§ 7 - Piracy

 Note: As WinImages R7 is now free to use and distribute, the following no longer applies to the package. It is left in these documents for posterity's sake. I've also modified the content with a few strikeouts to prevent confusion on the part of search engine quotes or partial readers.

Piracy of commercial software is a serious problem all across the software industry. It accounts for billions of dollars in lost sales industry-wide. Attempts at preventing piracy, however, account for the endless irritation and inconvenience of millions of legitimate customers. We have decided that we don't want to be a part of that. Accordingly, WinImages R7 is not copy protected, and we aren't going to attempt to burden you with a bunch of restrictions. Instead, we just want to point a few things out.

We sell (sold) the software inexpensively in the hope that the purchaser will find the capabilities it provides to be more than they expected to get for the price we ask. This, we hope, will enourage more sales, simply because a happy user may be pleased enough to let others know they felt they were treated well and fairly. We use money from sales to keep our company going and both maintain and upgrade the software. It seems like a simple idea... and really, it is.

Based on that idea, we ask you, as a person with a copy of the software, to consider how it might affect our ability to stay in business when you give, or lend, copies of the software to others. You can't "pirate" WinImages R7, because we refuse to consider you, or any person you decide to provide the software to, a pirate. Just remember: the way we stay in business is by selling the software at a reasonable price. It is a simple fact that should too few people buy it, you'll soon be using software that will no longer be improved and for which even legitimate owners cannot get support, because we'll be out of business. Your choices and actions here make a difference.

Legally speaking, we do need to point out that WinImages R7 is (was) not freeware, public domain software (PD) or Shareware. It has not been placed in the public domain. It is (was) a commercial product.

Please do not post software from the WinImages R7 release package, EDP or physical, upon the Internet in such a manner as to enable download access to any non-registered individual who is not a friend, family member, or co-worker. We're not forbidding you, quoting law, or theatening you. We're asking you.

Use on multiple computers is encouraged. This includes computers at more than one site, use on "laptop" and "tablet" computers, use at work and at home, use in virtualized environments, use under Windows-equivalent environments such as Wine and Crossover, use by coworkers, family members and friends. However, please keep in mind that we can only support people who have actually purchased the software, and that includes providing them with upgrades. We control (controlled) this potential drain on our resources by providing support only via the email address provided to us at the time of purchase.