Howard Brazee writes: >Doesn't most everybody do that? Guaranteed license >price forever and ever are rare indeed. Try buying >lifetime tickets to your favorite sports venue.
You would think people would understand that software within an "all you can eat" contract is not actually free, but you would be amazed at how many people behave as if it were -- and then get into big trouble later on. Let's just say that way too many IT people, while possibly smart about technology, are really lousy economists and accountants. (That's a big reason for IT outsourcing, as I've said before.) Many software vendors count on this, quite honestly. But, again, I don't want to criticize the concept per se. Enterprise-wide licenses (or "site licenses") are often appropriate, as long as you understand them, behave accordingly, and actually get some benefit from them. Also, don't get too tripped up on the word "enterprise." I've discussed previously IBM Enterprise License Agreements (ELAs) and the basic principle behind those (forecasting licensing needs ahead with a commitment to some level). That's a much different principle than "use as much as you want (internal use/employees only/some other condition) until the next renewal," which we're talking about here. "Site license" or (better) "multi-site license" is perhaps more precise. - - - - - Timothy Sipples IBM Consulting Enterprise Software Architect Based in Tokyo, Serving IBM Japan / Asia-Pacific E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: GET IBM-MAIN INFO Search the archives at http://bama.ua.edu/archives/ibm-main.html
