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Beware Of Knock-Offs:
Did you ever buy a pair of jeans or shoes and they weren't quite right?
Would you know, truly know if you were the victim of a Knock-Off artist?
Read on and discover...
When a product is not quite right, it's usually a sign that the product
is a cheap reproduction of the original. Recently, I had new tires put
on my car. The mechanic noticed the old tires that came with the car
when I got it were cheap Knock-Offs. Many companies now out-source for
cheaper labor, but I don't think the product should suffer as well.
Are software vendors and buyers the victims of these cheap knock-off schemes? The
sad truth to the matter is yes! In fact, software is copied and code is stolen
more than any other product in the world. OEM software, usually solicited by
email, is high on the list, but this does not exclude other vendors.
So what can you do to protect yourself? Follow along for some pointers on how
to spot cheap Knock-Off software from fly by night vendors before they get the
best of you.
Version Check:
The first thing to watch out for is the product version. If the product looks
simple enough, but is high on the version scale, say v3.0 or higher then it's
usually a sign that it's a cheap copy of some other vendor's software. If a
product only has a few features on a simple interface and looks like it was
done over the weekend - you're looking at a Knock-Off.
Product Name Check:
The most obvious deployment in Knock-Off software is in the spelling of the
name. The use of punctuation or abnormal characters at the beginning,
middle or ending of the product is a clear indication of abuse. The most common
beginning character is the '@' ampersand, while the most common ending
character is the '!' exclamation point. The most common middle character is
the '-' dash or hyphen. In short, any other characters other A through Z
is an indication that the software is a Knock-Off.
Funny Website Names:
This is not always true, but most fly by night vendors use numbers along with
their company name. Such as 20Money.com, Testing123.com or HoleIn1.com. I just
made these up, but you can check your daily SPAM to get some real fly by night
vendor website domain names that can help you spot the pattern. And exactly
what is a Raxso anyway?
In closing, I feel it's necessary to introduce you to
Skylark Utilities -
they were the first and are still the best when it comes to IT software products.
Have a look when you find the time. Keep that in mind the next time you go shopping
for new software and you'll come out a winner.
Remember to tell a friend
or two about Raxso and avoid harmful software...
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