[OT] Internet Censorship

[Lynn Fredricks]

> You can take the word hobbyist as you please, it wasn't meant 
> as a demeaning term.  And yes, there is crappy stuff produced 
> by people who are "real"
> programmers (whatever that means). And yes, both groups of 
> people probably never had a course in UI design or DB design 
> - that's the whole point.

The "pro creation tools" market recognizes several kinds of customers who
aren't necessarily 100% full time developers.

- A professional user is using the tool for commercial purposes. They most
likely have had some kind of training or background.

- A hobbyist user is using the tool for non-commercial purposes, for their
own pleasure or the pleasure of others. They tend to buy the least expensive
versions of products. The more obsessional ones might become prosumer types.

- A prosumer user is using the tool for either commercial or non-commercial
purposes, but either the tool is not critical to the user's main commercial
purpose (it can usually be replaced by another tool or technique), or their
skills are advanced enough that they are pushing the limits of what the
lower end tools can accomplish. They have a strong incentive to buy higher
versions, though they are not commercially required to do so usually.

None of these hats really fit the academic market, which is its own
microcosm. Consider...

- using a tool to create other tools/services for use in the academic market
(very similar/same as the "pro" user)
- using a tool to prototype something that pushes the boundaries of the
current market (sounds pro to me)
- using a tool to teach techniques related to the field of study related to
the tool (many tools can fit this usage, sort of like the "prosumer")
- using the tool as a kind of "play" to stimulate creativity, logic, etc
(sounds almost hobbyist)

Academics have their own "genetic family tree" - they aren't hobbyists. But
Id like to point out that there are many commercial products that began as
something else. For example, I know that Larry Weinberg, who created Poser,
did so on his weekends, as a kind of hobby.

Best regards,

Lynn Fredricks
President
Paradigma Software
http://www.paradigmasoft.com

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