Free upgrades for life.

pazaq · 02-26-2010, 04:15 PM

I purchased SereneScreen like a zillion years ago when it was still shareware and they were having a deal where if you registered it you would get free upgrades for life. Will they honor this with this new version of 3.0? I got version 2 but I've been using the same machine for quite a while and didn't notice a version change until I went out to download a copy on this new computer.

Just curious.

Thanks,
Shelby J Hill

feldon34 · 02-26-2010, 04:54 PM

There has never been an offer of "free upgrades for life".

You are welcome to download Marine Aquarium 2 (I'd have to dig up a download link for you). Or you can upgrade to Marine Aquarium 3 which has a totally new 3D background and 30 fish for $9.95.

pazaq · 02-26-2010, 07:20 PM

Originally posted by feldon33:

There has never been an offer of "free upgrades for life".

You are welcome to download Marine Aquarium 2 (I'd have to dig up a download link for you). Or you can upgrade to Marine Aquarium 3 which has a totally new 3D background and 30 fish for $9.95.

I guess some it was up to some interpretation.

Back when I registered it I think the version was something like V.98 and the website said...
"5. Why should I register now, instead of waiting for V1.0?

All registered users in our database are entitled to free upgrades toV1.0 (and beyond). Those who register during the Beta testing process will receive a free Premium creature (like an octopus or coral shrimp), when they become available. There may be a couple of other surprise bonuses, too

"

entitled and (and beyond) could easily be read as for the life of the product but I have my answer.

Thanks!

Jim Sachs · 02-26-2010, 07:27 PM

I never said anything about free upgrades for life. I said that all pre-1.0 purchasers were entitled to upgrade to 1.0 for free. Then I went beyond that and gave them many free upgrades over the years. Anything involving a total re-write of the program has been a paid upgrade.

dazle1 · 03-03-2010, 01:46 AM

Not that it matters to me since it doesnt apply to me but, when you said "entitled to free upgrades toV1.0 (and beyond)", "and beyond" modifies what came just before it which was "free upgrades to V1.0". This is basic english grammer. You may not have meant that but that is what you said by the way you wrote it, that free upgrades went beyond V1.0 (this is what was stated, not implied). What was implied was that there may be Versions in the future beyond V1.0. There cant be that many people under this agreement wanting upgrades and good business sense and good customer service and business goodwill would dictate honoring what was stated in the agreement. A happy customer tells many, an unhappy customer tells many many more.

Jim Sachs · 03-03-2010, 02:03 PM

This has been covered many times over the past ten years. In every instance I reiterated that there would be some free upgrades and some paid upgrades. The free upgrades did go beyond 1.0. If they went beyond forever, what would be the incentive to completely re-write the program?

feldon34 · 03-04-2010, 01:48 AM

Originally posted by dazle1:

good business sense and good customer service and business goodwill would dictate honoring what was stated in the agreement. A happy customer tells many, an unhappy customer tells many many more.

Marine Aquarium 99K was written in the year 2000 for Windows 98 and DirectX 6. When the Aquarium came out, there were 7 fish. Now there are 28. The ability to place logos, have a clock and calendar, etc. were all added as upgrades.

Marine Aquarium 3 however is a completely from-scratch rewritten program. This was necessitated by the DirectX 8 libraries. There is barely a line of code in common between Marine Aquarium 1 and Marine Aquarium 3.

You have to draw the line somewhere. I know about good customer service as well, but you are not being reasonable. In fact most of the customers I've dealt with are surprised it only costs $20 and has gotten so many free upgrades as it has. Expecting 9 or infinite years of upgrades for free is not reasonable.

$20 over 9 years is not a cash grab, so please stop trying to characterize it as one.

dampfnudel · 03-06-2010, 12:12 AM

I've been using Jim's screen saver for about 10 years now (pre-1.0) and when version 3 was released, I didn't hesitate to pay the $9.95 upgrade price. In fact, I would've paid more. The new background is beautiful and I can't wait for the improved fish models & other goodies to be released.

Jim Sachs · 03-06-2010, 12:45 AM

Thanks - the support is appreciated.

02-26-2010, 04:15 PM	#1
pazaq Registered Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 2	Free upgrades for life. I purchased SereneScreen like a zillion years ago when it was still shareware and they were having a deal where if you registered it you would get free upgrades for life. Will they honor this with this new version of 3.0? I got version 2 but I've been using the same machine for quite a while and didn't notice a version change until I went out to download a copy on this new computer. Just curious. Thanks, Shelby J Hill

02-26-2010, 04:54 PM	#2
feldon34 Forum Administrator Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 10,939	There has never been an offer of "free upgrades for life". You are welcome to download Marine Aquarium 2 (I'd have to dig up a download link for you). Or you can upgrade to Marine Aquarium 3 which has a totally new 3D background and 30 fish for $9.95. "Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed. Everything else is public relations." - George Orwell "If voting changed anything, they'd make it illegal." - Emma Goldman

02-26-2010, 07:27 PM	#4
Jim Sachs Developer Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Southern Oregon Posts: 9,791	I never said anything about free upgrades for life. I said that all pre-1.0 purchasers were entitled to upgrade to 1.0 for free. Then I went beyond that and gave them many free upgrades over the years. Anything involving a total re-write of the program has been a paid upgrade. Jim Sachs Creator of SereneScreen Aquarium

03-03-2010, 02:03 PM	#6
Jim Sachs Developer Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Southern Oregon Posts: 9,791	This has been covered many times over the past ten years. In every instance I reiterated that there would be some free upgrades and some paid upgrades. The free upgrades did go beyond 1.0. If they went beyond forever, what would be the incentive to completely re-write the program? Jim Sachs Creator of SereneScreen Aquarium

03-04-2010, 01:48 AM	#7
feldon34 Forum Administrator Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 10,939	Originally posted by dazle1: good business sense and good customer service and business goodwill would dictate honoring what was stated in the agreement. A happy customer tells many, an unhappy customer tells many many more. Marine Aquarium 99K was written in the year 2000 for Windows 98 and DirectX 6. When the Aquarium came out, there were 7 fish. Now there are 28. The ability to place logos, have a clock and calendar, etc. were all added as upgrades. Marine Aquarium 3 however is a completely from-scratch rewritten program. This was necessitated by the DirectX 8 libraries. There is barely a line of code in common between Marine Aquarium 1 and Marine Aquarium 3. You have to draw the line somewhere. I know about good customer service as well, but you are not being reasonable. In fact most of the customers I've dealt with are surprised it only costs $20 and has gotten so many free upgrades as it has. Expecting 9 or infinite years of upgrades for free is not reasonable. $20 over 9 years is not a cash grab, so please stop trying to characterize it as one. "Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed. Everything else is public relations." - George Orwell "If voting changed anything, they'd make it illegal." - Emma Goldman

02-26-2010, 07:20 PM	#3
pazaq Registered Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 2	Originally posted by feldon33: There has never been an offer of "free upgrades for life". You are welcome to download Marine Aquarium 2 (I'd have to dig up a download link for you). Or you can upgrade to Marine Aquarium 3 which has a totally new 3D background and 30 fish for $9.95. I guess some it was up to some interpretation. Back when I registered it I think the version was something like V.98 and the website said... "5. Why should I register now, instead of waiting for V1.0? All registered users in our database are entitled to free upgrades toV1.0 (and beyond). Those who register during the Beta testing process will receive a free Premium creature (like an octopus or coral shrimp), when they become available. There may be a couple of other surprise bonuses, too " entitled and (and beyond) could easily be read as for the life of the product but I have my answer. Thanks!

03-03-2010, 01:46 AM	#5
dazle1 Registered Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 2	Not that it matters to me since it doesnt apply to me but, when you said "entitled to free upgrades toV1.0 (and beyond)", "and beyond" modifies what came just before it which was "free upgrades to V1.0". This is basic english grammer. You may not have meant that but that is what you said by the way you wrote it, that free upgrades went beyond V1.0 (this is what was stated, not implied). What was implied was that there may be Versions in the future beyond V1.0. There cant be that many people under this agreement wanting upgrades and good business sense and good customer service and business goodwill would dictate honoring what was stated in the agreement. A happy customer tells many, an unhappy customer tells many many more.

03-06-2010, 12:12 AM	#8
dampfnudel Registered Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Brooklyn, NY USA Posts: 11	I've been using Jim's screen saver for about 10 years now (pre-1.0) and when version 3 was released, I didn't hesitate to pay the $9.95 upgrade price. In fact, I would've paid more. The new background is beautiful and I can't wait for the improved fish models & other goodies to be released.

03-06-2010, 12:45 AM	#9
Jim Sachs Developer Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Southern Oregon Posts: 9,791	Thanks - the support is appreciated. Jim Sachs Creator of SereneScreen Aquarium