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I use sublime as my primary text editor. I've installed it using this ppa

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/sublime-text-2
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install sublime-text

After I use if for a while, when I try to save any unsaved work i get an warning saying "This is unregistered evaluation version"

When I click "Cancel" on the dialog box. It allows me to continue using. So is it okay to use the unlimited trial version?

Need advice from AskUbuntu experts.

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  • -1 off-topic. You are asking a legal question, talk to a lawyer.
    – Tom Brossman
    Oct 3, 2012 at 7:51
  • Need advice from Sublime corp really. I'd vote to close if I had the rep, but all I can do is argue...
    – Spacedman
    Oct 3, 2012 at 13:50
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    We get license questions all the time. I'm not sure if we should consider this on-topic or not (we might decide that because it's provided by a PPA, licensing questions about it are beyond the scope of Ask Ubuntu), but the answers so far seem good. I've posted on meta to try to get some consensus about this.
    – Eliah Kagan
    Oct 4, 2012 at 1:06
  • Legal in what jurisdiction? "So is it okay to use..." is a ethics question. Seems like questions like this one need lawyers or ethicists, but I don't think that's the likely response. It's not a good fit for our particular community, I'm afraid.
    – John S Gruber
    Oct 4, 2012 at 3:08
  • @TomBrossman sir, I am yet to evaluate the software for my work completely, which might take a month long. I definitely purchase the licence later, after evaluation. But my question was is it ok to use the software till that time. If you feel that this question should not be here, I will go ahead and delete it. I am sorry.
    – orca
    Oct 4, 2012 at 6:33

2 Answers 2

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"Okay" in what sense? Are you "evaluating" the software? If so, then carry on evaluating until you can make a decision on whether to use it or not. If you have already decided you are going to use it, and have moved from evaluating it to using it, then you've broken the usage terms and you are a bad boy or girl and will go to whatever place of damnation awaits you according to your belief system.

You can prevent that eternal damnation by shelling out $59 - sounds like a good deal to me.

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Sublime is provided as freeware to a certain degree. If you want nightly builds, and the ability to get support from the developer to incorporate your requests into Sublime, then you would need to purchase a license for it. The beta builds of Sublime are usually not far behind the licensed version, so there's really no point in buying a license for it unless you want to use it without breaking usage terms, need the support, nightly builds, or the dialog is just simply annoying.

Note that if you have already decided you are going to use it, and have moved from evaluating it to using it, then you've broken the usage terms. It is likely to be illegal or at least unethical.

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    Its not freeware to any degree! The website clearly states the download is for evaluation only.
    – Spacedman
    Oct 3, 2012 at 7:40
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    If it wasn't freeware to a degree, you wouldn't be able to use it without a license. Ever. At all. Period. Hint: "define:freeware" in Google.
    – Sly
    Oct 3, 2012 at 11:02
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    Exactly. This fee is optional. You don't have to pay it right now unless you need support, nightly builds, or the dialog is simply annoying.. as my answer states. I would consider this shareware if, and only if, there was a forced evaluation period.
    – Sly
    Oct 3, 2012 at 13:40
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    By your own standards, this is shareware. Again "define:shareware": "Software that is available free of charge and often distributed informally for evaluation, after which a fee may be requested for continued use". This is free during evaluation, and a fee is asked after you evaluate it. How is it not considered shareware at that point? However, yet again, there is no forced evaluation period. Therefore, regardless over you arguing because your answer wasn't accepted, I will continue to term this as freeware until there is a forced evaluation period.
    – Sly
    Oct 3, 2012 at 14:12
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    Your argument is that it conforms to the shareware definition, so therefore you call it freeware? Freeware is not Shareware
    – Nanne
    Dec 4, 2013 at 16:25

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