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That's the point tho, isn't it?

It isn't about making good software, it's about making good money. Since the people who buy the software are not the people who use it, what you need to optimize isn't the software's ease of use, but ease of selling to the people on top.

If the users are happy or not is comparatively inconsequential, after all - they are not the ones making the decision.

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Well, the point I guess is that the people who use it are more and more the people who make the decision, b/c the channels of distribution have changed, even for biz software. http://web.hbr.org/email/archive/dailystat.php?date=092110

If you're not optimizing for your users - the poor schmucks who are forced to use you day after day, you're abusing them and making their lives hell.

If you're in the business of abusing your users because they're not the people writing the checks, I hope you fail (even though I know you won't). Making money and caring about your users are not incompatible goals.

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