[Elecraft] [K2] Remote control programs

[Julian G4ILO]

On Nov 9, 2007 3:32 PM, Gregg R. Lengling <w9dhi at wi.rr.com> wrote:
> Don't forget HRD (Ham Radio Deluxe), Simon has written a great program and
> the best part in keeping with the Amateur Spirit...it's Free.

I don't have any axe to grind for any of the programs mentioned, and
in fact use none of them, but I have to take issue with the notion
that HRD is great just because it's free. I believe that the range and
quality of software available to hams is limited because of their
reluctance to pay for it, and that we are ultimately the poorer for it

I have written numerous programs for this hobby that I give away for
free on my website, but these are fairly simple programs I wrote for
my own use that I'm happy to share as-is. I'm not interested in making
them my life's work and constantly updating them, so I give them away
so as not to enter into a moral obligation to provide value for money
with them. Programming is hard and not very interesting work and the
thing that keeps most people doing it for reasons other than their
personal needs is that it is what earns them their bread and butter.

The HRD users are very fortunate that Simon is willing to keep on
developing his product for year after year, for no money, spending
time he could otherwise be spending on the air. But he is a bit of a
noble exception. We are all the poorer if we discourage professional
software developers from catering for our needs. It's not as if we
can't afford to pay for software - even the most expensive program
costs about the same as a fairly simple shack accessory.

Sorry for the rant, but it's something I feel very strongly about.
-- 
Julian, G4ILO K2 s/n: 392  K3 s/n: ???
G4ILO's Shack: www.g4ilo.com
Zerobeat Ham Forums: www.zerobeat.net/smf