I've been talking to lots of businesses, users, hobbyists and others in many circles over the years, and I'm wondering how many of these people (and that includes YOU reading this), actually buy Palm or other mobile software for their various devices. This includes Palm, PocketPC, Linux and other mobile productivity devices.

I know I've personally bought many more software applications for Palm than I actually use today (some of them don't even work on current Palm devices because the author(s) decided to just quit and work on other things). I've bought applications to help my productivity, save my data, help my wife get organized, and dozens of other applications, conduits and tools over the years. I've also subscribed to many services such as Vindigo, Novatel and others to use with my device.

There seems to be a growing trend moving the other direction, and more and more people are seeking "free" or "cracked" software to use on their Palm devices. I see a number of posts on legitimate mailing lists and usenet newsgroups from people asking for registration codes, keys, key generators and many other things for Palm software.

As I poke around the various Palm software sites, I see applications being sold at higher and higher prices.. but are people actually buying them? Or just downloading them and using them for the trial period and then deleting them? Or are they cracking them and running them illegally?

How about you? What percent of your actual third-party Palm software is software you bought yourself? What percent is "free", and what percent (sure, you can answer anonymously or not) is "questionable"? Are 1% of your applications purchased? 50%? 100%? Some other fraction?

I'd love to hear from everyone..

Interesting question.

More than half of my mobile software is purchased, the other portion is freeware. I do use trial software to see if I like the product I'll pay the price.

I know that cracked software is out there, but it doesn't make sense to me to put it on my PDA. I have spent hundreds of dollars over the years on PDA softwware and I don't mind when the software is well-written. I will use a freeware app. when it serves a purpose and is well-written.

I, too, have been "burned" by software writers who either don't have the time to properly update their software or leave the arena altogether. I do understand that they may have other concerns and, if their software isn't selling like they think it should, they may have to make their money elsewhere. Luckily other options seem to appear and I can keep my productivity alive.

I really dig the programs that let us try before we buy. There's nothing worse than having to buy a program to find out it's not what I'm looking for.
POL9A

Based on simply the number of installed apps and not counting that which came with my device, slight less than 50% of my software was purchaced. The same count weighted by how much the software is used, either in number of hours or number of accesses, somewhat less than 5% was purchased.

My most frequently used piece of purchased "Palm" software actually runs on my WinXP machine, its a Word add-in for convertion to/from the PalmDOC eBook format. My most frequently used ture PalmOS app is my eBook reader which was freeware.

For my Dell Axim X50v, I recently purchased NetFront (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4330) and CardExport (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4262). There is no similar freeware to substitute those two programs. I am also using iSilo (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2835), but didn't have to pay for it because Darren supplied me with a free serial number. Vade Mecum (http://vade-mecum.sourceforge.net/) does also a good job as an e-book reader, and is free. I also purchased two Resco products, Resco Explorer (http://www.resco.net/pocketpc/explorer/default.asp) and Resco Photo Viewer (http://www.resco.net/pocketpc/photoviewer/default.asp). Most other apps on my device are freeware. They include:

GSPlayer (best audio player even compared to commercial alternatives)
BSPlayer/TCPMP (best audio/video player even compared to commerial alternatives)
Magic Button (resource-friendly task-switcher; perhaps there are better commercial solutions, but none with so little resource requirements)
OzVga
TVGuide
Vade Mecum
WordNetCE

I'd say the ratio is 1:3 for commercial:freeware software installed on my PDA.

Today the trend of free, open-source software is towards quality. I remember several years ago open-source was usually considered inferior to commercial solutions. Thanks to the fast emergence of Linux and its communities, this has luckily changed. In fact, nowadays one must be careful not to fall into the trap of purchasing a commercial product, only to discover much later that it was actually a rip-off of a much better free solution (e.g. think about all the commercial DVD-to-DivX products).

I think the ratio is 50:50 on my Palm (T5) and Pocket PC (iPaq) handhelds. Occasionally I do installed cracked software, but only in the case where I want to "extent" the trial period or where trial software is not available at all. If I continue using a product, I buy it. Not only because of moral obligations, but also because it is a) nice to have support, b) a pain to get always the latest version cracked, and c) a strange phenomenon that if you spend some money on something, you actually start using it more! ;)

When including the bonus software that came with, 70% of what is presently on my device is paid for. Removing bonus software reduces the ratio to around 50%. There is a greater number of freeware/open source apps I have tried but do not suit my needs/interests at this time and thus are uninstalled. Mileage may vary as new apps and updates are continuously available.

There are developers out there who claim that less than 1% of people who download their applications actually complete a purchase. If you look at PalmGear, that figure is pretty depressing, if accurate.

Looking at the "Top 50 Downloads", #2 is Pocket Tunes, with 12,490 downloads this month. That means 125 people who downloaded it, actually purchased it. Yes, this isn't entirely accurate; some software has a higher percentage of purchasers than others. That's a mere $1,868.75 in sales for the month. Subtract PGHQ's commission and that's $1,121.25. That's $6.00/hour if you do it full time for a year. Depressing.

Does anyone really know how close this figure is? If writing software for the purpose of selling it only results in a 1% return on investment, then what is the point? Its probably better to turn to becoming a plumber or some other manual labor vocation with a better turnaround.

Looking at the "Top 50 Downloads", #2 is Pocket Tunes, with 12,490 downloads this month. That means 125 people who downloaded it, actually purchased it. Yes, this isn't entirely accurate; some software has a higher percentage of purchasers than others. That's a mere $1,868.75 in sales for the month. Subtract PGHQ's commission and that's $1,121.25. That's $6.00/hour if you do it full time for a year. Depressing.

Well, I wouldn't trust their statistics. Their system claims more than 15000 downloads this month for Sunrise, but the actual number is 1500-2000. Frankly, I don't see the point in displaying the number of downloads in the first place.

Summer is the worst period in terms of general software sales, so this might not be the best time to take a measurement.

Well, I wouldn't trust their statistics. Their system claims more than 15000 downloads this month for Sunrise, but the actual number is 1500-2000. Frankly, I don't see the point in displaying the number of downloads in the first place.How do you know? Even if the download references your site directly, those figures can never reflect real downloads. Many (most) general ISPs will have a caching Squid server in front of their users.

If one user downloads Sunrise from PalmGear and 500 others from within that same ISP (such as AOL, SBC, whatever) request the same file, it will come out of squid, not from your site. PalmGear will reflect the download, since that is where the request was initiated, but the actual file itself would come from the provider's Squid cache. Your server logs might only record the first hit, and since Squid never needs to hit your server again for the same file of the same size/type, you won't see the subsequent downloads. I know this from 6+ years of Plucker downloads, many from PalmGear.

I also don't doubt that PalmGear is inflating downloads. That's something that many people have complained about for awhile, but even if they are inflating it, inflating it by 10x the actual number seems quite extreme.

Good information overall though, keep it coming!

Summer is the worst period in terms of general software sales, so this might not be the best time to take a measurement.Agreed, at least we can hope people are getting out of the house to enjoy the weather! <grin>

I'd say about 80% of the software on my Axim is software that I purchased with a couple of freeware programs thrown in. I have no problem supporting developers when it comes to PDA software since most times the cost of a program is inexpensive.

Let's see...
Free - 7
Pay - 3

Not including things that came with the Clie (default Palm apps, NetFront, etc.)

The free are... KsDatebook, KsToDo, Keyring, Plucker, Converter, ChemTable, and OKey (a Clie hack for the jog dial and keyboard).

The paid are... upIRC, Documents to Go, Missing Sync.

Basically, I go for free where I can. Open source if possible. And I don't use cracked software. Downloaded music? I'm fine with that. Downloaded TV? I do that too (almost exclusively subbed anime, though). Downloaded/cracked software? That just doesn't *feel* right to me for some reason, so I just don't touch it...

How do you know? Even if the download references your site directly, those figures can never reflect real downloads. Many (most) general ISPs will have a caching Squid server in front of their users.

I simply divided the number of total downloads (18000) by the number of months (11) that Sunrise has been available. That equals about 1630. The inflated download statistic is simply due to PalmGear not resetting the counter at the start of the month. You can verify this in exactly a week (the 31st).

Anyway, I don't see the point of even showing the download count for the current month. "Downloads last month" would make a whole lot more sense.

Most of my software is purchased. I do look for free first, though. There's some really tremendous stuff like TCPMP for free, as well as very reasonably priced software like DateBk5 or ShadowPlan, etc.

As far as downloads, even though I've purchased a lot of programs (on both palm and PPC, many of which I don't even use), I bet my own download:purchase ratio is probably at least about 10:1. And that's for someone who's generally really trying to buy, and who buys a lot. It's even worse if you include the programs I download multiple times for version upgrades or because I didn't keep the first copy and want to try it again after I purchased it.

I very,very, very rarely have illegal software on my pda. I can only really think of one time actually, and that was just a different version of software I had already bought. It's not worth the risk and I justify the expense to myself by reminding myself that I like to support the developers, which I do desire to do.

What frustrates me is when software turns out to be useless to me and my money is wasted. Or if the author stops supporting the software and it becomes useless. Especially if I feel I was misled or misunderstood its capabilities. Fortunately that's not too often, and the trial downloads really help. Or even when, like for Pocket Informant, I buy a copy and then 3 mos later there's a new release which I have to pay for if I want to stay current.

I'd have to say that even though developers can and do make some money and even possibly a living on development, I bet that most of them do it for love of the work and because they like offering something to the mobile computing community. I can't believe most developers are in it just for the bucks.

There are developers out there who claim that less than 1% of people who download their applications actually complete a purchase. If you look at PalmGear, that figure is pretty depressing, if accurate.

It's been a while since I've been able to sum up all our downloads at all the sites (home sites, free posting sites, ESD's), but when we first started 1% was about right, but that is because we weren't well known and our software was more niche.

After we released Trip Boss in 2004, we have seen a steady increase in the download to sales ratio. For example, on Palm Gear, right now it ranges between 10% - 25% for Trip Boss and Date Wheel. (We get the 'real' monthly stats in the backend--the stats with the software description, are like Laurens said, have not been reset in months (at least since their new site came up).) Handango actually has the better ratio, but not as many downloads. I think our rates are good for these titles because the titles are less general, so only people interested in travel (Trip Boss) or calculating the time between two dates (Date Wheel) actually download the product. FWIW. :)

Also, FYI, over at All About Palm, Michael Mace, in his forum interview, answered a question on this subject. http://www.allaboutpalm.com/forum/showpost.php?p=237&postcount=120 Scroll down to the question labeled ">>5)".

If writing software for the purpose of selling it only results in a 1% return on investment, then what is the point? Its probably better to turn to becoming a plumber or some other manual labor vocation with a better turnaround.

People should do what makes them happy. There are plenty of happy plumbers, electricians and car mechanics who happen to be involved in those growth industries. For the money, those are probably going to be jobs that can't be outsourced and will be needed over the next few hundred years (along with doctors and lawyers.) People are always going to need their pipes fixed, their electricity wired, their cars fixed, their boo-boo's bandaged and their disagreements moderated.

As an artist, there are times when my talents are in demand and other times when I wish I had a more in demand profession (not to mention how many GF's I've been through who are uncomfortable with my freelance lifestyle.) On the other hand, when I am working I have the best part-time job available (to me.)

I can't speak from the software developer's perspective, but there do seem to be some challenges to the profession. Outsourcing and lack of demand (or a saturation in developers) would seem to force the remaining developers to identify and concentrate their efforts on their target markets and make better products than their competitors. It's easier said than done, I know, and there's a certain amount of luck in the success of most endeavors, but like the short chick in the "Incredibles" said, "Luck favors the prepared."
POL9A

Being a linux based mobile device user, I only have 2 applications that I purchased.
One of them is an audio player that I first purchased because it was the only product that played ogg files and had a GUI. The application is great and I would happily buy more software from the company - except the support from the company (and the president in particular) for bugs and requests is abysmal.

The second application is a Japanese input method, Effy from http://www.timespace21.com/eng/, I got a discount for helping beat test the app for Zaurus, but after using the app I would have bought it anyway. Their support was excellent and app is too.

The rest of the apps that I run on a regular basis are all GPL apps and therefore are available for free (usually in both Free Beer and Free Speech meanings of "free"). Several of the programmers have ways to make donations, but some of them just do it for the love ;)

Most of the open-source software that I've used on the Zaurus are better than the software that Sharp packaged with the device and any commercial versions available.

Stu

I don't have many third-party apps installed to begin with. Most of the built-in apps are sufficient for my needs. For instance, I don't see the need for a dedicated image viewer. The Media app on the Zire and HP Image Zone on the iPAQ are good enough for me. The only apps I've bought are Bonsai and Pocket Tunes Deluxe, MSDict and, recently, CHM eBook Reader.

If writing software for the purpose of selling it only results in a 1% return on investment, then what is the point? Its probably better to turn to becoming a plumber or some other manual labor vocation with a better turnaround.

You shouldn't expect to become the next BillG with a micro ISV. Most developers do it for the satisfaction and freedom of being able to run their own business and not having to follow orders from a boss. The bulk of your income will still come from a (part-time) job or freelancing.

I suspect one of the reasons that PalmGear and Handango charge such a high commission (40%) is because of the relatively low price of handheld software. There's not much money to be made for them either, hence they have to keep raising their cut to grow their business. Sooner or later this bubble is going to burst.

On my TT3
The purchased - PalmaryClock (promotion givaway), MyBible, Pocket Quicken, 12 games (10 were promotion give aways), Life Balance, Noah Pro, Mapopolis maps, Jackflash, BackupMan.

The freeware - 5 games, DESJournal, Eat Watch, eReader, FileZ, HandyShoper, pFuel, Plucker, Prayer Log, Yaps, Cetus GPS, ChemTable, MediaMan, YAUC, ToDo Transfer

Shareware haven't registered yet - ScreenShot

Purchased software I no longer use - QuickOffice (Replaced with DTG), Documents to Go upgrade for Sony Clie (replaced with built in version on TT3), MDTitler (stopped using my MD deck, I should sell that thing ;)), Embark (doesn't support full screen on the TT3, waiting for update - 2+ years).

On my x50
Purchased - 1 game (promotion givaway)
Freeware - Magic Button, Weather to Go (if I could get it to work consistently).

You see prices going up becuase of the ESD sites. They take up to 55% of each and every sale. They also can, without the developer's permission sell it at a discount. The developer's take is from the reduced sale price. Although, I won't retire on what I make, I use to make a good $100-$200 a month, now I am lucky to make $100 every 3 months. It also amazes me that people will do anything to get a free registration code for a $10 product.

I personally purchase software, if there is a price tag on it. However, I also "shop" around and go for the GPL / Freeware alternative when possible. However, for some things, the GPL and Freeware just aren't as good at, though bless them, they do try hard !!!

I am considering this question for involving both of my handhelds, my Palm T3 and my iPaq hx2755. (Since they're different platforms you KNOW I'm not cross sharing applications! LOL.)

On the palm, most of the stuff I ran was Freeware, with some of the aplications being purchased. The Astronomy software was purchased, the Documents to Go was purchased, ThinkDB 2.6 was purchased, though I refused to upgrade. The updated software wasn't worth the price, ... just not enough features to justify their insanely high upgrade price, let alone their standalone new purchase price.

My iPaq isn't as fortunate on the freeware front, as the available memroy per application is quite a bit lower than my T3. I just can't fit the same ratio of applications into memory. But also because the quality on the freeware of aplications that I need/want just isnt' there as much. To be honest, I feel that Freeware / GPL on a windows platform is still quite in it's infancy, so to speak. It'll get there, but there is still much work ahead of it.

But no, I don't run cracked software. Don't need to. Don't want to. I'd rather pay for it.

Point to note: Someone above mentioned that only about 1% of the downloads actually PAY for the software. they mentioned it was depressing. Well, has anyone considered that someone (like me) might have downloaded it once, paid for it, and was eventually forced to reinstall the software due to some hard reset and that I lost the original install code? Therefore I'd have to re-download the software. Considering that I can load or reload my device off of three different computers and that alone can also increase your download count and lower your purchase / download ratio.

I think the price tag is a very important aspect for handheld software. I did a poll once asking you (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3605) how much you were willing to pay for Laurens' forthcoming e-book/offline Sunrise reader. Concluding from this poll, I argue that most of mobile software priced at or above $20 is generally considered "expensive", whereas a price between $10 and $14.95 is more attractive to most buyers. Most of the software on my devices is priced within this range. For other commercial products that exceed my price range I try to find alternatives in the freeware section.

Approx 1/3 each:

Bought = software I really must have I buy (eg. Hi-Launcher, the Duden-Oxford Grosswoerterbuch).

Cracked = programs I could easily do without, that it's just nice to have (eg Datebk, Palmary clock).

Freeware: some programs are freeware and also IMHO the best: eg Palmfiction, CardTXT editor, Filez.

All of software i use is cracked.

There is no way i could buy any software, when i earn 300$ a month.

All of software i use is cracked.

There is no way i could buy any software, when i earn 300$ a month.

Then how do you own a handheld?

Jim from PPC Mag has an update (http://www.pocketpcmag.com/newsl_JKWG/webguide.asp?id=262) of recommended freeware apps for Pocket PC. As usual, highly recommended!

That said, I try to get everything I need as a freeware version. I've bought only a handful of apps or so (including iSilo).

Then how do you own a handheld?
John, perhaps he "cracked" it too? ;)

I ussualy buy some of the applications i use on my pocket pc, but before buying i always check Freeware Pocket PC (http://www.freewarepocketpc.net/)