I can''t really tell you myself, and different states will have different laws so you may get many different answers, but you should be legally able to sell any software you produce, as you as an individual can own and sell intellectual property. However you will be liable for anything you sell and there are all sorts of tax reasons to do different things. If you actually have something to sell and want to set something up I would suggest you talk to a lawyer who specializes in small businesses. However if you don''t have anything to sell yet you can always keep working till your done then if you have to create a company and sell distribution rights to your company.

Short answer - talk to a small business lawyer.
Long answer - even without a business you should be able to sell anything you make (just make sure you own all the intellectual property and don''t have friends/employees who own some.)

A site like bizfilings.com will do all the work for you, for a fee of course. But then again you have to pay (to the government) if you do it yourself anyway, so a few extra bucks spent to avoid the headache is a worthwhile investment. Pricing varies per state, so you can find out how much it'll cost for your state on their site. As a matter of fact I just went on google, and here's a whole list of sites you might want to check out: http://directory.google.com/Top/Business/Consulting/Business_Formation/United_States/?tc=1

[edited by - FenixDown on July 27, 2002 9:15:47 PM]

Heres some Grade 9 business class information for you..

Sole-Proprietorship (spelling is WAY off): Is a business where one person owns the company. That person is also responsible for all liabilities.

General Partnership : Same thing as above, except with 2 or more founding members or corporations.

LLC : A business owned by one or more people, where the owners are NOT responsible for the liabilities.

Corporation : Shareholders own the company, paid dividends based on profits. Each share gives one vote on all company decisions, all share votes can be given to any other share holder.

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To legally sell anything, you don''t have to own a business, however, if you make more than a certain amount (depends on location / laws), you''ll need to start paying taxes on your revenue. In which case, you''ll need to start collecting taxes, and that requires a tax collection thingy-majig. (In Ontario, where I live, its a GST Tax Account and its when you make more than 60,000 dollars a year.)

Shareholders don''t vote on company decisions, they elect a board of directors who pick the CEO.