>>The argument you make is specious. From what you're saying, poor, independent programmers shoudln't have to pay for their tools? If I'm an independent contractor, I guess you feel that I shouldn't have to pay for anything - operating systems, compilers, MS Office, or for that matter, hardware! I like this idea - if you don't work for someone, but you want to work with VFP, Microsoft, Intel et al should give you everything you'd like to use for free. Just plead poverty...
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>>The concept doesn't work from what i can see. And I though communism had flaws!
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>Pls read my first msg properly, I've clearly written that bcos there is no proxy support avl on UT Navigator as on Date, i.e. why I became member for 1 year, but that time also was not able to use it properly cos internet charges were too much... Bcos of which i'm not getting my premier membership now and will not take till proxy support is there...
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Fine. And what will you do if Michel has to say "I can't afford to make these changes"? Dollarts to doughnuts you'd cry that it's unfair.

>I'm surpised how u are connecting os, compilers etc. with this thing... Nowhere in UT it is mentioned that basic membership is a illegal thing...
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No, it's not, and I'm not advocating that Basic membership go away. I am advocating that if you want to make requests and ensure that it's possible to make the changes, contribute towards the upkeep of UT. If Michel decides that an idea is good, but that he's only going to implement it for PUTM people as an incentive to PUTM membership, you still have the option of paying for PUTM. If there's no incentive for PUTM, I guarentee that there are a lot of people who wouldn't kick in a nickle...

>And when did i say that poor programmers shud not pay for compilers & OS ???
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>I bet if that is what are your policies and if you would've been the owner of UT... It wouldn't even have lasted 1 day...

I ran Fido 141/215 (originally Fido 215) for years. I made some significant contributions to the FidoNet throughout the mid-1980s. I had to stop doing this when the cost of the board and services exceeded what I could afford out-of-pocket. So I'm well aware of what can kill apublic-service resource.

I'm not paid to participate here, and none of the files that I've posted here and elsewhere have any fee for their use. There's also code that I haven't posted, that I use for commercial development; you'll occasionally see me reference my production environment code as being different from what I've put up on UT. I guess I'm evil and unprincipled; everything i do and everything i know should be contributed for gratis - I'm entitled to no benefit from the result of my own work by your measure.

I don't run UT, am not a sysop here on UT, have never asked to be compensated for my participation, and pay my share of the burden of operating UT through PUTM because I feel strongly that there's a need for UT, and that I gain more from PUTM than the cost. Obviously, you don't. EOT.