Free Vs Paid

[makaveli]

i hope this topic to be of interest to most.

 

what its about is software you pay lots of cash for and their free counterparts:

 

Open office v MS office - i find little difference!

Norton etc vs Avast - i actually prefer avast

 

the one im a bit rocky on is Photoshop vs the gimp. photoshop wins me over!

[carbonize]

Paid for products do tend to feel more polished than their free counterparts but they have to be to attract customers.

 

I prefer the AOL anti virus myself as Avast let me down and missed a virus. Open Office takes some getting used to after years of Office. As to Photoshop Vs Gimp have a look at Paint.NET. Not as powerful as either but very nice for a free program.

 

Paid for products are usually better than the free version. Paid for anti viruses tend to be better than the free ones. Paid for forum scripts tend to be better than the free ones.

 

The one time I would definitely say free is better than paid is when it comes to free love

[Just_Rob]

The one time I would definitely say free is better than paid is when it comes to free love

 

Still is not free. It might not hit your pocketbook but you will end up paying for it somehow.

[TCH-Bruce]

Still is not free. It might not hit your pocketbook but you will end up paying for it somehow.

Agreed.

 

Back to the question.

 

I am a software developer and we don't give our software away we sell it. But that's how we make a living. If you could find an app that is free and does the job you are looking to perform then by all means use it.

 

If you find a piece of software that you want to use and feel is worth the money then buy it.

 

I myself use both personally. I have apps that I've paid for and free ones.

[TCH-Don]

I use both. There are a few commercial programs I like and will pay for until they get too expensive.

I also use a number of free and shareware programs that are great too.

I have a few share programs that I paid for many years ago and I can still upgrade to the latest version at no cost unlike some commercial programs.

[stevevan]

I'll at least try a free app to see if it will work for me. For me, I have to feel comfortable with it. If something doesn't feel right or seem intuitive, I'd probably move to the paid version.