Abandonware question

  • Thread starter Thread starter Boomer
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Boomer

Hello

I have not read *all* the messages in this group for quite awhile.

Is ACF now supporting abandonware?

Thank you.
 
...
I have not read *all* the messages in this group for quite awhile.

Is ACF now supporting abandonware?
Click to expand...

I don't think it's a question of supporting or not supporting, as
abandonware doesn't say anything of the software's status as freeware or
not.

Just as some other ware-types defined on the Pricelessware pages, there has
to be some additional information on the specific software to be able to
judge it as freeware.

One example of abandonware that I personally highly recommend is "Visual
Thought", a previously commercial diagram tool, that has been explicitly
abandoned by the company.

http://www.bombshellstudios.com/samples/co/vt.html

The company has in this case explicitly set it free when they ceased further
development of it, and provides a "public licence key" on their website to
anyone who wants to use it. With that key it will expire in the year 2014...

Software that has been abandoned should be considered on a case-by-case
basis. If it just has been abandoned without any information on further
status, the licences that were in effect before should still apply, aka if
was it freeware before it should still be considered freeware. If it was
something else before it's not freeware.

IMHO

// Bjorn A
 
Boomer said:
I have not read *all* the messages in this group for quite awhile.

Is ACF now supporting abandonware?
Click to expand...

alt.games.abandonware is over there ------>
Read their FAQ.
 
Along those lines...
Is anyone aware of the status of Adobe PageMill? Is this now officially
abandonware, and has Adobe made any statements regarding it?
 
"Dominic" ...
Along those lines...
Is anyone aware of the status of Adobe PageMill?
Is this now officially abandonware, and has Adobe
made any statements regarding it?
Click to expand...

It seems quite obvious that it's "officially" abandoned, but *not* set free,
since they have other products for the same purpose.


// Bjorn A
 
Mike McCoy said:
I've tried to follow that link, and the "download" page, given as
http://gd.tuwien.ac.at/graphics/diagramming/confluent/
just doesn't load. Have you been able to go there recently?
Click to expand...

Hopefully the tuwien site is just temporarilly disabled.

Anyway, when Confluent set it free, they also allowed redistribution, so I
have a copy for download here:

http://www.eki.mdh.se/kurshemsidor/informatik/TeamProg/VisualThought/vt14.exe

Licence key:

0356 9674 3262 8895 9914 96

// Bjorn A
 
Mike said:
I've tried to follow that link, and the "download" page, given as
http://gd.tuwien.ac.at/graphics/diagramming/confluent/
just doesn't load. Have you been able to go there recently?

Mike
Click to expand...

Try this link:
ftp://ftp.isst.fhg.de/pub/graphics/vt14/VT14.EXE ~6.9Mb

Cheers,

Son Of Spy

--

CPU Magazine March '03 Issue:
Son Of Spy's comprehensive list of more
than 1,600 freeware solutions is legendary.

http://www.sover.net/~wysiwygx/index.html
. --- . . - - - - - - - - - - - -
/ SOS \ __ / Freeware - - - - - -
/ / \ ( ) / - - - - -
/ / / / / / / \/ \ - - - -
/ / / / / / / : : - - -
/ / / / / ' ' - -
/ / //..\\
=====UU==UU=====
'///||\\\'
' '' '
 
Bjorn said:
Hopefully the tuwien site is just temporarilly disabled.

Anyway, when Confluent set it free, they also allowed redistribution, so I
have a copy for download here:

http://www.eki.mdh.se/kurshemsidor/informatik/TeamProg/VisualThought/vt14.exe

Licence key:

0356 9674 3262 8895 9914 96

// Bjorn A
Click to expand...

Visual Thought was *discontinued* (not abandoned) and made freeware. The
links here should work:

http://www.pricelessware.org/2003/PL2003BUSINESS.htm#V108

Susan
--
Pricelessware: http://www.pricelessware.org
PL2003: http://www.pricelessware.org/2003/about2003PL.htm
PL2004 Review: http://www.pricelessware.org/2004/2004nominationsPL.php
alt.comp.freeware FAQ (short) - maintained by John F.
http://clients.net2000.com.au/~johnf/faq.html
 
....

Visual Thought was *discontinued* (not abandoned)
and made freeware. The links here should work:

http://www.pricelessware.org/2003/PL2003BUSINESS.htm#V108
Click to expand...

Unfortunately that download link was exactly the one Mike tried without
success...

This one works:

http://www.eki.mdh.se/kurshemsidor/informatik/TeamProg/VisualThought/vt14.exe

I think a discussion on the differences between the terms "abandoned" or
"discontinued" would end up in another "liteware - crippleware"
discussion...

From their site:

"Since being acquired by E*TRADE, Inc. in September 1999,
Confluent ceased development, support and sales of Visual
Thought."

I'd say they have "abandoned" it... :-)

// Bjorn A
 
Bjorn said:
...



Unfortunately that download link was exactly the one Mike tried without
success...

This one works:

http://www.eki.mdh.se/kurshemsidor/informatik/TeamProg/VisualThought/vt14.exe
Click to expand...

My bad, it worked recently, didn't try it today - nice to have a backup
URL - thanks
I think a discussion on the differences between the terms "abandoned" or
"discontinued" would end up in another "liteware - crippleware"
discussion...

From their site:

"Since being acquired by E*TRADE, Inc. in September 1999,
Confluent ceased development, support and sales of Visual
Thought."

I'd say they have "abandoned" it... :-)
Click to expand...

Very true but the *ware* definition is:

<q>
Orphanware/Abandonware: software that the original author or company no
longer offers to the public (used when author cannot be located or
company is no longer in existence). May not be freeware. May not be
legal to obtain and use it.
</q>

Abandonware implies you can't find the owner/ author to ask them
directly about the legality of use.

A ware can be abandoned without becoming abandonware - I prefer to say
discontinued when the company is still in business - to avoid confusion
.. . .

JMHO :)

Susan
--
Pricelessware: http://www.pricelessware.org
PL2003: http://www.pricelessware.org/2003/about2003PL.htm
PL2004 Review: http://www.pricelessware.org/2004/2004nominationsPL.php
alt.comp.freeware FAQ (short) - maintained by John F.
http://clients.net2000.com.au/~johnf/faq.html
 
...


I don't think it's a question of supporting or not supporting, as
abandonware doesn't say anything of the software's status as freeware or
not.

Just as some other ware-types defined on the Pricelessware pages, there has
to be some additional information on the specific software to be able to
judge it as freeware.

One example of abandonware that I personally highly recommend is "Visual
Thought", a previously commercial diagram tool, that has been explicitly
abandoned by the company.

http://www.bombshellstudios.com/samples/co/vt.html

The company has in this case explicitly set it free when they ceased further
development of it, and provides a "public licence key" on their website to
anyone who wants to use it. With that key it will expire in the year 2014...

Software that has been abandoned should be considered on a case-by-case
basis. If it just has been abandoned without any information on further
status, the licences that were in effect before should still apply, aka if
was it freeware before it should still be considered freeware. If it was
something else before it's not freeware.

IMHO

// Bjorn A
Click to expand...

I downloaded a couple of versions of HomeSite from an Allaire FTP site
about a year ago... even the serials to activate were there. Should I
believe they left their FTP site open by mistake, or were they
"abandoning" older versions? I didn't bother to ask.

Turtle Funk

ps. I promise I ain't no script kiddie.
 
I downloaded a couple of versions of HomeSite from an Allaire FTP site
about a year ago... even the serials to activate were there. Should I
believe they left their FTP site open by mistake, or were they
"abandoning" older versions? I didn't bother to ask.

Turtle Funk

ps. I promise I ain't no script kiddie.
Click to expand...

Here we go: ftp://ftp.allaire.com/kbftp/HomeSite/
you may have to start from ftp.allaire.com
 
Here we go: ftp://ftp.allaire.com/kbftp/HomeSite/
you may have to start from ftp.allaire.com
Click to expand...

Hey Turtle! How are ya?

ps2. I'm not an advanced web dev, so I personally like 3.01 best... has
all the features I liked in 4.5 and doesn't drain resources. Another I
recommend is Max's HTML Beauty ++. Hmmm... I will nominate this for the
PL.

Turtle Funk
 
"Susan Bugher" ...
Very true but the *ware* definition is:

<q>
Orphanware/Abandonware: software that the original author or company no
longer offers to the public (used when author cannot be located or
company is no longer in existence). May not be freeware. May not be
legal to obtain and use it.
</q>
Click to expand...

Well, technically they're not even "offering" it to the public anymore. They
refer to downloads from the Technical University of Vienna (which by the way
now seem to work again).

But let's not get into that... :-)
Abandonware implies you can't find the owner/author
to ask them directly about the legality of use.
Click to expand...

You mean "Orphanware"... :-)

Myself, i use the semantic difference between "abandonware" and "orphanware"
to distinguish between those types.

I think of Visual Thought as abandonware, but on Octopus as orphanware.

But, as I said before, I don't think "abandonware", "orphanware", "liteware"
or "crippleware" should be the main point for inclusion or exclusion on the
Pricelessware list or if it's recommended or not in a.c.f. since the status
of "freeware" isn't depending on that, but on whether it's *free* or not.

JMHO :-)

// Bjorn A

BTW. I know you're a busy woman, and have a lot on your mind now, but I'd
just want to remember you that the download link you have on the list for
Octopus goes to version 3.1. which is adware, here are some links to the
adware-free version 3.11:

http://www.powerpc.home.ro/download/octopus.zip
ftp://ftp.freenet.de/pub/filepilot/windows/internet-tools/octopus.zip
ftp://ftp.freenet.de/pub/.disk0/filepilot/windows/internet-tools/octopus.zip
 
Bjorn said:
"Susan Bugher" ...

Myself, i use the semantic difference between "abandonware" and "orphanware"
to distinguish between those types.

I think of Visual Thought as abandonware, but on Octopus as orphanware.
Click to expand...

ah, that makes sense - thrown away vs. lost . . . :)
But, as I said before, I don't think "abandonware", "orphanware", "liteware"
or "crippleware" should be the main point for inclusion or exclusion on the
Pricelessware list or if it's recommended or not in a.c.f. since the status
of "freeware" isn't depending on that, but on whether it's *free* or not.
Click to expand...

Agree - free *and* legal :)
BTW. I know you're a busy woman, and have a lot on your mind now, but I'd
just want to remember you that the download link you have on the list for
Octopus goes to version 3.1. which is adware, here are some links to the
adware-free version 3.11:

http://www.powerpc.home.ro/download/octopus.zip
ftp://ftp.freenet.de/pub/filepilot/windows/internet-tools/octopus.zip
ftp://ftp.freenet.de/pub/.disk0/filepilot/windows/internet-tools/octopus.zip
Click to expand...

Thank Bjorn - I've deferred making those changes in favor of getting
some other things done . . .

Susan
--
Pricelessware: http://www.pricelessware.org
PL2003: http://www.pricelessware.org/2003/about2003PL.htm
PL2004 Review: http://www.pricelessware.org/2004/2004nominationsPL.php
alt.comp.freeware FAQ (short) - maintained by John F.
http://clients.net2000.com.au/~johnf/faq.html
 
Here we go: ftp://ftp.allaire.com/kbftp/HomeSite/
you may have to start from ftp.allaire.com
Click to expand...

oh yeah... homesite 3.01a registration file in this directory:
ftp://ftp.allaire.com/kbftp/HomeSite/RegFiles/
 
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