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« Last post by VisualLab on Today at 04:46:24 pm »
Typically, the software that the average Smith might need and be able to use (at least on a basic level) comes in commercial and free versions. For example:
N1. content browsers: WWW, PDF, photos,
N2. players: audio, video,
N3. editors: text, presentation, raster and vector graphics, audio and video editing,
N4. computational: spreadsheet, etc.
In this category (N), there are actually a lot of free programs. This is an obvious issue, as previous speakers have already described.
The second category (S) are programs that the average Smith does not need (e.g. at home, for his own needs)1, because they are usually of no use to him. These are programs like:
S1. databases for servicing companies/institutions (i.e. for "bureaucracy" of various types): customers, patients, accounting, etc.
S2. engineering - various specialized CADs, CAMs, etc. (mechanics, chemistry, construction, electronics, etc.),
S3. laboratories, hospitals (quality control, forensics, etc.): operation of laboratory and medical equipment and specific data processing (numerical, statistical),
S4. scientific – highly specialized programs with a narrow subject, designed to simulate phenomena, processes, etc. (physics, chemistry, biology, etc.).
In the S1 category it should still be profitable to create this type of software, but there is huge competition (these programs are relatively easy to create compared to the next 3 groups in this category).
In the S2 and S3 categories, software development should be most profitable. But there are much fewer recipients of such programs than in the S1 category. Additionally, developing software in S2 and S3 categories is much more difficult and time-consuming.
Category S4 is basically unprofitable. The number of recipients is relatively small, very specific, and the production costs are very high. Moreover, in this group there is an increasing expectation that the program will be free (especially those written for biologists dealing with the processing of genetic or protein sequence data). These people have heard somewhere that there are modules or libraries developed in Python. Many of these biologists, who have quickly learned a bit of scripting "programming", have created "applications" and make them available for free, without any guarantees. Basically, it is a plague of "IT crap". I criticize this, not because they are free, but because they are most often "monsters", full of omissions and errors.
To sum up: large engineering, laboratory and medical programs can only be created by large companies, because it requires many experienced programmers and large funds. But small groups of programmers (companies) can also create useful software, for example for smaller companies (hospitals are usually excluded due to the need to provide various certificates, etc. documents). It remains a matter of deciding how to choose a sales model. For a small software company, subscription sales can be the final nail in the coffin. And here I share the opinion of marcov.
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1) I am leaving out the rather small percentage of people in society, such as technology enthusiasts and hobbyists, who need (want) to use engineering programs (e.g. electronics, microcontrollers, etc.) and are able to use them.
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