Information about Shareware

Shareware is a marketing method for computer software. Shareware software is typically obtained free of charge, often by downloading from the Internet or on magazine cover-disks. A user tries out the program, and thus shareware has also been known as "try before you buy". A shareware program is accompanied by a request for payment, and the software's distribution license often requires such a payment.

History

The term shareware refers to commercial software which is copyright, but which may be copied for others for the purpose of their trying it out with the understanding that they will pay for it if they continue to use it. In contrast, retail software is a term used for commercial software which may not be copied for others, and public domain software refers to software which is not copyright and may be copied and used without payment.

The first shareware program for the IBM-PC was PC-Talk, a telecommunications program, by Andrew Fluegelman, who used the term freeware. About the same time, Jim "Button" Knopf released PC-File, a database program, calling it user-supported software. Not much later, Bob Wallace produced PC-Write, a word processor, and called it shareware.

In 1984, Softalk-PC magazine had a column, The Public Library, about such software. Public domain is a misnomer for shareware, and Freeware was trademarked by Fluegelman and could not be legally used by others, and User-Supported Software was too cumbersome. So columnist Nelson Ford held a contest to come up with a better name.

The most popular name submitted was Shareware, which was being used by Wallace. However, Wallace acknowledged that he got the term from an InfoWorld magazine column by that name in the 1970's, and that he considered the name to be generic, so its use became established over freeware and user-supported software. [1]

Fluegelman, Knopf, and Wallace clearly established shareware as a viable software marketing method. Via the shareware model, PC-File and PC-Talk made Button and Fluegelman millionaires.

During the late 1980s and early 1990s, shareware software was widely distributed over bulletin board systems globally and on diskettes (and subsequently, CD-ROMs) by commercial shareware distributors who produced catalogs of up to thousands of public domain and shareware programs. One such distributor, Public Software Library (PSL), began an order-taking service for programmers who otherwise had no means of accepting credit card orders.

As Internet usage grew, users turned to downloading shareware programs without paying long-distance charges or disk fees, spelling the end of bulletin board systems and shareware disk distributors. In addition to shareware libraries online, the authors of programs had their own sites where the public could learn about their programs and download the latest versions, and even pay for the software online.

The Internet also made it easier to locate niche software, as well as the best and most popular general software. During the early 2000s, and with the increasing popularity of Web 2.0, new ways to filter the software became available. Major download sites began to rank titles based on quality, feedback, and downloads. Popular software was sorted to the top of the list. Blogs and online forums further enabled individuals to spread news about titles they like. With this pruning in place, consumers can more easily find quality shareware products while still preserving the ability to find obscure and niche software.

Implementations

Free/open source software and shareware are similar in that they can be obtained and used without monetary cost. Usually shareware differs from free/open source software in that requests of voluntary shareware fees are made, often within the program itself, and in that source code for shareware programs is generally not available in a form that would allow others to extend the program. Notwithstanding that tradition, some free/open source software authors ask for voluntary donations, although there is no requirement to do so. Free/open source software is usually compatible with the strict Association of Shareware Professionals shareware guidelines.

Sometimes, paying the fee and obtaining a password results in access to expanded features, documentation, or support. In some cases, unpaid use of the software is limited in time or in features — in which case the software is vernacularly called crippleware. Some shareware items require no payment; just an email address, so that the supplier can use this address for their own purposes.

Shareware is available on all major computer platforms including Microsoft Windows, Macintosh, and Linux. Titles cover a very wide range of categories including: business, software development, education, home, multimedia, design, drivers, games, and utilities.

There is a technical difference between shareware and demos. Up to the early 1990s, shareware could easily be upgraded to the full version by adding the other episodes or full portion of the game; this would leave the existing shareware files intact. Demos are different in that they are self-contained programs which are not upgradable to the full version. A good example is the Descent shareware versus the Descent II demo; players were able to retain their saved games on the former but not the latter.

Logistics

With shareware, a developer bypasses the normal distribution channel eliminating the normal retail middleman markups and directly markets to the end user. The end result is a reduced end-user price compared to the retail channel. Users of shareware are encouraged to copy and distribute unregistered versions of the software to friends, coworkers and other acquaintances. The hope is that users will find the program useful or entertaining and will pay to register to be able to access all the features.

Pertaining more towards shareware games, large online distribution channels known as "portals", such as Yahoo! Games and RealArcade, have emerged in recent years. These portals act as media of distribution for the shareware developers, providing an audience base for a percentage of the software's sale.

Many shareware developers are individual computer programmers who take a risk on a product — entrepreneurs. Online shareware author communities, like the newsgroup alt.comp.shareware.authors, are often used by software seekers to post their novel software ideas for potential implementation.

Distribution

In the early 1990s, shareware distribution was a popular method of publishing games for smaller developers, including then-fledgling companies such as Apogee Software (now also operating under the brand 3D Realms), Epic Megagames (now Epic Games), and id Software. It gave consumers the chance to try a portion of the game, usually restricted to the game's complete first section or episode, before purchasing the rest of the adventure. Racks of games on single 5 1/4 inch and later 3.5 inch floppy disks were common in retail stores. However, bulletin board systems (BBS) and computer expositions such as Software Creations BBS were the primary distributors of all early low-cost software. Free software from a BBS was the motive force for consumers to purchase a computer equipped with a modem, so as to acquire software at no cost. At PC expositions, extant today, shareware was essentially free; the cost only covered the disk and minimal packaging.

As the increasing size of games in the mid-1990s made them impractical to fit on floppies, and retail publishers and developers began to earnestly mimic the practice, shareware games were replaced by shorter demos that were either distributed free on CDs with gaming magazines or as free downloads over the Internet, in some cases becoming exclusive content for specific websites.

Criticism

In the 1980s and early-to-mid 1990s shareware was considered to be a concept for independent software writers to receive a degree of remuneration for their labor. However, after that the shareware model began to degrade as the term was used by commercial startups offering (sometimes substandard) commercial software and labeling non-functional or limited demo versions (known as crippleware) as shareware. As a result, the term shareware has shown reduced usage in recent years, replaced by either demo for trial software or freeware for full editions. However, shareware software is not always so limited in function, as demonstrated with programs such as The Bat!, GetRight, WinZip, and WinRAR, as well as the game examples mentioned below.

One problem is the lack of a solid definition. Some shareware groups have limited definitions, allowing 'nag screens' that remind the user to buy the software and refuse to accept any software with limited functionality, such as demos, trial use, or crippled software [2]. Most groups, such as the Association of Shareware Professionals, the Software Industry Professionals group and PC Shareware clearly state their position that any software marketed as 'try before you buy' is shareware.

Another issue is the high percentage of commercial failures. A very large percentage of shareware projects are commercial failures. Sites like Tucows, download.com, and Handango list hundreds of thousands of shareware projects, many of which are abandoned. One sampling found 76% of listed projects were abandoned or no longer being updated. Active projects commonly see less than 0.5% of downloaders convert to paying customers [3], and projects may be victims of software piracy, dropping sales by half again [4]. It is argued that many projects could become successful by following some simple business practices.

Derivatives

Other types of software distribution, taking the suffix "-ware" have followed shareware's lead. They usually do not require the user to make a specific payment to the author. Rather, they sometimes require the user to send the author a postcard (postcardware) or donate to a specific charity (careware); for more examples see otherware.

Industry standards and technologies

There are several widely accepted standards and technologies that are used in the development and promotion of shareware.

• PAD (Portable Application Description) is used to standardize shareware application descriptions. PAD file is an XML document that describes a shareware or freeware product according to the PAD specification.
• DynamicPAD extends the Portable Application Description (PAD) standard by allowing shareware vendors to provide customized PAD XML files to each download site or any other PAD-enabled resource. DynamicPAD is a set of server-side PHP scripts distributed under a GPL license and a freeware DynamicPAD builder for 32-bit Windows.
• Code signing is a technology that is used by Shareware developers to digitally sign their products. The recent versions of Microsoft Operating Systems, namely Windows XP Service Pack 2 and Windows Vista, show a warning when the user installs unsigned software.

Developer organizations

• ASP Association of Shareware Professionals. Since 1987, the ASP has been dedicated to the advancement of shareware, also known as "try before you buy" software, as an alternative to conventional retail software. Today the ASP is a vibrant organization with over a thousand members around the world working together to improve their businesses and making it easier for computer users to find quality software at reasonable prices.
• Software Industry Professionals Provides information and support to members of the software industry and helps people learn to use software. Members include independent software vendors, academics, and commercial software publishers.
• ISDEF Independent Software Developers Forum
• ESC Educational Software Cooperative. A non-profit corporation bringing together developers, publishers, distributors and users of educational software.
• SWRUS an informal Russian shareware developers community
• AISIP Association of Independent Software Industry Professionals
• OISV Organization of Independent Software Vendors

See also

• Glossary of legal terms in technology
• Barriers to entry

References

• "Exposing the Myth of "Shareware""
• Slashdot: "Do You Pay for Your Shareware?"

External links

• Shareware at the Open Directory Project

•  • [ e] Forms of software distribution
Adware  Beerware  Careware  Crippleware  Demoware  Donationware  Donateware  Foistware  Freely redistributable software  Free software  Freeware  Greenware  Nagware  Open source  Otherware  Postcardware  Proprietary software  Ransomware  Registerware  Shareware