JUST TODAY I was going to buy WinRar. I've used the software forever, for free, and I just thought... I appreciate this, they've never given me grief, and I'm going to pay them.

Melatonin@lemmy.dbzer0.com to Asklemmy@lemmy.ml – 136 points –

And I went on their page to subscribe for a lifetime membership, and they wanted 20 bucks, which I was okay with, but it does not include Major Updates! I guess I'll buy it and just click the do not check for updates button but that seemed kind of, I don't know.

I still think they're pretty cool for not hassling you more than they do.

Am I wrong that this bothered me?

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I'm not sure why they use a subscription model instead of simply asking for donations.

Business use? I don't know of anyone else that would pay. Your average user just uses zip (er, Compress File) and calls it a day.

Because when you simply ask for donations, the vast majority of people don't.

Depends on the project. Dwarf Fortress for instance survived about a dozen years completely on donations. But that's a video game, not a tool (and one that people feel quite strongly about as well).