Viro
Registered
Each time a new version of OS X is released, there is a tendency from certain quarters to complain about how "evil" Apple is because they are charging for an update.
Well, if people think Apple is bad, they have never dealt with Mathworks, the company that produces Matlab. These guys are _real_ mercenaries. Let me give you an example.
The current version of Matlab for students is R14. This was released in May 2004. At present, in April 2005, there are 2 service packs that have been released. *None* of these are downloadable by students (ppl using the student version). If they want the updates, they need to buy the *full* version of Matlab for students. These cost $70 a pop, and only for security updates and bug fixes. No new functionality whatsoever. This is only the beginning.
Then, there are the toolboxes. Matlab for students is really bare bones. It only comes with the symbolic math toolbox, while the commercial version comes with hundreds. Fair enough, the commercial version costs thousands, while the student version costs $70. Each toolbox is available for separate purchase at $59 a pop. Now, these toolboxes are basically scripts (i.e. text files) that add functionality to make your jobs easy. I use the neural network toolbox occasionally and find it quite intuitive.
Here's the bad news. Each toolbox isn't compatible with different releases, including the releases with service packs as they count as a *different* version (!!). So, if you currently have Matlab R14, and want to get service packs, you need to buy a new version of Matlab *with* the service packs *and* all the toolboxes you need, even if you've already bought them and they didn't change at all with the new release (read the changelogs to be sure). You end up paying for bug fixes (buying new version with service packs), paying for "updated" toolboxes that didn't change at all just so it will work with the "new" version of software you bought.
And people think Apple is bad...
Well, if people think Apple is bad, they have never dealt with Mathworks, the company that produces Matlab. These guys are _real_ mercenaries. Let me give you an example.
The current version of Matlab for students is R14. This was released in May 2004. At present, in April 2005, there are 2 service packs that have been released. *None* of these are downloadable by students (ppl using the student version). If they want the updates, they need to buy the *full* version of Matlab for students. These cost $70 a pop, and only for security updates and bug fixes. No new functionality whatsoever. This is only the beginning.
Then, there are the toolboxes. Matlab for students is really bare bones. It only comes with the symbolic math toolbox, while the commercial version comes with hundreds. Fair enough, the commercial version costs thousands, while the student version costs $70. Each toolbox is available for separate purchase at $59 a pop. Now, these toolboxes are basically scripts (i.e. text files) that add functionality to make your jobs easy. I use the neural network toolbox occasionally and find it quite intuitive.
Here's the bad news. Each toolbox isn't compatible with different releases, including the releases with service packs as they count as a *different* version (!!). So, if you currently have Matlab R14, and want to get service packs, you need to buy a new version of Matlab *with* the service packs *and* all the toolboxes you need, even if you've already bought them and they didn't change at all with the new release (read the changelogs to be sure). You end up paying for bug fixes (buying new version with service packs), paying for "updated" toolboxes that didn't change at all just so it will work with the "new" version of software you bought.
And people think Apple is bad...
