It almost sounds like the Ada community is less noble and meaner-spirited
than other groups.  I don't think that's true.  Here's my take on why there
isn't as much homebuilt freeware for Ada:

* Common, cheap/free Ada compilers for home computers have only become
  available recently.  ACT was founded in August of 1994, and other
  vendors reacted to their market presence.  Meanwhile, you can get a C
  compiler for anything above a 4-function calculator.

* The Ada community is much smaller.
  - The same fraction of folks with home projects would still produce
    fewer projects.
  - The Ada community is less dense than the C community.  So, there is
    less chance that an informal, off-hours team will form up, or that a
    developer will get local help and encouragement.
  - Since the community is small, the ego rewards are less for developing
    free software.

* Ada has just recently penetrated the colleges.  A lot of freeware is
  done, or starts, as college projects; consider the X windows system.

* Ada people tend to use bindings to existing systems.

The compilers, community size, and college penetration are improving.  I
hope to see a lot more Ada freeware in the future.

Best,
Sam Mize

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