As you may have already heard, Apple just started making promo codes available for their iPhone apps. That’s right - we get 50 codes for each of our programs. It’s great news for us, and we’re very happy that Apple has decided to implement this. To celebrate we’re going to hand out some free codes right off the bat!
The first 10 people to grab one of the codes below get a free copy of Kings Corners on the App Store! Please leave a comment mentioning which code you used so others won’t try the same one - they only work once. Right now, promo codes only work in the US iTunes Store, and they will expire in 4 weeks (although I have a feeling it won’t take you that long to use yours).
After you play a few games, it’d be great if you wanted to leave your thoughts in a review on the App Store. Of course, it’s not necessary, but we always love to hear what you think. Have fun with Kings Corners, and try not to get addicted to it!
Sorry I’m a little late bringing you this month’s contest winner! Marc wrote some really interesting posts yesterday and I wanted to make sure everyone had lots of time to dig in and read those before I published this entry.
So, this is it - the final blog contest winner of 2008 is about to be announced! There was a lot of great discussion in November, so the competition was fierce, but now one lucky commenter has been selected. The last contest winner of the year is: TommyC from the post eWallet for BlackBerry Open Beta. Congratulations! I just sent you an email explaining how to get your prize. If you don’t receive it, reply to this post and let me know.
To everyone else, thanks for commenting and keep it up! We’ll continue this contest in 2009, and there will be 12 more chances for you to win. Until then, if you’re up north like we are, be sure to bundle up and stay warm, and Happy Holidays!
I swear I wrote about Release Dates here once before, but based on some of the comments and questions, I feel like I need to address the topic again. My personal feeling is that unless a product is completely finished and ready for release, software and release dates just don’t mix.
Read on after the jump to learn more about my philosophy on Release Dates…
Although we make heavy use of release dates in-house to help us to manage our time, I HATE publishing release dates and typically, we do not do it. The ONLY reason we did it for the eWallet for iPhone with sync is that we wanted to make it extremely clear to people that didn’t know us, that we were serious about getting sync out. And we did it - 8 days late, but we did it! Lots of folks have had bad luck with software developers who don’t come through and we wanted a way to reassure people. As for eWallet on Mac, I knew how eager folks were to get it so I made a guess at when I thought it would be out, but it was always that - a guess.
Here is the thing about Software and Release Dates; unless the software is already written, they just don’t go together. Writing software isn’t like assembling cars where you know how long it takes to do it. You don’t just put the pieces together and it works. Software, especially our productivity software, is insanely complex. Every interaction can cause reactions throughout the program. Throw in an operating system that we have little control over (this is essentially true on ALL platforms) and you add a whole new dimension. Throw in hardware and now you expand the complexity exponentially.
And when a piece of software is done - it’s not done. If you test it in-house and run it through beta testers, you never know what will crop up. That great “Do It Now Button” you designed? Suddenly you discover that no one even knows how to use it. Without warning you are going back to the drawing board and significantly redesigning the underlying code. Or maybe you find a bug that acts like the loose string on the knitted sweater. The more you pull, the more everything unravels.
Don’t get me wrong - we have AMAZING developers here. It’s just that there are always unforeseen difficulties.
Oh - and the biggest danger - you publish a release date and then STICK to it and fire off a product that doesn’t work right! Do that and you just make everyone miserable - you are better off not releasing at all.
So that’s why you typically don’t see release dates in this blog. You probably already noticed that eWallet with Search just appeared out of the blue, and Kings Corners showed up without warning. We just hate to make a promise that we either can’t keep, or that we’d have to cut corners to keep.
In the end, I’m happy to let you know about what we are working on, but don’t look for release dates. The whole eWallet sync thing was an exception to a rule we’ve had for years here at Ilium Software - and one we follow for a very good reason!
Just a quick update on eWallet for Mac. Contrary to what I’ve seen posted in some of the blog comments, we are in fact making eWallet for Mac. As a matter of fact, we’ve ALWAYS planned to make eWallet for Mac at some point. This is something we’ve had in the works for a few years - pre-iPhone even. If you want to know more about eWallet for Mac, check out the rest of the post after the jump!
Disclaimer: In all of my posts I’ve always been very honest in what I tell you - brutally so at times. That won’t change here. Everything I’m writing in this blog post is a business side analysis. I AM IN NO WAY MAKING A JUDGEMENT ON THE QUALITY OF THE MAC OS. Frankly, it’s an incredible OS. This blog, however, is about the business of making software and not my personal feelings about the quality of an operating system.Mac and Me
Before I get too far into things I want to give you a little history about Mac and Me. Before I graduated from the University of Michigan I’d used two types of computers - Commodores and Macs (OK - I’ll admit, I played Civilization and Doom on Windows towards the end of college but that was it). I was a Mac guy through and through. I owned the top of the line PowerMac and LOVED it. Three things moved me away from Mac. 1st - I couldn’t get software, hardware, or anything else for it. :( 2nd - I used Windows for my work. 3rd - Price. After college I had no money. When the ol’ PowerMac died I moved on to a Windows machine.
And for those who don’t know, even our founders are “Mac People”. Just making clear that decisions about Mac are unrelated to how much we like the OS.
SO, ON TO THE PRESENT DAY….
Why a Mac Version of eWallet and Why Now?
As I mentioned above, we’ve always planned to release eWallet for Mac at some point. The problem was that for a long time the market didn’t support this. Just looking at desktop OS use alone and even today it comes out to something like this:
Making and maintaining Mac software is no easier than making and maintaining Windows software. At the same time, a Windows product has a potential market more than 10 times that of a Mac product. This is a HUGE difference. Simple math demands that we put our emphasis on Windows. 11+ years down the road that decision has proven a wise one.
But there is even more to it than that. We aren’t a desktop software company. Yes, our desktop software rocks, but our primary focus is Mobile Software. The desktop system used by most Mobile Device users has long been Windows. This further reduced the potential market for a Mac version, since people typically buy our desktop software to add-on to their Mobile experience - and these people used Windows.
So for a VERY long time, Mac just didn’t make good business sense based on our company focus.
Enter, the iPod (thought I was going to say iPhone didn’t you?) Suddenly, huge numbers of people were being introduced to the world of Mac devices. Apple got cool rather than fringe. Next came the iPhone! Now we had a full blown mobile device running Apple software.
So here are the factors that changed the market:
The iPod becomes THE music device. Apple is now everywhere.
The iPhone/Touch took the world by storm - and moved Mac into our area - Mobile Software
The internet becomes one of the most used “applications” cutting the importance of the OS
The latest Macs really CAN run Windows well, offering the “best of both worlds”
Suddenly, the Mac becomes a valid platform (financially) for us to invest in. I see the Mac market share continuing to grow over time, especially as young people who have grown up with white earbuds attached to their skulls go out and buy their first post-college computers. The name recognition alone will drive sales.
But There is a Catch! The Cold Hard Facts…
Look back at those market share numbers I posted. Even though Mac has been around for a long time, from our business perspective it is still an “emerging market.” Mac still commands less than 1/10th the market share that Windows does. No matter how much excitement surrounds the iPhone, we still have to remain realistic about what we will get back on our investment into Mac software.
I mention this due to blog comments saying “why aren’t you throwing everything you have at Mac?” Simple - we’d be completely abandoning the enormous market that pays our bills. Windows is WHY we have the opportunity to make a Mac version. Without Windows and Windows Mobile, we simply couldn’t afford to make a Mac version.
This means that when I sit down and mete out the limited resources available to me, I can’t drop everything to focus on Mac.
Now don’t get me wrong - when we do something, we do it right. Our Mac version is already INCREDIBLY cool. I’m totally geeked about it. And once it is out we plan to support it 100%. I just can’t afford to pull resources from the things that pay the bills to push Mac out faster.
Which Brings Us To the Big Question…When Will It Be Out?
My initial guess was by the end of the year. Now before I go on, I would like to clarify something.
Although it is possible I mispoke at some point (seriously, we aren’t in the business of trying to trick people or mislead them - it’s bad business and goes against our ethics), I always did my best to say “Our hope is that it will be out by the end of the year” and “We are shooting for the end of the year.” I did this because frankly, we don’t do “release dates” (See the other post for more about why release dates and software don’t mix.) As it stands right now, knowing what I know about how long it takes to get things done, I doubt it will be done by year end.
How long until it is ready? Sorry, but I’m not going to try to guess. Recently, my guesses have been interpreted as release dates so I’m going to have to stop doing that. I will say that we have a working version, the UI is coming along, and we actually have people outside Ilium Software using it right now.
Can you show us a screenshot? Nope, sorry. Trade secrets. Seriously, people like to copy our stuff so we seldom reveal it in advance.
So there you have it. We’re definitely going to release eWallet for Mac, but I’m not sure of the exact release date. You can be assured that as soon is it is ready, though, you’ll hear about it here!
Good news, everyone! eWallet for iPhone with search is out! You can get the update from the AppStore today! I think you’ll like it a lot. It works like a charm. It also includes a few tweaks and fixes. Here is the full list:
Which mobile platform is the best? It’s a war that rages on and on. Vocal supporters of every desktop and mobile platform mount vigorous assaults in defense of their favored system. And yet, I think that’s not the right approach.
Read on after the jump for my take on the debate about “Which Device is the Best?”
This is the first of a series of posts designed to answer a long list of questions folks asked in my last blog post. I started to write it as one post but the thing got so dang long it was getting silly. If I don’t answer your question or address your favored topic today, don’t worry…I’ll get to it over the next couple of days!
Windows VS iPhone VS BlackBerry VS Palm
There is a reason we support a lot of platforms - they all have their advantages. Sure, from the manufacturer’s points of view the platforms are going head to head, but for the consumer we should be asking a different question altogether. I want to start by making a few comments on the big platforms we support.
Windows Mobile: I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the power of Windows Mobile. It gives me so much freedom that other platforms don’t. Every time I go to a Microsoft event I literally beg them to market the platform better. It is such an excellent solution for so many people, and most of them don’t even know about it!
iPhone: I LOVE my iPhone. I’ve never found a device that was so simple to use. It is limiting in many ways, but it does what it does simply, elegantly, and in a way that is entirely intuitive. Plus, what iPhone has done for mobile software is beyond anything any other platform has done. Look at the latest ad copy for the iPhone - it is ALL about 3rd party software. Bravo!
BlackBerry: I don’t use BlackBerry regularly but the clear focus of this device is beautiful. My friends who use these devices love the hard and fast stability of this platform. And like the iPhone, it knows what it is supposed to do and does it well.
Palm: And Palm? Look, Palm isn’t my favorite platform - I’ll admit - but the bloody OS is still around with no upgrades for YEARS. You can’t argue with that sort of success. It’s a platform that is everything a lot of folks could possibly want. Smooth. Simple. Stable. Straightforward. This is a design that has stood the test of time. I really do hope Palm pulls it out of the fire over the next couple of years because they’ve got a good thing that deserves saving.
It’s the same with desktop platforms. Each has its advantages.
In the end, I don’t think it makes any sense to argue over “the best” operating system. The real question is what is “the best operating system FOR YOU.” We each have our needs and the beauty of the current mobile market is that there is something out there for everyone.
The Software Developer Point of View
As a product manager, it isn’t important to me which platform is “the best”. Each has a role to play in the market and people for whom it is the best option. What really matters to me as Product Manager, is whether or not the platform will sell enough software to provide us with a strong, steady profit over the long term without eating development time we need for a more profitable platform.
Yep, it’s an ugly way of looking at things but if we’re going to support ANY platforms we have to make choices that keep us in business. It doesn’t matter how much we love a particular platform or how passionate a group of people are about their platform. It isn’t a judgement about the quality of the platform - it’s simply a question of making good business decisions so that ten years from now we’re still out there keeping your important information secure.
As you may have already heard, Apple just started making promo codes available for their iPhone apps. That’s right - we get 50 codes for each of our programs. It’s great news for us, and we’re very happy that Apple has decided to implement this. To celebrate we’re going to hand out some free codes right off the bat!
Sorry I’m a little late bringing you this month’s contest winner! Marc wrote some really interesting posts yesterday and I wanted to make sure everyone had lots of time to dig in and read those before I published this entry.
