CompuServe Messages

No, I think I tried to qualify my generalization: One, it's not fair to compare commercial and PD software. Even if we accept your argument that the *software* itself is the same power and quality as commercial software, it's usually true that commercial software comes with docs and support, while the PD software doesn't. If we're trying to turn magazines into better entities, I don't think it's good to encourage users into thinking that docs and support are, essentially, irrelevant. It puts commercial developers on the defensive and gives more credit to PD software than it deserves. As for what's saleable and what's not, that's another question. Yes, some products have such limited appeal that they couldn't be profitable as commercial products, even though they may be bug-free, well-documented and useful PD software.