Today is Shareware Day! Surprised they still mark the day. Shareware was a BIG DEAL for a decade, from 2000 to 2010. Now it’s mostly gone.
Where did all the Hundred Flowers go? Gone to Deepstate every one. Like all fake “counterculture” movements, shareware became an integral part of Deepstate. Shareware turned into subscription software, which forces you to conform to Deepstate if you want to keep your tools running.
The original shareware was non-forcible. You tried a limited version for free, and paid if you wanted full features. You could keep and use the free version if it was good enough. Force entered the picture when the software started “phoning home” to check for approval. You no longer owned the tool; you had to pay and conform if you wanted to use it at all.
Polistra's Mill 