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As nice as it may be to have public distros, I personally don't think it's in their best interest. Not only would they be pressured to support the modules by non-clients, there's the potential of someone using their work to develope competing products. If they were my modules I certainly wouldn't be happy if I spent countless hours writing modules that are essential to the workings of my programs, released them freely, then subsequently discovered third-party competing programs based entirely off my work.
Then likely you and Andy wasn't one of those developers, who submitted more thousand modules into CPAN... If those developers would have thinked like you (not to release any module to public), then currently we simply would not have any modules available in CPAN...
And if Larry Wall would not have been write Perl, and would not make it available for free, then we could not use GT products (which are based on Perl), because Perl would not be so popular language.
Anyway.
I do NOT suggest GT to give away their products for free. That's not my goal. I'm talking about some free GT lib modules (like GT::Template or GT::SQL), maybe the full GT lib (if Alex is convinced, that this would be useful).
Even if the full GT lib would be available for free, there would be needed thousands of developer hours to make a new (competitor) product.
Developers should afraid of the competition, as the competition is the power what pushes us forward. Also GT has so much time advantage before any developers, that new developers (even if they can use the whole GT library) could not reach GT.
GT will always be the lead directory software developer (IMHO it is).
I'd like to see GT a successful company, as I want to have continous updates for the GT apps in the future.
Also, hopefully the new licensing scheme starting from v3.x, hopefully will make GT a recurring income, which will mean for us (the users of GT apps), a guarantee, that GT development is continuing in the future.
The current problem seems to be, that the active users on GT forum are (seems to be) less & less. GT forums would need some fresh blood, new users, new plugin developers, new helper developers in the forum.
My goal is to fresh up the user base of the forum a bit... I'm committed to GT products, as I'm happy owner of an LSQL license, and just bought an DBMan SQL license, too. You should just understand, that the forum activity should be increased somehow, as I feel things are slowed down on the forum.
CPAN would be a good place to start to get activity.
I feel enlarging the user base using CPAN, may help a bit to make the GT apps more popular, the GT company more successful.
So, if GT modules are published to CPAN, the results are supposed to be following:
- it's a free advertisement for GT website & GT apps & GT forum
- new users, developers are attracted to the forum
- new users are likely spending money to buy GT apps
- new developers are freshig up the forum activity
- new developers will spend some money for paid support on the used modules
- new developers will spend time in the forum to help new, beginner developers, for whom they can sell plugins
- the more plugin is available for the GT apps, the more wider feature range is reached, the more users & developers are attracted, developing more plugins, and so on...
- modules may be improved by anybody, so GT may win free developers, and shorten some development times
In general, I think this would fresh up the user base & the GT app developments.
I'm sure, more users will mean more income for GT, and not less.
Best regards,
Webmaster33
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