Andy's comments and positioning...

[Kevin Miller]

On 4/2/04 9:35 pm, Chipp Walters <chipp at chipp.com> wrote:

> I like to think of RR as a *real development tool*, not as a HyperCard clone
> or newbie play toy. Unfortunately, I believe Andy thinks of it more as a
> HyperCard clone...primarily because of positioning.

I'm assuming you're referring to the MacWorld review.  Its true that he got
that point wrong, but this *isn't* a general problem that we have.  If it
was, other reviewers would make the same mistake, and in dozens of reviews,
they haven't.  No review I've seen hasn't had some kind of factual error in
it, it happens in the best of them.

> What if RR is positioned as the ubiquitous RAD programming environment for
> cross platform development -- surpassing in both speed and performance other
> tools such as JAVA, QT, VB, etc.? I think this is a valid positioning
> statement. Now to turn around and say "and it's only $99" and your Mom can
> use it, certainly doesn't seem to back this up.
> 
> Which brings us to the real problem...positioning. RR can be positioned as a
> 'HyperCard clone' for the inventive user OR as a full-featured development
> tool for professionals can use to build commercial and enterprise
> applications.
> 
> There have been a few comments lately about Rev pricing...
> 
> I think Rev's pricing is right on the money. Users can download a free
> version which they can try out for 30 days. Of course the HyperCard clone
> crowd wants a version for $99 bucks. That is where their expectation is set
> (just like Andy). After all, Apple used to 'give it away.'
> 
> But, developers whose business depends on RR, are used to paying much more
> for professional tools. Just look at other cross-platform development
> suites. By comparison, RR is a steal.
> 
> One of the biggest challenges for Xtalk companies is their ability to stay
> funded and alive. I believe in RR as a professional development tool. And,
> as a professional developer, I can make money with it, even if it does cost
> hundreds of dollars.

Essentially what we are going to be doing more and more over the next few
versions is to differentiate Express from Revolution.  So we have two
product lines: "Revolution" which contains Studio and Enterprise aimed at
professional developers; and Express which is aimed at the entry-level.  We
have a number of ideas about how to best manage this differentiation in
terms of feature sets, pricing, promotion and support.  We'll be introducing
this over time - still preserving options for the existing user base, but
more clearly differentiating where new users join the Revolution.

Kind regards,

Kevin

Kevin Miller ~ kevin at runrev.com ~ http://www.runrev.com/
Runtime Revolution - User-Centric Development Tools