Propietary Sotware VS Free Software

Propietary Software.

Proprietary software is computer software for which the software's publisher or another person retains intellectual property rights—usually copyright of the source code, but sometimes patent rights.

Use of the software

Further information: Copy protection, Damaged good, and Price discrimination

Vendors typically limit the number of computers on which software can be used, and prohibit the user from installing the software on extra computers. Restricted use is sometimes enforced through a technical measure, such asproduct activation, a product key or serial number, a hardware key, or copy protection.

Vendors may also distribute versions that remove particular features, or versions which allow only certain fields of endeavor, such as non-commercial, educational, or non-profit use.

Use restrictions vary by license:

• Windows Vista Starter is restricted to running a maximum of three concurrent applications.
• The retail edition of Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007 is limited to non-commercial use on up to three devices in one household.
• Windows XP can be installed on one computer, and limits the number of network file sharing connections to 10. TheHome Edition disables features present in Windows XP Professional.
• Traditionally Adobe licenses are limited to one user, but allow the user to install a second copy on a home computer or laptop. This is no longer true with the switching to Creative Cloud.
• iWork '09, Apple's productivity suite, is available in a five-user family pack, for use on up to five computers in a household.

Free Software

Free software,is computer software distributed under terms that allow users to run the software for any purpose as well as to study, change, and distribute the software and any adapted versions. The right to study and modify software entails access to its source code. For computer programs that are covered by copyright law, this is achieved with a software license by which the author grants users the aforementioned freedom. Software that is not covered by copyright law, such as software in the public domain, is free if the source code is in the public domain, or otherwise available without restrictions. Other legal and technical aspects, such as software patentsand digital rights management may restrict users in exercising their rights, and thus prevent software from being free. Free software may be developed collaboratively by volunteer computer programmers or by corporations; as part of a commercial, for-profit activity or not.

Free software is a matter of liberty, not price: users, individually or collectively, are free to do what they want with it, including the freedom to redistribute the software free of charge, or to sell it, or charge for related services such as support or warranty for profit.Free software thus differs from proprietary software, such as Microsoft Office, Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides or iWork from Apple, which users cannot study, change, and share. Free software is also different than freeware, which is a category of freedom-restricting proprietary software that does not require payment for use. Proprietary software, including freeware, use restrictive software licences or EULAs and usually do not provide access to the source code. Users are thus prevented from changing the software, and this results in the user relying on the publisher to provide updates, help, and support. This situation is called vendor lock-in. Users often may not reverse engineer, modify, or redistribute proprietary software.