
> using the price qualifier.
 
The price qualifier is what matters to many.  Suppose you want a
piece of software which does some job for you.  You don't want to
resell it or disassemble it, you just want to use it.  And you would
prefer not having to pay for it.  Would it then matter to you if the
software was copyrighted freeware or if it was public domain?  No it
wouldn't -- all that would matter would be the price tag - right?
 
 
I think there's a need for a word which means "commercial freeware
and public domain software", i.e. all software which legally cna be
used for free.  I've used "freeware" for years to mean just that.
But I suppose I should stop since so many others attach a somewhat
different meaning to the word "freeware".  So I'm asking you: what
word your you want to use instead?  Free-of-charge-ware?  That should
communicate the meaning OK, but it sounds too clumsy.  Any other
suggestions?
 
 
> Like categorizing tomatoes and apples as "red
> fruit"  (pardon the pun ;-))
 
Tomatoes aren't fruit -- they're a vegetable....
 
> But, no matter.  As Humpty said, "there's glory for you."  <g>
 
:-) ... he can keep his glory for himself.
 
-- 
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