写到这可能就会有人问了,到底什么叫“共享软件”呢?共享软件其实是一种软件的营销方法,提倡先免费试用,然后再购买,即Try Before You Buy,共享软件在过了一定的期限之后都是要被支付才可以继续使用的。凭什么笔者说“共享软件”是这个意思就是这个意思呢?其实这也不是我说的,“共享软件”是一个翻译过来的词,它的英文是“Shareware”,其原意是:“Shareware(共享软件) is a marketing method for software, whereby a trial version is distributed in advance and without payment, as is common for proprietary software. Shareware software is typically obtained free of charge, either by downloading from the internet or on magazine cover-disks. A user tries out the program, and thus shareware has also been known as 'try before you buy', demoware, trialware and by many other names. A shareware program is accompanied by a request for payment, and the software's distribution license often requires such a payment. Payment is often required once a set period of time has elapsed after installation. The term shareware was coined by Bob Wallace to describe his word processor PC-Write in the mid-1980s.”(引自https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Shareware)。