Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Trial Software
Some vendors enable users to download a free trial version of a proprietary software program. When you do, you still
have to agree to the terms and conditions, and you only get to use the software for a short period of time—typically from
7 to 30 days. You may also find that the trial version is a scaled-down version of the full program, without all the features.
In other words, certain aspects of the full-version software don't function. The idea behind the trial software is for you to
evaluate the software and see if it is the right product for you. At the end of the trial period, if you want to continue using
the software, you will be asked to purchase a license. If so, you will be sent a code to activate the product.
Open-source software
is software that is not only free to use, but also
whose source code is accessible to users to modify and redistribute. You
may be wondering, why is it free? What's in it for the software devel-
opers? The answer is simple: The open-source movement is all about
promoting freedoms and removing licensing restrictions. The theory is
that by allowing the free distribution of software that can be enhanced by
others, the computer world benefits from having consistently improved
products—and from that, we
all
benefit.
open-source software
Free access to a soft-
ware program and the source code that produced
the program.
Although open-source software is about removing licensing restrictions,
many types of open-source software do carry a license, called the
General
Public License (GPL)
. The GPL—developed by an organization called
the Free Software Foundation, that exists to support the creation and
distribution of free software—is a simply worded license that enables indi-
viduals and companies to legally copy and modify software. This gives users
much greater freedom with the product, allowing them to make as many
copies as they like, installing it on all their computers, distributing it to
friends, and, of course, making changes to the source code if they so desire.
General Public License (GPL)
A license used
for many types of open-source software, allowing
the software to be legally copied and modified.
Software Piracy
Software piracy
is the unauthorized copying of software programs.
There are various types of software piracy:
software piracy
The unauthorized copying and
distribution of software.
◾
Counterfeit software.
Counterfeit software is a copy of a legiti-
mate product that is made and marketed as an original. With
counterfeit software, the media and packaging may look genuine,
but only because the software has been copied and packaged to
look like the original. It is sometimes difficult to tell the differ-
ence between the genuine article and a fake. Counterfeit software
is even easier to sell over the Internet—particularly software that is
downloadable rather than distributed on a physical disc. This type
of software is often sold on sites that appear to be authorized, but
if you look closely, you can usually spot clues that the site is not
legitimate, such as a slightly different spelling in the URL, gram-
mar or usage errors that indicate a non-native speaker may have
created the page, or blurry or incorrect logos.
◾
Corporate piracy.
Often, a company or organization will pur-
chase software in a legitimate way, but install the software on more
machines than it is supposed to. For example, a company might buy
software with 50 licenses but install it on 100 computers. This prac-
tice, which can save corporations many thousands or even millions
of dollars, is called “corporate piracy.” It may seem benign, but it is
in fact a form of theft.
