BetterZip in the Mac App Store
Robert, 2011-03-08 11:23:34 +0100
Woohoo! BetterZip was just approved by Apple and has finally landed in the Mac App Store.
Let me use this opportunity to lay out my plans on how BetterZip is going to be sold and updated in the future.
From now on, you can choose whether you purchase BetterZip in the Mac App Store or in the MacItBetter web store. If you buy a license in the Mac App Store, you will get your updates from there, if you buy from my own web store, BetterZip will use its built-in update checker to notify you of updates and install them, if you so choose. Besides this, the two versions will be identical. Unfortunately, you can’t switch between the two, at least at this time.
The advantage of the MAS is that it offers the easiest possible buying experience and a central application update system maintained by Apple. The disadvantage is that all updates have to be approved by Apple, and there will be times when this takes a few days or even weeks while customers of my own web store get important updates immediately.
Another question is upgrade pricing. Minor updates (e.g., 1.8.3, 2.4, 3.2.1) will always be free for the owners of the corresponding major version (1.x, 2.x, 3.x) while major new versions will be available at a discount for users of my own web store. (The one-year-free-updates policy will stay in place, of course.) Unfortunately, the Mac App Store doesn’t support upgrade pricing, so MAS customers will have to pay fully for every major version, unless Apple adds this functionality. Notice that after nearly five years, BetterZip has still to take the first major version step. (This is not a legally binding commitment to not charging for upgrades for five years ever again. ;-) I just promise not to release three major versions per year.)
I like comparison tables with check marks, so I made one:
| Web Store | Mac App Store | |
|---|---|---|
| Secure Payment | ✔ | ✔ |
| One-click purchase | ✔ | |
| Automatic update mechanism | ✔ | ✔ |
| Central update mechanism | ✔ | |
| You get updates as soon as I release them. | ✔ | |
| Major version upgrades are free for a year and discounted ever after. | ✔ | |
| Minor version upgrades are free. | ✔ | ✔ |
If you have further questions, don’t be shy!
Coincidentally, my friend Wolfgang from ARTIS Software and the Iconfactory have released their new photo effect application Flare. A fun digital darkroom. Go, check it out!
