Re: Software Wanted

On Wed, 14 Mar 2007 03:51:42 GMT, Frederick Williams <Frederick_Williams@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
conceptservices@xxxxxxxxxxx wrote:

Hi

We are UK based software brokers and are always looking for new
stock. If you have any excess software, OEM or Retail, let me know
and hopefully we can do some business.We buy both large and small
quantities.private and business purchases undertaken.

Most software one "buys" one doesn't really own because it is a licence
that is bought, not the software. If that's so, how can someone sell it
to you?

I never "buy" licence-only software. Haven't done for more than 15 years
now.

I quote buy because I use only open source products, which include source
code and a licence to use, change, re-distribute, contribute. Everything
from operating systems to commercial-grade databases to programming
languages to desktop publishing to graphics manipulation to video editing
to sound editing to typesetting and on and on. There's even a PABX system
out there that integrates analogue phones with VoIP handsets.

Some open source products are so good that commercial products are built
around them. Your ADSL router, for example, has the Linux operating system
and the Apache web server embedded in it. If you're an Apple Mac user then
the basis of the latest Mac operating system (OS X) is FreeBSD and Apple
were so impressed with Konqueror (a web browser) that they use it as the
basis of their own browser Safari. Apple's internal programming teams use
the open source GCC complier suite and distribute it as the heart of their
Xcode development suite. The majority of web hosts run their services on
the Apache web server (and probably provide open source MySQL and perl as
part of the deal).

For the end user there is no reason to *buy* licence only software from a
single supplier. OpenOffice.org is a viable alternative to Microsoft Office
(and OOo includes an Access equivalent as standard).

Open source web browsers and emailers are infinitely better than
Microsoft's equivalents. The latest releases of Firefox and Thunderbird
are significantly better that Internet Explorer and Outlook/Outlook
Express. (Even if you only define better to mean more secure or less
buggy.) And because this is a Herts group I'll mention that my local
council has some public enquiry system on the web that only works with
Internet Exporer. I'm about to raise an FOI request with them as to how
much the council are paying (read wasting money on) Microsoft for
licences.

The cost? Your time and however much your pay for an Internet connection
to download the 100Mb+ installation kit for your chosen platform (be it
Linux, Apple Mac, Windows, BSD, SunOS) --- therein is the best reason to
go open source, it runs on many more platforms than does Microsoft's. If
you haven't got broadband then there are CD/DVD pressing plants out there
who will download the stuff for you and burn it to disc.

There is no excuse these days for OEM and Retail software when the
customer can (literally) be given better alternatives. And if noting else
open source gets rid of licence touts.

Regards, Trevor

<>< Re: deemed!
.

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