こっちが、グレッグさんが書いて下さった英文。 ちなみに、質問文のほうは、「添削たのもう！」といったら 添削してくれた、筑波大学工学システム学類 （どんな学問なんでしょ？）に行ってる、 永田さん(e949031@jks.is.tsukuba.ac.jp)のものです。 いやはや助かります。 Q1 Why did you decide to distribute your software as shareware ? I started writing software as a hobby, and shareware was the easiest way to distribute it. Since then, my business has grown, but I like all the contact I have with my users that shareware offers me. Q2 Can the creation and distribution of shareware earn enough money ? In other words, does the registration fee earned break even with development and miscellaneous ? Yes, you can earn money through shareware, enough to cover business expenses and then leave some left over. However, it is hard to judge the shareware market. Many people put a huge amount of work into their shareware and get a very small return, while others get lucky and hit the jackpot. Fortunately, I am one of the lucky ones. Aaron and Kaleidoscope were both significantly more popular than I expected. Q3 There are possibilities of people using your software without payment of registration fee; how do you take it into consideration ? Also, what ideas do you have of methods to prevent such from happening ? I try not to think about this. All I do is provide a shareware message at startup to remind the user to pay. I have found that such reminders can double the number of registrations. Beyond that, I don't want to harrass the user into registering. Q4 What do you think is the approximate percentage of users who pay the registration fee ? I estimate that percentage at between 5 and 10 percent. Some people think it is as low as 2%. It really depends on the product, though. Q5 Under our impression, the definiton of Shareware is "a software created by the Developer to share its convenience with other people. The users pay the registration fee to the Developer to show their appreciation and respect." What do you think about or definition ? Is it ridiculous, or is it a dream ? That is the definition of shareware that I live by. I write my software for fun,because I want to use it myself, and I distribute it as shareware because I think other people might want to use it, too. I tell other potential shareware authors that if they are in this business for the money, they are in the wrong business. Q6 Do tell us if you or your company have a policy, philosophy or attitude toward creating and distributing shareware. I always try to make sure that my shareware looks good and feels solid. Many shareware authors just cobble together a program and don't think about the interface. Since I write software that deals with the interface, I feel that it is important for my software to look and feel professional.

1998-07-09-THU

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