Why do you guys pay for Poker Tracker?

[Infotainment]

As someone w/ 2 years C# development experience find this topic hilarious...

You could make the money to buy a 2-computer PokerTracker license in about 10 hours @ minimum wage.

To make your own version that does as much as PokerTracker would take hundreds if not > 1000 hours.

You would only "code your own Pokertracker" for the thrill of making your own or with intention of selling it.

Then, yeah, you would have to spend hours updating it from time to time.

[DrewOnTilt]

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Just another $50 I could be playing with...

Just my 2 cents tho

[/ QUOTE ]

So when you need to type a letter, do you pay a few hundred bucks for a copy of Microsoft Office, or do you code your own word processor?

If you want to build your own hand history tracking program, go ahead and be my guest. It's pretty foolish, though, considering all of the features and support that you get for a one-time purchase of pokertracker.

[jii]

To OP,

I've been working in software industry since 99(programmer, project manager, product manager), and I can tell you, it's the support. To be honest, I didn't read everything that you wrote, but commercial success of open source software is pretty much dependant on support also.

To Pat and Josh, you're doing great with the support. I haven't regredded single time purchasing your software, but I do regret sticking with Gametime++ too long.

[WARRiOR520]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Just another $50 I could be playing with...

Just my 2 cents tho

[/ QUOTE ]

So when you need to type a letter, do you pay a few hundred bucks for a copy of Microsoft Office, or do you code your own word processor?

If you want to build your own hand history tracking program, go ahead and be my guest. It's pretty foolish, though, considering all of the features and support that you get for a one-time purchase of pokertracker.

[/ QUOTE ]

I download OpenOffice

[WARRiOR520]

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[ QUOTE ]
I now know, because they are lazy, end of story

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I speak for myself (but probably many others) when I say that the reason I didn't implement what you describe is not because I am lazy, but because doing so would require a gargantuan effort.

And your attitude as quoted above only serves to drive people away from your cause, not towards it. The very people you should want to contribute to your project, people like me, read your words and imagine someone who would be very unpleasant to work with. Is this really your goal?

[/ QUOTE ]

You are right, that is not my goal. Unfortunately I do not enjoy being attacked, so I reacted defensively. Some people understood and sent encouragement, others chose to send replies that are essentially useless for anything, unlike yours.

I do not need to be told what "free" software is, and it is amazing that for some people, it is the same generic argument about semantics when I did not stress the free software thing, and when i mentioned it I did so in the correct context. The point of the matter is PT is NOT free software, so unless I am wrong in this basic assumption that it being closed source with many restrictions puts it out of the realm of 'free' software, then please forget it and I appreciate your short contribution just please now spare me having to read it again, and I will spare you childish jabs like the quote above.

[Avicenna]

I'd prefer not to see a free PT clone.
Firstly (the naive argument), if the open-source is good enough, it may hurt the original. Hopefully not enough to shut it down, but possibly enough to slow down its development and support. Then, if the open-source project stops to be developped/supported, there won't be any tool around.
Secondly (the opportunist argument), as long as one must pay for the software, there will always be fools who won't buy it. I have an edge on those fools. I want to keep it.

[Grunch]

You win.

[jukofyork]

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Firstly (the naive argument), if the open-source is good enough, it may hurt the original. Hopefully not enough to shut it down, but possibly enough to slow down its development and support.

[/ QUOTE ]
IMHO then I think a free PT clone would do the exact opposite to this. If the PT devs are making a huge amount of cash from their product, then they will likely do anything to keep doing so; even if that means paying for top class developers to work on it so as to out-compete the free clone. I can't think of a single peace of free software that has ever caused the original they have cloned to just "roll over and die" (this is just not the capitalist way...), but I can think of quite a few examples where it has forced the original payware software to be improved significantly.

Another beneficial effect is that the freeware software may find new features that were not conceived by the payware devs (or which were deemed too much effort to be implemented for no extra return) and these new feature may make it into the payware software thus creating a much better product with more features overall.

Juk [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[PBJaxx]

Wow.

Grunch/Phil - You guys rock.

OP, these guys have given you sound advice and explanations that stem from years of invaluable experience. They did this despite your attitude and obvious naivity. You reacted by ignoring their points and attacking them by calling THEM childish. If you go on to a career in programming, look back on this thread in ten years and laugh.

I am sorry to fuel the fire with this post, but at least listen to what they have to say without your defenses up. FWIW, I am a software engineer, and the reason I pay for PT has absolutely nothing to do with laziness. It has to do with opportunity cost.

With all of that said, I genuinely hope this turns out to be a fun and fulfilling project for you.

[pankwindu]

I have a much more relevant question.

Why do you guys keep feeding the troll?