After getting another request to create and offer a PAD file, I looked into the process again. There’s an online generator software at this address. I was using that to enter my data. When I was done filling in the stuff that was relevant to a FLOSS program like WinDirStat, I ended up getting a list of error messages.
Here’s the start of the list:
So I need to give my postal address? No thanks. Post box? Yeah, who pays for that?
This is geared towards shareware and freeware programs, no doubt. But what took my breath away was this error message:
Invalid data formatting. According to the PAD specification, this field should have the following format: “
^http://.{2,120}Z“. You can find the full PAD specification here: www.padspec.org
I have to give a non-HTTPS site, because shareware is so 1990s and the PAD format is as well?
Conclusion: there’s no PAD file for WinDirStat and there won’t be. Sorry, folks.
// Oliver
I ran into some of these issues with the PAD specification as well. I’m not sure that all PAD readers/consumers actually care about these violations, but – yea – the specification has gone entirely unmaintained for a decade or so.
That’s not surprising given the people who run the ASP. No doubt all of them are living fat off membership dues. I left, like a decade ago, after Tucows told me I *must* include a ‘Modify’ option in the uninstaller, else they refused to list my software. Everything had to be their way, and their requests were the most pedantic, stupid things ever. They were living in the past *then*. I complained on an ASP forum, who of course responded with ‘Did you try making the changes Tucows demanded?’. Idiots.
In fact, the entire Freeware and Shareware scene has been destroyed over the last 10 years. Legitimate publishers are drowned out by the noise of the toolbar bundling scam artists, often who repackage and market popular F/OSS apps. This eroded consumer trust as well. Sadly, the largest download sites didn’t object, they joined the bandwagon.
There was little to no resistance because, I think, for a time the wise prophets who run out world believed the PC was dead, so why care about erosion of it’s software marketplace. Further, it was believed that the Windows Store would come to save the day by offering a ‘trusted’ and ‘filtered’ (ha!) app market.
Lesson is: It’s a dirty, dirty world, full of all kinds of professional sins, from complacency, to fraud, to customer abuse.
p.s. WinDirStat is nice, cool work.
“Legitimate publishers”, are there even any of them left? Last I checked they *all* injected Malware into their downloads ? CNET, Tucows, Brothersoft, Softonic, you name it. Filehippo seems the only one of the old guard who still have clean downloads.
Of course you need to adhere to all the ASP rules and specifications ? wouldn’t want that Malware Injector to fail because of some technicality, now would you? 😈
Finding and downloading software have to be done separately these days, because all the download aggregators abuse their position. Finding is, I’ve found lately, best done on AlternativeTo (or a similar site, although I’m not aware of any others of comparable size and quality). A community-edited, categorised, tagged and linked collection of software including license and platform filtering, recommendations, reviews and comments. Then, only ever use the link to the official developer site to download (these are already Malware-riddled often enough). If the project is defunct, find an old version at the Internet Archive.
Of course, this method will never be able to get more wide-spread among less technically inclined people, for the sheer Google power of the download portals.