As I said above Ben, it has been updated (bit by bit) and (IMHO) is still not perfect, but it has improved 100%. Part of the problem was the fact that the company has no (pro) web site designer. The page is very much a DIY thing, I am told the old site also was built using old 'free' software. Much discussion anongst the Skysim staff (and graft by those who changed it) has got it this far.
The support forum is worth bookmarking too, we intend to develop it along the lines of the AS forum, where previews and chat about the products can be posted. Looking at the support side, it is up there wth the better developers sites, an answer is usually posted in a few hours. The only real 'bugbare' has been the security, but it has to be done! Now I have FSX back, I am going to have buy the Hawk myself
calypsos wrote:As I said above Ben, it has been updated (bit by bit) and (IMHO) is still not perfect, but it has improved 100%. Part of the problem was the fact that the company has no (pro) web site designer. The page is very much a DIY thing, I am told the old site also was built using old 'free' software. Much discussion anongst the Skysim staff (and graft by those who changed it) has got it this far.
The support forum is worth bookmarking too, we intend to develop it along the lines of the AS forum, where previews and chat about the products can be posted. Looking at the support side, it is up there wth the better developers sites, an answer is usually posted in a few hours. The only real 'bugbare' has been the security, but it has to be done! Now I have FSX back, I am going to have buy the Hawk myself
Indeed matey, it addresses at least half of the problem, but again, as per my original post they really need to get a main stream high street distribution channel.... especially for something as commercial as the Hawk. Margin may not be great, but its better than a kick in the nads and build the brand.
Rick says that sales in two weeks, are double the total sales expected. That's a great result, due in no small part to Rick's experise, but also to the efforts of the Skysim team.
I've got the aircraft and the paint pack, and many hours will be spent flying it with the VFR Flyers.
I will tell you point blank Hawk sales are brilliant for both download and boxed copy to other retailers. I still haven't managed to crack PC World or Game yet (Game refuse to return my calls) but hopefully the PC Pilot review will change that (if it's any good).
The number ONE reason the Vixen did not sell is plain and simple - we could not get it to ANY of the other retailers at a decent price! that has now changed and Vixen sales are increasing along with the Hawk.
In a way, I feel that Payware companies not making their addons available to online FS shops such as simmarket.de & fspilotshop (surely a lucrative deal in itself? ) doesn't really help their sales, or even reach some audiences (there is still quite alot of simmers out there that are actually unaware of the freeware market, and I have the unfortunance of knowing a few).
But then again, although sales would be increased, risk of piracy would be much higher.
Town wrote:I will tell you point blank Hawk sales are brilliant for both download and boxed copy to other retailers. I still haven't managed to crack PC World or Game yet (Game refuse to return my calls) but hopefully the PC Pilot review will change that (if it's any good).
The number ONE reason the Vixen did not sell is plain and simple - we could not get it to ANY of the other retailers at a decent price! that has now changed and Vixen sales are increasing along with the Hawk.
Is it possible to fit the new security to the Vixen?
I would have thought so, but hardly worth the effort as its already been 'sourced' elsewhere, kinda closing the gate after the horse has bolted sort of thing.
Thats not demeaning the Sea Vixen, just rational thought and time constraint considerations.
In the long term I'd suspect some sort of automation of the encryption might be benificial, a brochure of 20 or 30 models is going to take some serious man hours to sort and post encryptions.
boeing707 wrote:In a way, I feel that Payware companies not making their addons available to online FS shops such as simmarket.de & fspilotshop (surely a lucrative deal in itself? ) doesn't really help their sales, or even reach some audiences (there is still quite alot of simmers out there that are actually unaware of the freeware market, and I have the unfortunance of knowing a few).
But then again, although sales would be increased, risk of piracy would be much higher.
Rgds
Ben
The problem with those sites... and they do serve a purpose....is that they take there cut, whilst exposure might be greater your return per product is reduced, by far the greatest arena for sales is the shop shelf, the real one, not the virtual one or virtual shop but the hand on box type shelf.
Quite right Michael, there would be little point in applying the protection to the old girl at this stage, however if a pure FSX version were to appear then that would most certainly carry it.
It will be Skysim's policy to assign differing versions of the system to all new aircraft releases from now on but also to refine and simplify the system to make it easier to use.
) doesn't really help their sales, or even reach some audiences (there is still quite alot of simmers out there that are actually unaware of the freeware market, and I have the unfortunance of knowing a few).
