Nisus Pro and the Mac App store

[CrisB]

If I was buying Nisus new today I would definitely buy it from the Mac App Store, and if Apple ever provide a way to transfer pre-existing licenses to the Mac App Store I'll transfer my Nisus license to it in a heartbeat.

And hand Apple a third of the price, taking that away from the developers? Why would you transfer your purchase to the Mac App Store? What advantage do you gain? This is fanboyism in extremis.

I'm totally with you, Geoff. Does dshan realize the negative consequences of his actions? see more about such consequences at http://www.lifestrategies.net/consequences

Apple have ignored their long-time very loyal users (the only reason they stayed in business in the bad times) by discontinuing support for Rosetta. Why would anyone want to increase their already outstanding profits and hence decrease those of small developers such as Nisus. If you want also Nisus to stay in business so they can continue to support NWP, and I have no idea how profitable they are, this implies you also want to optimize their income NOT Apple's...

[Patrick J]

If I was buying Nisus new today I would definitely buy it from the Mac App Store, and if Apple ever provide a way to transfer pre-existing licenses to the Mac App Store I'll transfer my Nisus license to it in a heartbeat.

And hand Apple a third of the price, taking that away from the developers? Why would you transfer your purchase to the Mac App Store? What advantage do you gain? This is fanboyism in extremis.

I'm totally with you, Geoff. Does dshan realize the negative consequences of his actions? see more about such consequences at http://www.lifestrategies.net/consequences

Apple have ignored their long-time very loyal users (the only reason they stayed in business in the bad times) by discontinuing support for Rosetta. Why would anyone want to increase their already outstanding profits and hence decrease those of small developers such as Nisus. If you want also Nisus to stay in business so they can continue to support NWP, and I have no idea how profitable they are, this implies you also want to optimize their income NOT Apple's...

Personally I suspect that if you buy Nisus Writer Pro from the App Store and leave a positive review then you are doing Nisus more good than buying it direct from them.

The market for software has been changed enormously by the App Store. People are now much less inclined to trawling the web looking for applications that might be of use to them. They have become used to just going to the App Store. I think that is simple reality. So giving Nisus a good profile at the App Store will be of benefit because that is where so many of the potential customers are.

If you buy other applications at the App Store you can sneak in mentions of Nisus Writer in their reviews as well. After I "upgraded" Pages to the new 5.0 I wrote a very negative review about that and in that review I recommended that people who were disenchanted with Pages should try out Nisus Writer.

The App Store offers an additional advantage in that applications are updated by the App Store program and I really like this. It means that when I go to launch them I don't get that "update available" dialogue. It is a small thing but it is rather nice.

There was an independent company that offered a combined application updating program for the Mac, but it was not adopted by the independent developers so it went by the wayside.

That 30% Apple charge is the normal percentage for online retailers for software I believe.

[CrisB]

Personally I suspect that if you buy Nisus Writer Pro from the App Store and leave a positive review then you are doing Nisus more good than buying it direct from them.

There's indeed value in positive reviews, but drshan did not mention leaving positive reiews - that was reh-im-mond. Drshan was just interested in time savings etc for himself only, and to hell with the consequences for Nisus. Very, very short-sighted, I wonder if he'd be as keen if his own customers took the same approach...

[dshan]

Personally I suspect that if you buy Nisus Writer Pro from the App Store and leave a positive review then you are doing Nisus more good than buying it direct from them.

There's indeed value in positive reviews, but drshan did not mention leaving positive reiews - that was reh-im-mond. Drshan was just interested in time savings etc for himself only, and to hell with the consequences for Nisus. Very, very short-sighted, I wonder if he'd be as keen if his own customers took the same approach...

I think that reviews, positive or negative, are likely a comparatively minor issue overall where the App Store is concerned. The simple fact is many many more people are exposed to and can buy software from the app store than ever found products like Nisus and other 3rd party apps in the past. Installation is simpler and much more reliable than the mess of different schemes used by software vendors for the last 30+ years, so more people can buy software with ease and confidence. (There are several times the number Mac apps available today thanks to the Mac App Store, the whole Mac ecosystem has benefited hugely from it.) It isn't just better for me, it's better for everybody, users and software developers alike.

Thanks to the App Store the small software vendor no longer has to pay for and manage a sales website, payment facilities, etc. -- all they need now is a support facility of some sort. That can save them a fortune and make it easier for small developers to sell their software. The potential to greatly increase the sales of your software while greatly reducing the time and cost involved in marketing and making it available to customers is a net benefit, not a cost. And nobody is forced to use it, if the nature of a developer's software is such that the App Store is not a suitable vehicle then they are free to continue to do things the traditional way. Apple have gone out of their way to ensure application development for the Mac is as open as it's always been, but that security and ease of use are improved for their customers too.

The obvious success and real benefits for customers, developers and vendors alike of the app store model is why everyone is getting in on the app store thing -- Microsoft, Google, Amazon have all seen how much it can encourage development of apps for their platforms and encourage people to buy new software for their devices. Everyone benefits from that -- the platform vendors certainly, but also the app developers. There are more people developing more apps for more platforms today than ever before, and much of that is due to the simplification and ease of use introduced by the app store model Apple pioneered. I just upgraded two Windows systems to 8.1 and it was very noticeable how much more like the Apple App Store the process was, and how much easier and more straightforward it was, than when I went from Win 7 to 8 a couple of years before. As so often in the past, once Apple pioneer something everyone else suddenly copies it because it's so obviously a better way of doing things.

The App Store approach is not perfect, but it doesn't have to be, it just has to be significantly better than the old method of selling application software, and it is clearly that.

Still banging on about the death of Rosetta? You can't be serious! Apple supported Rosetta for years before dropping it, anyone who didn't take both the hint and the opportunity to get off that old PPC code before that time was living in a fantasy world of magic ponies, 640K RAM and parallel ports. Technological change: if you can't cope with it then get out of the way because it's going to run you down if you stay there.

[CrisB]

Thanks to the App Store the small software vendor no longer has to pay for and manage a sales website, payment facilities, etc. -- all they need now is a support facility of some sort. That can save them a fortune and make it easier for small developers to sell their software.

But you continue to ignore reality, we're talking about Nisus here - who already have their own sales website. And you're still short-sightedly insisting that ease of use for you is paramount. You're selfishly recommending people take revenue from Nisus and give it to Apple. But why, don't you want to ensure Nisus prosper?

Please let us know if you'd be as keen if your own customers took the same approach and recommended everyone chop your income by 30% for the same work in your response.

Still banging on about the ease of updating Windows? You can't be serious! Technological change: if you can't cope with it then get out of the way because it's going to run you down if you stay there.

[martin]

I would like to remind everyone that we want to keep discussions here on the forum friendly. Even in disagreement we can find peaceful words to make our points, without resorting to personal attacks.

Nisus appreciates all of its customers, whether they buy directly or via the Mac App Store. Both channels have their benefits, and in the end, both support Nisus Writer and its continued development. Thank you!

[dshan]

But you continue to ignore reality, we're talking about Nisus here - who already have their own sales website. And you're still short-sightedly insisting that ease of use for you is paramount. You're selfishly recommending people take revenue from Nisus and give it to Apple. But why, don't you want to ensure Nisus prosper?

Please let us know if you'd be as keen if your own customers took the same approach and recommended everyone chop your income by 30% for the same work in your response.

No Cris, you are trying to limit the discussion to Nisus, I'm pointing out that the app store phenomenon (on Mac, iOS, Android, Windows) is the way the whole industry is headed now and it's pointless trying to resist this tide. Worse than pointless, it's suicidal.

If you're an app developer and you can't or won't adapt to the new reality then your business is doomed, because this is where the computer industry is going. And it's headed there faster than anyone thought possible even two years ago.

The post-PC world of tablets, phones, mobile computing, single-click installation of apps and the app store infrastructure behind it all are a sea change in the industry, Nisus is a single cork bobbing around on the waves. Like every other pre-post-PC software vendor Nisus will either adapt to the new reality or they won't survive. I'm optimistic they will adapt and prosper.