This is partly inspired by the thread about a website that apparently tells people if there is a supermarket slot nearby, but it is a lot more general than that.
Do you expect to pay for online content, services or downloads?
I know people who expect to get books, apps, knitting patterns, whatever it may be free of charge, and the first thing they ask when such things come up in conversation is 'is it free?'
I understand that if people are short of money they need to know how much something will cost when deciding whether to be interested, but on the whole these people are not short of money, and I don't think that this is the main motive - it is more that they seem to think that because there is not a tangible 'thing' involved, they would be paying for nothing.
The fact that someone has put time, effort and expertise into writing a book, developing an app or building a website doesn't seem to come into it, and neither does the idea that what they are doing is expecting people to work for nothing, although the people concerned would not dream of doing so themselves.
Personally, I wouldn't pay for something (eg Facebook or Gransnet) that is making money from me in the form of advertising, data collection etc, but would absolutely expect to pay for a Kindle book, or a Ravelry pattern, a music download or a useful app. To me, it is the same as paying for a haircut or a household repair. What about you?
Do you still have all your own teeth?
Pre Warning re Tonight’s Eastenders
