Feature of GPLed version of QCAD

[rvt]

Hey all,

I bought a professional version of QCad, and I am very happy with that!

However, what is the status of the GPLed version of QCad? Will there be more releases of Ribbonsoft? As far as I can tell teh GPL version is still at 2.0, where there is already for a long time a 2.2 release.

Will the 2.x branch be fully released as GPL when 3.0 get's released?

I am making some additions to QCad, and I am just wondering if I am not making patches to something that is not maintained anymore.

Ries

[andrew]

Unfortunately, we have no resources at this point to look into another QCAD community edition release. Once QCAD 3 is out, we might start thinking about that again.

[rvt]

Andrew,

thank you for your honest reply.
I hope that full 2.x will get released when 3.0 is out then

I am making some patches to 2.0 right now and I think they will be usefull in near feature for others to use.

Fingers crossed!

Ries

[andrux0id]

Unfortunately, we have no resources at this point to look into another QCAD community edition release. Once QCAD 3 is out, we might start thinking about that again.

Hello, andrew. I see beta of QCAD 3 in Downloads, so let me ask you again: does RibbonSoft have plans about new community edition release soon after QCAD 3 out?

[andrew]

Does RibbonSoft have plans about new community edition release soon after QCAD 3 out?

We believe that with QCAD 3 we provide the best of both worlds. The license sales provide essential funding for future development. The scripting API on the other hand provides users with a way to adjust and extend almost every aspect of QCAD 3.

Every QCAD 3 package consists of:
- A binary that provides an extensive scripting API for almost the entire Qt toolkit and for QCAD 3 specific functionality.
- Over 50000 lines of ECMAScript code that is openly available for all QCAD 3 users and may be adjusted and extended by any QCAD 3 license holder. This is already happening now as users realize that possibilities are endless.

I understand of course that this has nothing to do with 'Open Source' the way how the FSF defines it or GPL in particular. However, from our experience with users, the main reason why serious QCAD users want to have source code is to be able to make adjustments and to add new functionality.

[andrux0id]

Well, sadly, that RibbonSoft will no longer release OpenSource versions

I think it will be interesting for you:
i've posted an article at popular linux-related forum in Russia (link — http://www.linux.org.ru/news/commercial/6664111) with proposition to test QCAD 3 beta.
Most of users in that thread refused from testing QCAD 3, they had no doubt in fact that RibbonSoft already abandoned Community Edition and these guys already selected one of alternatives for themselves (FreeCAD, BRL-CAD, LibreCAD, DraftSight, MEDUSA4 Personal etc).
Only one user said: "I will test." And one more user "defended" QCAD positions, because he really likes it. All other was talking about LibreCAD rc2 and so on.

For now i can predict, that only few users at linux.org.ru will advice QCAD for those who asked "What CAD can i use in both Linux, Windows and MacOSX?" at forum.

Thus interest to the QCAD can decrease and it means fewer users will look over QCAD CE or QCAD 3 trial and then buy PE.
So QCAD can become profy only oriented CAD, e.g. for those, who started to use it many years ago and dont want to change it for smth else.

But if you ship QCAD CE 2.2 it will atract attention to QCAD again, trolls will say "LibreCAD's fork is not needed, it has old code, we have fresh QCAD CE", new users will select CE and then can buy QCAD 3.

andrew, it's my own forecast, maybe i'm wrong, maybe not. Anyway thank you for QCAD.

[andrew]

Well, sadly, that RibbonSoft will no longer release OpenSource versions

Just to clarify: I did not say that.

[andrux0id]

Just to clarify: I did not say that.

Yes, you didn't. But you didn't say a word about CE in your post too, so ordinary CE customer will interpret them like i.

I understand, that QCAD 3 is the main goal currently for RibbonSoft, but users who used QCAD for studying or personal noncommercial use greatly apprecate for QCAD CE 2.2.
So we want to hear

Once QCAD 3 is out, we might start thinking about that [another QCAD community edition release] again.

again from you now, at the starting of beta-testing :)