There seems to be a fair amount of confusion swirling about in the DC-6 thread, and I certainly don't want to derail that thread any further. However, I wanted write something out and maybe a few will gain from it. This is not directed at any single person, team, or entity.
Developer's perspective
Most developers don't earn on income from this hobby. There a few big named companies where the people at the very top do, but that's an exception, and it is basically unheard of that an entire development team would pay their mortgages with this as a primary income. This means for most, creations are done in the spare time which is limited by definition. It also means our rate is waaaay below what we make at our day jobs.
Add to this that aircrafts in and of themselves (the real ones) are hugely complex creations built by swarms of engineers. There is an immense amount of detail, a good chunk of it which is not available by straight forward methods unless you actually have a specimen sitting in front of you. Some development groups are lucky enough to have this, most aren't.
This creates a situation where it's easy to miss or look past a detail because it was either buried in some reference you didn't have time to check or because it was on your mind/to-do list and then your wife calls saying you need to get off the computer (usually NOW!!!!) because chores have been piling up...and then it's gone because you forgot to write it down. Houses and waistlines tend to suffer during busy development periods.
For developers, these creations are labors of love...and we put much more effort into each than will ever see reward out.
Customers perspective
Cash is usually short, this is a tough world economy after all. I can walk down to the local electronics depot (either physically or virtually) and buy a well polished, thoroughly tested product for $30-60 which is designed to keep me occupied and entertained for tens of hours. There are also a handful of payware developers for FSX, who just seem to get it right, and they also seem to push the boundary of what's possible with every consecutive release. This makes it easy and almost natural to use them as a baseline for comparison.
On top of that, when something doesn't work, it usually means that the small and fleeting chunk time which has been set aside for fun is now allocated to an intensely frustrating process of, "Why don't you work?!?!".
For consumers, these aircraft are also an expenditure of love. I get fewer hours of entertainment per dollar in FSX than in any other virtual hobby I pursue.
Integration
These are of course, incomplete views and only intended to represent the core of the diverging perspectives which are bound to create tension somewhere in our community. As with most things, there is no clear cut answer or solution that works for everyone. However, there are some guidelines which can almost ubiquitously be applied.
- It's always a good practice to take both sides into account before putting fingers to keyboard. This is particularly important if you're feeling frustrated.
- Remember that we are all here for the love of aviation; developers and paying customers both make sacrifices to keep this hobby alive.
- If you're an upset customer talking to a developer. Assume that the dev is (a) a reasonably intelligent person who (b) takes pride in their work and will (c) make improvements based on your substantiated feedback. If you kindly point out a discrepancy with proof in hand, the problem will get fixed more often than not, provided that the creation is in an active state of development (i.e. beta or just released and pre-servicepack). Yes there are some developers who won't respond well or some at all, but it's hardly justifiable to apply coarse tactics with all developers as a recourse.
- If there's an aircraft you really, really like and it just has to be right....then you might be happiest with the outcome if you join the beta process. Good beta testers are hard to find and your help will be hugely appreciated.
Developer's perspective
Most developers don't earn on income from this hobby. There a few big named companies where the people at the very top do, but that's an exception, and it is basically unheard of that an entire development team would pay their mortgages with this as a primary income. This means for most, creations are done in the spare time which is limited by definition. It also means our rate is waaaay below what we make at our day jobs.
Add to this that aircrafts in and of themselves (the real ones) are hugely complex creations built by swarms of engineers. There is an immense amount of detail, a good chunk of it which is not available by straight forward methods unless you actually have a specimen sitting in front of you. Some development groups are lucky enough to have this, most aren't.
This creates a situation where it's easy to miss or look past a detail because it was either buried in some reference you didn't have time to check or because it was on your mind/to-do list and then your wife calls saying you need to get off the computer (usually NOW!!!!) because chores have been piling up...and then it's gone because you forgot to write it down. Houses and waistlines tend to suffer during busy development periods.
For developers, these creations are labors of love...and we put much more effort into each than will ever see reward out.
Customers perspective
Cash is usually short, this is a tough world economy after all. I can walk down to the local electronics depot (either physically or virtually) and buy a well polished, thoroughly tested product for $30-60 which is designed to keep me occupied and entertained for tens of hours. There are also a handful of payware developers for FSX, who just seem to get it right, and they also seem to push the boundary of what's possible with every consecutive release. This makes it easy and almost natural to use them as a baseline for comparison.
On top of that, when something doesn't work, it usually means that the small and fleeting chunk time which has been set aside for fun is now allocated to an intensely frustrating process of, "Why don't you work?!?!".
For consumers, these aircraft are also an expenditure of love. I get fewer hours of entertainment per dollar in FSX than in any other virtual hobby I pursue.
Integration
These are of course, incomplete views and only intended to represent the core of the diverging perspectives which are bound to create tension somewhere in our community. As with most things, there is no clear cut answer or solution that works for everyone. However, there are some guidelines which can almost ubiquitously be applied.
- It's always a good practice to take both sides into account before putting fingers to keyboard. This is particularly important if you're feeling frustrated.
- Remember that we are all here for the love of aviation; developers and paying customers both make sacrifices to keep this hobby alive.
- If you're an upset customer talking to a developer. Assume that the dev is (a) a reasonably intelligent person who (b) takes pride in their work and will (c) make improvements based on your substantiated feedback. If you kindly point out a discrepancy with proof in hand, the problem will get fixed more often than not, provided that the creation is in an active state of development (i.e. beta or just released and pre-servicepack). Yes there are some developers who won't respond well or some at all, but it's hardly justifiable to apply coarse tactics with all developers as a recourse.
- If there's an aircraft you really, really like and it just has to be right....then you might be happiest with the outcome if you join the beta process. Good beta testers are hard to find and your help will be hugely appreciated.
