Re: Apple II Programmers Need Love (and money,) Too!

[Rubywand <rubywand@swbell.net>]

SirThomas writes ...
> 
> >From: CUTblakeney@home.com  (Jeff Blakeney)
> >>Too all of you who want to make a living off the GS, GET A LIFE! GET A
> >>'REAL' JOB!!! THIS IS A DEAD PLATFORM!!!
> >By the way, I have a real job.  I'm a freelance programmer.  I just
> >happen to also want to help keep the Apple II alive by continuing to
> >write programs for it.  If I make a few bucks because of it, great.
> >It will help me to get to KansasFest next year.  :)
> 
> You, and all the rest of the A2 programmers, should be commended for your
> efforts.  Financial rewards should also be reaped if the program is of merit.
> And that's what being in business is all about!  Making a product and hoping
> someone, anyone will buy it!
> 
> And making A2 products has _got_ to be a labor of love because there just
> isn't any money in it anymore.  And, I'm sure they've all got "real jobs."


     Well, it is certainly safer to have some other source of income. (Seems
like I got one shareware fee last year. Felt like celebrating!)

     As for the Apple II being a "dead platform"? That is not true. We are
surely not the dominant platform-- that ended in the mid 1980's-- but, we do
have many thousands of users. In fact, the base of users is growing.

     What has happened is that computer use has entered a new phase. It is
maturing. Practically everyone uses a PC of some kind just to get onto the net.
At the same time, PC users have become aware that much of the old software is
worthwhile and that it is very nice to be able to run it on the original
machine.

     It has, so to speak, become 'stylish' to enjoy older software and 'okay' to
run software someplace besides your hot new PC-- i.e. on the machine for which
it was created. Hence, you have the rise of "Retro Computing".

     In more general terms, computer users are embracing the notion that it
makes sense to use 'the best machine for the job'. More and more users are
discovering that this means powering up an Apple II or IIgs.

     Then, once you have your Apple up and running, you find that new II/IIgs
software is being created and old software is being enhanced. There is not just
"old stuff" out there.

     Could a programmer make a living doing just II/IIgs software? I suspect
that, if your stuff is good and you are willing to put some work into marketing
it, the answer is Yes. Would this be easier if we had an enhanced GS platform
which could, say, offer better speed, more memory, and XGA graphics? Definitely.
But, that's another project.



Rubywand