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As Pete said, this is contracting and is VASTLY different from consulting or working for yourself. To run a consulting firm you need a wide range of skills, the LEAST of which is coding skills.
Depending on what country/region you are in contracting can also be quite different. In western countries a contractor is often required to have above norm skills and a fairly wide range of coding abilities. Whereas in Asia the contractor is considered the poor bugger who is not good enough to land a permanent job. Very different attitudes.
However if you think you are going to get away from delays, politics and bureaucracy think again, they are still there but with a little more pressure.
Never underestimate the power of human stupidity
RAH
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Thanks for the reply!
I guess what I was thinking is not consulting in the traditional sense that you two see, but as more of a specialized service. In my area there is a large pool of demand for .net programming(Chicago), so much that I think with the right networking I could work for myself without needing a headhunter to find me jobs.
I didn't dream up this job description either. The company I work for as well as my previous employer had specialized projects which were done by a purely .net consultant who would come in as needed to make suggestions/modifications.
I don't fancy starting a firm or having employees underneath me. Just the power to command more respect for my time and the opportunity work on a greater variety of projects. I realize that the politics and bureaucratic aspects of being a developer won't go away, but from what I've seen roadblocks get moved much quicker when there's a direct cost to them.
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shiznit770 wrote: which were done by a purely .net consultant
I did this sort of work in the 90s, one man show, T&M or sometimes fixed price, do the job from design to help system and training. You are right in that it commanded much more respect, it also required a very wide range of skills and it was a fascinatng to move into different industries and solve their problems.
It is still a lot of paperwork and admin, if you can keep it to a one man show it is survuvable, expand and see your coding time dissapear. Income is variable and it hurts when you (rarely) need to pass on a job b/c you are already too busy when you know you will be out of jobs in 6 weeks!
I eventually went to pure contracting.
Never underestimate the power of human stupidity
RAH
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Pages crawled per day only 700 while i have more than 500,000 pages
my website is
http://www.whomex.com my Pages crawled per day only 700 while i have more than 500,000 page
why this happen ?? how i can increse the Pages crawled per day
Category
Palestine
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Dear Developers,
it's quite some times that i have been thinking this question and couldn't find a settled answer for it.
it is, "Why would developer want to do a free software development ?"
free i mean is like "free beer"
software development i mean --> they offer the software on the internet for free downloading or "freeware".
so far i found the answer is "advertising". but it couldn't be for so long. i mean even hosting is paying, but why freeware ?
for example, "free download manager", "daemon tools lite", and some others. even some are very generous in "giving" their working result on the net for free.
i didn't against the free thing. only want to know, what could motivate developer to do it ?
sometimes i read that they sacrificed their holiday to develop it, their after work time, their free time... that is a "mean" sacrifice for me. few have specific dedication and/or personal goal...maybe.
but what is exactly the major fact of consideration for doing it ?
Thank you for any attention given to my question.
1st answer:
If you enjoy writing code or have developed something that scratches a personal itch why not give it to other people?
It's like wondering why people dress up as Furries, play board games, participate in sunday league football or cricket, do sudoku...
2nd answer:
I have also thought about that, open source i can understand. Because you got something you want to do with help from others.Freeware I don't know.
I know that Daemon tools lite is released as a light version.You try it, like it and you want more. Then you have to purchase the full version.
So sometimes you release a free version because you have an expensive Full version you want to sell.
Permalink | Broken Post? Report
Posted 19 hours ago
Söderlund933
3rd Answer
There is lot more to software then coding. You have to provide technical support, provide bug fixes, implement new features, and upgrade when new OS comes. For a small software it may not be worth to go through all this trouble, especially if expected user base is small.
So if you still want to share it with others then make it freeware.
Also when you use many freeware softwares and when you write a utility yourself then you might want to give back to community.
And as others mentioned, companies do it for advertisement. They provide a reduced functionality software for free and sell a more powerful software.
-Saurabh
Notes:
Previously i posted this message under question/answer section. but someone told me that the place is not for my question. and so i move the message to here. 
i also delete the question there, which i found that i shouldn't do that. i am sorry for that.
i posted my question with the already answered one.
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Good question.
I give some of my software away for free because it's generally a personal project that I've worked on that's been used as a bit of an R&D piece. I develop software commercially, but this is generally for clients and it means that you work within the rigid constraints of client requirements which generally doesn't give you much scope to try new things out. With the personal projects, I can code what I want and make it available for others to use - in effect, they become my beta testers and it helps me to find out what works and what doesn't. Partially, it's also an ego thing - it's great to get praise from others about utilities/applications that you pulled together.
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Ok, if i try to point out (according to my point of view) your answers:
1. personal project --> good reason.
2. Develop software commercially --> i like this!
3. beta testers --> yes this is acceptable for me.
4. ego thing --> hahahhaha... true enough.
my conclusion...hmmm... the formula:
giving free = develop software personally + can be sold for $$$ + tested + appreciation.
the answer hit me.
it motivates me to develop software and to share it.
thank you.
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Here are new questions for you to answer: why would people contribute to a site such as CodeProject? More in particular, why would anyone answer your question for free? Why did you expect anyone to do so?
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uhhmm... if it is worth of money then ask for it. but if it isn't then share it or just keep it myself.
would that be an answer for your and my question ?
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I don't know, I'm not very fond of "why" questions, except in a strict business environment, where they are essential.
I'm sure money isn't always the key. When a short question (a "how to" kind of helicopter view question) and a really good answer can keep me from making the wrong decision in one of my projects, then one hour spent on CodeProject can maybe save me months of development time, and some of that time can be returned to the community.
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yeah, i agree with you. money isn't always the key and giving back to community is a way to say thank you.
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How about "just for the fun of it"?
Or, "for the challenge"?
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Bored or girlfriend asked you to help her.
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THink about it... if you are just starting out as a company, what better way to release your first (simple) product to the masses? - Free It gets attention/promotion downloads, generates interest...
I am working on a project at the moment... I am planning on releaseing it free.. I am also planning on having a "complex" payware version too.
its the same as downloading an evaluation version of a piece of software.
--------------------------------------------------
John Crocker
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Hi all.
I develop a software based on an open source software in VC++ (Base software is "TrueCrypt version 4.3" )
I want to update my software when new version of base software ("TrueCrypt") released.
How I can walk with that software version with low cost and attempt? Are there any framework or method for this?
Thanks a'lot.
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I'm not sure what you are really asking here.
It sounds like you want to be able to know when the TrueCrypt stuff has a new version, and then do a rebuild and repackage of your stuff to include that in some cost effective manner.
Based on that as my understanding my first question is really, do you HAVE to do that each time? Is there a proven track record that as TrueCrypt makes changes your stuff has to change also to maintain functionality because there have been a consistent number of breaking changes in the past that cause you to not trust new versions?
It sounds to me that one simple suggestion on your end is to establish a published schedule that states openly when you intend on keeping up with releases of related libraries that are part of your product. I think allowing the release schedule of other products that you use in your project to drive your development cycle, while possible admirable on your side, is just an unrealistic expectation to set, especially when some of those components are open-source and have a haphazard release schedule.
I think it is often better in business to just set the proper customer expectations and meet THEM consistently from your end. Tell your customers that you current release supports versions x, y, and z of any external components at this time, and then perhaps set a regular schedule to evaluate all new versions and produce an update to your timeline barring any issues that are found.
As far as doing this automated goes? I am not sure there is anything out there that would just do this unless you put a ton of effort into automated detection of new builds, downloads, regression testing, rebuilding, etc... Personally, THAT sounds like an entire product in it self.
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Please i need software marketing tips and site that i can upload my software for download.
I have a database application i newly released for 2010. I need to get this software across to users all over the globe.However, i do not have much money and time to develope web sites for my application. But i want a site that supports developers uplaoding their software for download either as sharewares or as comwares. However, the msi setup files are up to 230MB and they are in a Zip File.
Please help me out. Thanks for your reply.
omoniyiogunderu@yahoo.com
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You can use free ready to make websites such as www.webs.com and you can showcase your product.
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TIP #1: Being unwilling to give the name or purpose of your software is bad marketing.
Is this trialware, shareware, freeware? Do you have a way to receive money for it?
I would start at http://upload.com.
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The Microsoft Partner Network offers programs to help software companies bring your ideas to market. There’s no cost to join.
Microsoft Partner Network membership, you can create new opportunities, increase demand, and achieve your business objectives. Leverage unique resources to help drive business innovation and form a trusted foundation for strategic decision making, increased agility, and long-term competitive advantage.
For an overview of the program offerings, see Boost Your Business in the New Year in Microsoft Partner Network[^].
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I'm looking for a good printer for software development.
I think I'll need two types of printer. One I think will be a color laser for things going to customers (proposals, user guides, flyers etc.) I may outsource this.
I'm also thinking about printers for developers and designers. I'm thinking about an inkjet all-in-one for scanning in documents as well as printing drafts of materials destined for the color laser.
We're trying to get away from printing out source code or even articles found on the 'net, so I'm thinking second monitors would be better than cheap laser printers.
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Personally employing developers without giving them a second monitor is tantamount to torcher and makes you an abusive employer as far as I am concerned 
Seriously, invest in multiple monitors for your developers, and not the skimpy 19 inch ones but the nice 22 or 24 inchers too.
Instead of printers, get a good PDF printer application (cute PDF is free and simple but there are others) and tons of HD space on a server for them to store those things they find worthy of 'saving' and then maybe one or two simple B&W lasers for printing stuff that is worthy of going up on the wall for quick reference.
Color lasers are great for final copy, but in reality, unless you are going to really be printing your own docs, get a printing company to do that for you and just print to a PDF for them to use as a layout reference. Are you REALY going to be shipping printed docs anyway? as far as color proposals go, unless you are trying to impress the 'big boys' print the proposal, all but maybe the cover, in B&W. Anything else is just a waste as far as I am concerned. As a customer I don't really care if your proposal has a full color layout, I want to see the solution. Yeah screen shots look nice in color, but if you get in the door you can do a PowerPoint and they can see them there.
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RegNow - A Company Beneath Contempt: A Study in Fraud, Negligence and Incompetence
For those who are not familiar with RegNow, it is a software registration company, a company that ostenstibly handles the money end for commercial software developers. When trial users of your software decide to buy, they are directed to a RegNow sponsored page that gets their name, credit card info, etc. and sends them a software key. RegNow and most other software registration companies online are now owned by the monopolistic conglomerate Digital River.
My experiences with RegNow started back in February. The way your relationship with them works as a software vendor/developer is that they get a percentage of each sale. Otherwise no other money exchanges hands between you and them, i.e. they don't charge you any other fee for their services other than the commission they make. This is significant because I believe they could be exploiting the fact that no actual money exchanges hands to possibly claim they have no contractual responsibilities to you. So if there are problems with your order page, they can send you polite e-mails saying they are looking into it, but with a tacit assumption on their end that they don't actually have to do anything (and in fact they probably won't, and rather just wait for you to leave in frustration.)
But anyway, back in February I set up my order page and product at RegNow. I chose the option to use SoftwarePassport to protect my software and generate a key for it. I did not know at the time (and had to find out for myself as they didn't tell me) that the RegNow version of SoftwarePassport will not protect DLL's. As a result, I had to ask them to delete my product on their end so I could start over from scratch. (If you have a faulty product setup at RegNow, they have to delete it, you cannot delete it yourself.)
So anyway I had them delete my product and I started over. This time I chose another option for generating a software key that is fully documented by them: using a custom key-generating algorithm. You write your own program that outputs a key and send RegNow the source code for it. This is the program that is executed and generates a key when the user orders the software on their site.
So anyway, that is what I did - I wrote my own key-generating program - no big deal. However, my order page never worked. Five months later it still doesn't work. When the user hits 'order now', either it never returns, or if it does the place where the key is supposed to be is blank. In my correspondence with RegNow, they have always been apologetic and said the problem was on their end, However, they have never done anything to fix the problem. Here is a detailed chronology of what has transpired with them.
When I wrote my key-generating program back in February, I sent RegNow two makefiles (along with a readme file). One made the static library Crypto++ (the source for which is also available off of the internet) and the other makefile built my actual program and statically linked it to the Crypto++ library. Now in the RegNow documentation for custom algorithms, they ask that you send them only one C++ source code file, and that is all. Well in my case, the cryptographic routines for generating a key were not written by me personally, I had to link to them. So that is why I sent them a makefile along with my source code. However, their people were mystified by this and didn't know what to do with a makefile. Therefore, they asked me to just send them the actual .exe, so I did.
Several days later they sent me an e-mail telling me everything was set up. However when I ran a test order it didn't return my key, but instead a SoftwarePassport key. I informed them of this, and they apologized and said they would look into it. Several days later they contacted me again, and said it was fixed. So I ran a test order but this time the order never even completed. I hit cancel and hit the order button again and this time it completed, but with a blank where my key was supposed to be. I informed RegNow of this and they apologized and said they would look into it.
Over five months later and dozens of apologies and promises to fix this by RegNow it is still not fixed (thus the title of this piece "A Study in Fraud, Negligence and Incompetence"). In February and March, every few days I would send them queries to the effect "Why isn't this fixed yet," and they would send back apologies and promises to fix it. There was never any concern that my own key-generating routine was the problem. Its just a trivial little exe that spits out a key string. They tested it from the command line and verified that it worked. So they always claimed the problem was on their end. They just never did anything to fix the problem. And the question is why - stupidity, fraud, negligence, what?
Late in March, I quit contacting them because it was a pointless exercise. Perhaps they were waiting for my product to be generating actual sales before they gave any service to me as a vendor, I don't know. But they kept on telling me they were looking into this problem. From my perspective, what was the point of heavy marketing of my software, if it wasn't even clear yet if RegNow was actually able to handle an order. But late in March I quit contacting them.
Then about six weeks ago, I reinitiated contact with them, reviewing the entire history. Once again I received apologetic e-mails and this time from a technical manager saying he would have people look into over the weekend. However, Monday came, and no response back. Tuesday, Wenesday, nothing. My e-mails to them started becoming more and more pointed. I asked if they were going out of business. I asked if their polite e-mails to me were a calculated brush-off to low priority vendors and if in fact they never intended to do anything. I eventually received technical explanations regarding the problem from this manager, but these technical explanations were in fact laughable. So do they just have untrained customer reps posing as technical people to low-priority vendors and engaging in some calculated song-and-dance? What is going on? Who knows?
Something in their process apparently doesn't work for some percentage of vendors, and rather than fix the problem, they just send polite meaningless e-mails to them promising to fix it. They did have to delete my initial product setup a couple of times in the very first week of all this back in February. Perhaps that action throws your order page into an inoperable state somehow, and they just never bothered to debug it, because maybe it only effects a small percentage of vendors, but this is speculation by me.
There is much more to be said about this, but I have to end somewhere. And obviously I have saved the entire e-mail history. I suppose I could at some point post some of those e-mails as well.
modified on Wednesday, July 22, 2009 11:26 AM
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I feel obligated to report I did find another software registation company a couple of weeks ago - iPortis.com. My product was up and running with them with zero problems the day after I talked to them. (The algorithm and everything else.) I have no desire to plug iPortis, except to say they were the very first company I encountered after ditching RegNow, and somehow they were able to do their job.
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Do not use any Digital River services, as they will block your accounts, your order page styles without any reason. Use Plumus instead.
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