29 ms·

1Password used to be native on the Mac, and now it's an Electron app. I'm not going to be using 1Password for this reason, and I encourage you to do the same.

1Password used to be native on the Mac, and now it's an Electron app. I'm not going to be using 1Password for this reason, and I encourage you to do the same. Subscription business models and non-native apps are hallmarks of rot by VCs. Dump them!

tablespoon 5y ago
> Subscription business models and non-native apps are hallmarks of rot by VCs. Dump them! Can you go more into how non-native apps are a "hallmarks of rot by VCs"? I hate them too, but my impulse is to blame MBA thinking (build once, less investment, who cares if it sucks) than VCs specifically.
afarrell 5y ago
> Subscription business models and non-native apps are hallmarks of rot by VCs. Dump them! The costs of developing and maintaining software are recurring -- especially for security-critical software. Subscription business models align incentives towards ongoing maintenance.
- fortuna86 5y ago
  Where they going out of business before offering stand alone licenses? If no, this is a money grab.
  - afarrell 5y ago
    > Were they going out of business... Whom would you rely on to handle something that matters to you: A. Someone who refuses to eat until they start collapsing from hunger? B. Someone who eats regular meals?
    - fortuna86 5y ago
      You didn't answer my question. Was this a healthy and sustainable business before, or were these changes necessary for survival?
      - afarrell 5y ago
        Somewhere in the middle but towards the latter end of things. I believe that before the licenses, they did not have the recurring revenue to pay for a high-quality support team.
postalrat 5y ago
Many applications choosing to use eletron instead of building native apps is the hallmark of failure of platform developers.
- tonyedgecombe 5y ago
  I think there is an element of truth in that, especially on the Microsoft side.
trimbo 5y ago
When I was 18, I wrote some shareware and asked for $10 from those who used and liked the program. Lots of nice people from all over the planet sent in some money, and sometimes with letters. Most often it was a thank you note. Sometimes people requested more features in return for paying the requested amount. And occasionally they'd tack on whatever extra they thought those features were worth to them. (That amount was less than minimum wage, if I took the time to implement those features for them and release the software.) I recently visited my friend from our programming club who saved these letters and was reminded a couple people wrote additional angry letters years after paying for the shareware. They demanded support in return for their one payment. (Of course, not only had I moved on to other projects, but I had long sold the type of computer the shareware was created for!) So I learned early on that people unreasonably expect support for no additional cost. Or they believe the amount they paid is for support in the future, not work done in the past. It doesn't work that way economically. A constant flow of additional money has to come in the door to pay a team to do the actual support. AFAICT, the only feasible models for supported software seem to be subscription, microtransaction or advertising. Any one-time-up-front price means it's abandonware. Which is fine for some types of software, of course, but probably not as often as users expect support.
- afarrell 5y ago
  One could argue that their support team has handled this change unskilfully and that Agilebits should have hired a larger and more skilled support team before having a way to pay that team. One could argue that.... but one would be silly to do so.
- mirkules 5y ago
  Subscription models make sense for something that needs to stay evergreen. Why does a password manager need a subscription? My password should never touch a 3rd party’s server, I don’t need extra features, I don’t need a login, I don’t need long-term or even short-term support. What ongoing development does a password manager have? Is it that buggy from the get-go to need constant updates?
  - lotsofpulp 5y ago
sammorrowdrums 5y ago
Well they’ve released a Linux app built in Rust, so maybe there’s hope?
- selykg 5y ago
  The Linux app is electron as well. They just like to say that they use Rust for the backend code. Rust for the backend of the client apps, React for the UI, wrapped in Electron.
- bibinou 5y ago
  It's electron-based too, Rust is used in a backend lib with FFI: https://dteare.medium.com/behind-the-scenes-of-1password-for-linux-d59b19143a23 https://dteare.medium.com/behind-the-scenes-of-1password-for...
  - handrous 5y ago
    Last I messed with it, Electron is structured such that the UI thread is decoupled from where you're supposed to run your "logic" (for performances reasons, I assume—similar patterns are really common in GUI systems, in general) and they already have to communicate at arm's length, so 1) it's not that big a stretch to wrap some native library on the "logic" side, and 2) if you're calling back-and-forth between logic and UI a lot, rather than sitting in your logic code for long periods of time, it'd expect it to do very little for performance.
creddit 5y ago
How does one check if an app running on a mac is native or electron?
- philwelch 5y ago
  If it looks identical to the web app and consumes half a gig of RAM, it's probably electron.
  - ex3ndr 5y ago
    Is SourceTree an electron app?
    - philwelch 5y ago
      I dunno, I've never used it.
- Klonoar 5y ago
  Generally a massive bundle size, and/or inspecting the bundled frameworks themselves (right click on app -> show package -> browse folders for frameworks).
- scoopertrooper 5y ago
  Usually evident from Activity Monitor, if you see <App name> Helper (GPU), then you have an Electron app running.
  - mrpippy 5y ago
    Push cmd-R and see if it refreshes. 1Password 8 does.
    - fullstop 5y ago
      This drives me bonkers, especially if I've been using the shell a lot recently and I'm used to pressing ctrl+r to repeat a previously used command.
JohnWhigham 5y ago
It is native, what are you talking about?
- hoppyhoppy2 5y ago
  https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28143563 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28143563
kevinherron 5y ago
It's still native as of version 7. edit: apparently 8 will be electron-based. So... no standalone subscriptions AND they've moved from native to electron :/
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
yesimahuman 5y ago
This is ridiculous. Electron works great, and if this leads to more frequent updates and a more consistent experience across platforms, that's a win for users. 1Password's Windows client, for example, has always felt behind the Mac edition, and if this brings parity and a higher feature and update velocity, that's a win. I have at least three Electron apps open right now and they are all great experiences that the vast majority of users of those products love. This has nothing to do with VC and everything with trying to build a better product for users that is easier to work on for developers.
- jurip 5y ago
  It may be a win for some users. I can’t see how switching my perfectly fine, frequently updated native app for a memory hogging web browser wrapper is a win for me. I’m actively looking for alternatives now.
- aaaaaaaaaaab 5y ago
  ^ says the co-founder of another webapp-in-a-window product
  - hcolomb 5y ago
    I haven't commented enough to report you so I will just comment. This response goes against nearly every guideline for the site. Please don't attack fellow users just because you disagree with their opinion of technology stack. I've used a wide range of Electron applications and the quality varies just like any other tech.
- evgen 5y ago
  Electron is a pile of shit and _every_ Electron app I am forced to use should be a source of continuous shame for any dev who actually worked on it. This has nothing to do with improving features or service and is completely about increasing revenue and improving the sort of numbers investors like to see -- driven entirely by the fact that AgileBits has recently closed a B round and needs to show more revenue to justify that $2B valuation. As a long-time 1password shill I have hit my limit and will slowly start migrating to BitWarden and iCloud Keychain.
leetcrew 5y ago
I think it's reasonable to complain about the loss of the native app when one of the key selling points (imo) is the pleasant UI. I don't really understand the almost-automatic hatred of subscriptions. if an app has ongoing development that you benefit from, it seems entirely fair to pay a subscription. the fair alternative is a one time payment for a lifetime license with few patches priced in. I would probably prefer the latter for something like a word processor, but would you really want to use the same version of a security-critical program like a password manager for the rest of your life? if not, how do you expect them to fund development/maintenance indefinitely?
- ddingus 5y ago
  For this use case, a subscription makes a lot of sense. I have no complaints, though I currently do not subscribe to this application. I would, if I felt the need. My take on the hatred boils down to these things: Utility type applications built as a service offer an inexpensive purchase of some kind, or are AD driven, etc... Then, features are changed, roadblocks added, user experience degraded to create problems that subscriptions pay to remedy, often poorly. Noisy subscriptions. It's not enough to send a few bucks a month. ADS, various pitches, in app sales happening, all contribute to what might otherwise be a simple, worthy experience and solution. It can be hard to cancel. -->if this happens to someone even once, the hate can be visceral afterword. Everyone else, no matter how well they do business is impacted to a degree. Subscription apps / services going away on short notice. What were people paying for?
- Domenic_S 5y ago
  > I don't really understand the almost-automatic hatred of subscriptions. if an app has ongoing development that you benefit from, it seems entirely fair to pay a subscription. I don't _want_ the ongoing development. Photoshop from 5 years ago is perfectly fine for me. Same with Lightroom, etc. I mean, I've only paid Apple _once_ for Logic Pro and have been getting upgrade after upgrade for no cost -- a nice bonus, but I'd be perfectly happy if logic's code had been set in stone at the moment of purchase, too. The consumer-friendly option is to let the consumer decide if they want upgrades. Or for a security-focused app like 1password I'd have believed something like "we don't want to be responsible for security problems if you decide not to upgrade, thus you must buy a yearly license" but that wasn't the message at all.
jonpurdy 5y ago
I recently cancelled Evernote after 12 years of paying for it due to their new Electron client. I've been using 1Password since 2008 and I'll be doing the same thing. I have tolerated the UI regressions and even subscription with version 7, but Electron is just unacceptable for what was once an amazing Mac app that put Apple's apps to shame.
- selykg 5y ago
  I hate Electron as much as the next guy, but man have I been enjoying Obsidian. I mention this only because it has changed the way I write notes and manage them and I've been through the path of Evernote > Apple Notes > Bear > Obsidian.
  - aclsid 5y ago
    In my case I go for simplenote, but yeah same deal. If somebody creates the same experience in a less resource intensive framework I'm a in.
- janfoeh 5y ago
  Exactly the same here. I've had three software subscriptions until this year, mostly begrudgingly — CreativeCloud, Evernote and 1password. I got rid of two of them — Evernote for exactly the same reason. 1pwd going the Electron route would have put me close, but not over the edge — but the fact that they seem to have willy-nilly removed local vaults does. These days it sometimes feels like one has to write all essential software oneself. Or go back to DOS and plain text files.
  - dkonofalski 5y ago
    >the fact that they seem to have willy-nilly removed local vaults does They have been talking about this for years. It was not done willy-nilly. There are limits to local vaults.
  - deadpanPotato 5y ago
    > but the fact that they seem to have willy-nilly removed local vaults does. They're a business, and 97% of their users were already on the subscription model. If you were running a business, and 97% of your users had abandoned a feature that was a headache for you to maintain, would you stubbornly keep wasting time and money on it? Bitwarden is right there waiting for you.
rubyist5eva 5y ago
1Password on Linux is electron, and works wonderfully. Though, it's kind of sad for Mac users as they have been spoiled with native experiences for a long time.
- sleepybrett 5y ago
  Is that "spoiled" or jsut the way things should work?
  - mbirth 5y ago
    This! Windows, Linux and macOS are OSes with very different aesthetics and concepts. Trying to emulate these (sometimes subtle) differences with a webpage won't work. And it will totally destroy the illusion if an OS update comes with a new theme. And let's not forget that you're basically running a completely separate browser that can't re-use any memory from the other 5 separate browsers (=Electron apps) you need to run for work all day.
aeturnum 5y ago
> Subscription business models I think a subscription business model is the only honest way to sell software that will require ongoing support. If you're comfortable with a snapshot w/o updates, then by all means buy once, but I think coming to terms with the demands of ongoing support also means coming to terms with continuing to support the product in some way. That said, I wish there were more variations in the way to pay - a long term license with a high upfront fee and a low monthly, an immediate access option with a high montly and no up-front fee, etc.
- sleepybrett 5y ago
  why does 1password need ongoing support? Take these strings, encrypt them. Let me decrypt them using a password i specify. Let me search for them and sort them. Done.
  - aeturnum 5y ago
    I mean, I don't know - I don't work at the company. But it seems internally inconsistent to me to like the product, but have disdain for the professional judgement of the people who make it. It seems like you'd be happier with a community product that has less support, but is available for free - and thankfully you have that option.
- _dot__dot_ 5y ago
  I don't quite see why free bug fixes/minor features + paid major upgrades model should be any different from subscription model for developers, except giving the users control over when to upgrade. Control that is essential for apps that contain critical data. BTW, I think they do have an option that you pay for 3 years upfront. At least, that was one of the options they mentioned when I complained about the lack of the option to buy a license. To me that did not seem an acceptable solution because you pay upfront and still have all the drawbacks of the subscription model such as being dependent on the trustworthiness of a quite obviously untrustworthy company. Add to that the removal of local vault option, and it becomes even less acceptable.
  - 5y ago
jl_agilebits 5y ago
Hi. I'm a feature developer for 1Password, and I want to clarify a few things. I've already posted this elsewhere, but I've seen multiple threads spreading misinformation that our technical decisions are being driven by VC funding. This could not be farther from the truth. We have been working on these changes long before we received any form of outside investments. Over the past few years, we've been working on consolidating 1Password's business logic into a single Rust-powered core that could be shared across all our apps. This has many advantages: feature consistency across platforms, faster development cycles, and better security. When building the front-end for the desktop platforms that would take advantage of this new core, Electron suited us perfectly, since we could write our UI code once and make it consistent across Linux, Windows, and Mac. We actually did build a native Mac app initially alongside the cross-platform Electron app, but we eventually decided that having two separate versions of the macOS app (one in Electron, one in SwiftUI) would cause a lot of needless development churn and hassle for both customers and our support team. I can understand your frustrations about Electron and our subscription-based model, but I hope you find my explanation reasonable. Please stop spreading misinformation.
- Mindwipe 5y ago
  > I've already posted this elsewhere, but I'm seeing some misinformation that our technical decisions are being driven by VC funding. This could not be farther from the truth. We have been working on these changes long before we received any form of outside investments. That's worse, not better. At least being forced to by investors makes sense. The current direction of travel being voluntary means you've just got a bad nose for building security.
  - jl_agilebits 5y ago
    > The current direction of travel being voluntary means you've just got a bad nose for building security. Could you elaborate on this?
  - movedx 5y ago
    > The current direction of travel being voluntary means you've just got a bad nose for building security. What's your experience building security systems? Do you have a LinkedIn profile or a CV we could review?

tablespoon 5y ago

> Subscription business models and non-native apps are hallmarks of rot by VCs. Dump them! Can you go more into how non-native apps are a "hallmarks of rot by VCs"? I hate them too, but my impulse is to blame MBA thinking (build once, less investment, who cares if it sucks) than VCs specifically.

afarrell 5y ago

> Subscription business models and non-native apps are hallmarks of rot by VCs. Dump them! The costs of developing and maintaining software are recurring -- especially for security-critical software. Subscription business models align incentives towards ongoing maintenance.

fortuna86 5y ago
Where they going out of business before offering stand alone licenses? If no, this is a money grab.
- afarrell 5y ago
  > Were they going out of business... Whom would you rely on to handle something that matters to you: A. Someone who refuses to eat until they start collapsing from hunger? B. Someone who eats regular meals?
  - fortuna86 5y ago
    You didn't answer my question. Was this a healthy and sustainable business before, or were these changes necessary for survival?
    - afarrell 5y ago
      Somewhere in the middle but towards the latter end of things. I believe that before the licenses, they did not have the recurring revenue to pay for a high-quality support team.

postalrat 5y ago

Many applications choosing to use eletron instead of building native apps is the hallmark of failure of platform developers.

tonyedgecombe 5y ago
I think there is an element of truth in that, especially on the Microsoft side.

trimbo 5y ago

When I was 18, I wrote some shareware and asked for $10 from those who used and liked the program. Lots of nice people from all over the planet sent in some money, and sometimes with letters. Most often it was a thank you note. Sometimes people requested more features in return for paying the requested amount. And occasionally they'd tack on whatever extra they thought those features were worth to them. (That amount was less than minimum wage, if I took the time to implement those features for them and release the software.) I recently visited my friend from our programming club who saved these letters and was reminded a couple people wrote additional angry letters years after paying for the shareware. They demanded support in return for their one payment. (Of course, not only had I moved on to other projects, but I had long sold the type of computer the shareware was created for!) So I learned early on that people unreasonably expect support for no additional cost. Or they believe the amount they paid is for support in the future, not work done in the past. It doesn't work that way economically. A constant flow of additional money has to come in the door to pay a team to do the actual support. AFAICT, the only feasible models for supported software seem to be subscription, microtransaction or advertising. Any one-time-up-front price means it's abandonware. Which is fine for some types of software, of course, but probably not as often as users expect support.

afarrell 5y ago
One could argue that their support team has handled this change unskilfully and that Agilebits should have hired a larger and more skilled support team before having a way to pay that team. One could argue that.... but one would be silly to do so.
mirkules 5y ago
Subscription models make sense for something that needs to stay evergreen. Why does a password manager need a subscription? My password should never touch a 3rd party’s server, I don’t need extra features, I don’t need a login, I don’t need long-term or even short-term support. What ongoing development does a password manager have? Is it that buggy from the get-go to need constant updates?
- lotsofpulp 5y ago

sammorrowdrums 5y ago

Well they’ve released a Linux app built in Rust, so maybe there’s hope?

selykg 5y ago
The Linux app is electron as well. They just like to say that they use Rust for the backend code. Rust for the backend of the client apps, React for the UI, wrapped in Electron.
bibinou 5y ago
It's electron-based too, Rust is used in a backend lib with FFI: https://dteare.medium.com/behind-the-scenes-of-1password-for-linux-d59b19143a23 https://dteare.medium.com/behind-the-scenes-of-1password-for...
- handrous 5y ago
  Last I messed with it, Electron is structured such that the UI thread is decoupled from where you're supposed to run your "logic" (for performances reasons, I assume—similar patterns are really common in GUI systems, in general) and they already have to communicate at arm's length, so 1) it's not that big a stretch to wrap some native library on the "logic" side, and 2) if you're calling back-and-forth between logic and UI a lot, rather than sitting in your logic code for long periods of time, it'd expect it to do very little for performance.

creddit 5y ago

How does one check if an app running on a mac is native or electron?

philwelch 5y ago
If it looks identical to the web app and consumes half a gig of RAM, it's probably electron.
- ex3ndr 5y ago
  Is SourceTree an electron app?
  - philwelch 5y ago
    I dunno, I've never used it.
Klonoar 5y ago
Generally a massive bundle size, and/or inspecting the bundled frameworks themselves (right click on app -> show package -> browse folders for frameworks).
scoopertrooper 5y ago
Usually evident from Activity Monitor, if you see <App name> Helper (GPU), then you have an Electron app running.
- mrpippy 5y ago
  Push cmd-R and see if it refreshes. 1Password 8 does.
  - fullstop 5y ago
    This drives me bonkers, especially if I've been using the shell a lot recently and I'm used to pressing ctrl+r to repeat a previously used command.

JohnWhigham 5y ago

It is native, what are you talking about?

hoppyhoppy2 5y ago
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28143563 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28143563

kevinherron 5y ago

It's still native as of version 7. edit: apparently 8 will be electron-based. So... no standalone subscriptions AND they've moved from native to electron :/

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]

yesimahuman 5y ago

This is ridiculous. Electron works great, and if this leads to more frequent updates and a more consistent experience across platforms, that's a win for users. 1Password's Windows client, for example, has always felt behind the Mac edition, and if this brings parity and a higher feature and update velocity, that's a win. I have at least three Electron apps open right now and they are all great experiences that the vast majority of users of those products love. This has nothing to do with VC and everything with trying to build a better product for users that is easier to work on for developers.

jurip 5y ago
It may be a win for some users. I can’t see how switching my perfectly fine, frequently updated native app for a memory hogging web browser wrapper is a win for me. I’m actively looking for alternatives now.
aaaaaaaaaaab 5y ago
^ says the co-founder of another webapp-in-a-window product
- hcolomb 5y ago
  I haven't commented enough to report you so I will just comment. This response goes against nearly every guideline for the site. Please don't attack fellow users just because you disagree with their opinion of technology stack. I've used a wide range of Electron applications and the quality varies just like any other tech.
evgen 5y ago
Electron is a pile of shit and _every_ Electron app I am forced to use should be a source of continuous shame for any dev who actually worked on it. This has nothing to do with improving features or service and is completely about increasing revenue and improving the sort of numbers investors like to see -- driven entirely by the fact that AgileBits has recently closed a B round and needs to show more revenue to justify that $2B valuation. As a long-time 1password shill I have hit my limit and will slowly start migrating to BitWarden and iCloud Keychain.

leetcrew 5y ago

I think it's reasonable to complain about the loss of the native app when one of the key selling points (imo) is the pleasant UI. I don't really understand the almost-automatic hatred of subscriptions. if an app has ongoing development that you benefit from, it seems entirely fair to pay a subscription. the fair alternative is a one time payment for a lifetime license with few patches priced in. I would probably prefer the latter for something like a word processor, but would you really want to use the same version of a security-critical program like a password manager for the rest of your life? if not, how do you expect them to fund development/maintenance indefinitely?

ddingus 5y ago
For this use case, a subscription makes a lot of sense. I have no complaints, though I currently do not subscribe to this application. I would, if I felt the need. My take on the hatred boils down to these things: Utility type applications built as a service offer an inexpensive purchase of some kind, or are AD driven, etc... Then, features are changed, roadblocks added, user experience degraded to create problems that subscriptions pay to remedy, often poorly. Noisy subscriptions. It's not enough to send a few bucks a month. ADS, various pitches, in app sales happening, all contribute to what might otherwise be a simple, worthy experience and solution. It can be hard to cancel. -->if this happens to someone even once, the hate can be visceral afterword. Everyone else, no matter how well they do business is impacted to a degree. Subscription apps / services going away on short notice. What were people paying for?
Domenic_S 5y ago
> I don't really understand the almost-automatic hatred of subscriptions. if an app has ongoing development that you benefit from, it seems entirely fair to pay a subscription. I don't _want_ the ongoing development. Photoshop from 5 years ago is perfectly fine for me. Same with Lightroom, etc. I mean, I've only paid Apple _once_ for Logic Pro and have been getting upgrade after upgrade for no cost -- a nice bonus, but I'd be perfectly happy if logic's code had been set in stone at the moment of purchase, too. The consumer-friendly option is to let the consumer decide if they want upgrades. Or for a security-focused app like 1password I'd have believed something like "we don't want to be responsible for security problems if you decide not to upgrade, thus you must buy a yearly license" but that wasn't the message at all.

jonpurdy 5y ago

I recently cancelled Evernote after 12 years of paying for it due to their new Electron client. I've been using 1Password since 2008 and I'll be doing the same thing. I have tolerated the UI regressions and even subscription with version 7, but Electron is just unacceptable for what was once an amazing Mac app that put Apple's apps to shame.

selykg 5y ago
I hate Electron as much as the next guy, but man have I been enjoying Obsidian. I mention this only because it has changed the way I write notes and manage them and I've been through the path of Evernote > Apple Notes > Bear > Obsidian.
- aclsid 5y ago
  In my case I go for simplenote, but yeah same deal. If somebody creates the same experience in a less resource intensive framework I'm a in.
janfoeh 5y ago
Exactly the same here. I've had three software subscriptions until this year, mostly begrudgingly — CreativeCloud, Evernote and 1password. I got rid of two of them — Evernote for exactly the same reason. 1pwd going the Electron route would have put me close, but not over the edge — but the fact that they seem to have willy-nilly removed local vaults does. These days it sometimes feels like one has to write all essential software oneself. Or go back to DOS and plain text files.
- dkonofalski 5y ago
  >the fact that they seem to have willy-nilly removed local vaults does They have been talking about this for years. It was not done willy-nilly. There are limits to local vaults.
- deadpanPotato 5y ago
  > but the fact that they seem to have willy-nilly removed local vaults does. They're a business, and 97% of their users were already on the subscription model. If you were running a business, and 97% of your users had abandoned a feature that was a headache for you to maintain, would you stubbornly keep wasting time and money on it? Bitwarden is right there waiting for you.

rubyist5eva 5y ago

1Password on Linux is electron, and works wonderfully. Though, it's kind of sad for Mac users as they have been spoiled with native experiences for a long time.

sleepybrett 5y ago
Is that "spoiled" or jsut the way things should work?
- mbirth 5y ago
  This! Windows, Linux and macOS are OSes with very different aesthetics and concepts. Trying to emulate these (sometimes subtle) differences with a webpage won't work. And it will totally destroy the illusion if an OS update comes with a new theme. And let's not forget that you're basically running a completely separate browser that can't re-use any memory from the other 5 separate browsers (=Electron apps) you need to run for work all day.

aeturnum 5y ago

> Subscription business models I think a subscription business model is the only honest way to sell software that will require ongoing support. If you're comfortable with a snapshot w/o updates, then by all means buy once, but I think coming to terms with the demands of ongoing support also means coming to terms with continuing to support the product in some way. That said, I wish there were more variations in the way to pay - a long term license with a high upfront fee and a low monthly, an immediate access option with a high montly and no up-front fee, etc.

sleepybrett 5y ago
why does 1password need ongoing support? Take these strings, encrypt them. Let me decrypt them using a password i specify. Let me search for them and sort them. Done.
- aeturnum 5y ago
  I mean, I don't know - I don't work at the company. But it seems internally inconsistent to me to like the product, but have disdain for the professional judgement of the people who make it. It seems like you'd be happier with a community product that has less support, but is available for free - and thankfully you have that option.
_dot__dot_ 5y ago
I don't quite see why free bug fixes/minor features + paid major upgrades model should be any different from subscription model for developers, except giving the users control over when to upgrade. Control that is essential for apps that contain critical data. BTW, I think they do have an option that you pay for 3 years upfront. At least, that was one of the options they mentioned when I complained about the lack of the option to buy a license. To me that did not seem an acceptable solution because you pay upfront and still have all the drawbacks of the subscription model such as being dependent on the trustworthiness of a quite obviously untrustworthy company. Add to that the removal of local vault option, and it becomes even less acceptable.
- 5y ago

jl_agilebits 5y ago

Hi. I'm a feature developer for 1Password, and I want to clarify a few things. I've already posted this elsewhere, but I've seen multiple threads spreading misinformation that our technical decisions are being driven by VC funding. This could not be farther from the truth. We have been working on these changes long before we received any form of outside investments. Over the past few years, we've been working on consolidating 1Password's business logic into a single Rust-powered core that could be shared across all our apps. This has many advantages: feature consistency across platforms, faster development cycles, and better security. When building the front-end for the desktop platforms that would take advantage of this new core, Electron suited us perfectly, since we could write our UI code once and make it consistent across Linux, Windows, and Mac. We actually did build a native Mac app initially alongside the cross-platform Electron app, but we eventually decided that having two separate versions of the macOS app (one in Electron, one in SwiftUI) would cause a lot of needless development churn and hassle for both customers and our support team. I can understand your frustrations about Electron and our subscription-based model, but I hope you find my explanation reasonable. Please stop spreading misinformation.

Mindwipe 5y ago
> I've already posted this elsewhere, but I'm seeing some misinformation that our technical decisions are being driven by VC funding. This could not be farther from the truth. We have been working on these changes long before we received any form of outside investments. That's worse, not better. At least being forced to by investors makes sense. The current direction of travel being voluntary means you've just got a bad nose for building security.
- jl_agilebits 5y ago
  > The current direction of travel being voluntary means you've just got a bad nose for building security. Could you elaborate on this?
- movedx 5y ago
  > The current direction of travel being voluntary means you've just got a bad nose for building security. What's your experience building security systems? Do you have a LinkedIn profile or a CV we could review?