Re: The "user-developer gap" myth

[warnken@mother.com]

Dear Eric,

One of the obvious problems with shareware is that people move and there
is no forwarding address.

I started up with the GS about 4 years ago.  I went through the GSAUG disk
library from the beginning.  Lots of shareware there dating back to the
80s. When I sent a fee often  no response came back.  It's frustrating
particularly if there is some software that's supposed to come back so you
can use it without the reminder every time I launch it that I have to pay.
 
I did toss the things I didn't pay for.  But there were two things one
from Paul Parkhurst and another by Greg Templeton (I think that's his
name) that I really put an effort in tracking down.  Greg's software was
on Spectrum.  I sent him the check, I emailed twice. No response.  Weeks
went by. I emailed Seven Hills and got a nasty response saying they didn't
know who Greg was. But several exchanges later a letter to a tech got me a
note that he'd try to locate him. Nothing came of that. Then about a year
or two later the software showed up on Ground with same addresses.
I was so frustrated I can't tell you.  The check never cleared or came
back. I pitched the software.
 
I did track Paul down and emailed him after he posted on CSA2, but no
response.  Older heads in the club said to use the software if I went to
that trouble and didn't get a reply.

The one notable exception was Three Island Press.  They honored the old
 shareware fee when the new cost was like $10 more. 

Sandy