On Wed, 16 Jul 2003 12:28:52 -0500, Mark Martin <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Quoting Dilwyn Jones <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>:
> Will you be releasing this as freeware or shareware, or as a commercial product? > > Mark Commercial (price undecided yet) and a demo version: useable, but limited by the number of program icons which can be set up.
Please do NOT flame me. I mean no disrespect to anyone involved in developing QL software or hardware. I am a casual user, who has just recently gotten back "into" using QL after more than 10 years. I understand this is mostly a philosophical question, but I have a direct question I'd like an answer to. This is NOT a direct response or reaction to the above mentioned product, BTW.
You are mistaken. There are plenty of commercial programs and many free ones.
We have the c68 compiler and gcc-qdos cross compiler (for linux boxes), minerva-os is GPL'd,
SMSQ/E is open source (you don't have to pay for it if you compile it yourself),
Editors etc. etc. etc.
The USA is NOT a viable commercial market btw (I am the only SMSQ/E dealer in the US right now).
And NO most of the stuff we do is free. Not all, but most.
The problem as I see it with QL development is that the Open Source style of community programming couldn't catch up with the QL world for plenty of reasons. So what you get is fragmented developers that work their #$#$ off to provide a product to other people. It's their right to be (or not compensated). Ie I prefer that my programs are free and gratis (except Q- Word maybe :-)which isn't my creation anyway, just the graphics).
As for GRATIS and FREE you understand the difference of course (see fsf.org)
I'm curious to understand why just about anything for the QL is commercial. Is there that much of a market for QL software in Europe or the rest of the world BESIDES the US? I might have a mistaken impression that any QL computing done nowadays is by dedicated hobbyists. I guess I've grown too accustomed to the Linux/BSD world of open source projects that anybody can hitch their wagon to. There seem to be a number of decent or really good QL programs that run great on hardware that is arguably almost 20 years old, but it _appears_ to me that the vast majority of it is commercial. Not terribly expensive, necessarily, but certainly not open source where a project can perhaps evolve quicker with more contributions.
I had hopes of porting some useful applications to QL. Or of even writing them. I'm finding, after having only just recently purchased a QXL card and setting up a box, that I _almost_ have to purchase a bit more software to do any serious development on this box. I am also disheartened to realize that I can't contribute directly to any products or projects currently underway.
I do see that there are still a number of companies and individuals selling software and hardware to this day. I could assume, I guess, that this means there's still a market, if only not in the US.
Yes but the numbers are shrinking... it's only through open source development that we can attract people back to the QL anyway...
In any case for a lot of FREE (both definitions) software go to:
<URL:http://www.dokos-gr.net/smsrepository/> (I don't remember Thierry's new address right now)
Also to:
<URL:http://www.dokos-gr.net/~dj/>
I would love to have an environment setup on the pQL (pseudo QL) box I have so that I can compile _and_ edit BASIC and C/C++ programs and release them. Port useful *nix userland utils where possible. I'd *REALLY* love to get ppp/tcp-ip up and running on this box so I can put it on the net. My first project would then be a port of thttpd or something similar. My biggest fear is that I'll have to bootstrap the whole process, reinventing what someone has done commercially for a box that's really just a hobby. :)
uQLx supports TCP/IP via the host for ages now and so is Q40 Linux (Q40 is a QL compatible www.q40.de in case you don't know).
soQL is practically ready (for even vanilla QLs thanks to Jon Dent) and also a port of QL-uwIP for also vanilla QLs (and Q40s)
So things are not that bad after all!
Phoebus -- Phoebus Dokos - Undergrad in MIS Eberly College of Business - Indiana U. of PA
