The term "shareware" is popularized by Bob Wallace, one of the earlier programmers of Microsoft and who later created his own company called Quicksoft. Shareware is a kind of software distributed free for a short duration, called a trial period. The program is then up for paid registration after the trial stage has expired. The computer software, available as a shareware, can be downloaded from the Internet, purchased at a low cost and is copyrighted, unlike public-domain software programs which are not copyrighted or its trademarks are not registered.
A shareware program can also be shared by the user to other interested programmers or users, provided however, that these third-party users also purchase the software after the trial period. The user is not entitled to sell the program to other users; only the creator of the software can collect some fees from using the program. The benefit of purchasing a shareware is that it is easy to use, educational and informative, and the user will be notified on product updates whenever such improvements become available. Even those without much knowledge on computer programming can use the software with ease and satisfaction.
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