Ron, Having worked with computers since 1964 when many still had vacuum tube amplifiers, and having worked as a programmer, senior technical writer, systems engineer and database manager, among other duties, as well as acting as a beta for a wide variety of software manufacturers, I feel that I am very familiar with the software industry.
You obviously did not read carefully what I wrote. I did not advocate, nor mention, providing program updates to Millennia's software at no cost to the customer. I only speculated on alternative means of providing more current versions of documentation to Millennia's customers who had already paid for the program and its documentation. In the case of the PDF manual version I fail to see where offering a free download update to that PDF file to those customers who had already purchased a PDF manual would represent any significant added cost to Millennia if they are udating that PDF version regularly anyway. Naturally such customers would have to provide their customer number to validate their entitlement to the updated PDF manual. I am always amazed at how people manage to comment on other people's writing without reading that writing. Any software firm is faced with a juggling act between holding production costs at bay while also supporting their customer base with adequate documentation. My suggestions were made with both concerns in mind, and I feel they offered options that might satisfy both needs. John Zimmerman Mesa, AZ On 04-Jan-14 1:06 PM, Ron Bernier wrote: > > On Sat, Jan 4, 2014 at 2:01 PM, hwedhlor <hwedh...@cox.net > <mailto:hwedh...@cox.net>> wrote: > > I can understand the need for lead time in producing a > printed manual. I can also understand that things > change after a printed manual is produced. Perhaps a > better, or alternative way of providing the Legacy > printed reference manual would be for Millennia to use > an on-demand publishing service, such as Lulu. That > way they could provide the publisher with updates on a > regular basis and customers purchasing a printed > manual would get the latest version when they buy. > > The PDF version of the Legacy reference manual should > be constantly updated along with the Help files. > Those who purchased a PDF Legacy manual should be > provided with a means of downloading the latest > version of the PDF manual whenever it is updated, and > at no cost to the customer. Updates to the PDF manual > could be provided to an on-demand publisher of the > printed version to keep that version in sync with the > PDF version and the Help files. > > I am a huge fan of Geoff Rasmussen's Legacy webinars, > and have attended almost every one of them. Although > Geoff's book, "Unlocking Legacy 8" is very useful and > enjoyable to read, because it is patterned after the > "Watch Geoff Live" webinar presentations it is not > well-suited for use as a easy reference work because > it lacks an index. One must be willing to read > through an entire chapter in search of a particular > setting or partial process. > > John Zimmerman > Mesa, AZ > > > On 04-Jan-14 8:25 AM, Randy Clark wrote: >> The manual was a waste of money as it's in the help >> file and there was no way to know this in advance. > > > Legacy/Millennia already provides free upgrades to their > software - most of those free upgrades have > been substantial updates to the software that many > companies would have called a new version and charged > customers for an update. Millennia has not done that. > Updating the user manual every time there has been a > change to the software could and would become an expensive > undertaking for Millennia, yet you think that they should > undertake this additional cost - free of charge to their > customers. The help files are kept updated and I > personally think that is sufficient. > > I'd be curious to know what other software > company/companies update their manual (whether printed or > pdf) every time they have an update to their software. I > am always amazed at how people have this mentality that a > company has bottomless pockets and therefore being a > customer entitles them to all the freebies they can get > regardless of the cost to the company. > > Ron Bernier > Woonsocket, RI > > > Legacy User Group guidelines: > http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Etiquette.asp > Archived messages after Nov. 21 2009: > http://www.mail-archive.com/legacyusergroup@legacyusers.com/ > Archived messages from old mail server - before Nov. 21 2009: > http://www.mail-archive.com/legacyusergroup@legacyfamilytree.com/ > Online technical support: > http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Help.asp > Follow Legacy on Facebook > (http://www.facebook.com/LegacyFamilyTree) and on our blog > (http://news.LegacyFamilyTree.com). > To unsubscribe: > http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/LegacyLists.asp Legacy User Group guidelines: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Etiquette.asp Archived messages after Nov. 21 2009: http://www.mail-archive.com/legacyusergroup@legacyusers.com/ Archived messages from old mail server - before Nov. 21 2009: http://www.mail-archive.com/legacyusergroup@legacyfamilytree.com/ Online technical support: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Help.asp Follow Legacy on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/LegacyFamilyTree) and on our blog (http://news.LegacyFamilyTree.com). 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