Freeware is software which is available for use by anyone or a specified class or group, without payment of any fees. Because it may or may not be in the public domain, it is always safest to assume that a freeware program is protected by copyright even though no fee is charged for its use. In some cases, source code is provided or is freely available. See Open Source

Freeware should never be confused with Shareware or with software that may not be currently or actively supported by its authors or publishers, sometimes referred to as Abandonware 08-14-2000 - jkowens