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Comment by scorpioxy | Hacker News Reader

Congratulations. Although it seems like a small number, all great journeys start with a single small step.

Having said that, do you really think the "pay what you want" is the best pricing model for you?

For me when faced with this model, I always worry that I am paying too little or too much and often don't do it at all. It feels like a donation. While having a fixed price allows me to use my cost-benefit analysis which guides my reasoning.

Also, programmers always seem to have this fear of asking for money for their services. Why is that?

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Wow, great questions.

Yeah, I don't think "pay what you want" is a good long term solution, but it is giving me a sense of the range in which people are willing to pay. Some of those payments are higher than I ever would have felt comfortable charging!

I also feel this fear of asking for money, and I'm not sure why...

> giving me a sense of the range in which people are willing to pay

I did this a few times, and usually I paid somewhat less comparing how I would be willing to pay if the service wasn't free.

Collecting data, including how much your customers value your product, is so important. This is a great way to collect that data.

Yeah "pay what you want" definitely makes me feel uncomfortable

One reason i refrain from asking for money for software is that the creators of almost all software i use in my life and 100% of the software i use to create software don't ask for money.

Agreed. The reason I became a programmer is because of all the wonderful people who decided it was worth their while to share their code for free. Being able to do the same for others is a privilege.

I think the counterpoint to that is that working and sharing code for free < working and sharing code for free... and eating.

As my father once told me, "Son, anything worth getting is worth asking for."

Share your talent freely with those who need it, strike a fair bargain with those who can afford it, and sleep comfortable in having made the world a better place.

Or, in other words, pure altruism isn't sustainable.

In other words, you can't exclude yourself from "altruism" while expecting it to actually accomplish what you intend for it to accomplish. If you exclude yourself, you'll just create a situation where others have to come and help you, because you're not sustaining yourself. Which, in that sense, is not an altruistic thing to do for another. So in that sense, the prevalent definition of "altruism" is that of a dysfunctional thing. Maybe it should be called "wholism" or "everyoneism", maybe its definition needs to change -- in our minds and actions first, of course.

As is your ability to share your fine thoughts with us for free on this site.

Don't forget that open source software brings rewards of all types - reputation, outside contributions, and eyeballs.

The beauty - and paradox - of open source is that people produce software, in an act of self-interest, for free.

Ask for money when it makes sense. Give it away when it doesn't.

The clientel of these stories would probably be either students at college or professionals working in these fields.

Pay what you want probably yeilds more money for them since the college kids aren't barred from paying something (even if it is $1/month) and the big-earners probably feel better giving more (maybe 5 to 10/month).

It has the drawbacks of having a large group who doesn't pay but it also gives a large group who otherwise wouldn't be able to afford the material a chance to chip into the pot and get something out of it.

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