[ILUG] A possible use for the ILUG's money?

[John P. Looney]

On Thu, Apr 20, 2000 at 01:07:31AM +0100, Paul Jakma mentioned:
> For many years linux was low-key, not much money in it. Then it got
> big, and lots of companies jumped on the bandwagon. They took the
> existing *FREE* software and are making money based on it.
> 
> And now they say "Thanks, but fsck off you poor bastards".

 It's hard to keep doing that.

 What many people don't yet see is that software is becoming a service
industry, not a license-fee driven one. At the moment, you write something
once, and get £100 a pop off as many people as you can. The salesman is
king, because the fixed costs are quite high, the variable costs
associated with production are quite low.

 However, when the software is free, and has a GPL attached, that makes
using it in a commerical product difficult, it suddenly means that
salesmen aren't as important - it's the service and the maintenance that
you have to make money from.

 I look forward to a world where techies get as well paid as salesmen.

Kate

-- 
"The fool must be beaten with a stick, for an intelligent person 
the merest hint is sufficient"                -- Zen Master Greg