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Twenty dollars in an envelope

justinjackson.ca

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Re: Twenty dollars in an envelope

#11

Post by orangethirty »

rhplus wrote: post #10

People are happy to pay for things that are good. Don’t be afraid to charge for your services. "would pay", 5,200 results https://www.google.com/search?q=%22would+pay%22+site:news.yc... "wouldn't pay", 38,000 results https://www.google.com/search?q=%22wouldn%27t+pay%22+site:ne... (OK, so it's kind of a joke response, but the abundance of free software and services has really driven down the expectations around reason…

Don't drink the kool aid. There is still a lot of money being made. You don't hear about it because only an idiot would talk about his/her amazing sales.

Re: Twenty dollars in an envelope

#12

Post by meerita »

I literally sold dozen of games in diskettes back in the '90. I cannot say how much money I've made, but certainly, a lot to buy a 50cc. motorcycle and a pro BMX. Ah… those days! And also, I re-traded lot of shareware. I bought them from the magazines and sold the copies for the same price…

Re: Twenty dollars in an envelope

#14

Post by mijustin »

orangethirty wrote: post #11
rhplus wrote: post #10

People are happy to pay for things that are good. Don’t be afraid to charge for your services. "would pay", 5,200 results https://www.google.com/search?q=%22would+pay%22+site:news.yc... "wouldn't pay", 38,000 results https://www.google.com/search?q=%22wouldn%27t+pay%22+site:ne... (OK, so it's kind of a joke response, but the abundance of free software and services has really driven down the expectations around reason…

Don't drink the kool aid. There is still a lot of money being made. You don't hear about it because only an idiot would talk about his/her amazing sales.

Hmmm. Only an "idiot" would talk about sales?

Patio11 - http://www.kalzumeus.com/2012/12/29/bingo-card-creator-and-o...

Nathan Barry - http://nathanbarry.com/2012-year-quitting-job/

Brennan Dunn - http://planscope.io/blog/giving-up-a-million-dollar-consulta...

Re: Twenty dollars in an envelope

#15

Post by jere »

rhplus wrote: post #10

People are happy to pay for things that are good. Don’t be afraid to charge for your services. "would pay", 5,200 results https://www.google.com/search?q=%22would+pay%22+site:news.yc... "wouldn't pay", 38,000 results https://www.google.com/search?q=%22wouldn%27t+pay%22+site:ne... (OK, so it's kind of a joke response, but the abundance of free software and services has really driven down the expectations around reason…

If this worries you: http://www.kalzumeus.com/2009/03/07/how-to-successfully-comp...

Re: Twenty dollars in an envelope

#16

Post by _ea1k »

ck2 wrote: post #3

While the story is lovely, it's also quaint to think of the days when a young kid put his home address on the internet and bad things didn't happen. Also, this is another "right time right place" story - his code wasn't just good, it was one of the few solutions at the time. Had he tried to do it a few years after that, I doubt the results would have been the same.

> it's also quaint to think of the days when a young kid put his home address on the internet and bad things didn't happen.

Why would bad things happen due to that? Are there roving gangs of thieves desperately searching the internet for the addresses of people to rob?

I really doubt things have much in this regard, and one likely could do this just as easily (and with the same relative safety) as in the past. OTOH, it tends to be far less useful/necessary now.

Re: Twenty dollars in an envelope

#17

Post by saddino »

I too, made my first sale as a shareware author on AOL, selling a Tetris clone for the Mac called Blox. I asked for $5 checks sent to my home address, and while I sold less than 100, the feeling of accomplishment and the incredibly nice notes included with those payments definitely kickstarted my entrepreneurial career and taught me to listen to my customers (hence Blox Arcade II released a year later for $10, sold via Kagi, and selling thousands of copies).

Re: Twenty dollars in an envelope

#18

Post by tatsuke95 »

ck2 wrote: post #3

While the story is lovely, it's also quaint to think of the days when a young kid put his home address on the internet and bad things didn't happen. Also, this is another "right time right place" story - his code wasn't just good, it was one of the few solutions at the time. Had he tried to do it a few years after that, I doubt the results would have been the same.

>"Also, this is another "right time right place" story - his code wasn't just good, it was one of the few solutions at the time."

This "right time" exists always and forever, in history and the future. There will never be a lack of problems to solve for money. In hindsight, it's all easy and obvious.

Re: Twenty dollars in an envelope

#19

Post by gte910h »

ck2 wrote: post #3

While the story is lovely, it's also quaint to think of the days when a young kid put his home address on the internet and bad things didn't happen. Also, this is another "right time right place" story - his code wasn't just good, it was one of the few solutions at the time. Had he tried to do it a few years after that, I doubt the results would have been the same.

>young kid put his home address on the internet and bad things didn't happen

Almost all types of crime are down. Crimes towards a kid (if people even knew that) included.

The news has made you afraid. There is nothing to worry about that they tell you to worry about.

Re: Twenty dollars in an envelope

#20

Post by ahoyhere »

mijustin wrote: post #2

I'd be interested in hearing more shareware stories. Did anyone else here have success selling shareware in the 80's and 90's?

I used to compile a bunch of tech-product-related coupons and discount codes and tricks for saving money on buying the hot stuff of the day (RAM, DVD-ROM drives, etc) and sell that as a report on eBay.
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