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    #1

    Have you paid or donated for software? Would you and if so, what?

    A recent thread brought this question to my mind:

    Have you or would you spend money of software if you really wanted or needed it? In a related question, Do you donate to "free" projects like Kubuntu or this forum or others?

    I myself have had a good paying career my whole adult life and now that I'm retired and the kids are gone, I have a enough discretionary income to chip in where I feel it's warranted. I hope others do the same.
    ​
    Please understand this isn't about shaming anyone for not paying or donating. I'm not judging, just curious about the general state of things. To that end, the pole responses are not public and I won't share who or how anyone responded. Multiple choices are allowed.
    12
    I donate to some free projects I value.
    75.00%
    9
    I have or would pay for a software product that did something I needed better than free software.
    50.00%
    6
    I would like to donate, but it's not in my budget at the moment.
    16.67%
    2
    I'd rather rely on no-cost solutions.
    16.67%
    2
    Last edited by oshunluvr; Feb 03, 2025, 08:35 AM.

    Please Read Me
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    #2
    A follow-on question: If you would pay for the right product, what would it be?

    I DID pay for a professional level slide and negative scanning program to complete a project of scanning 50 years of old family photos: Vuescan

    I WOULD pay for a really professional level PDF program IF I was still working.

    I donate here, to the forum, KDE projects, and a couple others.

    Please Read Me
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      #3
      I would pay/donate to Kup backup, at the very least. KTailCtrl and other smaller projects I use every day. I already donate to KDE.

      I actually pay for or donate to most phone apps I use that offer it, even though much of them are open source.
      GrayJay, Convert Now, Antennapod and others.
      Last edited by claydoh; Feb 15, 2025, 09:34 PM.
      ​
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        #4
        Yes, I always pay for any software, Linux or Android, that isn't free. In fact, I specifically search for Android apps that are *not* free; the only free ones I use are, for example, the Candy Crush family of games--they don't have ads (and I DO NOT do ads), AND they have in-app purchases that I occasionally use. Because of my career [as a programmer] I feel duty-bound to reward good developers for the knowledge and creativity needed for them to produce great apps. For Linux-oriented software/forums/whatever that are free to use, I donate to the site. I appreciate that it takes time and money to keep a site up and running, and I feel compelled to help out.

        PS I KNOW it will come up, so let's get this over with: Yes, I was ill again; this time it was Guillain-Barre Syndrome, which paralyzed me from the feet to my upper chest; they were just planning for a ventilator when the paralysis started to reverse, in reverse order (starting at the top). I had a short hospital stay--for me--this time, only 2-1/2 months!! (Versus 6 months with septic shock.) Came home, still unable to walk, still in diapers, still being bathed in bed, but not cured. I'm on a plethora of prescriptions, including morphine around the clock, but it doesn't impair me and I'm grateful that it, usually, keeps the pain bearable. For occasional break-through pain, I have 10/325 hydrocodone on hand, too.

        I ended up here today because I was having a hell of a time installing Steam; I've done it before, on various other laptops, and this one, too, but uninstalled it at some point and now could NOT get it working. A search led me to a post that sounded exactly like what I needed--and it was here! claydoh had provided a solution for the OP, which worked for me, too, with a little tweaking. Thank you, Claydoh!
        Xenix/UNIX user since 1985 | Linux user since 1991 | Was registered Linux user #163544

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          #5
          Yes, you are right, it would come up! Been wondering where you've been these days. Glad to hear you are still with us and not in some obit somewhere. I know you've had a heck of a medical journey. You are quite a warrior at it, a good fighter. You have to be. As I shared with you by PM one time, I've also had some "idiopathic" trips that have baffled the pathologists now and then, but I have gotten through it, and, amazingly, am in "excellent" health (no chronic diseases, not taking any Rx) .... but I do have a follow-up schedule penned on my calendar. I'm glad you are making it. Sorry to hear about the stressful ordeal you've been through, though. Hang out here with us. If it doesn't make you feel younger or happier, it will make you feel a bit crazier, which is not a bad thing. Take care, DoYouKubuntu, good to hear from you.
          An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way. Charles Bukowski
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            #6
            I actively support KFN and the author of ucaresystem-core (Salih EMIN). I've supported other 'free software' in the past. My guideline is that if a product that I'm able to use for free, provides me with utility that I find beneficial and useful, I'll support the author with donations. I feel it's the right thing to do.
            Last edited by Snowhog; Feb 16, 2025, 10:16 AM.
            Windows no longer obstruct my view.
            Using Kubuntu Linux since March 23, 2007.
            "It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data." - Sherlock Holmes​
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              #7
              I used to pay for software when I was actively and gainfully employed (Assoc professor, then self employed at different things). But, also, back then I was using more software for different things. Now, I'm pretty much a Kubuntu generic user doing all the pedestrian tasks of email, surfing, light research/reading of special topics, some social media, news, word processing, etc. I maintain a membership here. Every year when Wikipedia posts their message "if everyone would donate just $2.37 ...", I give $15 or so. Randomly, on one-shot deals, I may send small amounts to people (e.g., Rod Smith for rEFInd etc.). That's about it. I appreciate good programming. I used to program and teach some programming (Fortran, Basic, etc.); my sister is a Sr. Programmer Analyst at a university.
              An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way. Charles Bukowski
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                #8
                I pay for Nordvpn on a yearly basis. Yes there are free Vpns. Free doesn't guarantee that they are doing their best for you.

                Now we have a graphical front to Nordvpn in Kubuntu. I imagine to other Linux versions too. https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/05/...pdate-adds-gui
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                  #9
                  Originally posted by oshunluvr View Post
                  A recent thread brought this question to my mind:

                  Have you or would you spend money of software if you really wanted or needed it? In a related question, Do you donate to "free" projects like Kubuntu or this forum or others?
                  Plain and simple and bluntly. I ain't paying for software, period.

                  There is a reason I use a FREE OS, and the FREE SOFTWARE.

                  If we go back to the days of DOS.. and DOS shareware there were a couple, a couple of very useful programs I did pay to get the features unlocked, SilverExpress mail reader, and Last Byte Memory Manager. These were inexpensive even then, and warranted it for the features... The rest was either used with the nags or other means.

                  That is extremely unlikely to happen in 2025, and even more so when you are taking software I love, ie: KDE, and fubar'ng it up!

                  I know where some of the responses on this will go so I will give your a little back story and side story in the same vein of this.

                  I operate and have operated for nearly 20 years, YEARS, or TWO DECADES some very niche setups to provide a service to that "hobby" area. Its related to my real life work, and its origins is how I got into my real world jobS. (No, I am not going to elaborate on what this is or my jobs, sorry I don't do that online.) What does this have to do with FREE SOFTWARE..

                  Well I have operated this "service" at MY OWN EXPENSIVE for that period. Matter of fact I just spent about $700 in putting together a new 16 core server to run part of this service. Along with having the other associated equipment to run this. Again AT MY OWN EXPENSIVE. There likely is a bit more in some other servers and equipment for this setup which puts it closer to $2K in the last year for various hardware alone. Add in MY TIME to build, maintain this equipment and its software even just monitoring etc.. and we are easily into the $10K/year. I ain't cheap.

                  Now lets spin this back to software, if I had to PAY for this software.. it would never work. There actually were paid versions of this sort of stuff back when I started.. And you think VMWare is running an extortion racquet.. you ain't seen nothing like it. It would have been $1K/MONTH + some other stuff probably putting it into the $2k/month range at times.. Nope. With out FREE SOFTWARE my FREE SERVICE Would not have existed, or well exist now.

                  Hopefully some readers here will get the parallels and similarities I am making here.
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                    #10
                    Originally posted by rec9140 View Post
                    Plain and simple and bluntly. I ain't paying for software, period.
                    Do you think that free software builds its self?
                    Windows no longer obstruct my view.
                    Using Kubuntu Linux since March 23, 2007.
                    "It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data." - Sherlock Holmes​
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                      #11
                      lol

                      Free as in freedom, of course.

                      https://www.gnu.org/distros/distros.html

                      https://dragora.org/donate/

                      https://guix.gnu.org/en/donate/

                      https://trisquel.info/en/donate




                      But to be honest, everyone has different views.

                      Apologies for going top the ...religious texts lol.
                      ​
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