caleb68 opened this issue on Mar 21, 2003 ยท 63 posts
sandoppe posted Fri, 21 March 2003 at 10:40 PM
Personally, I've used Star Office and would pay $250 for Word....because it works better for me! Windows runs more of my software than Linux Mandrake (in fact Linux Mandrake doesn't run anything I use on Windows), so while I enjoy playing with Linux Mandrake and will even purchase it to support their development efforts, I still prefer Windows because it runs the stuff I need to use for work. Bottom line: free is not always better...not always. So......if your product is more reliable, easier to use, etc., then people will continue to buy it. Also, "free" is often perceived as "not so good". Some people are wary of "free programs" and would prefer to pay for what they believe is a "proven product". I work with government programs. We offer some great services at no charge to employers because their taxes have already paid for them. But.....employers will often "purchase" the same service from someone who is charging a fee. Why? Not because the "fee based" product is better necessarily, but because the perception is that if you don't charge a fee, your services must not be good! I wouldn't worry about losing revenue over the long haul. In fact, if I were you, I'd download the free version and make a note of the features that are more outstanding in your product....them promote the hell out of it!