>Once the development costs of a piece of software have been amortized, it costs nothing to make an additional copy. In an efficient market, the price of software should therefore go to zero.
This is based on some sort of idealism, not capitalism. In my case, where I have about 1 customer per 2 or 3 million citizens in the industrialized world, I'll never reach the point where the cost is amoritized off if a majority of the copies are distributed freely.
Thinking that you can drive a serious business on poeple's donation and good will of a few % of the population is just foolish. That is most probably stated by people who have not tried to start a company.
>The enemies of the free market are people like you, not free software.
You seem to think that I have M$-ish ambitions. No, I just want to have my small business, have fun and make enough money to support me and my family. I still think that giving away competing products for free removes the incentives for making a business out of it. At least I have experienced that.
>Well if that freely developed software is meeting everyones needs then thats your problem, not the comsumers.
If microsoft develops a copy of your product and releases it for free to get rid of the competition, that's a crime.
If Wacky Hacker develops a copy of your product and releases it for free and drives you out of the market, that's not a crime, despite that the effect is the same.
I don't see the logic.
Book rental: the libraries predates capitalism by 2-3000 years or so, so there were no "book rental" business to begin with.
>Id advise you go into consulting, some vertical market, entertainment markets or some market that doesnt have the same dead end mechanics built into that market
Custom-made drivers saves me.
>... for the purpose of fucking there competition...
That's the crux. They don't have that purpose ("just doing it for fun"), but the effect is the same.
This is not a free market. My competitors do not compete on equal terms. They have salaries coming from elsewhere (another company, government, unemployed, studying) and can afford to dump the prices without risking their financial situation.
It is impossible to compete with people on those terms, driving all commerical vendors out of a given market. Then everyone has to rely on freely developed software, without support or someone interested in the "customers".
This is sabotage, and I believe that it is illegal to dump prices to eliminate competitors. That is in effect what is happening. I cannot see how this is a good thing, other than for highschool and college kids who want everything for free.:-(
Slashdot Mirror
Thanks a lot.
This is based on some sort of idealism, not capitalism. In my case, where I have about 1 customer per 2 or 3 million citizens in the industrialized world, I'll never reach the point where the cost is amoritized off if a majority of the copies are distributed freely.
Thinking that you can drive a serious business on poeple's donation and good will of a few % of the population is just foolish. That is most probably stated by people who have not tried to start a company.
>The enemies of the free market are people like you, not free software.
You seem to think that I have M$-ish ambitions. No, I just want to have my small business, have fun and make enough money to support me and my family. I still think that giving away competing products for free removes the incentives for making a business out of it. At least I have experienced that.
If Wacky Hacker develops a copy of your product and releases it for free and drives you out of the market, that's not a crime, despite that the effect is the same.
I don't see the logic.
Book rental: the libraries predates capitalism by 2-3000 years or so, so there were no "book rental" business to begin with.
>Id advise you go into consulting, some vertical market, entertainment markets or some market that doesnt have the same dead end mechanics built into that market Custom-made drivers saves me.
> ... for the purpose of fucking there competition ...
That's the crux. They don't have that purpose ("just doing it for fun"), but the effect is the same.
This is not a free market. My competitors do not compete on equal terms. They have salaries coming from elsewhere (another company, government, unemployed, studying) and can afford to dump the prices without risking their financial situation. It is impossible to compete with people on those terms, driving all commerical vendors out of a given market. Then everyone has to rely on freely developed software, without support or someone interested in the "customers".
This is sabotage, and I believe that it is illegal to dump prices to eliminate competitors. That is in effect what is happening. I cannot see how this is a good thing, other than for highschool and college kids who want everything for free. :-(
Uhm, let's say that the probability is 10^-27, that would make the product 10^-5.
Not my impression of "pretty big". People will never understand the meaning of "never".
lawyers and non-warranty.