One of the things you learn when you write and release free software is that every now and then, you will come across users who have no idea how hard it is to write software and to maintain it. They write in with some really stupid complaint or another, and when you reply politely that it is not possible, and that what they want might require a significant investment of their money, they go ballistic and downright start making accusations and cursing you.

I had exactly such a case today. Someone had downloaded Slyberoam and was having trouble installing it on Win98SE. Here is the correspondence log:

> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: [CENSORED]
> > > Sent: Saturday, February 28, 2004 18:20
> > > To: admin@rasteroid.com
> > > Subject: win98se problems
> > > Importance: High
> > >
> > >
> > > i installed .net redistribution package after
> > updating IE and
> > > everything
> > >
> > > slyberoam doesnt install on win98se. it says "a
> > windows
> > > service cannt be installed on this operating
> > system. i can
> > > only be installed on NT, 2000 or later" and roll
> > backs the
> > > installation.

Fair enough, the reason of course is that Slyberoam installs as a Service, and Win98 doesn't support services. You need NT, 2000 or XP for that. so I replied:

> > Hi,
> >
> > Thanks for your email. Sorry about the trouble, but
> > perhaps it is
> > time you considered doing an upgrade for your
> > operating system?
> > Except of course if your computer is several years
> > old, and has less
> > than 256 MB RAM. It is good to know that the
> > installer is rolling
> > back correctly on Win98se :)
> >
> > - -R

Now I don't know what was offensive about my email, but it blew the socks off this guy:

> -----Original Message-----
> From: [CENSORED]
> Sent: Friday, March 5, 2004 20:47
> To: Rahul Mittal
> Subject: RE: win98se problems
>
>
> wow u are ignoring around 40% of user who are still
> using 98
>
> hum...why dont u give us poor 40% users money to
> upgrade to winxp and buy new hardware (which we dont
> need anyway) and we will happily do it.
>
> yes sir, very kind of you for your microsoft approach
> to a problem.

And unfortunately I lost my cool too:

----------------
I am ignoring who? I am ignoring nobody. I did not write Slyberoam
*FOR* anybody, but myself. I *CHOSE* to make it available *FREELY*
for anyone to use, and even took the pain to write up a brief
document on how to set it up and make it work. I took the pain to
make the source code for Slyberoam publicly and freely available, and
released it under the GPL, an open license, meaning that you can
freely modify the program in any way you want as long as you also
release your changes openly under the GPL. And *I* am ignoring 40% of
users? I am ignoring nobody. I wrote it only for myself, and I am not
ignoring myself. I do not own nor use nor care for Windows 98.

So according to you I should *GIVE* you money to upgrade your
computer, after I have already *GIVEN* you my program, my source
code, and documents on how to set it up. I should *GIVE* you money
even after using *MY* time and ability to hack the protocol, to
publish a document about it, and to release a program that WORKS for
me. I should *GIVE* you money even though neither you nor anyone else
paid me for my time to develop the program and write the documents?
You make me laugh.

In your first email you asked politely about Win98SE support, and I
replied politely that you should consider an upgrade, since there is
no way I can support Windows 98. Perhaps *YOU* should donate money to
me to buy another PC and install Win98SE on it, and then pay me
additional money for my time so that I can develop and fine-tune
Slyberoam to work for *YOU*. Frankly, in all reality I doubt even you
give a damn about 40% of the users who use Win98SE, except yourself.

My *Microsoft* approach? Hah. Pay me $300 for Slyberoam first then
complain about my Microsoft approach. You paid me nothing. You have
no claim over what I should and should not do with Slyberoam. What do
you know about Microsoft anyway? If you're so pissed off at Microsoft
why the hell are you using Windows 98SE in the first place?

By the way, did you buy Windows 98SE? Or did you pirate that
software? Since you most likely pirated it, you have no right to
bitch about Microsoft anyway. Or about any of the companies whose
pirated software and games that probably reside on your aging
pathetic little hard disk.

I have published my source code. I have published an additional
document describing the protocol in detail. For FREE. If you have
half a brain, go write a Win98SE client for 24Online yourself. And
quit bitching.

I put in the effort to reverse engineer a closed protocol, build
software, and made it freely available for anyone to use. I have
never made any guarantees about how the software ought to work on
*YOUR* computer with *YOUR* configuration settings and *YOUR*
computer viruses. If you had any doubts about it, you should have
read the GPL (the license under which Slyberoam is released) and
determined in detail what sorts of guarantees I have made about
Slyberoam. The answer in short is, NONE.

So spare me the crap about ignoring 40% of users or giving you money
or about my Microsoft approach. I don't give a rat's ass about
whether you use Slyberoam or not. Unless you decide you want to pay
me. So until then, go get a life, or sit down and program. Bitching
is just too pathetic a way to waste your time.

- -R
---------------

Anyway, the moral of the story is that no matter what good you try and do, there are always nutcases out there who think you are devious, manipulative, greedy and willing to harm anyone for your own good. Hmm, does that sound like any famous companies you know about? Yes, I think at times I display all these qualities, but in general I display none of them.