Al, the difference is that with an annual subscription, you have to pay
regardless of whether there is a worthwhile upgrade. Currently, the only
pressure to upgrade is self-imposed. You either want the new features in the
release (which is a good thing) or you want to take advantage of new
user-written programs on Statalist (which is also a good thing, and not
pressure exerted by StataCorp).
There is a disturbing movement in the software industry to move from
"software as product" to "software as service". The annual subscription is a
waypoint toward that final industry goal. Its a business model intended to
suck more money out of the market and stabilize cash flow between upgrades,
while at the same time reducing pressure on the big software companies to
actually develop new useful features that make upgrades worth buying. E.g.,
other than a prettier interface, what major improvement has there been
between MS Office 95 and MS Office XP? And yet in most cases if you buy a
computer from a major manufacturer you will be paying for the Office upgrade
in the purchase price. Personally, I think (hope?) the "software-as-service"
model will be killed by natural selection. Maybe that will benefit smaller
start-ups.
I'm glad to say that I don't see Stata going that way. I find myself quite
happy (even excited) to pay the (very reasonable) upgrade price for Stata
every couple of years. And for those who don't want to upgrade because they
don't need/want the extra features, Stata's version control is very good and
the license is forever. I think Stata is winning hearts and minds here. As
SPSS and SAS license fees become more and more onerous, and with more and
more students learning Stata at university, and with Stata 8's top notch (if
slow) graphics, I see lots of room for increasing the user base.
Lee
> -----Original Message-----
> From: FEIVESON, ALAN H. (AL) (JSC-SD) (NASA)
> [SMTP:[email protected]]
> Sent: Wednesday, February 12, 2003 12:38 PM
> To: '[email protected]'
> Subject: st: RE: RE: Picketing StataCorp
>
> Thanks, Lee for superbly articulating my own views. I concur completely
> (and
> especially with the 1 - 5 rankings). I might add that No. 4 is essentially
> in effect now (except for the SPSS /SAS part). With new Stata versions
> coming out every two years and the pressure to keep current, we have to
> pay
> what amounts to a two-year subscription.
>
> Al Feiveson
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Lee Sieswerda [mailto:[email protected]]
> Sent: Wednesday, February 12, 2003 11:07 AM
> To: '[email protected]'
> Subject: st: RE: Picketing StataCorp
>
>
> Well, its bloody cold here in northern Ontario: -29 this morning, about
> -40
> with the windchill. So if it were a winter thing (the season, I mean), I
> guess I could be convinced to picket in Texas for just about anything.
>
> Top Five hypothetical scenarios that would cause the Stata community to
> collectively picket StataCorp headquarters:
> 5. StataCorp gets tired of the whining on Statalist and has the list
> deep-sixed under the DMCA
> 4. Stata is gobbled into either the SPSS or SAS empires and becomes just
> another add-on module with a yearly subscription
> 3. StataCorp decides that printed manuals are for weenies and technophobes
> and decides to go exclusively PDF
> 2. StataCorp decides that command line is too old-school and "updates"
> Stata
> into a fully menu-driven application (Do I feel the slope slipping from
> under my feet?)
>
> And the Number One act that would draw angry Stata users from all over the
> world to College Station...
> (drum roll, please)
> ......
> ......
> ......
>
> 1. Bill Gould is replaced by that other Bill G as CEO of StataCorp
>
> Additions to the list are welcome.
>
> Lee
>
> Lee Sieswerda, Epidemiologist
> Thunder Bay District Health Unit
> 999 Balmoral Street
> Thunder Bay, Ontario
> Canada P7B 6E7
> Tel: +1 (807) 625-5957
> Fax: +1 (807) 623-2369
> [email protected]
> www.tbdhu.com
>
>
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Nick Winter [SMTP:[email protected]]
> > Sent: Wednesday, February 12, 2003 11:32 AM
> > To: [email protected]
> > Subject: st: Picketing StataCorp
> >
> > >>> [email protected]:
> > > Like Lee,
> > > I wouldn't go
> > > as far as picketing in front of Stata headquarters but
> > > perhaps I could say
> > > that a pragmatic module to toggle abbreviations on or off
> > > would probably
> > > help me sleep better at night. :)
> >
> > This raises the question for me: for what *would* the Stata community,
> > collectively, be willing to picket StataCorp? (And remember, it's
> > really, really hot in Texas.)
> >
> > -Nick Winter
> > *
> > * For searches and help try:
> > * http://www.stata.com/support/faqs/res/findit.html
> > * http://www.stata.com/support/statalist/faq
> > * http://www.ats.ucla.edu/stat/stata/
> *
> * For searches and help try:
> * http://www.stata.com/support/faqs/res/findit.html
> * http://www.stata.com/support/statalist/faq
> * http://www.ats.ucla.edu/stat/stata/
> *
> * For searches and help try:
> * http://www.stata.com/support/faqs/res/findit.html
> * http://www.stata.com/support/statalist/faq
> * http://www.ats.ucla.edu/stat/stata/
*
* For searches and help try:
* http://www.stata.com/support/faqs/res/findit.html
* http://www.stata.com/support/statalist/faq
* http://www.ats.ucla.edu/stat/stata/
