

Introducing Gemfury - It's like Dropbox for Hackers - rykov
http://www.gemfury.com/l

======
brcrth
I closed when the first thing was to me chose a "weapon" (seriously?) of
choice instead of giving me whatever the site's offering. What if I like Ruby
AND Perl AND Node.js?

Edit: I know that Perl is not an option there, it was just for showing how a
more "open" approach would be better. Also, the name implies that is a tool
for people who likes/uses Ruby (gem). So people would dismiss it based only on
the name, not visiting and seeing that there's more options.

~~~
rykov
Every language has a separate way of doing packages, explaining the individual
benefit based on your preference is a more clear message to get across. The
other benefit is it helps us choose where to focus.

And, funny story: the word "weapon" is A/B tested with the word "repository"
because I had the same doubts. Guess which one converts better? Hint: It's not
"repository"

~~~
crcastle
> Guess which one converts better?

How do you define "convert"? Clicking one of the buttons? Signing up for the
service? Paying money?

If converting is just clicking one of the buttons, I wonder if you get a lot
of low quality converts -- i.e. ones that don't end up paying you money.

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neworbit
This is the most irritating design I've seen in a while. Please link to
something descriptive, not a deliberately text-blurred/obfuscated page that
requires you to select between various languages that I don't actually want to
use.

As an aside, I'm not sure why I would use this instead of dropbox or a cloud-
accessible version control system. However, given that I can't actually read
the explanatory text, I will never find out.

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lupatus
So, my current projects involve none of your weapons of choice. This renders
me confused about what to do next and unsure of the value of this service.

I suggest that you include a "More information" link on your initial pop-up
div so that people like me won't click away from your site in only a few
seconds.

~~~
rykov
Thank you for the "more info" suggestion. Which language and package
repository are you interested in?

~~~
beberlei
i want information about what this is before having to give my details.

~~~
ironchef
Bingo. No "close this stupid obfuscating box" button means no sign up for you.

~~~
rykov
Sorry for the confusion - we figured it'd be easier to explain the service for
each individual platform separately, rather than all at once. Hence the up-
front selection.

------
8ig8
The root URL is probable the better place to start: <http://www.gemfury.com/>

~~~
rykov
The service currently services RubyGems customers from the root domain. We
figured Hacker News is a wider audience than just Ruby and would be of great
help to decide which direction we should go next.

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videoappeal
What the fuck is it? Following the link /l it is immediately asking for my
details without telling WTF it is - is a grade A example of retarded
marketing.

~~~
icebraining
Choosing one "tool" gives you a description:

    
    
        Gemfury is a cloud server for your private [tool] packages. Once uploaded,
        your packages can be securely installed to any host. It's simple, reliable,
        and hassle-free.

~~~
haraball
This would be more helpful to see before you have to click anything.

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mattdeboard
I immediately cringe at every single instance I see "it's like X for Y!" At
this point has this snow clone passed into the irony space? Is everyone using
it ironically at this point?

~~~
JacobAldridge
In my opinion / experience, it's still a very useful tool if used accurately.

Used well it provides cut-through of your brand / product / message in a way
that is harder to build organically. Once you have traction, you can build a
more separate identity.

Used inaccurately, and you will likely annoy people who might be your target
market. Used ironically, you can definitely have fun.

But what would I know - my business advice is like Pets.com for Trappist
Monks.

~~~
brcrth
But these days it's so misused that most people see it and dismiss as a
"catchphrase" to lure people. Even if it's accurately used. So, it's better
don't take the risk.

~~~
JacobAldridge
This may be more true in tech circles, especially because everyone wants to
compare themselves to big hits (Dropbox, Facebook, Google). It's less common
in other sectors.

And if you are going to try it, test it first. Use your little catchphrase and
then ask your friend what they think that means you do - 'Dropbox for Hackers'
doesn't necessarily mean "code sharing that just works" - it could be
interpreted as "making your private code accessible by our internal team" or
"yay - unexplained conflict errors all over the place".

------
piotrSikora
Sorry, but how is that "like Dropbox for Hackers"?

~~~
rykov
Dropbox stores files in the cloud which are then easily accessible by
authorized computers - Gemfury does that for code packages.

~~~
piotrSikora
Who doesn't store files in "the cloud" nowadays? You could as well call this
"Gmail for Hackers"... it would make as much sense as your "Dropbox" analogy.

Why don't you call it by name (i.e. "hosted RubyGems server") instead of
confusing people and trying to piggyback on the "Dropbox" brand? Or do you
think that your product isn't good enough?

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DharmaSoldat
All I have to say after looking at your site is:

1) thanks for msbetatesting hackernews, 2) did you even test your site for BS
errors, you noobs, 3) not a bad idea, but srsly, what's wrong with github
(that everyone and their mother uses)?

This website is like the movie, 'Hackers'. I would appreciate an explanation.

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adamcharnock
I'd be interesting in integrating this with Seed
(<http://seed.readthedocs.org/>) when Python support comes along.

My Gemfury username is 'adamcharnock'.

~~~
rykov
Great idea. Thanks for the suggestion

------
xntrk
"Your RubyGems are protected during deployment by a secret token that's part
of your Gemfury Source URL" Are URLs secrets now?

~~~
rykov
[http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview/id/758002.html#...](http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview/id/758002.html#answer)

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quicksilver03
If one needs to use Maven, what advantages does Gemfury offer over a self-
hosted repository manager, such as Artifactory?

~~~
rykov
It offers all the advantages of a cloud service - on demand, pay as you go, no
maintenance. Very similar to Artifactory Online (cloud version)

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sharjeel
UI is very nice. Another great Built With Bootstrap site!

~~~
rykov
Thank you and Twitter - Bootstrap makes things so much easier.

~~~
ashleyw
Wow, nice to see a Bootstrap site which doesn't look like every single other
Bootstrap site! Good work!

Though, what's the difference between this and rubygems.org? Is it just like a
private version, so you can create proprietary gems and be able to pull them
down from anywhere (production, other team members, etc.)?

~~~
rykov
That's because we started the site before Bootstrap was released, but as we
iterated, we ported much of the site over.

And you're spot-on about Gemfury's purpose

------
hox
No CPAN?

~~~
rykov
Maybe one day :)

