Re: Is Xy 4 now freeware?/my advice on downloading

[Bill Troop billtroop@xxxxxxxx]

More on this. XyWrite is abandonware. Same thing from the end-user point
of view. The program binaries have been available on a website hosted by
someone we all know for a decade and there has been no protest. That's
another answer. The statute of limitations has long since passed. Whoever
had any rights to the binaries has now lost them because they failed over
the course of time to protest the open, public distribution of the
binaries. Why should they care? The owners couldn't give the stuff
away.


For perspective, have a look at Microsoft's


https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-gb/subscriptions/ff723773.aspx; eudora="autourl">
https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-gb/subscriptions/ff723773.aspx


response to users who have a genuine need to acquire Microsoft products
that it is no longer able legally to sell (including a vast number of
OS's and applications from before roughly 2002):


"These products are no longer available from Microsoft in any
form, but may be available through third-party resellers or Web
sites."

Let's translate that into English. It means, 'If you want the
program, either buy an old CD on eBay, or download the program from
BitTorrent.'


Need a serial number? Google is your friend.


Want a rule of thumb? Nobody cares who is using a program that is more
than four or five years old.


Want to give someone XyWrite and not take responsibility?


Tell the person to head over to


http://www.xywrite.com/where all the files necessary to run either Xy 3 or 4 may be
downloaded.


Microsoft's statement is important because it formalizes a thought we all
need to hear: It is totally OK to download old software. They are
not formally stating what is implicit in that message: 'We know that you
probably download a lot of new software too. Keep it reasonable, and for
private use, and make sure your business or place of employment uses
licensed copies.' This is the unspoken yet widely followed compact that
has emerged in recent years.


That said, make sure you have good backups and good anti-virus
before you run an executable off BitTorrent. Problems are exceedingly
rare, but they bite you every now and then. Another hint: anti-virus
programs often give false positives for executables. Watch out for
heuristic warnings, which are guesses, not fact.


Binaries that have been explicitly vetted by members of this list are
safe. After all, most of what we're interested in would not attract a
virus-spreader's interest, because they would not be downloaded
frequently enough to make the effort worthwhile.



 

At 29/05/2015 17:37, you wrote:

> I wonder if anyone here knows
> whether I can give a copy of Xy4 to someone. Is it now freeware?
>
> Regards,
> Harry