Releasing components with source code. Is it safe?
-
Hi, I am about to release my .NET component in the market, and am thinking of releasing with full source code. This is because i have read from various discussion forums and threads on this subject that people prefer to buy components with full source code license. My question is this: If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability. I know its just a small percetange of "bad people" out there who will abuse the source code contrary to the terms of the EULA i will have in place. But that said, i will need to take an informed decision taking into account the damage that can be caused by these small lot of bad people. So, what is the general feel - is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability? I surely want to release the source code along with my components, since i feel most of the buyers want this option so they can debug the source etc. Comments invited. Thanks.
-
Hi, I am about to release my .NET component in the market, and am thinking of releasing with full source code. This is because i have read from various discussion forums and threads on this subject that people prefer to buy components with full source code license. My question is this: If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability. I know its just a small percetange of "bad people" out there who will abuse the source code contrary to the terms of the EULA i will have in place. But that said, i will need to take an informed decision taking into account the damage that can be caused by these small lot of bad people. So, what is the general feel - is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability? I surely want to release the source code along with my components, since i feel most of the buyers want this option so they can debug the source etc. Comments invited. Thanks.
Increase the cost of the source code version if they really really want it make them pay for it. Don't be surprised if it starts to pop up all over the place under GPL
DEVELOPER DAY SCOTLAND 10th MAY 2008 http://www.developerdayscotland.com/[^]
-
Hi, I am about to release my .NET component in the market, and am thinking of releasing with full source code. This is because i have read from various discussion forums and threads on this subject that people prefer to buy components with full source code license. My question is this: If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability. I know its just a small percetange of "bad people" out there who will abuse the source code contrary to the terms of the EULA i will have in place. But that said, i will need to take an informed decision taking into account the damage that can be caused by these small lot of bad people. So, what is the general feel - is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability? I surely want to release the source code along with my components, since i feel most of the buyers want this option so they can debug the source etc. Comments invited. Thanks.
User7208 wrote:
If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability.
Always. But most people who buy your product will not abuse it - They mostly just want the option to tweak it if they want to.
User7208 wrote:
is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability?
I'd give people the option to pay more to see the source code if they want it. Look at component vendors to see what the general difference in price is. Then base your model on that.
Upcoming FREE developer events: * Developer Day Scotland Recent blog posts: * Mixins in C#3.0 My website | Blog
-
Hi, I am about to release my .NET component in the market, and am thinking of releasing with full source code. This is because i have read from various discussion forums and threads on this subject that people prefer to buy components with full source code license. My question is this: If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability. I know its just a small percetange of "bad people" out there who will abuse the source code contrary to the terms of the EULA i will have in place. But that said, i will need to take an informed decision taking into account the damage that can be caused by these small lot of bad people. So, what is the general feel - is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability? I surely want to release the source code along with my components, since i feel most of the buyers want this option so they can debug the source etc. Comments invited. Thanks.
The way I see it, the only risk you have is the judgement that will be made on your coding ability. So in other words, make sure your work is class A stuff. Get a friend and some objective person to review the source code in full. And make sure you have a comment or 2 ;P
xacc.ide - now with IronScheme support
IronScheme - 1.0 alpha 2 out now -
User7208 wrote:
If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability.
Always. But most people who buy your product will not abuse it - They mostly just want the option to tweak it if they want to.
User7208 wrote:
is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability?
I'd give people the option to pay more to see the source code if they want it. Look at component vendors to see what the general difference in price is. Then base your model on that.
Upcoming FREE developer events: * Developer Day Scotland Recent blog posts: * Mixins in C#3.0 My website | Blog
Thanks guys. I researched on this for a while, and i found that almost all of the vendors offer source code option. That gave me some comfort that i thought it was probably OK and safe to release the full source. That said, i could not find out what sort of "safety" element these vendors have / think they have on the "potential" abuse side of things. There must be some sort of safety that would have planned for their intellectual property... if i can get that point understood, then i think that is all i need before i release the source :-)
-
The way I see it, the only risk you have is the judgement that will be made on your coding ability. So in other words, make sure your work is class A stuff. Get a friend and some objective person to review the source code in full. And make sure you have a comment or 2 ;P
xacc.ide - now with IronScheme support
IronScheme - 1.0 alpha 2 out now -
Increase the cost of the source code version if they really really want it make them pay for it. Don't be surprised if it starts to pop up all over the place under GPL
DEVELOPER DAY SCOTLAND 10th MAY 2008 http://www.developerdayscotland.com/[^]
-
Hi, I am about to release my .NET component in the market, and am thinking of releasing with full source code. This is because i have read from various discussion forums and threads on this subject that people prefer to buy components with full source code license. My question is this: If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability. I know its just a small percetange of "bad people" out there who will abuse the source code contrary to the terms of the EULA i will have in place. But that said, i will need to take an informed decision taking into account the damage that can be caused by these small lot of bad people. So, what is the general feel - is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability? I surely want to release the source code along with my components, since i feel most of the buyers want this option so they can debug the source etc. Comments invited. Thanks.
One reason I like source with components is to look at the quality of the coding. I don't like tweaking it because that causes problems with patches. However, I have purchased a component with source with the intent of using just a core algorithm and chucking the rest. I've had bosses who wanted source because they were paranoid types. In some cases this concern was legitimate, in most others it was totally bogus. (In one recent case the component solved a problem perfectly. None of us wanted the source, but the boss insisted so we ponied up the money. A big waste if you ask me.)
Anyone who thinks he has a better idea of what's good for people than people do is a swine. - P.J. O'Rourke
-
Hi, I am about to release my .NET component in the market, and am thinking of releasing with full source code. This is because i have read from various discussion forums and threads on this subject that people prefer to buy components with full source code license. My question is this: If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability. I know its just a small percetange of "bad people" out there who will abuse the source code contrary to the terms of the EULA i will have in place. But that said, i will need to take an informed decision taking into account the damage that can be caused by these small lot of bad people. So, what is the general feel - is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability? I surely want to release the source code along with my components, since i feel most of the buyers want this option so they can debug the source etc. Comments invited. Thanks.
User7208 wrote:
[...] and am thinking of releasing with full source code.
And the difference between that and someone running the assembly through a decompiler to get C# source code from it? (Ignoring obvious crap like comments, indenting, spacing, etc.) If someone really wants to get at the source code for some .NET code, I do not think that there are many barriers... Peace!
-=- James
Please rate this message - let me know if I helped or not! * * *If you think it costs a lot to do it right, just wait until you find out how much it costs to do it wrong!
Remember that Professional Driver on Closed Course does not mean your Dumb Ass on a Public Road!
See DeleteFXPFiles -
User7208 wrote:
[...] and am thinking of releasing with full source code.
And the difference between that and someone running the assembly through a decompiler to get C# source code from it? (Ignoring obvious crap like comments, indenting, spacing, etc.) If someone really wants to get at the source code for some .NET code, I do not think that there are many barriers... Peace!
-=- James
Please rate this message - let me know if I helped or not! * * *If you think it costs a lot to do it right, just wait until you find out how much it costs to do it wrong!
Remember that Professional Driver on Closed Course does not mean your Dumb Ass on a Public Road!
See DeleteFXPFiles -
Hi, I am about to release my .NET component in the market, and am thinking of releasing with full source code. This is because i have read from various discussion forums and threads on this subject that people prefer to buy components with full source code license. My question is this: If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability. I know its just a small percetange of "bad people" out there who will abuse the source code contrary to the terms of the EULA i will have in place. But that said, i will need to take an informed decision taking into account the damage that can be caused by these small lot of bad people. So, what is the general feel - is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability? I surely want to release the source code along with my components, since i feel most of the buyers want this option so they can debug the source etc. Comments invited. Thanks.
As a big user of 3rd party components I expect source code to be available but I'm not surprised when an extra fee is charged to get it. Many people don't care or want the source code but a very few are absolutely paranoid about it so it should be available as an option but if it were me I'd charge a hefty premium to get it.
"The pursuit of excellence is less profitable than the pursuit of bigness, but it can be more satisfying." - David Ogilvy
-
Hi, I am about to release my .NET component in the market, and am thinking of releasing with full source code. This is because i have read from various discussion forums and threads on this subject that people prefer to buy components with full source code license. My question is this: If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability. I know its just a small percetange of "bad people" out there who will abuse the source code contrary to the terms of the EULA i will have in place. But that said, i will need to take an informed decision taking into account the damage that can be caused by these small lot of bad people. So, what is the general feel - is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability? I surely want to release the source code along with my components, since i feel most of the buyers want this option so they can debug the source etc. Comments invited. Thanks.
By releasing the code or component I think it's safe to say that a small group of people are just going to steal your work. I doubt any that steal it would think there was much value in trying to sell it themselves. Not counting places like China where piracy is more the rule than the exception. Most places I've been error on the side of paranoia making sure they have everything fully licensed. What does your component do anyway? Do you have a website to sell it from yet?
-
Hi, I am about to release my .NET component in the market, and am thinking of releasing with full source code. This is because i have read from various discussion forums and threads on this subject that people prefer to buy components with full source code license. My question is this: If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability. I know its just a small percetange of "bad people" out there who will abuse the source code contrary to the terms of the EULA i will have in place. But that said, i will need to take an informed decision taking into account the damage that can be caused by these small lot of bad people. So, what is the general feel - is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability? I surely want to release the source code along with my components, since i feel most of the buyers want this option so they can debug the source etc. Comments invited. Thanks.
Yes its safe. I sold my old "SyntaxBox" component a few years ago. We had both bin and source licenses.. I saw it on emule and dc and such a few times but nothing that was too annoying. (I've downloaded a few movies in my days so im not any better myself..) But all in all, we never had any problems with it.
Blog: http://www.rogeralsing.com Projects: http://www.puzzleframework.com
-
By releasing the code or component I think it's safe to say that a small group of people are just going to steal your work. I doubt any that steal it would think there was much value in trying to sell it themselves. Not counting places like China where piracy is more the rule than the exception. Most places I've been error on the side of paranoia making sure they have everything fully licensed. What does your component do anyway? Do you have a website to sell it from yet?
Cheers for that info. Yes, i have written a UI suite for .NET Windows Forms and WPF. My web site is up and running, selling components well already... but i would not want to mention the details here, since others can consider it as spamming :-) So far it has only been binary licenses being sold, and i am now thinking about releasing the source as well - extra cash (more the merrier, always :-)) Thanks for your reply :-)
-
Cheers for that info. Yes, i have written a UI suite for .NET Windows Forms and WPF. My web site is up and running, selling components well already... but i would not want to mention the details here, since others can consider it as spamming :-) So far it has only been binary licenses being sold, and i am now thinking about releasing the source as well - extra cash (more the merrier, always :-)) Thanks for your reply :-)
-
Well I wouldn't consider it spamming if the information is requested. But anonymity is good too I suppose. Good Luck.
-
Hi, I am about to release my .NET component in the market, and am thinking of releasing with full source code. This is because i have read from various discussion forums and threads on this subject that people prefer to buy components with full source code license. My question is this: If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability. I know its just a small percetange of "bad people" out there who will abuse the source code contrary to the terms of the EULA i will have in place. But that said, i will need to take an informed decision taking into account the damage that can be caused by these small lot of bad people. So, what is the general feel - is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability? I surely want to release the source code along with my components, since i feel most of the buyers want this option so they can debug the source etc. Comments invited. Thanks.
It depends on if you put the documentation in the full source code. My employer bought a full source code license from a vendor and it was stripped of all the comments in the code. That made the source code completely useless! We ended up taking the time to create our own component to do the same thing. Ours has source code and documentation. I am not sure I would ever buy source code again, unless I knew up front that the documentation was still in the code. Even then, most developers I work with don't put much documentation/comments in their code. Hogan
-
Hi, I am about to release my .NET component in the market, and am thinking of releasing with full source code. This is because i have read from various discussion forums and threads on this subject that people prefer to buy components with full source code license. My question is this: If i am releasing the product with full source code license, then am i not taking the risk of "some" people abusing the source code availability. I know its just a small percetange of "bad people" out there who will abuse the source code contrary to the terms of the EULA i will have in place. But that said, i will need to take an informed decision taking into account the damage that can be caused by these small lot of bad people. So, what is the general feel - is it safe to release the components with source code, in order to give the developers the advantage to be able to debug the pruchased source code, and not worry about the "small lot" that can absuse the source code availability? I surely want to release the source code along with my components, since i feel most of the buyers want this option so they can debug the source etc. Comments invited. Thanks.
You remind me of a troupe of three young japanese guys. Their question? "Is it safe in Mexico City?" What do you answer to such a question? Safe to do what? Safe from what? First, if your component is of any value, someone WILL abuse it, and violate the EULA. Can you live with that - emotionally? financially? Second, can you build your business around supporting the people that are willing to pay? Third, I likely wouldn't buy your component if I couldn't get sources. You might charge extra for source code access, you might make me sign additional paperwork, fine.
We are a big screwed up dysfunctional psychotic happy family - some more screwed up, others more happy, but everybody's psychotic joint venture definition of CP
blog: TDD - the Aha! | Linkify!| FoldWithUs! | sighist -
Yes that is true, but I do obfuscate my assemblies. Yes, i know it is not a perfect solution to safegaurd my code, but I am sure it does make it very difficult for the abusers.
User7208 wrote:
but I am sure it does make it very difficult for the abusers.
When I was working on security-related systems and (license enforcement) algorithms, I always followed the following belief:
Presume that the hacker is at least as smart as you are.
With that belief in hand, have you tried to decompile your own assemblies to see what the result would be? There is the chance that obfuscated is not as obscure, or as hard as you might like... Just a thought... Peace!
-=- James
Please rate this message - let me know if I helped or not! * * *If you think it costs a lot to do it right, just wait until you find out how much it costs to do it wrong!
Remember that Professional Driver on Closed Course does not mean your Dumb Ass on a Public Road!
See DeleteFXPFiles -
Increase the cost of the source code version if they really really want it make them pay for it. Don't be surprised if it starts to pop up all over the place under GPL
DEVELOPER DAY SCOTLAND 10th MAY 2008 http://www.developerdayscotland.com/[^]
Will they even want his code? :laugh:
So the creationist says: Everything must have a designer. God designed everything. I say: Why is God the only exception? Why not make the "designs" (like man) exceptions and make God a creation of man?