Undoubtedly, Nelson would like to make good money and receive recognition for his work. He has repeatedly chosen in favour of his ideas, over the easy paths that have been presented to him to those other goals. And at the very core of the Xanadu system is an incredible complex scheme for keeping track of ownership to, and extracting royalties for, intellectual property. I am a published author by Reed Books and various literary magazines. I teach creative writing for digital media for the creative writing department at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and I am completing a doctorate in digital storytelling.
Programming is a well paid field.
Programmers can afford to give programs away because with only a few contracts, they can potentially make enough to live comfortably throughout the year. Creators within artistic disciplines have not traditionally made much money for their endeavours. Most of the money has gone to the publishers and distributors. Programmers do not generally understand what it is like to struggle to have the opportunity to create, and frankly I find the snobbery around the thought that information should be given away insulting. I appreciate the volunteerism and generosity of many programmers and hope they continue in their efforts.