Like many here, I am overjoyed to see the return of @Louis; and equally as pleased to see progress being made toward Cwicly’s longterm viability!
The only mystery variable in the recent announcement is where the funding is coming from; whereby is made possible the promise of free priority technical support, in perpetuity, for “previous paid customers” (previous being the operative word). Surely Cwicly will need ongoing funding in order to provide support as a service.
Similar to many, our Cwicly site is running on an LTD subscription. Holding an LTD license is great; but only if you’re watching gleefully as newcomers stream in and pay recurring subscriptions.
Speaking for myself, and the company I represent, as a “previous paid customer”, who, with this recent announcement, has been promised priority technical support, in perpetuity, for free, it would make us feel infinitely more confident in the stability and viability of this promise if we either knew where the money was coming from, or … if we were paying you money!
Prior announcements from Louis indicated that, beginning in 2025, priority technical support would be offered via a paid subscription; a subscription which we fully intended to pay! This latest announcement, however, while certainly exciting news, is concerning in that the source of capital is not disclosed.
Absent the knowledge of the mystery source of capital, our not giving money in exchange for support is a cause of anxiety. If there is a heaven-sent benefactor who has seen fit to inject capital into Cwicly, please, reveal yourself.
I think people like myself and many others would gladly help support Cwicly financially for updates. After using Bricks which is grand and all, but Cwicly is so feature rich that I would be happy for it just to be maintained for another 6 months before new features could be considered. Yes, viability and transparency would be key to win people back and reestablish trust.
I will also add to that that all the infrastructure behind Cwicly is also provided for (design library, Google fonts downloader etc…)
Your willingness to contribute financially to a subscription/technical support model is really appreciated, and feedback like yours helps us shape the strategies we put in place.
For now, please rest assured that we have the resources needed to uphold our commitments (which were planned for when we discontinued development in March).
If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate.
You know I’ve already told you in more ways than one—both directly and indirectly—that I think your creation in Cwicly is an act of pure brilliance. As soon as you made the fateful announcement of sad memory, I kept telling everyone that there was some fat-cat capitalist watching on the sidelines who would eventually send a life raft, rather than stand idly as apparent unrealized lucrative business potential died on the vine. Whoever this unnamed life raft is, I can only hope it’s well intentioned, and that you vetted it carefully.
In closing, I can’t emphasize enough: Anyone who has anything negative to say can and should be ignored. Don’t waste energy on playing defense. What’s done is done. Your energy, like everyone’s, is a limited resource better spent on the future.
Believe me, I was as frustrated as everyone by this whole affair, but I’m also capable of turning over a new leaf. As an ex-con who is living a second life, I know all about overcoming adversity on the path to redemption.
