Update Fee

[MrTAToad]

Indeed - that way product quality is assured !

[mentalthink]

I think YES, it´s obvious, no?¿... I don´t know any application you don´t pay for Updates... I think after 3 years it´s hour to pay something, no?¿...

I think pay a little for a year can be good for both parts...

[TI-994A]

Let's be honest with ourselves. The big boys may be giving away freebies, but these are usually versions with very limited features and support. And even then, their motivation is to get developers hooked on, eventually buying the full versions for really big bucks. And that's not even taking into consideration the platform constraints.

Our dear Gernot has tirelessly developed and refined this wonderful cross-platform tool over the last tens years, since its early days as DiNGS Game Basic, and have most graciously offered lifetime upgrades and support at no extra cost. While I'm very sure that GLBasic is thriving, and will continue to have a growing user-base, exising users also continue to benefit from all the new work put into it by him. And let's not forget that this is not simply a software application, but a commercially viable, revenue-generating development tool. We make money from it, and the new additions and improvements make it even easier for us to make more money. Is it not fair to want to give something back without being asked?

So, IMHO, charge away, Gernot! And if the licensing terms stand in the way, seal GLBasic at version 11, and introduce a new product. GLXBasic?

[spacefractal]

Anyway its Gernots product then its actuelly him that set the price he set of the product, then its up to us we want it or not.

this instead of Glbasic v11, its could just call Glbasic 2 v1.0 as well.

But its all up to him, what he does 

[Nathan]

Here at work we have some pay-per-year contracts for support. Maybe I start sending newsletters to registered customers when new versions are available and insert a donate button for the upgrade, which would be free, though.

I dunno why but I assumed GLB, plus sells of mobile apps etc. was your full time, self employed job.

[mrplant]

I think a donate button through PayPal for optional upgrade payments for major version changes is the way to go. Perhaps with more than one donate button - each one for different values.

[Kitty Hello]

I dunno why but I assumed GLB, plus sells of mobile apps etc. was your full time, self employed job.

That would be plenty enough.
... if I lived in central Africa...

[Marmor]

[kanonet]

I must acknowledge, that im one of the guys, that voted with "no".
Of cause i thing Gernot deserve to get paid for his really great work! But i think the price (and the free updates and even upgrades) is one of the points that make GLBasic even more attractive. If you would charge a fee for V11 i and some others wont buy it again (i just got glb in februar and wont pay again just 2 months later and i just code for fun, didnt publish a single game). So you would split up GLBasic in 2 Products, that would need to get individual updates and bugfixes. Btw when i brought GLB "free Updates" were announced as part of the product; i knew, that i would always have an up-to-date dev-kit. If this would change now (just 2 months later), i really would feel scammed. I mean, if i would make big money i would be proud to make a voluntary donation, but if i would get asked to pay something again, that i already paid, it would just feel wrong and i dont think it would be good for GLB if new customers would knew that there "contract" with Gernot could get changed at any time in future just by him alone. Maybe next he would charge a fee for every published game, made with GLB?

I could live with paying for a "GUI addon", that woudl be totally fair. Pay for new features, but dont pay again for old one (+there updates/bugfixes!). But in the past we had 3D, Net,... addons and Gernot merged it all together to "premium" now, so i guess he gets more money from selling premium to everyone than just selling everyone just the parts that they need...

Btw if some of you want to donate and give back some of your money that you earned with GLBasic, than why you dont just donate something? I mean you know his paypal address...

[bigsofty]

I dont think an annual support fee would be on a set date, rather a year after you purchased it, so in your case, Feb 13.

A developer can actually have a large healthy user base, who expect lots of updates/new features and earn the developer very little money for a lot of extra effort. This was the case of Blitzbasic and it eventually died feature wise because it was only worth the developers while to bring out a completely new product rather than support/update an old one.

The general consensus so far, seems to be an 'optional' payment on major versions. Which for me would be very acceptable. Although the VIP license idea sound great too!

[Hark0]

IMO...


Some time ago... one guy called Markus Persson starts a development project called Minecraft... for "only" 20€... and promise actualizations free for live... How much money have in his bank account???


I think the best solution for increase sales are publicity, publicity, publicity... take part on many forums about (indie) developement are possible... lost many time every day on social networks like twitter, facebook, etc... mouth to mouth are another best solution...

Make an annual contest (best app) in combination with hardware resseller like hardcoregamer.net, and offer to win any device...

Increase a bit the addons form 20 to 40€... are another option.


The idea is convert GLB as a UNIQUE, CHEAP, EFFECTIVE, EASY TO LEARN sdk for developers... over another "solutions" like gamemaker, etc...


PS Annual upgrade/payment like Adobe, Office??..... No, please.

PS2 Try it... search on Youtube for "glbasic".... I obtain 227 results.... and try for gamemaker... 120.000 aprox... Understand where to go?

[matchy]

In regards to motivation, the idea that GLBasic developers need investors in this product and perhaps a forecast funding budget would be more suitable where the spending can be used on marketing and education with the ol' donation meter. Seems to be the trend now-a-days for all sort of new and old projects.

Examples:
http://www.kickstarter.com/
http://8bitfunding.com/

[DaCarSoft]

Hi, I will try to explain my opinion as better as I can:

About two years ago, I decided to try to develop a game, in my free time, as a hobby. I decided to rescue a very old idea about a game that I started to develop long time ago, with my old ZX Spectrum 

I love my work, I love to make computer programs, but I usually have to develop database related applications, or web pages...   that kind of things are the only ones wich makes me earn some money...     but I needed to make something different, something fun that I really could enjoy, as a hobby.

I'm a developer, I'm alone, like all people here, I think...   I can't make a video game like Tekken or Unreal Tournament... I know. I have not enought free time or money. And remember: I'm alone.

My game can't be a big production like Metal Gear Solid or Warcraft, It will never be published as a commercial game for Nintendo devices or Playstation 3. In addition, I have not enought money to pay all the fees and buy all development kits and tools needed to try to develop it for PSP or Nintendo DS...
How many could cost for me all the things needed to publish my game for PSP??? 14.000€?   may be more?   

I wanted to do a game that runs under mobile devices...  Most of game players love to play in a mobile device.

But... the option of publish for Apple's App Store appeared to be easier and less expensive than others... iOS market was something possible for me...  The Apple "ecosystem" is widely known and It's easy for the end user...   with luck, I could obtain a little bit of money to pay the costs of the Apple Developer annual subscription, maybe also my MacBook...   and my iPad...     with so much luck, I know, but it is possible...

I like iOS devices and I chosen iOS finally as preferred target platform for my game, but I would like to make it multiplatform if it is possible.

Apple have its own language, IDE and tools (XCode/Cocoa/Objective C) but I was searching something easier, faster and different than XCode...  But It had to be a good development environment: stable, rock solid and easy.

At the other side BASIC language is very well known for me...  I had a Sinclair ZX Spectrum XDDDDDDD

I was continuously reading information about all kind of devices and each respective development tools, languages and environments... all the information that I found was plenty of royalties, taxes, fees, annual licences, obscure terms and conditions, and more...     
I hate that kind of products, with that kind of conditions... I wouldn't like to rent my game. I don't like when others rent his software...         I need to feel that I pay for something that will be mine, completely, not only for a certain time.

Finally, I found GLBasic:  Easy to learn, easy to use...   fast...   royalte free...  free lifetime upgrades...   low cost...   only one pay for the premium version...   With it I had all the needed to start my development for iOS... and hey: IT IS BASIC LANGUAGE!!!!!!   

I purchased the premium version of GLBasic, and I was surprised because of its quality and all the platforms that it supports.

Sometimes, I found errors in GLBasic (under my iPad, for example) that were a really big problem, but the continuous updates fixed all. I need to feel my game solid and stable.

I like it, I really like GLBasic...  as is, just now...   because of that, I would not like that GLBasic would dissapear...    As a programmer, I think that the work to obtain the actual version of GLBasic is unvaluable (THANKS GERNOT!!! REALLY!!!)...    I can imagine the effort that involves, and I think that the hard programmers work must be enought paid, ever...  but I liked also the conditions that convinced me when I bought GLBasic...  I wouldn't like to see the original nature of GLBasic changed...

Sincerely: I don't like and I couldn't pay for updates or error fixing in a programming language. Remember: This is a hobby for me, I can't earn money developing games... I started to program my game two years ago, and haven't anything playable (until). I had to pay my iPad, my MacBook, GLBasic, and my Apple Developers Program Subscription each year, but I haven't enought time to finish my game.

But I could pay a little price for an UPGRADE, because I understand to Gernot, I don't like that GLBasic versions and development could be stopped. I understand that all people needs earn money working, I understand the effort behind each GLBasic's update, and I know the industry tactics: Gernot must have enought money to buy a new Mac if he wants to use XCode 4.3 now, and he must feels his work compensated with money, like all of us.

I hate Apple because of that kind of "movements" (Lion needs a certain Mac and XCode 4.3 needs Lion), but I love Apple because of let some little developers to publish an application throught his servers and market, and obtain revenues in a very easy way...   If they are lucky.

I think that one big problem is the long time needed to obtain a finished and good quality game, and its revenues, when the most of us are game developers in our free time.

Solutions? An exceptional payment for an upgrade could be OK for me, publicity for GLBasic to obtain more buyers (like Hark0 said)...   Anything that could bring new buyers and revenues to GLBasic... We have to help the "platform", I think. Anything without changing its free bug fixing/update nature... (it is a programming language!!! I need it error free!!!) XDDDDDDDD

I said this with the best intemptions. Sorry if my english is not very well sometimes...

Regards.

[Ruidesco]

I don´t know any application you don´t pay for Updates...

I do, and did choose it over other options just because of lifetime free updating. The application is modular and there are tons of modules, which themselves are updated for free as well; the majority of them, which are the juicier ones, are not included in the "main packages" and thus provide another ton of revenue, but that doesn't mean that the main packages are unusable or barebones by themselves. Maybe something like that could be devised if there is any need for this project to become more financially profitable.

[Kitty Hello]

I start to like the premium idea, where you pay a small fee/year and get access to pre-release software and maybe source code for some projects.