RE: filmscanners: Vuescan - Ed Hamrick - Thanks

[Cliff Ober <cdober@ev1.net>]

Bob,

Extremely well put, and 100% on the mark. Thanks for stating my feelings
in such a succinct fashion.

Cliff Ober


-----Original Message-----
From: owner-filmscanners@halftone.co.uk
[mailto:owner-filmscanners@halftone.co.uk]On Behalf Of Bob Leonard
Sent: Thursday, March 22, 2001 12:10 PM
To: Filmscanners@halftone.co.uk
Subject: filmscanners: Vuescan - Ed Hamrick - Thanks


Has Ed left this list?  I hope not.  But, please, think for a moment before
you follow Art Entlich's lead in condemning Ed.

I don't know Ed Hamrick and I don't pretend to speak for him.  But for the
last two years, I have read every message with Vuescan in the title or body
on this list.  I have watched as Ed fielded all sorts of requests and
questions from this group.  He has done it with amazing grace and patience.

Your perspective has been distorted if you agree with Entlich's opinion that
Ed has abandoned his public or is showing a disregard for people on this
list.  This is true for three reasons:

(1) You have come to expect too much.  Your $40.00 did not include unlimited
access to the developer.  No other company provides this.  What makes you
think that Ed could sustain this level of support?  How many other
developers do you address by their first name?  We all have software that
cost us 10 times as much.  We don't expect 10 times as much support.

Yes, you have been getting great support and it was wonderful.  But don't
take it for granted.  Don't think that Ed is obligated to continue this
level of support.  I personally think Ed might resume this list.  But if he
does not, please don't whine about it.  If Ed does come back, treat his time
with a little more respect, remember that he probably has 1,000 customers
and you are just one of them.

(2) Dealing with demands of product development and customer support are not
easy to balance.  Ed's focus will naturally swing back and forth.  Expect Ed
to pay less attention to this list from time to time.  And if this means
that you have to actually go see if a new release is out, don't think of it
as a hardship.

(3) What I think most people on this list may not recognize is technology
like Vuescan is not driven by user input.  What will make Vuescan better are
the same features that you (and I) paid for: better scans.  The user
interface, that part of Vuescan you interact with on the screen, is a
secondary part.  The primary emphasis has to be on making better scans via
better color adjustment, better defect removal, better noise immunity, etc.

Given a choice between supporting customers via this list or developing
better scans on more platforms, I'm sure Ed knows that development is more
important.  People buy Vuescan based on its performance - scans first and a
user-friendly interface second.

Think back over some conversations about Vuescan in this sense (look farther
back than the last three weeks) and put yourself in Ed's shoes.  Do you see
how some of these messages could be considered OT? Can you see any reason
why he might back away from this list for a while?

Be nice, ask Ed to come back and if he does not, try to look beyond
yourself.  Ed, if your still reading this list, thanks for the support from
someone who thinks Vuescan is still a great product at a great price.

Bob Leonard
bleonard@tase.com