Ok, so being an old time object dock user, I got the pre-order email to get into the beta. And while $10 - $20 dollars isn't the end of the world,I think it is kinda lame to charge to help you test out and fix your software. Not only do you want us to lay out money to help you fix bugs, but you didn't even give us a feature list of the upcoming ObjectDock Plus 2.0.
Am I missing something here or is this just poor marketing. Don't get me wrong. I love object dock plus, but not enough to pay for something that I have no idea what I'm paying for..
Stardock, you might want to rethink this...
well the site Stardock
it does say >>>> Consistent updates - will continue to be updated and improved for years and years to come
that is under Features:
https://www.stardock.com/products/objectdock/learn.asp
I'm just saying.....
but I do now have to ask where was all the CONSISTENT UP DATES at.... i had it for 1 year 3 days and NO UpDates...
and to this >>> Consistent updates - will continue to be updated and improved for years and years to come <<<
that can be mis leading I am sure someone(S) seen it and think cool will always get updates for years and years to come....
so people can say with no update at all in that time... could and/or should say were is my CONSISTENT UP DATES at.
and now you want us to pay? I'm just saying...
Could this be labeled as switch and bate again I'm just pointing it out
ObjectDock Plus has never been part of ObjectDesktop. Neither has CursorFX BTW.
Regarding upgrading if you purchased recently, typically we have given free upgrades to new standalone products if you have purchased within a set timeframe before release.
How this date is worked out varies from app to app, for WindowBlinds we tend to go with from the day we made posts about it so nobody could have purchased the old version in response to any marketing about the new one. For ObjectDock this may not be the method used as it has been mentioned many times over the year. I would be surprised if someone who purchased this week for example didn't get the upgrade free, but I cannot promise anything as I am not involved with this product.
It may be that the mailer was only sent to people who were not going to get a free upgrade in which case you should not purchase an upgrade via a link posted here, but wait to see if you get the mail.
The lack of a feature list on the preorder mailer does have me scratching my head though. I will find out whats going on there as it seems logical to tell people what they are going to get!
Personally (not speaking for Stardock here), I would agree that it is certainly unfortunate wording. At first glance it does suggest the customer could expect a number of improvements in the lifetime of the product. If the customer purchased OD 1.0 then they have certainly had a good number of updates, but the same may not be true of someone who purchased OD 1.9. Mind you it doesn't say that the updates would be free, but it also doesn't say that they would not be.
If people are upset about this it may be best to mail sales@stardock.com regarding it and see what they say.
Got the email to pre-order ObjectDock 2, paid for it, and nothing showing in Impulse to install it
BTW, will the past saved themes will still be usuable ? (hope they will as i get a lot and do not want to have anything to build again ...)
Small print of the email says "The ObjectDock 2.0 beta is scheduled to begin within the next couple of weeks." So while you may have paid today you may (or may not, anything is possible) only get access sometime in the next 2 weeks.
From the e-mail:
The ObjectDock 2.0 beta is scheduled to begin within the next couple of weeks.
So much HTML for so little text!
Neil: Blame Outlook/whoever wrote the email
Ah...was just about to edit it....loaded up Chrome just for it, too....
Ah...and needed to....was broke....
Snowman now blames andrew_
IS IT DONE YET?
Lets see I am testing the Beta Office 2010 Gee it is free.
I tested the Windows 7 RC 1 and Gee it was Free
I personally will not pay to test a Beta, if I wanted to that I would purchase symantec products, as they release them as Gold but are really a beta because of the amount of patches in the first couple of months.
However because of your current policy I will have to re-consider if I want to continue as WinCustomize Subscriber in the future.
I will always renew my ODNT annually.
I however may no longer be able to recommend Stardock products to friends and neighbors in the future
I figured there'd be some pushback on the pricing idea. I'm okay with it, I've had ObjectDock Plus for years and have been getting what I needed out of it. I'll be upgrading, but with a higher expectation for new and amazing features to set it aside as a brand new product rather than an update. The teaser screenshots so far have yet to blow me away, but I have faith in Stardock and I know once I see the program in action I'll be glad I got it.
One last thing though, and I hate, hate, hate to sound trollish about this... For current ObjectDock Plus users who won't be upgrading, I'm hoping for one last teeny tiny minor update to fix system tray and start menu support for 64-bit Windows. If this support is in ObjectDock 2.0, and doesn't make it into ObjectDock Plus as part of the 'consistent updates', there might be a much bigger backlash happening. Please make this happen guys, could save a lot of face.
I'm hoping for one last teeny tiny minor update to fix system tray and start menu support for 64-bit Windows. If this support is in ObjectDock 2.0, and doesn't make it into ObjectDock Plus as part of the 'consistent updates', there might be a much bigger backlash happening. Please make this happen guys, could save a lot of face.
I totally agree with the above
That's definitely your choice. I would advise to simply wait until final release.
Just to clarify, the Microsoft betas you mentioned were time-limited and did not grant you a license to use the full finished product without paying.
Buying the OD + Beta means that you can participate in the beta test process and you will automatically receive the full version when it is "officially" released.
That's a big difference.
Let's clarify even further. Although they were time-limited (what's wrong with that? a lot of shareware works like that), they were also fully functional. This means that people are able to fully test the software before clicking on that big "Purchase" button. In addition, various people who participated in testing of Windows 7 were rewarded with copies of the Ultimate edition for their efforts.
Also, will the traditional refund policy apply to the beta phase as well? Technically, the law in my country of residence specifies that under Distance Selling Regulations a company (online or retail) is obliged to provide 7-working day refund without any questions asked, so at least that's some peace of mind
All that may be true but if I did not like the product I would not be out any dollars. You cannot seem to use Pay Pal to get the product. I do not use credit cards. Something about billing for a product that is not yet released. I prepaid for Windows 7 using Pay Pal wonder how that works. Again I will not pay to be a beta tester for a product I may or may not want in the future
Well said and totally agree
I blame skinhit.
Would you by any chance live in the UK? If so you should be aware that you would find that law does not apply to purchases made from a company who are not located in the country. So in this case it would not be any use as Stardock do not have any UK or even European offices.
Well, you know what you're buying. Except for the fact that no feature list is given, this is the new ObjectDock. Participating in the beta just means you get access to it sooner and you may (as Doc pointed out) have input on features that appear in the RC version.
Clearly you missed my point. You're not "buying a beta"; you're buying ObjectDock 2.0 which happens to be in beta at the moment. You get the full product upon release. Again, I don't think you're paying for the privilege of beta-testing software. You're paying for the product, plain and simple. The fact that it is not yet a release candidate is not relevant.
Look, I'm not a Stardock apologist and Brad Wardell doesn't sign my paychecks. However, I've been around here long enough to know this is how SD does business. Actually, if you pre-purchase games, it's a pretty similar concept. Many MMOs and Stardock's Elemental (just to name a few) grant access to the beta after the product has been paid for. This allows the user to tinker with and experience the product before release and possibly have a hand in shaping the final RC.
Let's look at it from another perspective. Would you be more or less happy if Stardock said, "Here's ObjectDock 2.0. It will be available on March 6 for a price of $20/$10 upgrade"?
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