It interesting for me to note that recently developments in software packages I use have only made cosmetic changes to the product, i.e. new shiny buttons, instead of making major changes to functionality. This frustrates me. If a product is working well and it has positive feedback from the public, by and large, why would you change it just to change it? This mentality is so ingrained in the software industry that it’s enough to make you want to cry. Take a look at any product you like be it: Windows, Snow Leopard, Word and even a lot of open source packages and you can see that these changes are changes for the sake of change, a lot of the times as a profit driven motive to make the same people, loyal people, buy a product that has very little new value for them.
Having been involved in software development for a short period, I have to admit that there is a level of competitiveness in the field that drives you to make changes. Having said that, there is a lot of ‘development’ which is nothing more than changing clothes and putting new shiny buttons on the package instead of iterative development. I am thinking of a certain financial package that has become the God of accountants in Australia. The same product has had the same basic functionality for years yet they keep making changes and slugging their customers each cycle. Having used a version from 5 years ago and recently seeing one that has undergone 5 development cycles, I can say that it looks almost the same. Yet, the company in question, had to pay $400 for a license for the new one and God knows much for the ones inbetween.
This has to stop, it’s nothing but a profit driven licensing model that has been a scam since the beginning. It’s as bad as Microsoft charging people to use their development tools to make software for Windows!
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