DonationCoder.com Software > N.A.N.Y. 2009
NANY 2009 Intro
mouser:
Does it qualify as donationware if the donation price is fixed (at $10-15), so long as there aren't any limitations in the unregistered copy?
Does a "please donate/register" reminder void the donationware status?
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great questions! we've actually periodically debated these issues on the forum.. i should try to find the old threads since it's been a while since we talked about the issues.
i don't think there is one right answer, but i'll give my personal opinions:
Does it qualify as donationware if the donation price is fixed (at $10-15), so long as there aren't any limitations in the unregistered copy?
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YES. i believe that is still donationware in my view. if paying is truly optional then yes. i still think it's better if user can choose how much to pay -- i think that's an important concept, but i still think this qualifies. a "recommended" donation might be an ideal compromise.
Does a "please donate/register" reminder void the donationware status?
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DEPENDS. This is where people get religious! Some people claim that even a single one time tiny itty bitty reminder/request/notice/fineprint in statusbar of program change a program from being freeware into being shareware (which they inevitably refuse to use!)
In my view, it's a bit of a gray area. The bigger programs on donationcoder for example i consider donationware, but they in fact will show you a reminder after an initial period and require you to visit the web page to get a free license key to use the program.
Personally i believe it's s matter of reasonableness. If you pop up a big message every time the person uses the program saying they should pay that has to be clicked closed, then for me personally, that is going to bother me enough for me to say that its "nagware" and isn't really free.. The question is when does a program nag so much that it crosses the line from freeware to nagware. That's something everyone has to decide for themselves.
chaiguy1337:
Personally i believe it's s matter of reasonableness. If you pop up a big message every time the person uses the program saying they should pay that has to be clicked closed, then for me personally, that is going to bother me enough for me to say that its "nagware" and isn't really free.. The question is when does a program nag so much that it crosses the line from freeware to nagware. That's something everyone has to decide for themselves.
-mouser (December 17, 2008, 11:53 AM)
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That is a fair take on things. If we break it down, for instance, having a "please donate" button on the software could certainly not void its status, since users must have some obvious way to donate. I agree that imposing some dialog, especially one with a countdown would certain constitute nagware.
To be completely honest I haven't decided on a system yet, so let me ask you this. First and foremost I am writing this software to make a bit of money, because this is my full-time job and I need to support myself (i.e. it's not on the side). So in your opinion, can releasing something as donationware actually generate more funds than say a traditional pay-to-unlock model? Or is it merely kindness on the part of the developer because they can afford to? (I'd love to be generous, but simply cannot afford to cut profits at this point). Arguably, the publicity and word of mouth associated with free/donation software could outweigh forcing users to pay.
Now that said, here's a philosophical question for you: surely a "lite" version of a program that is completely free, but missing maybe some advanced features of a "pro" version, so long as it doesn't nag, would be considered free/donationware, correct? If so, does bundling two versions into the same installed product (in other words, upgrading to unlock certain features) also count as free/donationware, again so long as there is not any annoying nagging to upgrade? I ask this mainly because from a design standpoint it is much simpler to create a single product rather than two versions, one free and one pro.
My intention is not to start a debate--we can open up a new thread to discuss this if people want. I simply want to know where my options stand to release my product and still qualify for the competition. In all honesty I'm mostly interested in the publicity, not any prizes that may be won (if there even are any).
Thanks for the info and opinions.
mouser:
more great questions.
one i can answer pretty definitively, and depressingly :( :
So in your opinion, can releasing something as donationware actually generate more funds than say a traditional pay-to-unlock model?
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i'm sorry to say that my experience is that you will never make close to as much in donations as you would selling your software. that is the unfortunate conclusion i have come to after years involvement in donationcoder, which i think is probably one of the most "successful" (in terms of donations and users) donation-based software sites that there is.
however, this only takes into consideration financial gain -- for many of us there are other issues besides financial gain that outweigh the differences (see my old article here).
Keep in mind that some people assume incorrectly that this site would be hostile to traditional shareware and commercial software but we are not, so no one will begrudge you trying to make money on your software. Though of course it won't come as a surprise that most of us here tend to be more interested in and curious about software that is free/donationware.
Now that said, here's a philosophical question for you: surely a "lite" version of a program that is completely free, but missing maybe some advanced features of a "pro" version, so long as it doesn't nag, would be considered free/donationware, correct? If so, does bundling two versions into the same installed product (in other words, upgrading to unlock certain features) also count as free/donationware, again so long as there is not any annoying nagging to upgrade? I ask this mainly because from a design standpoint it is much simpler to create a single product rather than two versions, one free and one pro.
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another really good question -- framed very logically.
again you will find differences in opinion here. some people will view the lite version as primarily a marketing strategy and say it's no different than giving someone a feature-limited demo. it's really that gray line thing again, and it's mostly going to come down to what features you disable.
Obviously if you disable key features like the ability to save documents, then you are really talking about not a free version but a non-time-limited demo which people will have to upgrade to make any good use of the program.
On the other hand if the program is useful to large numbers of people without ever paying for pro features, and you aren't frequently nagging them to upgrade, then i think you can argue that you are talking about a free lite version and a pro pay version, which seems reasonable to me. You just have to be careful how you "advertise" it on your web page and in other places, to make sure people know what they are getting, etc.
Another model you haven't mentioned yet, which i find particularly attractive, and seems to be gaining in some popularity recently, is the "Free for Personal Use" model -- whereby there is really only one version of the program, which is free and does not nag the user or have any limits, but for which the license is allowed only for personal use (or as we do it here on donationcoder, free for personal and small/home office business type use). Commercial users are expected to pay for a license to use the software.
Whether you can make money with a "free for personal use" type license will depend very much on the kind of program, and i suspect on the kind of marketing you do. Some companies seem to do exceedingly well with such a model, but they tend to be pretty aggressive in marketing/selling their software to businesses. they get the benefit of free press from being a free program, and a good user base, and then they actively try to market the program to businesses. there are quite a few security programs that work on this model.
chaiguy1337:
Thanks, this is all very helpful.
It's too bad that donationware doesn't generate as much profit as the traditional models. I certainly don't dispute that there are other advantages to releasing software as donationware, some of which I have certainly considered. But as I mentioned money is top priority at this particular point in the game for me.
I noticed the following definition on that link: "A more useful definition for Donationware might be a program where the author requires a donation of some sort for full access to the program." It's good to know that requiring a donation still constitutes donationware, as I have considered that option too.
While a "free for personal use" model probably won't fit well for my current project, as I expect its largest audience to be home users, I'm glad you mentioned that because it may actually turn out to be a good model for my next project, which would be useful to both home and business users/organizations.
Anyhow, the current state of my program (that I'd like to submit) is that it's basically completely free in the sense that there are no limitations at all, even though it can be purchased an "unlocked" for $15, unlocking doesn't currently do anything except hide the "buy" button and stick their name on it as a licensed user. I was originally thinking of having a nag window when the program was quit, but if this would disqualify it, I can certainly remove that.
One final quick question--does the software that is submitted have to be free for the life of the product (including all future versions?) or would it be ok to submit a completely free VERSION of the program, for the competition, and then maybe introduce a more traditional model in future versions?
Thanks again and sorry to flood the post with all these questions.
Cheers
mouser:
I noticed the following definition on that link: "A more useful definition for Donationware might be a program where the author requires a donation of some sort for full access to the program." It's good to know that requiring a donation still constitutes donationware, as I have considered that option too.
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it needs to be pointed out that i was *suggesting* that this would be a useful definition -- but pointing out that it is simply a battle over word meanings that has already been lost. there is no accepted/extant term for describing a program that requires a donation but the user can choose the amount. if you use the term "donationware" to describe such a program you might confuse people. i still think it's a useful concept worth experimenting with. just don't know what it would be called.
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One final quick question--does the software that is submitted have to be free for the life of the product (including all future versions?) or would it be ok to submit a completely free VERSION of the program, for the competition, and then maybe introduce a more traditional model in future versions?
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i think this gets back to the intent issue underlying a lot of your questions. if the intent is to release a teaser version that will get attention but that won't really be useful to anyone, just to drive them to your real pay version, then people might feel resentful. in such a case you'd be better off posting about your program on our forum in a normal way and inviting people to try your program with the full knowledge that it is meant to be a commercial product.
the idea of nany is to encourage people to make new free programs -- if you can come up with a lite version of your new program, which you think stands on its own as a semi-useful program, then go for it, in the spirit of the contest -- and be happy if people are interested in it for it's own sake without feeling like you have to convert them to the paying version. note that i say "semi-useful" because plenty of the nany programs are more like exercises for programmers than polished programs meant to be super useful. again i think the bottom line comes down to how you approach the thing -- nany is not meant to be a showcase of commercial software, it's meant to be a fun event for coders to release something free for everyone, for fun. Doesnt mean we don't want to hear about your program on the forum -- but it means you have to think about whether what you are doing fits in with this particular event.
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