Not bad, some special cases deserve mention...
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| Author | Content |
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| dinotrac Dec 17, 2005 9:12 AM EDT |
A couple of thoughts: A. Some types of software may never be free simply because they require a certain cost to produce, or impose a liability that free software cannot accept. Note that I say may rather than will. In this business, I've grown tired of predicting the future with certainty. Tomorrow always has a curve-ball. Software that resists freedom: 1. Tax and payroll software. It takes a lot of doing to keep up with changes in the law and changes in tax rates, as well as a lot of QA to keep the products credible. Maybe someone will come up with a clever way to separate the software from the intelligence, but that will just shift the location of the non-free element. 2. Low volume vertical apps. Pretty much anything playing to a niche market and depending on special knowledge has a couple of strikes going against it. First, it needs people with special knowledge to develop and maintain it. Second, the pool of those people is relatively small. 3. Bleeding-edge games. Lots and lots of blood, sweat, and tears from different specialties to make these happen, especially in something approaching a timely manner. B. There is an in-between possibility: Proprietary software that uses open data formats. The most examples on the consumer side are web browsers, and mp3 players. On the enterprise side, it's really taking hold in a number of places, with standardized XML formats governing communications between entities. When proprietary software uses standard data formats, it has to justify its existence by offering functionality or support worth paying for. |
| SamShazaam Dec 17, 2005 11:28 AM EDT |
Concerning your thoughts I have some disagreements: 1. Possibly but the plan here is to pay for services, thus handling the need for updates, changes and liabilities. 2. Totally disagree. This is where open source shines. You only need to hire a programmer to deal with what you need done. 3. Maybe. The main problem is fear on the part of game designers as to what Microsoft's reaction will be. As open source becomes more prevalent, more cross-platform application will be on the market. |
| dinotrac Dec 17, 2005 12:15 PM EDT |
Sam: Hmmmm.... 1. How do you figure? Tax and payroll software tends to incorporate tax tables, and to be aware of recent changes to tax laws. Unless you're aware of trustworthy (as in -- people will feel safe relying on the software) individuals donating that expertise, I don't see how it happens, especially since that stuff tends to change on a yearly basis. 2. Where on earth did you get the idea that it only takes a programmer to do write a specialty vertical app? For example, I can't think of many (any, actually) programmers who could sit design and write -- without any other input -- useful geological modeling tools for oil exploration. Some things require heavy input from people with specialized knowledge that programmers tend not to have. 3. I don't think game designers fear Microsoft that much. Maybe they should, but I doubt that they do. Microsoft doesn't own that space, isn't even the biggest player. I do think free games will continue to be developed. It's just the splashy new ones with great graphics and compelling storylines, etc that I doubt. |
| Kagehi Dec 17, 2005 3:25 PM EDT |
Hmm. So you doubt people developing things like Exult, Pentagram and several other projects, some like the Ultima I remake into full 3D which where shut down do to the fact that unlike Exult or Pantagram, there was no 'script' or 'graphics' available to produce them? There are others that are completely seperate from other projects as well, which have those flashy graphics. The fact is, the game engine is the major hang up in designing a game. The graphics can be produced by using Blender or similar free applications and its only a matter of getting talented people with the artistic skill together to produce the graphics for someone else's engine. The only reason you don't here about the ones that do exist is that they are often either remakes, or PC/Linux only games, since generally to code anything for a console you first have to defeat the whole point of making a free game, by buying *that* companies development suit, then using *that* companies burning software, and finally selling the product, since no free means exists at the moment to let anyone download and burn CD(s)/DVD(s) for such a game, since they won't work without that species burning software, which adds in all the copy protection crap. Without that, unchipped consoles won't play it, even if the software is 100% compatible with the hardware and OS on the unit. Put simply, the reason we won't see many free games is that free games on a game console are effectively impossible and almost no one pays any attention to the PC, MAC or Linux anymore when even reviewing games, let alone talking about the latest great game. As for #2, a lot of people making those applications still do write them themselves, and have the knowledge. Its also not impossible to find the information for free, just not always easy. So, you are both right and wrong there. In some cases its probably financially 'better' for the company to make it, then sell it to everyone else, but not every group making those things are a big company that can afford to hire a lot of experts in the first place, so its not impossible that some free products will show up as a result of those people offering it to those that need it, in trade for the expertise to make it happen at all. And #1, all the tax code stuff is public and searchable. Payroll is not the same thing and has to cater to the specific company anyway, so any generic product for it must be *tuned* to individual needs anyway. Open source tends to be far more tunable than proprietary stuff. The tax code part is the only part that requires a time investment past original development, for the developer. Its not impossible with free software, just less convenient to keep up to date than the far simpler payroll systems. |
| dinotrac Dec 17, 2005 3:39 PM EDT |
Kagehi -- Read carefully what I said. I never said impossible. I just don't expect it to happen. Some of these are things that simply may not make sense as free software projects. All subject to change, as is anything in this business. |
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