I thought this was worth a new thread. > I have set up a paypal.com account, and will set up a kagi > account shortly. I'm trying to set up a revenue model for AbiWord > based on an aggragation of small sums from users + contractural > work from more serious individuals.
You must be a mind reader, I have been thinking of setting up a paypal account for at least a month and meant to discuss it with you, but never got to it. About other possible ways to generate some revenue: one strategy I like is that used by Pegasus, my favorite win32 mail client. The software is free, but you are encouraged to buy printed documentation in support of it (even though it has comprehesive online help). I love printed documentation to software, I hate the fact that these days nothing comes with paper manual. On line help is great for quick reference, but for me it cannot replace the paper book (we would have to work out which country would best for publication in terms of production and shipping costs). > I have not worked out how we might distribute funds from the > "general $5 donation" pot. Contractural work is cut&dry - the > money goes to the developer who did the work. Suggestions are > welcomed. I have been thinking about this for a while, and I personally would be less concerned with who gets it, and more that we make most of it. For instance Martin estimated that a fultime working developer could implement the tables in three month. So we could save up until there would be enough to fund a developer for 3 or 6 months, and then make it possible for a person to work fultime on AW for that period. Now, not everyone would be able or willing to do that, since we have other commitments, jobs, etc. But if a person would become available and willing, then we would use the resources in the pot to make that possible. There is a danger that some might feel left out, thinking how come he is getting paid, and I am doing just as good job as he is and am not, but if these were short-term projects, say not longer than 6 month, I think this probably would not arise. The issue that I was not sure about is, who should the account formally belong to, and what to do about bookkeeping, mainly concerning taxes. I think we might need some legal advice on this and perhaps setup non-profit trust or something. Other thought I had was a cudly blue ants to sit on the top of peoples computers (perhaps hand in hand with the penguine), but I came to the conclusion that (1) ant is not suitable for a cudly toy because of the slim waist; (2) this would require substantial starting investment and is doubtful it would work. T-shirts might be more viable, but again I am not sure and have no experience in this area. Tomas
