
Inessential: Last Vesper Update, Sync Shutting Down - protomyth
http://inessential.com/2016/08/21/last_vesper_update_sync_shutting_down
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archagon
This latest shutdown inspired me to write a blog post[1] in response. It's a
shame that developers feel compelled to adopt a scorched earth policy when
they no longer wish to support their products. So-called "indie" apps are
often marketed as the beautiful, wholesome alternative to grimy corporate or
open-source software, but how could I possibly rely on an indie app for
essential tasks like note-taking if it's just going to disappear out from
under me in a few years? The idea that software has a lifespan controlled by
the developer is, in my opinion, toxic to the market.

Brent: if you read this, I really hope you decide to go through with open-
sourcing the app, like you mentioned on Twitter. Regardless of the age of the
codebase, it would be an incredible thing to dig through (and maybe even
maintain).

[1]: [http://beta-blog.archagon.net/2016/08/21/tool-reliance/](http://beta-
blog.archagon.net/2016/08/21/tool-reliance/)

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doe88
The writing was on the wall.

The irony is that the _premium_ price was marketed as a guarantee of
perennity.

This must serve as a reminder that third-party cloud storages have a price as
well as a maintenance price. Moreover, iOS APIs and devices evolve a lot and
ask porting work with every new version. Additionally the more you implement
your own custom UI elements the more you expose yourself to additional work
when porting to a new device or for the next release. That's certainly why not
only the syncing part is shutdown but also the app is not ported to iOS 10 and
is removed from the app store.

~~~
etendue
Ditto. Interestingly, Gruber thinks that it was _underpriced_ :
[https://twitter.com/gruber/status/767918392342818816](https://twitter.com/gruber/status/767918392342818816)

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zepto
This is actually a good reason for developers to use CloudKit. It wasn't
available when Vesper was developed, but had it been they wouldn't been
needing to shut sync down, and their customers could keep using all the
features.

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endemic
I'm saddened to see anyone's hard work disappear, but it's painfully obvious
in retrospect that the "app store" model of software distribution that Apple
popularized is not sustainable without long(er)-term financial support for the
developer. For non-game apps, that means either subscriptions or paid
upgrades. I don't think either would have saved Vesper.

