The answer is the Ransom model. Look at how the source code for Blender was paid for and released:
http://www.blender.org/bf/ Though you may have to dig for the historical methods. John Hebert -----Original Message----- From: Dustin Puryear To: [email protected] Sent: 7/8/03 7:46 AM Subject: Re: [brlug-general] free, closed and practical software. At 02:30 PM 7/7/2003 -0500, you wrote: > > With this model the cost of the project is very high for a small group of > > people, whereas if you can spread the cost of development across the > entire > > market the cost per-person is greatly reduced. This is basic economics. > > ... > > > > How can open source developers use this principle to their advantage? > > > >The biggest advantage to free software today is the large code base. A >company like Spyglass may have to start from scratch or close to it, but a >free software developer has much of the groundwork covered. Costs for >mundane applications are eliminated. If someone wants a text editor, you >simply figure out which one they would most like. Complicated projects >can be broken down into a series of mundane ones and strung together with >a unique chunk. This has been done since the 70's. >If I were trying to do things the Microsoft way, I'd have to find owners >of software like I want and pay them all a fee or purchase them or do it >from scratch. My costs would be much higher and I'd be subject to the >whims of those owners. > >As a free developer, I can put the system together at no cost besides my >time. If what I put together was worth using, I could get paid to put it >in place. What I charge would be mostly for hardware used and development >time. Sure, others would Exactly! So someone pays for your development time. Who? A single client? If it takes you or a team of developers several months or more to develop software that could conceivable be mass-marketed then there is an inefficiency here. A single client is paying for something that a larger base of clients would be willing to pay for. So how do we solve this problem? This question just keeps coming up. Everyone keeps trying to argue the merits of open source software. That's not my question. --- Dustin Puryear <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Puryear Information Technology, LLC <http://www.puryear-it.com> Providing expertise in the management, integration, and security of Windows and UNIX systems, networks, and applications. _______________________________________________ General mailing list [email protected] http://brlug.net/mailman/listinfo/general_brlug.net
