On Nov 9, 2007 3:32 PM, Gregg R. Lengling <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Don't forget HRD (Ham Radio Deluxe), Simon has written a great program and > the best part in keeping with the Amateur Spirit...it's Free.
I don't have any axe to grind for any of the programs mentioned, and in fact use none of them, but I have to take issue with the notion that HRD is great just because it's free. I believe that the range and quality of software available to hams is limited because of their reluctance to pay for it, and that we are ultimately the poorer for it I have written numerous programs for this hobby that I give away for free on my website, but these are fairly simple programs I wrote for my own use that I'm happy to share as-is. I'm not interested in making them my life's work and constantly updating them, so I give them away so as not to enter into a moral obligation to provide value for money with them. Programming is hard and not very interesting work and the thing that keeps most people doing it for reasons other than their personal needs is that it is what earns them their bread and butter. The HRD users are very fortunate that Simon is willing to keep on developing his product for year after year, for no money, spending time he could otherwise be spending on the air. But he is a bit of a noble exception. We are all the poorer if we discourage professional software developers from catering for our needs. It's not as if we can't afford to pay for software - even the most expensive program costs about the same as a fairly simple shack accessory. Sorry for the rant, but it's something I feel very strongly about. -- Julian, G4ILO K2 s/n: 392 K3 s/n: ??? G4ILO's Shack: www.g4ilo.com Zerobeat Ham Forums: www.zerobeat.net/smf _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [email protected] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
