[plug] Fwd: [SLUG] Lucky 13 for Linux

[Greg Mildenhall]

On Tue, 13 Apr 1999, Trevor Phillips wrote:
> Comparing a Hardware guy, who goes out, does 2 hours work fixing a computer,
> and gets $100 for his time, to a Software guy, then yes, you CAN duplicate the
> software with no overhead (well, little), but usually the Software guy has
> spent a LOT of time on that work. If you spend 40 hours on software
> development, then to get the same as the hardware guy ($50x40 = um ... $2000),
> then, say, you could sell 200 copies at $10 each. That's inexpensive software,
> and the developer gets his payment.

Yep. If there are 200 people out there who want a copy, then between them
they should be able to hire a programmer to make it for $2000.
At this stage, the software has been written, the programmer has been
paid, and I would consider there little benefit in not giving it, along
with it's source, to others who want it.
It might seem inequitable that the first 200 paid more for it than other
users, but if they minded paying that much, they wouldn't have done so,
and the software is probably worth less to those who didn't originally
commission it. Besides, those who pay the piper write the spec for the
tune.

-Greg