metacard digest, Vol 1 #708 - 14 msgs

[Richard MacLemale]

On 7/12/03 12:01 PM, "metacard-request at lists.runrev.com"
<metacard-request at lists.runrev.com> wrote:

> Subject: Re: OS X Educational Shareware Market?
> From: Richard Gaskin <ambassador at fourthworld.com>
> To: <metacard at lists.runrev.com>
> Reply-To: metacard at lists.runrev.com
> 
> Richard MacLemale wrote:
> 
>> So I'm wondering if anyone might be willing to share their thoughts
>> about the OS X educational software market?
> 
> With OS X adoption riding optimistically at 30%, and with Rev able to
> deliver to OS X, Classic and Windows, what's the interest in OS X in edu?
> Just curious....

It's a really good question.  I think that OS X adoption will increase over
the next 5 years... It has to, because new Macs can't boot into OS 9.  And
there's a serious lack of educational software compared to OS 9 or Windows.

In the elementary education market, where I've got 4 titles I plan on
releasing, the Mac still has a decent market share.  I think it's easier to
get noticed in the Mac community.

Being a one man operation and doing the whole entire thing, and also having
a full time day job, I don't have much time to allocate, and have to account
for every hour.  The time invested in making a Windows version of a program
is small in MetaCard or Revolution, but the marketing isn't.  That's what
takes the serious time.  I think my game plan is to be OS X only, and maybe
support Classic too, and see how that goes.  If I'm doing well, I may take
whatever is selling best and create a Windows version.

That's in the educational shareware titles.  I've also got three other
server-based software titles that require either OS X or OS X Server.  One
is a video broadcast program that does all kinds of stuff.  Another is a
calendar scheduling system so that teachers can schedule ibook labs and
computer labs and stuff via a web page.  And the third creates teacher web
page templates.  In the case of those titles, it would be difficult to do a
Windows version and also support it, as Windows is not based on UNIX.  So
it's a small market, schools and colleges that use OS X or OS X Server to
host a web site, but there's more OS X web hosting in education than people
might think.  The biggest advantage of the 3 server based titles I've made
is that you install them and then forget about them.  Everything is done via
web interface.  So the person running the web site runs the installer and
then doesn't have to do anything else.  No UNIX skills required.

Like I said, I think the OS X market in education will grow, and there's not
much stuff there right now, so it's a decent time to get in the water and
see how things go. 

-- 
:)
Richard MacLemale
Network Administrator
J. W. Mitchell High School