From: murphyg@Software.Mitel.COM (Gary Murphy)
Newsgroups: comp.text.tex
Subject: Re: "risky" PD software
Date: 17 Aug 92 14:10:32 GMT
	<1992Aug17.033022.273@hemlock.cray.com>
Organization: Applications Software II, MITEL Corporation, Kanata, Ontario,
	Canada
In-reply-to: marc@hemlock.cray.com's message of 17 Aug 92 08:30:21 GMT

In article <1992Aug17.033022.273@hemlock.cray.com> marc@hemlock.cray.com (Marc Bouron) writes:

   In article <1992Aug17.010336.4750@uwm.edu>, bruno@cerberus.csd.uwm.edu (Bruno Wolff III) writes:
   > Running any software is risky. However I feel that commerical software
   > companies are less likely to produce code that has trojan horse code in it.

   ... it was alleged that some software houses were deliberately
   introducing errors and `time bombs' into their software, some simple, some 
   malicious, in order to secure future "business" from their clients.

I walked away from one contract (early in my career) where I was asked
to do just that; it is amazing the behaviours you can get when money and
greed are at stake --- my client was afraid his clients, major financial
institutions, would stay with the prototype and not pay for upgrades.

In over 10 years of computing, I have not found any significant
difference between the reliability or the end-user support between free,
shareware or commercial software; all are as likely to show the full
spectrum and this alone is no indicator.  At one time I had _assumed_
like everyone else I would get a better product or better support where
money is involved, but this has turned out to be a false assumption.

For example, with a free software package, and especially where source
is included, I find while I may not be able to locate the original
author, there are so many users in netland that a request for help can
be settled in a few days.  By contract, questions posed to Microsoft did
earn me a free copy of the updated Pascal compiler, but that version had
the same bug and took two weeks to arrive. Also, questions posed about
SB-Prolog, XLisp, Freemacs, StarChart, Ghostscript, emTeX, Telix and
countless other reputable free or nearly free packages led me to direct
e-mail contact with the author.  Contacting Borland or Microsoft
generally lead to a summer-student technician who merely confirms the
problem by hunting through their database (after a long-distance phone
call at my expense) --- the only exception I've found in recent years is
PDC prolog, who unfortunately, IMHO, charge far too much for upgrades
for me to continue using their product.  Even where external help cannot
be found, if I have the source, at least I stand a chance of fixing the
trouble myself.

Certainly there are vertical market products that simply cannot afford
to distribute free software; equivalent free or shareware programs may
give source, but do not approach the completeness of the commercial
product.  I can also think of many products that would simply be
impossible for a single individual to write.  Unfortunately, these are
in the minority and I rather suspect too large a percent of the ticket
prices I've paid for many programs has gone toward
slick-and-just-as-useless manuals, glitzy throw-away packaging, fancy
office space and full-page ads in Byte.


--
Gary Lawrence Murphy - Gary.Murphy@software.mitel.COM - (613) 592-2122 x3709
           Planning is with the many, decision is done alone
Newsgroups: comp.text.tex