6 ms·

There is a paid version and a free version. I meant that the free version works fine, except you get an occasional alert.

by zoilism 10y ago

tux1968 10y ago
There doesn't seem to be a free version at all. There is an evaluation version which is meant to tide you over until you decide to buy or abandon ST. It wouldn't be right to promote such an arrangement as a "free version".
- enraged_camel 10y ago
  The evaluation version is free and it works forever. If the developers were not OK with that, they would put a time limit on it. Since they haven't, that means they're OK with it.
  - slavik81 10y ago
    It works on the honour system. Rigorous enforcement is more difficult and annoying than its worth. If you continue to use the evaluation copy after you're done evaluating it, nobody's going to stop you, but it is a little dishonest.
  - acangiano 10y ago
    I like to call it "free as in WinRAR".
  - guitarbill 10y ago
    If you use Sublime Text professionally and you get audited/noticed, not having a licence would be a big mistake. $70 is pittance for "enterprise" software, plus I wouldn't want to work with somebody who's effectively dishonest. If you're an amateur (in the literal sense, not as an insult), then you might be more inclined to pirate it. I guess the developers are savvy enough to realise this, and just put a nag-screen in instead. Bottom line, some people have the luxury of having such well-paid jobs that open source is a real possibility nowadays. But ST is likely someone's income/living, and shafting the devs isn't cool at all. If you're not happy with this, you can always make another editor, but it turns out to be fairly hard to do (see Atom).
eli 10y ago
But does the license permit you to use the free version to do work? The issue isn't the alerts it's compliance with the spirit and letter of the shareware version.
- bdcravens 10y ago
  "Sublime Text may be downloaded and evaluated for free, however a license must be purchased for continued use." There is no separate shareware version. What makes Sublime unique is that it never stops working; it's evaluation period is open, and treats the user as an adult to do the right and legal thing.
  - flukus 10y ago
    Not really unique, it used to be very common. Remember winzip?
    - bdcravens 10y ago
      True - winrar and mirc also come to mind. In today's world of app store DRM at one end and open source options at the other, it's definitely a stand-out more than it would have been a few years ago.
      - distances 10y ago
        But in this case it also works very well, I think. I know very few people willing to pay $70 for a text editor, but getting to try it out and verify that it's a really good text editor does change things somewhat.
        flukus 10y ago
        I think plenty of us would pay for vim or emacs had history played out differently.
    - baldfat 10y ago
      Reaper a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) is $65 and is free to evaluate and doesn't hinder usage. All other DAWs are betweem $250-$500++. I use to use one that cost $1,000 I use Reaper and thrown my money at them. I do get mad when people don't give them money since I really appreciate the model.
bdcravens 10y ago
There is no free version. The alert means you haven't paid for it.
ryanplant-au 10y ago
There is not a free version. There's an evaluation version that doesn't lock out any features, but it's not provided to you for free -- you have to pay to continue using it. If you're just using it as your text editor for free you're abusing the honour system.
- salamisultan 10y ago
  Honor system....ahahahhaha. You have me in stitches. Anything with alerts is not efficient for real work. You get what you pay for. You my friend, are the Salami Sultan of today!!
  - ball_of_lint 10y ago
    Just because you can pirate a version of a game, does that make it free? How about tv or music? Obviously not. Well, same goes for ST3. Just because it doesn't have agressive DRM and lockouts doesn't make it any more free.
    - captainmuon 10y ago
      Well, there is the letter of the law, and people don't all necessarily agree with it. I personally believe creators of software (music, games, other immaterial goods) should be compensated and rewarded fairly, and I gladly let them have their fair share. At the same time, I find it ridiculous to pay for something that can be copied at no cost. The technology allows everything to be free, but we force an emulation of physical goods onto the digital world, so we don't have to change the way or society works. We use the legal system to enforce this. I haven't found a way to reconcile these two views yet, this is a major unsolved problem in our society. I believe a solution would need a radical change in how our economy works. But in the meanwhile, I have no moral problem to "pirate" stuff when I can't afford it or think it is to expensive. Acrobat Pro? Photoshop? As rarely as I need it and as expensive as it is: Free. MS Office: has become to cumbersome to pirate, costs. Sublime Text? I like the product and want the Indy developer to succeed, so costs, too.
      - 10y ago

There is a paid version and a free version. I meant that the free version works fine, except you get an occasional alert.

by zoilism 10y ago

There is a paid version and a free version. I meant that the free version works fine, except you get an occasional alert.

tux1968 10y ago

There doesn't seem to be a free version at all. There is an evaluation version which is meant to tide you over until you decide to buy or abandon ST. It wouldn't be right to promote such an arrangement as a "free version".

enraged_camel 10y ago
The evaluation version is free and it works forever. If the developers were not OK with that, they would put a time limit on it. Since they haven't, that means they're OK with it.
- slavik81 10y ago
  It works on the honour system. Rigorous enforcement is more difficult and annoying than its worth. If you continue to use the evaluation copy after you're done evaluating it, nobody's going to stop you, but it is a little dishonest.
- acangiano 10y ago
  I like to call it "free as in WinRAR".
- guitarbill 10y ago
  If you use Sublime Text professionally and you get audited/noticed, not having a licence would be a big mistake. $70 is pittance for "enterprise" software, plus I wouldn't want to work with somebody who's effectively dishonest. If you're an amateur (in the literal sense, not as an insult), then you might be more inclined to pirate it. I guess the developers are savvy enough to realise this, and just put a nag-screen in instead. Bottom line, some people have the luxury of having such well-paid jobs that open source is a real possibility nowadays. But ST is likely someone's income/living, and shafting the devs isn't cool at all. If you're not happy with this, you can always make another editor, but it turns out to be fairly hard to do (see Atom).

eli 10y ago

But does the license permit you to use the free version to do work? The issue isn't the alerts it's compliance with the spirit and letter of the shareware version.

bdcravens 10y ago
"Sublime Text may be downloaded and evaluated for free, however a license must be purchased for continued use." There is no separate shareware version. What makes Sublime unique is that it never stops working; it's evaluation period is open, and treats the user as an adult to do the right and legal thing.
- flukus 10y ago
  Not really unique, it used to be very common. Remember winzip?
  - bdcravens 10y ago
    True - winrar and mirc also come to mind. In today's world of app store DRM at one end and open source options at the other, it's definitely a stand-out more than it would have been a few years ago.
    - distances 10y ago
      But in this case it also works very well, I think. I know very few people willing to pay $70 for a text editor, but getting to try it out and verify that it's a really good text editor does change things somewhat.
      - flukus 10y ago
        I think plenty of us would pay for vim or emacs had history played out differently.
  - baldfat 10y ago
    Reaper a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) is $65 and is free to evaluate and doesn't hinder usage. All other DAWs are betweem $250-$500++. I use to use one that cost $1,000 I use Reaper and thrown my money at them. I do get mad when people don't give them money since I really appreciate the model.

bdcravens 10y ago

There is no free version. The alert means you haven't paid for it.

ryanplant-au 10y ago

There is not a free version. There's an evaluation version that doesn't lock out any features, but it's not provided to you for free -- you have to pay to continue using it. If you're just using it as your text editor for free you're abusing the honour system.

salamisultan 10y ago
Honor system....ahahahhaha. You have me in stitches. Anything with alerts is not efficient for real work. You get what you pay for. You my friend, are the Salami Sultan of today!!
- ball_of_lint 10y ago
  Just because you can pirate a version of a game, does that make it free? How about tv or music? Obviously not. Well, same goes for ST3. Just because it doesn't have agressive DRM and lockouts doesn't make it any more free.
  - captainmuon 10y ago
    Well, there is the letter of the law, and people don't all necessarily agree with it. I personally believe creators of software (music, games, other immaterial goods) should be compensated and rewarded fairly, and I gladly let them have their fair share. At the same time, I find it ridiculous to pay for something that can be copied at no cost. The technology allows everything to be free, but we force an emulation of physical goods onto the digital world, so we don't have to change the way or society works. We use the legal system to enforce this. I haven't found a way to reconcile these two views yet, this is a major unsolved problem in our society. I believe a solution would need a radical change in how our economy works. But in the meanwhile, I have no moral problem to "pirate" stuff when I can't afford it or think it is to expensive. Acrobat Pro? Photoshop? As rarely as I need it and as expensive as it is: Free. MS Office: has become to cumbersome to pirate, costs. Sublime Text? I like the product and want the Indy developer to succeed, so costs, too.
    - 10y ago