Good question, Dag. I think that distinction is indeed common in the
software business, actually. We use the verb "productize" (which makes
me shudder) to describe taking an open-source project and providing
marketing, support, and so on. So Java DB and Cloudscape would
ordinarily be considered products, while Derby would not.
However, I notice that the term "product" occurs from time to time
within the Derby docs -- so I'm undoubtedly being too fussy about this.
Kim
Dag H. Wanvik wrote:
"Kim Haase (JIRA)" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
Kim Haase commented on DERBY-2390:
----------------------------------
On rgsdocs17307.html -- just a few things:
I'm glad you caught the problem with the term "library. I don't
think Derby is technically a product, which implies something that
is sold; so maybe just "Derby documentation" would be a better
title.
This piqued my interest, being a non-native speaker. I was not aware
that "product" mainly carries this connotation. I thought a product
merely meant something made by a process of some kind, cf. for example
this definition - entry #1 - I found on dictionary.com, from American
Heritage Dictionary:
1. Something produced by human or mechanical effort or by a natural process.
I did also find the meaning "commodities offered for sale", but is the
latter meaning so predominant that most readers will assume a software
"product" necessarily has a price tag?
Dag
