Author: TomdeMan
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ColdFusion
June 3, 2008
It's good to see everyone is taking the time to discuss and think about CF and its future. I just hope we don't spend too long talking and justifying while other products like Railo, and openBD put their efforts into development and a more proactive marketing strategy.
Software is heading down the same path as music and movies on the internet. While the MPAA has spent years attempting to get things under control, they have only wasted the time and money involved. Now, artists and independent movie makers have made their own way using the new technologies available. I know it's not as easy for Adobe to cash in on tickets and merchandise, but I am sure they are intelligent enough to find the equivalent.
I don't have the answer, but if I had to make an off the cuff decision, I like the sound of distributing Standard for free and charging for Enterprise. It would allow for CF to be evaluated by more then just developers. Rather then pleading CF's case and trying to show management why its worth the $, let the smaller companies create some jobs and buzz with the Standard Edition. We are a dying breed, but we are not dead. You can rebut that all you want, but tell me how often you hear 'Coldfusion? No body does Coldfusion anymore.'
Truth is, Adobe hold the reigns to a lot of our livelihood. We've been doing this so long, and most of us have a passion for it. There'd be nothing worse then having to let go and move into something new at this stage of the game. I don't think anyone means to point fingers or stir the pot, but its a political conversation and thats usually what happens.
I am grateful Adobe picked up Coldfusion and didn't abandon it. But Adobe is not depending on income from Coldfusion to stay alive. They also have one of the best anti-piracy schemes in place for their other software packages. They should realize the opportunity to be a part of the future. Acrobat.com and Google's suite of online applications are taking the food out of giants like Microsoft's mouth. CF gives us the power to create RIAs and services like this. GIVE us that power, and let us be proud to thank you with a link back POWERED BY ADOBE icon. External links from trusted sites are the new gold in the SEO world.
Adapt. Please.
Comments:
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phill.nacelli says:
<rant>Why is it that people feel entitled that a company should give up it's profit margin just so you can have free software? What do you tell your stockholders, "Hey, your stock could be more valuable, but we decided that since we 'don't depend on income from ColdFusion to stay in alive' we decided to give this stuff away and not make as much money!</rant>
6/3/08 5:11 PM
Tomdeman says:
I am not asking them to give up revenue. I am asking them to find a new innovative way of creating it. Use free software as a promotional tool. CF is useless with out developers to code it. Give the engine out, so people can drive the car with a big sign on the side that says ADOBE. Call it an increased cost in marketing to increase return.
6/3/08 5:15 PM
todd sharp says:
Developer Edition = Free. Nuff said.
6/3/08 5:17 PM
TomdeMan says:
@Todd - It is nice that the developer edition is free. But its not going to mean much if all the upcoming developers are being taught .net and php.
CF was taught when I was in college and it was my favorite class. It started me out on this CF journey. That same school has now switched to .net and php because it gives the students a better chance of landing a job when they graduate. That should tell us something.
The powers that be see the job pool and the demand. When a company starts up they put together a budget, and if they had no knowledge of CF (or alternatives), then chances are research will indicate the popularity of these other languages and the reduced cost. Not to mention the community and the support behind them, as well.
Its a matter of keeping up with our competition. Survival of the fittest. I'd love nothing more then for CF to make another run at the market. I am just suggesting that there is a better way to state a case, then 'justification'.
Here buy this used BMW, it's used and has some mileage on it, but it's a BMW. Hmmm...No thanks, times are tight and I feel safer if I go with this new Kia with the 100k mi. / 10 yr warranty instead. Thats the way people think these days. Its not always about the quality of the service, unfortunately.
6/3/08 5:43 PM
Oscar Arevalo says:
One thing that always makes me wonder when I hear the "make standard free, charge for enterprise" is that, if Standard is free, and ColdFusion is basically a Java application, what is gonna stop the "community" of recreating every feature in the Enterprise version using free/open source technologies (think Lucene vs Verity)?
I mean, on one hand it would be great for me since I wouldn't ever need to pay again for ColdFusion (and still have access to every feature of the Enterprise product), but what about the Adobe? that could cut directly into their revenue, ergo, why bother with ColdFusion anymore?
6/3/08 6:45 PM
Oscar Arevalo says:
@Todd,
Yes, Developer edition is free, but I think Tom is referring to a version of ColdFusion that can be used on live/production environments
6/3/08 6:47 PM
Jeff says:
Adobe doesn't need to give ColdFusion away. Why? It won't make any difference. No one is going to drop RoR or Django or PHP and jump over to ColdFusion if its free. Its a community thing. ColdFusion has its community. PHP has its community. RoR and Django are grabbing those abandoning PHP. Face it, CF's competition is .Net and Java. Where is .Net, Java, and CF's core business? Enterprise. Forget open source. CF will never compete with open source. Can it win against .Net and Java? No, but it can keep its small slice of the enterprise pie. Will it ever gain marketshare? I doubt it. Will it lose marketshare? Probably, but that doesn't mean it will stop selling as many copies as it does now. Once you realize what market ColdFusion is in, you can make a better decision about whether you want to remain developing with ColdFusion.
6/4/08 10:52 AM
Jake Munson says:
@Jeff,
If your logic is true, then no technology would EVER take markeshare away from another. We'd all still be using IBM PCs, because Windows would be a waste of time. We'd all be programming in Cobol. I don't get your logic. Companies come in ALL THE TIME and convince developers and IT managers to give their product a try. How did RoR become so popular? They had a good offering, and people had nothing to lose to give it a try. With CF, people have pay a lot of money to get started. When Adobe is telling everybody to pay thousands of dollars for CF, while all the competition is free...it's a tough sell.
6/5/08 2:54 AM
Pat says:
I've been developing in ColdFusion for 8 years and think it's a great platform, and definitely better than most people give it credit for. But looking for a new job, it is striking how there are zero open positions for ColdFusion programmers. I knew it wasn't as widely used as .NET and Java, but I had no idea it was to this degree. There are tons of listings for .NET, J2EE, PHP, Perl, Ruby, you name it but I don't see anyone looking for CF.
6/13/08 4:09 AM
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