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Re: IDL Shareware [message #18536 is a reply to message #18527]

Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00

Mike Schienle
Messages: 37
Registered: May 1997

Member

In article <387F3086.22AF3DD8@see.signature.edu>, eddie haskell
<haskell@see.signature.edu> wrote:

> I do agree that the shareware concept is a great idea but I have never
> purchased shareware code myself and do not use most of the freeware code
> that is available.

From another perspective, I just spotted about 10 shareware programs in
my applications folder, all paid for. Maybe 6 or so freeware programs,
as well. Many oif these get daily usage, some have not been used in
quite some time.

> I am also a research oriented programmer and I
> consider the programming to be a lot of the enjoyment of the entire
> process. Unless I am strapped for time preparing for a presentation (as
> is currently the case) I really enjoy writing my own routines for
> plotting, creating postscript, image manipulation, etc.

I enjoy that, as well. I have a million little applications and
functions scattered neatly throughout my IDL code folders. Some of these
started out life as someone else's code and have evolved into something
completely different.

>
> For me it is not so much the purchase order problems as it is missing
> out on the fun of the mental creativity portion.

Trying to get inside someone else's mind can be pretty entertaining at
times. The recurring thought is, "What the hell was he thinking when
this came about?". Sadly, I've said that about my own code many times.

> Because my own code
> only needs to satisfy me and does not need to work on all platforms I
> can write most specific routines in less than a day, although I would
> never give my code to a stranger and expect them to understand how to
> use it.

Kinda scary, too.

> Additionally, I usually do not need all of the bells and whistles that
> come with a professional program. For example, the postscript program
> David has just put up.

I've offered to pay David for the older postscript program about three
different times. Not sure why he hasn't accepted in the past. Maybe just
setting out a tip jar on his web site would help.

> I have my own set of routines that do everything
> I ever find myself wanting to do with postscript (with the exception of
> putting titles on individual pages but I think that that is something
> IDL cannot do), thus spending money on additional functions that I would
> rarely use does not seem worth it.

Not sure how relevant this is to the above statement. It seemed more
clear before I wrote it. One of the craziest things I've encountered was
when I was working at Hughes Santa Barbara Remote Sensing about 5 years
ago. We had a hyperspectral sensor that was under development. Hughes
was in the usual budget fiasco so they froze software purchases. We had
our $6000 request for ENVI rejected. I spent $50000 recreating a few
functions that ENVI already provided that year.

> Just another point of view. However, for the sake of the IDL community
> in general I hope the shareware idea catches on.

The idea caught on a couple years ago. The IDL community hasn't embraced
it for some reason.

--
Mike Schienle Interactive Visuals, Inc.
mgs@ivsoftware.com Remote Sensing and Image Processing
http://www.ivsoftware.com/ Analysis and Application Development

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[Message index]

		Re: IDL Shareware By: Mike Schienle on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: davidf on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: Mike Schienle on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: Mike Schienle on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: Mike Schienle on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: Mike Schienle on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: Mike Schienle on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: Mike Schienle on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: ronn on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: davidf on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: Martin Schultz on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: davidf on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: davidf on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: eddie haskell on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: Richard Elsbernd on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: R.G. Stockwell on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: davidf on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: Struan Gray on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: wbiagiot on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: wmc on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: rlorenz on Fri, 14 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: Struan Gray on Thu, 13 January 2000 00:00
		Re: IDL Shareware By: ronn on Thu, 13 January 2000 00:00

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