# Donationware vs Shareware



## harringg (Jan 1, 2011)

I've seen many of the plugins for Lightroom listed as "DonationWare", that are partially functioning but require payment to 'unlock' the full thing.  By definition, this is crippleware or shareware, not donationware.  I buy a lot of third-party software of various types and this is really the first I've seen this term "DonationWare" thrown around.  I'm curious if it's due to some technicality in Adobe EULA and you can't 'sell' add-ins?

The example below as I read is not "DonationWare", it's "Shareware".  Not trying to split hairs, it's just that I've never seen donationware of any kind until looking at LR plugins.  And I've paid for the plugins I use on a regular basis, it's just been a curiosity really.

An example is "This plugin is distributed as “donationware”. I have chosen to make it available for free — everyone can use it forever, without cost of any kind — but unless registered, its functionality is somewhat reduced after six weeks"

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Donationware is a licensing model that supplies fully operational software to the user and pleads for an optional donation be paid to the programmer or a third-party beneficiary (usually a non-profit). The amount of the donation may also be stipulated by the author, or it may be left to the discretion of the user, based on individual perceptions of the software's value. Since donationware comes fully operational (i.e. not crippleware) and payment is optional, it is a type of freeware.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The term shareware (also known as trialware or demoware) refers to proprietary software that is provided to users without payment on a trial basis and is often limited by any combination of functionality, availability or convenience.


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## sizzlingbadger (Jan 1, 2011)

The plug-in developer is using the wrong term to describe his/her licensing model. You could contact them and point them to the wiki link.


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## harringg (Jan 1, 2011)

ShareWare vs DonationWare


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