[Coco] Software offer and Drive Pak solution

[Roger Taylor]

At 01:35 AM 9/17/2010, you wrote:
>Roger,
>
>  Quite honestly, I don't know why you bother any more.
>  Every time you release or create something, something happens.
>
>  Now you're even being criticized for the platform it runs on, 
> which happens to be 85%+ of the computer market.
>
>  I would've stopped a long LONG time ago, if I were you...
>  Only so many times I'd put up with being slapped in the face, and 
> turning the other cheek...


Ah, where do I start...  :)  Rainbow and Phoenix are designed for the 
whole vintage crowd which covers a heck of a mess of systems.  They 
started with CoCo support then I did the other stuff.  Out of 
hundreds of customers I've gotten the typical rants from the usual 
CoCo ranters, but this is to be expected and sometimes it helps in 
the design process.  If I gripe back too much it doesn't really help, 
and money is tight here.  If I piss people off, what does this 
say.  So I usually just take the slap and move on.

As for why I don't give up.  I can attribute some of this behavior I 
suppose to my dad who was a Marine who fought in Nam.  I've watched 
this man since I was a kid work hard as hell every day to take care 
of 5 kids even when there was no hope left during hard times when we 
were almost starving.  I've been through hard times and I know that 
the only way to avoid the downward spiral is to just keep the chin up 
and never give up your ideas.  I was also born with an inherited tech 
bug.  Two of my uncles were in the military when they were younger 
and learned a tech trade and both ended up making a living from their 
skills.  Usually when times are rough around here this pushes me more 
than ever to produce another paying gadget or software title.  It's 
either starve or keep coding.  Anybody who wants to challenge my 
reasons for choosing the largest software market to try to push my 
homebrew stuff just needs to understand that it has to work this 
way.  I don't like Bill Gates, and I've never preached to anybody 
that they should go out and by all this MS stuff, yet I frequently 
hear people tell me that I've chosen the wrong base and it usually 
turns into a Linux/Windows/Mac debate.

I appreciate every single CoCo user who has bought something of mine 
that I worked my butt off to produce.  The work involved cannot be 
imagined until you stand in my shoes.  This isn't a company but I'm 
an employee because I work for every single person who comes to me 
looking for something new and cool.  I can't quit - because I don't 
know how to, nor do I want to.

The reason I'm trying to push preorders for Phoenix is because I'm 
having trouble funding the delivery of 25 remaining Drive Pak orders 
which lack their uDrive module.  I also need to pay the person who 
made the Drive Pak cases.  I need to buy more 6551's, etc.   It's a 
business that needs cash flow.  It's a struggle because it's the 
"CoCo market" which is unpredictable.

Ultimately, I've had years of fun doing this stuff and I will have 
many more years of fun to come.  Keep CoCo'ing to the bitter end!

-- 
~ Roger Taylor