I have long expected that eventually some Linux applications would be offered for sale and that people would be prepared pay for them, and in a way it’s an indication that the OS (and the whole GNU collection that goes with it) is being taken seriously and not just a toy for geeks and hobbyists.
I don’t want to end up with all free software not being free any more, but for niche applications like this I’m not surprised that the developers have to resort to conventional ways to raise funds.
My recording studio is partly a hobby and partly for recording the music that my partner and I perform on a semi pro basis, but I’ve already had interest from someone who wants to pay for the use of the studio, and my plan is that as and when the studio earns me any money I 'll send some of my earnings to the Ardour project. (I’ve donated already, and also to AV Linux which put an abrupt end to days of tedious messing with 64studio and Ubuntustudio and gave me a system I can just sit down and use.)
I completely support developers who sometimes charge for the hard work. Just like anahata says, it shows the OS being seriously taken. Unfortunately these past years my economic life has not been the best and I have not had the chance to purchase linuxdsp plugins, but that’s no excuse to say and support the idea that everything should be free in LINUX.
Just below the screenshot there is a line that says:
Plugins offering similar functionality on other platforms can cost as much as $500 ...
This is absolutely true and I’ve seen it from a good friend of mine who is producer and works only on mac and the amount of money he has invested…
So saying that everything in the LINUX world should be free is really a selfish way of thinking…, you really have to understand the hard work involved on some things.
Freedom in linux is another thing, it’s freedom to do whatever the heck you want with your OS…
I spent a lot of time with windows stuff, because I couldn’t get a working configuration with Linux (I started more than 10 years ago). If you look at the vst market, you find free great quality plugins (and a lot of crap also). Why do developers give their product for free ? Because they don’t think that they can make a living in a so small market. On the other hand, some big productions need money to arise, and are produced by big companies, employing full day people for developing, marketing, … Personally, I bought some products like Reaktor, Kontakt, trying to catch the best rebates, because they are really good. So in my view, free as in beer cannot be the only criteria to tell if a program is politically correct.
The main advantage of leaving windows is not only stopping to buy an os every 5 years, it’s more leaving a dying way of computing. It took some time to make linux an easy environment, but now we are here. I’m actually using it since several years for office work, without any problems. And I never look at the code I use, even if it’s free. While I work flawlessly, all the other windows computers around (family and friends) are getting more and more slow, buggy, virused until there is no other way than reinstall all the shit.
For audio, I think I’m ready for Linux now, and I find no problem with payware under Linux, althought I prefer donations, or subscription. If we want more and more good plugins, we must accept all kind of contributions. So in my view, if you buy linuxDSP products (and they are really not expensive given their quality), you encourage other developers to come in the Linux area.
(and sorry for any mistakes I made, I’m not english native speaking)
The linuxDSP MKII Graph EQ has been updated - this is a free update if you have already purchased an activation key, either from the linuxDSP website or as part of the Harrison Mixbus bundle for linux.
This update adds some small improvements to the look of the UI (see the screenshot) and fixes an issue with occasional graphics corruption that could sometimes occur on some Ubuntu systems with compiz enabled.
And for anyone who hasn’t purchased it yet, it’s still exceptionally good value, a great sounding EQ for a fraction of the cost of a decent soundcard
