

Ask HN: web dev houses, how do you handle continual improvement? - jamesotron

So, your customer says "give me a website that does X", you say
"sure" and go about throwing together an app to meet the spec.  What happens after the jobs done and there is a new framework release, or a security problem with the existing app?  How do you handle approaching the client for additional funding to "keep the rails version fresh" or "fix a potential issue with XSS"? Do you bake it into your initial contract? The whole thing seems fraught with danger to me.
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frossie
Well I'm not at all your target audience for this question, but this is a
standard software issue. The important thing to remember is that we developers
care a lot more about software versions than "civilians" do; and the real
reason we care is that we know that an up-to-date installation is easier to
maintain.

In other words, in the paid software world I expect this is covered under
maintenance contracts. The person holding the maintenance contract may or may
not be the original developer I suppose - but surely those issues are covered
in their agreement.

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bjplink
I have maintenance deals with almost 100% of my clients (either with a monthly
fee or a by-the-hour agreement). The only time I don't charge is when the
error or problem is a direct result of something I've done.

I have an industry specific suite of content management systems and utilities
so typically a mistake found by one client is a problem for them all. Not
charging for fixing your own mistakes helps generate a little goodwill.

