9 ms·

Intersting idea, but I feel you'll have a difficult time with that price tag.

by rp1229 8y ago

labster 8y ago
Like they say, time is money.
ApolloRising 8y ago
Agreed, this looks like a fun addon.
saagarjha 8y ago
I agree. I'm not against selling software, but $5 for something I could probably whip up in an hour and post as open source is really not the best way to get people to use your app. This app just doesn't provide enough value to be $5–maybe if it was a dollar.
- lifeformed 8y ago
  But wouldn't saving an hour of time for $5 be a good deal?
  - saagarjha 8y ago
    No, because in doing so I can help a hundred other people save an hour of their life as well.
    - deleted 8y ago
      [deleted]
    - keesj 8y ago
      Yes, but in that hour you could also make something that does not exist yet which would help hundreds of people. This would arguably be worth a lot more than $5.
    - andreyazimov 8y ago
      I want to build a sustainable lifestyle as an indie maker, and I feel like $5 is the optimal price point to help me achieve that. Too cheap and I need _a lot_ more sales to get there. Too expensive and it will be difficult to get people to buy. So far this price point has generated 100+ sales.
    - greenhatman 8y ago
      If he sells this to people whose hourly rate is $50, and hypothetically it would take each an hour to write, then he just created an economic surplus of $45 for each of those people, while he only took $5 for each sale. If he sells enough the income could allow him to create even more useful things for other people. There is nothing wrong with selling something you created. I'm an open source enthusiast. I run Linux on my MacBook Pro. Still, people should be able to sell what they created if they want to.
      - greenhatman 8y ago
        That being said, I don't understand the use of this app at all. But other people seem to find it useful.
      - saagarjha 8y ago
        See my other comment on why I don't believe in the "economic surplus" argument: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16899924 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16899924
  - dspillett 8y ago
    Depends on if you enjoy the process and what else you would do with the hour otherwise. If you find it fun and/or learn something by making your own, and would otherwise be doing nothing more useful and/or fun, spending the time works out better than spending the money.
    - saagarjha 8y ago
      Yeah, that too. Most of my projects tend to be learning experiences rather than making something that others would want.
- SyneRyder 8y ago
  At $1, it's really not worth selling - credit card fees alone would eat 30% of the revenue. Never mind that a single email support request will often take 10 - 15 minutes of time, and you'll quickly find you've created a support job for yourself that pays less than minimum wage. A better approach might be to make more software and create a bundle, so customers get more value for their $5, rather than lowering the price. Or improve the marketing, so people realize the value the software gives for their $5. If you get paid $60/hr in your freelance work, and this app encourages you to squeeze in an extra 5 minutes of billable time today because you see the year is ticking away, it will have paid for itself.
  - saagarjha 8y ago
    > Or improve the marketing, so people realize the value the software gives for their $5 I'm not sure I agree with this metric. For example, if I buy a shopping bag I could end up saving an hour over its lifetime because now I carry more things and once and make fewer trips. Does that mean that it should cost me $whatever my hourly rate is? No, I'm going to pay how much I feel its intrinsic value is based on factors such as the market rate, the raw materials that went into its manufacturing, and the quality of the craftsmanship. Maybe I end up paying a dollar for it. Using these guidelines, to me I think the effective price of this software should really be $0. Other comments have mentioned how this is trivial to set up with free software that's already available, and if this doesn't fit people's needs, there are sure to be people like me who could whip up a clone in an hour.
    - ReverseCold 8y ago
      There is a lot of overpriced software, especially on MacOS. If people are willing to pay (not necessarily you) - why not let them? Will people realize how easy this app is to make? Will they care? I think it's worth a shot for the developer. It could pay for a coffee or two.
      - saagarjha 8y ago
        > There is a lot of overpriced software, especially on MacOS I really don't think this is the case. It's not fundamentally wrong to charge $50 or $100 for software: it just means that there are some people that won't be able to afford it, but the tradeoff you make is that you might be able to provide better support or higher quality. > Will people realize how easy this app is to make? Will they care? Well, I certainly did ;)
andreyazimov 8y ago
I’m an indie developer and need money to pay my rent and bills. If I work for free I will starve and die and not be able to make more apps :D
andrandr 8y ago
I would pay at least 10$ for this, considering how much time it can potentially save me a year. You should consider to raise the price!
samstephenson 8y ago
I like the price tag. It's ballsy
pieterhg 8y ago
He just sold 150+ copies in the last day, I think he's doing okay

Intersting idea, but I feel you'll have a difficult time with that price tag.

by rp1229 8y ago

Intersting idea, but I feel you'll have a difficult time with that price tag.

labster 8y ago

Like they say, time is money.

ApolloRising 8y ago

Agreed, this looks like a fun addon.

saagarjha 8y ago

I agree. I'm not against selling software, but $5 for something I could probably whip up in an hour and post as open source is really not the best way to get people to use your app. This app just doesn't provide enough value to be $5–maybe if it was a dollar.

lifeformed 8y ago
But wouldn't saving an hour of time for $5 be a good deal?
- saagarjha 8y ago
  No, because in doing so I can help a hundred other people save an hour of their life as well.
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]
  - keesj 8y ago
    Yes, but in that hour you could also make something that does not exist yet which would help hundreds of people. This would arguably be worth a lot more than $5.
  - andreyazimov 8y ago
    I want to build a sustainable lifestyle as an indie maker, and I feel like $5 is the optimal price point to help me achieve that. Too cheap and I need _a lot_ more sales to get there. Too expensive and it will be difficult to get people to buy. So far this price point has generated 100+ sales.
  - greenhatman 8y ago
    If he sells this to people whose hourly rate is $50, and hypothetically it would take each an hour to write, then he just created an economic surplus of $45 for each of those people, while he only took $5 for each sale. If he sells enough the income could allow him to create even more useful things for other people. There is nothing wrong with selling something you created. I'm an open source enthusiast. I run Linux on my MacBook Pro. Still, people should be able to sell what they created if they want to.
    - greenhatman 8y ago
      That being said, I don't understand the use of this app at all. But other people seem to find it useful.
    - saagarjha 8y ago
      See my other comment on why I don't believe in the "economic surplus" argument: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16899924 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16899924
- dspillett 8y ago
  Depends on if you enjoy the process and what else you would do with the hour otherwise. If you find it fun and/or learn something by making your own, and would otherwise be doing nothing more useful and/or fun, spending the time works out better than spending the money.
  - saagarjha 8y ago
    Yeah, that too. Most of my projects tend to be learning experiences rather than making something that others would want.
SyneRyder 8y ago
At $1, it's really not worth selling - credit card fees alone would eat 30% of the revenue. Never mind that a single email support request will often take 10 - 15 minutes of time, and you'll quickly find you've created a support job for yourself that pays less than minimum wage. A better approach might be to make more software and create a bundle, so customers get more value for their $5, rather than lowering the price. Or improve the marketing, so people realize the value the software gives for their $5. If you get paid $60/hr in your freelance work, and this app encourages you to squeeze in an extra 5 minutes of billable time today because you see the year is ticking away, it will have paid for itself.
- saagarjha 8y ago
  > Or improve the marketing, so people realize the value the software gives for their $5 I'm not sure I agree with this metric. For example, if I buy a shopping bag I could end up saving an hour over its lifetime because now I carry more things and once and make fewer trips. Does that mean that it should cost me $whatever my hourly rate is? No, I'm going to pay how much I feel its intrinsic value is based on factors such as the market rate, the raw materials that went into its manufacturing, and the quality of the craftsmanship. Maybe I end up paying a dollar for it. Using these guidelines, to me I think the effective price of this software should really be $0. Other comments have mentioned how this is trivial to set up with free software that's already available, and if this doesn't fit people's needs, there are sure to be people like me who could whip up a clone in an hour.
  - ReverseCold 8y ago
    There is a lot of overpriced software, especially on MacOS. If people are willing to pay (not necessarily you) - why not let them? Will people realize how easy this app is to make? Will they care? I think it's worth a shot for the developer. It could pay for a coffee or two.
    - saagarjha 8y ago
      > There is a lot of overpriced software, especially on MacOS I really don't think this is the case. It's not fundamentally wrong to charge $50 or $100 for software: it just means that there are some people that won't be able to afford it, but the tradeoff you make is that you might be able to provide better support or higher quality. > Will people realize how easy this app is to make? Will they care? Well, I certainly did ;)

andreyazimov 8y ago

I’m an indie developer and need money to pay my rent and bills. If I work for free I will starve and die and not be able to make more apps :D

andrandr 8y ago

I would pay at least 10$ for this, considering how much time it can potentially save me a year. You should consider to raise the price!

samstephenson 8y ago

I like the price tag. It's ballsy

pieterhg 8y ago

He just sold 150+ copies in the last day, I think he's doing okay