Donationware
Encyclopedia
Donationware is a licensing model that supplies fully operational software to the user and pleads
for an optional donation be paid to the programmer or a third-party beneficiary (usually a non-profit). The amount of the donation may also be stipulated by the author, or it may be left to the discretion of the user, based on individual perceptions of the software's value. Since donationware comes fully operational (i.e. not crippleware
) when payment is optional, it is a type of freeware
.
was the name of a well known communications and terminal emulation software program created for the Apple Macintosh in the 1980s. It was one of the first donationware programs to be distributed on the internet. It was written by Scott Watson, who founded The FreeSoft Company of Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania. By spending no money on advertising, but simply offering Red Ryder on Bulletin Board Systems (BBSs), allowed Watson to market and distribute what became the number-one communications program for the Mac. He did not sell it in any store. All he asked of those who downloaded the program into their computer was that they might send him $40. He later said, "I took advantage of a problem: piracy. Many program-users copied them free. I assumed that, if I offered something free and asked people who liked it to pay, that some people would; that maybe I'd get a bigger percentage than people who sell software." This new kind of "on approval" selling worked well and there was no necessity for follow-up. The cost was a fraction of available competitive software. Often people who found the software useful sent in checks. Each BBS sent the program online free to anyone. Anyone who liked Red Ryder could copy it for friends and passed the word to others, who then got Red Ryder from their bulletin board systems. Macintosh magazines rated Red Ryder highly. Scott rejected orders from both computer stores and distributors and concentrated on development. Many new bulletin boards ran his offer.
Begging
Begging is to entreat earnestly, implore, or supplicate. It often occurs for the purpose of securing a material benefit, generally for a gift, donation or charitable donation...
for an optional donation be paid to the programmer or a third-party beneficiary (usually a non-profit). The amount of the donation may also be stipulated by the author, or it may be left to the discretion of the user, based on individual perceptions of the software's value. Since donationware comes fully operational (i.e. not crippleware
Crippleware
In economics, a damaged good is a good that has been deliberately limited in performance, quality or utility, typically for marketing reasons as part of a strategy of product differentiation.-Computer software:Deliberately limited programs are usually freeware versions of computer programs that...
) when payment is optional, it is a type of freeware
Freeware
Freeware is computer software that is available for use at no cost or for an optional fee, but usually with one or more restricted usage rights. Freeware is in contrast to commercial software, which is typically sold for profit, but might be distributed for a business or commercial purpose in the...
.
History
Red RyderRed Ryder (software)
Red Ryder was the name of a well known communications and terminal emulation software program created for the Apple Macintosh in the 1980s. It was one of the first donationware programs to be distributed on the internet...
was the name of a well known communications and terminal emulation software program created for the Apple Macintosh in the 1980s. It was one of the first donationware programs to be distributed on the internet. It was written by Scott Watson, who founded The FreeSoft Company of Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania. By spending no money on advertising, but simply offering Red Ryder on Bulletin Board Systems (BBSs), allowed Watson to market and distribute what became the number-one communications program for the Mac. He did not sell it in any store. All he asked of those who downloaded the program into their computer was that they might send him $40. He later said, "I took advantage of a problem: piracy. Many program-users copied them free. I assumed that, if I offered something free and asked people who liked it to pay, that some people would; that maybe I'd get a bigger percentage than people who sell software." This new kind of "on approval" selling worked well and there was no necessity for follow-up. The cost was a fraction of available competitive software. Often people who found the software useful sent in checks. Each BBS sent the program online free to anyone. Anyone who liked Red Ryder could copy it for friends and passed the word to others, who then got Red Ryder from their bulletin board systems. Macintosh magazines rated Red Ryder highly. Scott rejected orders from both computer stores and distributors and concentrated on development. Many new bulletin boards ran his offer.
Notable examples
- VimVim (text editor)Vim is a text editor written by Bram Moolenaar and first released publicly in 1991. Based on the vi editor common to Unix-like systems, Vim is designed for use both from a command line interface and as a standalone application in a graphical user interface...
, the viVivi is a screen-oriented text editor originally created for the Unix operating system. The portable subset of the behavior of vi and programs based on it, and the ex editor language supported within these programs, is described by the Single Unix Specification and POSIX.The original code for vi...
-based text editorText editorA text editor is a type of program used for editing plain text files.Text editors are often provided with operating systems or software development packages, and can be used to change configuration files and programming language source code....
, suggests that users 'sponsor' (or 'register') the software by giving ten euros to ICCF HollandICCF HollandInternational Child Care Fund Holland is a small non-governmental organization that supports a project in Kibaale, a small town in the south of Uganda. The project aims at helping AIDS victims. In this poor area of Africa, many adults are infected with HIV. When they die, the children are left...
which is used to provide education and healthcare to children in UgandaUgandaUganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
. Those who donate are given the ability to vote on which features should be put into new versions of Vim.