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Free 3D Animation DAZ|Studio 1.0 Released
Thyme3333 writes "DAZ Productions, Inc. has officially released DAZ|Studio 1.0, a free 3D figure posing and animation software package. DAZ has a made a commitment to keep the DAZ|Studio core application free to the public for as long as possible by relying on the revenues generated by the purchase of content available in the DAZ online store. To obtain a free copy of DAZ|Studio, users must register for a free account on the DAZ website and agree to participate in the company's aptly-named "Tell-Ware" program, which asks that each DAZ|Studio user share information about DAZ|Studio and/or the DAZ website with at least two friends." Good to see that more companies are trying to keep their software free, but perhaps the Slashdot crowd could offer advice on a better business model than spam and merchandising?
perhaps the Slashdot crowd could offer advice on a better business model than spam and merchandising?
Or... how about we don't bitch about something we can get for free?
How many people are holding a gun to your head demanding you send emails to TWO WHOLE PEOPLE you know?
Better yet... have you ever emailed someone to say "Hey, check out this game" or "Yo, here's a sweet perl module you should check out" or anything of the ilk? The true thought behind this "tell-ware" is the hopes that you enjoy the software enough to email a couple of friends to tell them its worth the download.
For how much real 3D software can cost, I'm truely surprised someone is bitching about emailing two friends about it...
Then again, the open source community is full of extreme whackos like ESR, so maybe my surprise is unjust...
Good quote, too many chars. Seriously, the slashdot 120 char limit sucks!
I read an article once about a company that was based on Ayn Rand's Objectivist teachings. The owner was such a fan that he made up a bunch of rules for the company and its employees to follow.
One of the tenets was that anything of value must be paid for. This meant that they didn't have any "free demos". They did have volume pricing, as well as negotiable prices for large customers, if I recall correctly.
There is nothing wrong with charging for your product, especially if you think that it is a good one that many people will benefit from.
Jesus saved me from my past. He can save you as well.
And ed has a search and replace function; but I wouldn't recommend ed to someone who is used to working with microsoft word! The same is true for daz3d vs blender only more so.
With iTunes the application is free to download and use. But is there money to be made? Yes. By users purchasing the music they want online.. This same model is being used here, the core of the application is free, but content costs. This is where they will make money, not in the application itself but in the content individuals puchase. The "tell-ware" model is mainly to get the word out on the product, for those who perhaps do not read Slashdot.
A bunch of Tech Stuff
The laws of business aren't muddied with subjectiveness. Whether or not you will be better off giving something away for free will ultimately be determined by if you increased your well-being or lost the time and money (aka opportunity) invested. There is nothing subjective about the end-game.
That's not to say that it is always stupid to give something away. People have been giving things away in exchange for an opportunity since the beginning of economic time.
So, still within the framework of the laws of business, the question is what opportunity is created for those involved in free software. If the opportunity created is greater than that foregone, there will be free software. Whether or not it is competitive with commercially created software is an entirely different matter.
Because of the marginal and highly eventual return on the investment of free software it is a hobby or a side bet for those involved (whether the bet is being made by the individual not being paid, or a company who pays programmers but does not charge).
Now, if someone can demonstrate to all of us rational players know you can make a fortune giving away software, the tide may turn as we weigh the opportunity of going into commercial software versus free software, combined with needing to eat.
All still within the confines of the laws of business that you so much hate. Good luck making that fortune.
Blender 3D is a good alternative for the Linux users: http://www.blender3d.org/