.. and the problems that come with it are from the Graded Go Problems for beginners series.

Is it the whole series or only the first book? IIRC I think I have read something like that.

.. and the problems that come with it are from the Graded Go Problems for beginners series.

I had the previous version of MFG and enjoyed using it for a good while. I'd recommend it to any beginner who can afford it. The latest version is pretty strong too.

I didn't know it was $90 or I probably wouldn't have asked the question. That is more than a little steep.
Wow...

Given the size of the market, the price is not that excessive, though it harkens back to the days when software was much more expensive than it is now. (ie, when, say, Microsoft Office cost more than $500 a copy.) I'd think a $50 price tag would be more fair, and I'd be willing to pay for regular updates. But - and this is a big but - it has to not have a restrictive registration/activation scheme, as MFG does. I run it on my Mac in virtualization, and when I changed virtualization programs, I had to get a new code to activate it. It took something like ten days, because the developer wasn't answering his e-mails.

I wouldn't buy software from him again.

Just curious. I might have a somewhat different perseoctive since I'm retried from a career making my living doing software plus being old enough to have been around for the original "free software" discussions (when "free" did NOT mean free as in free beer but non restrictive licensing and "software for the price of a book")

So my question --- what DO you think a reasonable price for a software application sold under the conditions....
a) Site license. As many copies as you want running on as many computers as you have. In other words, a family pays this. Very different from other software sold on the basis price is "per copy running" or even "price installed on one machine" (you pay again when you get a new computer)
b) Price is a first time cost. Interim updates are free for the download and entirely new versions, when they come out every few years are about half price.

In other words, instead of simply saying $90 is super steep say what you think a reasonable price would be. Bear in mind that a FREE software application should be considered as costing $5-10 (if software is under the free license must be available to you in source form on "standard medium" not charging more for that than customary for that service and that's what you'd get charged these days for burining to CD and mailing it to you. Yes, somebody MIGHT be willing to supply you with already compiled executables and MIGHT be willing to set up a site from which you could download those but nobody has that obligation.) Also keep in mind that these days a typical hard cover book costs about $20 and a text book around $50. Useful comparison. Perhaps alongside your "I would consider $X a fair price" estimate how much per year you spend on go books.

Interestingly, David Fotland asked these same sorts of questions, with the same sort of rationale about FREE software, on rec.games.go several years ago. He didn't listen to his potential customers then, why would he listen to them now?

b) He dropped the "call home" solution to the multiple registrations problem. In effect this left him without a solution* (and people now complaining about that). He even relaxed the "how many computers" but that might be because he's got problems with the registration process (multiple logins on the same machine).

<snip>

* This is a hard problem (allowing multiple registrations). Perhaps could design an AI app which could run on a server for automated generation of keys (decide whether the request for another key seemed reasonable or reject, sending it to a human for appeal decision). But I don't think there are enough applications being sold on a "run on a reasonable number of YOUR machines" basis to justify writing the app for any single small scale software vendor.

Does he really think that his app is going to be pirated that much that he can't just use a serial number?

More to the point, does he think that his machine lock-in scheme is going to convert a potential pirate into a customer. Very few I think. But he also loses the customers that don't like that kind of setup.

Just curious. I might have a somewhat different perseoctive since I'm retried from a career making my living doing software plus being old enough to have been around for the original "free software" discussions (when "free" did NOT mean free as in free beer but non restrictive licensing and "software for the price of a book")

So my question --- what DO you think a reasonable price for a software application sold under the conditions....
a) Site license. As many copies as you want running on as many computers as you have. In other words, a family pays this. Very different from other software sold on the basis price is "per copy running" or even "price installed on one machine" (you pay again when you get a new computer)
b) Price is a first time cost. Interim updates are free for the download and entirely new versions, when they come out every few years are about half price.

In other words, instead of simply saying $90 is super steep say what you think a reasonable price would be. Bear in mind that a FREE software application should be considered as costing $5-10 (if software is under the free license must be available to you in source form on "standard medium" not charging more for that than customary for that service and that's what you'd get charged these days for burining to CD and mailing it to you. Yes, somebody MIGHT be willing to supply you with already compiled executables and MIGHT be willing to set up a site from which you could download those but nobody has that obligation.) Also keep in mind that these days a typical hard cover book costs about $20 and a text book around $50. Useful comparison. Perhaps alongside your "I would consider $X a fair price" estimate how much per year you spend on go books.