US $ 1.49 to access Hacker News content through an app?!
This should be open source and free.
This should be open source and free.
With a price on it, I suddenly have to go through the hassle of attaching a payment method to my Windows Store account (something which I've been EXTREMELY hesitant to do). It's enough of a barrier to entry that I am likely to fob it off as something to do Later (as I can read HN quite well in my browser), rather than go through that added hurdle.
If I already had payment info entered for my Store account, that barrier to me buying it would be much lower: rather than having to consider both the time and money investment, I'd only have to say "Eh, it's a buck fifty", and would be much more likely to buy it. As it is, my interest has waned from "I must install this yesterday" to "I'll have to think about it".
But nice troll.
Perhaps I misinterpreted yitchelle's comment, I read should in the absolute sense of 'it's morally correct', not in the jovial 'i'd like to chcek out the source!'. But i certainly wasn't baiting any flamewar.
Yes, it's okay for developers to invest their own time to develop something, and try to recover their costs by selling it. And it's also ok if they decide to keep it closed source, because probably no one would bother to help. Just vote with your money.
(posted using news:yc on iOS, that I paid $2.99. And it's open source btw).
I'd potentially notice security issues and inform the author, if there are any.
I might notice performance issues and point those out.
If really nobody is interested in helping develop for it, I doubt many people would be willing to go out of their way to compile it from source to avoid paying for it too.
As you yourself demonstrate, making money off of your development and making that same project open source aren't mutually exclusive - so why not make it open source?