Regarding pricing policy of "OS4.1.7"

[Spectre660]

Where is this stated or documented ?

• You disregard the commonly know fact that paying OS4.1 customers would receive free upgrades until OS4.2

[Matt_H]

Amiga is a hobby. Hobbies usually cost money. 200 euros over six years sounds like a damn good bargain to me.

[klx300r]

@ TMHTG

+ 1, what spirantho said below :-)

[spirantho]

@takemehomegrandma

I think the problem people have with your post starting the thread, is this:

Would your reaction have been the same if it had been MorphOS that had suddenly asked for 30 Euros for next update? I think many of us suspect that instead of that, you would have posted about how "MorphOS is now the cheapest, as well as the best OS" and "MorphOS is now allowing people to support their devs again after years of unpaid work!".

I don't mean this as an attack (it's not) but I do think that that's why people are sceptical of your original post's intention.

Being honest, if MorphOS suddenly reduced its price, would you care about the resale value your machines? Or would you be excited at the
prospect of new users?

[Karlos]

Would your reaction have been the same if it had been MorphOS that had suddenly asked for 30 Euros for next update? I think many of us suspect that instead of that, you would have posted about how "MorphOS is now the cheapest, as well as the best OS" and "MorphOS is now allowing people to support their devs again after years of unpaid work!".

This.

Furthermore, there'd be nothing wrong with such a reaction. The MorphOS devs have worked hard and deserve some remuneration for their efforts. It's to their credit that they've managed to churn out so many free updates for registered users. I strongly doubt any of their userbase would complain at a paid for update, especially at a significantly reduced rate.

[Kronos]

T The MorphOS devs ...... I strongly doubt any of their userbase would complain at a paid for update, especially at a significantly reduced rate.

Actually I would as it would:
- set precedent for following updates to also be paid for
- splinter the userbase into subsets running different versions of the OS

Now, I do have 5 paid licences active around here, for which I paid between 79 (PowerMac G4) and 150Euro (Efika) plus 1 freebie and 2 licenced pieces of HW that I sold on, so it's surely not a money thing and I would cladly add another if the ever add support for another HW that I deem interesting.

[Karlos]

Actually I would as it would:
- set precedent for following updates to also be paid for
- splinter the userbase into subsets running different versions of the OS

So, would you say that purchasing a license once ought to entitle the buyer for free updates for that installation indefinitely?

[Kronos]

I say with a "market" that small, thats the smartest way.

Entiltlement really isn't an issue here, but making sure that one doesn't change the rule midgame or comes around as a bunch of #### just in it for $$.

[Karlos]

I say with a "market" that small, thats the smartest way.

Entiltlement really isn't an issue here, but making sure that one doesn't change the rule midgame or comes around as a bunch of #### just in it for $$.

Surely that model only works as long as you continue to attract new users. It's a small community. If every halfway active amiga user today bought a license, at some point the flow of cash would dry up all together.

More to the point, it's hard to "be in it for the $$" in a market this small. Be realistic

[amigadave]

This.

Furthermore, there'd be nothing wrong with such a reaction. The MorphOS devs have worked hard and deserve some remuneration for their efforts. It's to their credit that they've managed to churn out so many free updates for registered users. I strongly doubt any of their userbase would complain at a paid for update, especially at a significantly reduced rate.

I agree!  I would gladly pay for updates to MorphOS, but as kronos just mentioned, there might be a few who disagree with it on principle of setting a precedent.  Perhaps if they did it only after announcing the intention to charge a "one time" update fee, or instead, a once every x number of years update fee, then perhaps even the users who object to a precedent being set would happily pay for certain updates.

MorphOS Dev. Team, to my knowledge has never promised that ALL future updates would be free, but that impression has been growing and reinforced by the number of free updates to this point in time.

The big difference between Hyperion and the MorphOS Dev. Team, is that one is run as a commercial company (loosely fits that description), and the other is more like a collaboration of like minded individuals with a silent administrator (or group of administrators), most of whom work for free on the MorphOS project.

I don't think that either entity makes enough income from their license sales to pay for anything more than some beer and pizza for the programmers occasionally.  

[Niding]

Really have to be up to the developers as a team to decide what they think they need resource wise. Its them putting in the effort, and if they feel they need some income to justify the time spent, then I dont see a problem.

There will always be someone that will throw a fit over it, but what can you do.

[Kronos]

@Karlos
a) there are no new users to be gained in significant number
b) there are no new users to be gained in significant number
c) make your mind up, either your a buisness (than better go somewhere with atleast the chance of turning a profit) or you are doing your hobby (which means the best you can expect is the users covering your actual expenses)

Some people should really make their mind up, cos the convinent flipfloping is more than a bit annyoing (read they are a "pro" buisness when there are some pennies to be made, but doing a labor of love when it comes to the product falling short of promises).

@AmigaDave
For legal/tax reasons both OS4 and MorphOS have registered buisnesses running them, but when it comes to actually being a buisness things turn different. You know caring bout consumer satisfaction, thruthful advertising, quality or even holding up to once made promises.

[Karlos]

@Karlos
a) there are no new users to be gained in significant number
b) there are no new users to be gained in significant number

This only strengthens the argument *for* paid for updates. Once you exhaust all the new user registrations, all you have is unpaid support forever and nothing to cover costs. That means that either the covering of costs was never an issue (in which case the registration charge itself is an unnecessary charge) or something else has to change. Which implies one of the following:

1) All major (non contribution) development ceases because costs are no longer covered.
2) Future updates become chargeable in order to cover costs.
3) You adopt a donation based strategy in order to cover costs.
4) You bite the bullet and go free and or open source because covering costs isn't actually an issue in the first place.

[SACC-guy]

Hi all.

As a paying OS4 customer (been using OS4 on and off since the very first release for Amigaone XE G4), I just wanted to raise the issue of the new pricing policy regarding "OS4.1 FE", which in practice will be the seventh update of OS4.1.

I must say I feel more than a little tricked by this strange and sudden move.

I once paid 138,85 EUR (incl vat and shipment) for OS 4.1 (the Pegasos version) and had to wait 2 weeks for a  worthless CD I never had any use for (it has never even entered my CD-ROM, not once), since you have to download the  "4.1 update 1" ISO the first thing you do anyway, and install the OS from there. All the 4.1 updates were supposed  to be included, that was always "the deal", right? But now rules have changed,  and as reported in this thread I now obviously have to spend *even more* money on *another* worthless  physical "OS4.1" CD if I want to be able to download further 4.1 updates from  the Internet.

Also, the second hand market for OS4.1 disappeared in one blow by this. It will be impossible for me to sell "OS4.1.6", no matter the price, since it suddenly was rendered utterly worthless. Of course I knew that "OS4.2" would once again mean a new purchase (as has been communicated all along), but since I (and I'm not the only one) looks at "4.2" as some kind of utopia (with a promised feature set that is quite impossible in an *Amiga compatible* environment) I was - and still am - quite convinced that it will never actually happen, or at least take a *very* long time. So while I of course bought OS4.1 to use it, I still kind of presumed that there would be an option open to sell it as second hand to someone else down the road as long as "4.2" hadn't been released.

But this obviously changed with this sudden and unexpected decision to charge money once again for an OS4.1 update already!

I feel double-tricked, there is no way to move either forwards or backwards without either losing money already spent, or spend even more money. And remaining passive is not really an option either, since all upcoming OS4.1 updates will require "OS4.1.7"/"FE". I feel that this was never the deal. OS4.2 was to be the next paid update.

I think this really sucks.

PRINCE

    This letter doth make good the friar's words,
    Their course of love, the tidings of her death:
    And here he writes that he did buy a poison
    Of a poor 'pothecary, and therewithal
    Came to this vault to die, and lie with Juliet.
    Where be these enemies? Capulet! Montague!
    See, what a scourge is laid upon your hate,
    That heaven finds means to kill your joys with love.
    And I for winking at your discords too
    Have lost a brace of kinsmen: all are punish'd.

[Kronos]

1) what cost are there ? Developers buying new HW or traveling to user meetings and maybe hosting fees for the website. With some smart and frugal accounting the sums collected for the initial licence can go a mighty long way

3) if you make it clear, what the users get for what $$ I really don't see a problem here, much more honest..... and if you think about it, those bounties probraly earned more money then that 29.95 upgrade will ever do (even more if you substract taxes, dealer marging and cost of producing the actual CD)

[Karlos]

1) what cost are there ?

If there aren't any, then the registration charge, which is not insignificant, itself is unnecessary. I'm assuming there must be, because there is a registration charge, which you need to pay for each system it's installed on. Furthermore there are rules dictating how an existing license is transferred if your hardware dies. All of which implies the registration charge is necessary, or why go to that much effort to ensure users pay it?

With some smart and frugal accounting the sums collected for the initial licence can go a mighty long way

And then run out. And then what?