What's the difference of a freeware and shareware softwares?

Question

I'm trying to download some programs from the internet and I stumble on these terms.

Answer 1

Freeware means just what the name implies. Free of charge.
Shareware means they are allowing you to use the program with full capbilities for a limited amount of time, or limited program capabilities just so that you will use the program find it useful and proceed to purchase the full program,

Some shareware programs were offered on the honour system. Use them and if you like them send a donation to the programmer. Thats very rare now adays for mainstream programs, but still a useful tool for an up and coming programmer to gain programming notariety.

Answer 2

Addware is software that shows advertising on your screen that is not related to normal web site advertising such as a window that opens unexpectedly with advertising information showing. Spyware is hidden software that can gather information from your computer and send it to some remote site. Cookies are a simple type of spyware but they are not really hidden. Shareware is free trial software that you may get from a CD promotional package or by downloading from the Internet. The limits of the free trial may be a timeout, a nag screen that asks you to buy each time you launch the application, some limit of features such as non-save ability after creating a document or just an honor suggestion that you should send payment to the creator or stop using it out of fairness. Freeware is free software. Many people complain about the first two types but do nothing to block them. You should start by choosing a good browser. Internet Explorer is not one of the good ones as it is full of security holes. You should use the firewall feature of your operating system. You should use a router as an additional level of separation from the bad guys on the web. You should never open an email message from anyone you don't know. You should never click on an attachment in email unless you know who created the actual file and you need the file.

Answer 3

Shareware is a marketing method for computer software. Shareware software is typically obtained free of charge, either by downloading from the Internet or on magazine cover-disks. A user tries out the program, and thus shareware has also been known as "try before you buy". A shareware program is accompanied by a request for payment, and the software's distribution license often requires such a payment.


Freeware is copyrighted computer software which is made available for use free of charge, for an unlimited time, as opposed to shareware where the user is required to pay (e.g. after some trial period). Authors of freeware often want to "give something to the community", but also want credit for their software and to retain control of its future development. Sometimes when programmers decide to stop developing a freeware product, they will give the source code to another programmer or release the product's source code as to the public as free software.


Open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials—typically, their source code allowing users to create user-generated software content. Some consider it as a philosophy, and others consider it as a pragmatic methodology. Before open source became widely adopted, developers and producers used a variety of phrases to describe the concept; the term open source gained popularity with the rise of the Internet and its enabling of diverse production models, communication paths, and interactive communities.[1] Subsequently, open source software became the most prominent face of open source practices.

The open source model can allow for the concurrent use of different agendas and approaches in production, in contrast with more centralized models of development such as those typically used in commercial software companies.[2] "Open source" as applied to culture defines a culture in which fixations are made generally available. Participants in such a culture are able to modify those products and redistribute them back into the community.
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Answer 4

Freeware means the software is completely free, and shouldn't display any nag screens or "please buy the full version" screens (but they still might).

Shareware will display these screens, or will work for so many days and then go into a reduced functionality mode or stop working until you pay for it and put in the key.

Answer 5

freeware is a full version of software which is free. and shareware is a version of software where some key functions/upgrades are missing and asks for buying the software.

Answer 6

Freeware in simple words means the software is free of charge, no limitation, and just as is, means you use it at your own risk. The common license used is GPL/GNU.

Shareware means you can use it for short terms for free (15 to 30 days) usually with nag screen to remind you to buy it, and some limitations. If you buy it, you will be given license key and they responsible for the update of the software licensed to you, depend on agreement between you and the maker.

http://thesamura.blogspot.com

Answer 7

Freeware programs are programs you can use totally free and shareware are programs that you can use for like a trial period

Answer 8

let me define...

freeware is of two types :
1.open source GPL eg: virtualdub
2.closed source eg: media player

no software ownership cost , or deployment cost etc...

shareware is also of 2 types
1.Trialware
2.limited feature shareware
trial - gives all features but limits number of days or times of usage
lim.features - as it says it will work , until it is bought ..has to work with limited features

Answer 9

freeware downloads are downloads that do not cost you at all and can be used for an unlimited period of time like bitcomet,opera, firefox etc.
shareware downloads are downloads that you can use for a limited period of time and then have to pay and register in order to continue using that software like internet download manager etc