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Ulysses Gets Redesigned Dashboard With Style and Grammar Checker
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Thanks for that info. I was thinking of the floating "info panel" that showed up in the previous version of Ulysses when you clicked on the various icons in the upper right-hand corner of the screen. I didn't recall that you could actually "tear away" that panel. I can see what you mean about the sidebar. For those with smaller screens, it might be cumbersome and a waste of screen real-estate. For my part, I was always wishing to have that information quickly on hand at a glance, so the new UI is an improvement IMHO, but if you say that the panels in the previous version could be detached and kept on the screen, I should go back to the previous and take another look.
It depends on what you're doing, and what value you perceive the new options and features give you. I can definitely understand what you're saying about how the software was basically "feature-complete" years ago—it pretty much already had what it should have.
When you put it that way, yes, the software might not be worth the "subscription" price for some; and yes, it often seems like we are paying "over and over again" for something we already "owned."
Then again, you could level the same criticism at Microsoft (Office) or Adobe (CC). Their apps were basically already "complete" years and years ago. So, what are we paying for now with their [relatively] new SaaS (≈ software on subscription) models? There is the matter of keeping the apps working with new releases of macOS, which I understand is a terribly time-consuming endeavor for developers. As far as features go, though, users are pretty much at the mercy of the developer. Most developers have some kind of feedback system, forums, etc. that let you chime in on what you'd like to see next. Ultimately, you may not get what you wanted, especially if the feature you want represents a fringe case. Your suggestion that these developers should diversify their software offerings to generate more income is a sensible one. I'm surprised that Soulmen (now Ulysses GmbH & Co. KG) has all their eggs in one basket with this.
Ulysses isn't really a word processor, in my view. It's more of a glorified Markdown-based text editor. It definitely lacks the feature set of modern word processing software. Better to say that it's a general writing tool, mostly for short-form writing. Some people use it for longer things like novels and essays, although it isn't suitable for creating documents that require tables or any kind of layout. It does have some rudimentary blog publishing functionality, but that really isn't its forte, either.
But here is Mac Rumors not Ulysses forums.
Where did you find this information?
When I look at Ulysses' App Store page the subscription options all say "Free trial" and the IAP list shows four Annual Subscriptions, three of which are 49,99 and one which is 39,99. App Store's "Manage Subscriptions" page only lists the price I'm paying (29,99 euros).
Dumped this app for Doom emacs and could not be happier! Like many, I feel this app is a massive rip off.
Thanks again for this observation and correction. I just checked this on my other Mac, on which the previous version of Ulysses was installed. Although the "infopanels" appear when you click/tap on the icons in the toolbar (as I wrote), they indeed can be torn off and "undocked," displayed at all times as you wrote (those who don't get what I'm saying can refer to the image below).
Which way is better, I don't know... but it seems like this trend away from floating palettes and towards built-in panes is a pretty common one for many software titles.
VScode on iPad? Unless you do a remote server hosting for yourself, you can't use VScode on iPad.
I using "Working Copy" and "Terminus". Both offer free student licensing and 1-time buyout options.
Fully agree. I slightly prefer WC. Decent previews.
1Writer is more casual. These two are great for repos.
Sorry to belabor this point, but I just confirmed that you can actually hide the new Sidebar and show the previous information as floating panes in version 20, just as with version 19. The Favorites, Quick Export, Statistics and so on are still accessible from the Window menu, and then you can peel the panes off and resize or move them as before once you access them from this menu or via keystroke. So now, it looks like we have both the Sidebar and the previous panes, so we didn't get shortchanged. 😌
I bought their app. When they moved to subscription, I paid the $30 for a year's "rental". When that expired, I received essentially a ransom note demanding ~$60. In correspondence with them, they compared the fee to the $100 annual fee other apps in their segment get away with, apparently regarding that as some sort of target.
You price a rental app by multiplying it by an economic ownership period. In my case, 10 years. $600 dollars to edit plain text, and rising fast. Can we evaluate value for money? Well, the text editing market is bigger and simpler than the todo list market (repeat dates, projects, now, later, maybe, sync, oh my god). CultreCode's "Things" masks significantly more complexity behind a far better crafted interface. They *sell* it for the price these guys want to *rent* their app for a year. By all accounts CultureCode is very profitable. So either these guys are inefficient, or they are greedy. Or both. Apple are complicit - we've learned they gouge 20-30% of the rent, so of course they push the model.
This practice of ratcheting up "rental" is underhand, and needn't be tolerated. Scrivener ($50) is an excellent app for long form writing. iAWriter ($30) is an excellent low friction app for short form. Marked2 ($14) generates far better formatted output from markdown.
Meanwhile, they might look to the movie industry for a warning of where the ratcheting-rental-ransomware model will lead. When movie rental prices were fair, people bought subscriptions. When they weren't, they became pirates.
Reject rented software. Reject sharp practice. Avoid this company.
You price a rental app by multiplying it by an economic ownership period. In my case, 10 years. $600 dollars to edit plain text, and rising fast. Can we evaluate value for money? Well, the text editing market is bigger and simpler than the todo list market (repeat dates, projects, now, later, maybe, sync, oh my god). CultreCode's "Things" masks significantly more complexity behind a far better crafted interface. They *sell* it for the price these guys want to *rent* their app for a year. By all accounts CultureCode is very profitable. So either these guys are inefficient, or they are greedy. Or both. Apple are complicit - we've learned they gouge 20-30% of the rent, so of course they push the model.
This practice of ratcheting up "rental" is underhand, and needn't be tolerated. Scrivener ($50) is an excellent app for long form writing. iAWriter ($30) is an excellent low friction app for short form. Marked2 ($14) generates far better formatted output from markdown.
Meanwhile, they might look to the movie industry for a warning of where the ratcheting-rental-ransomware model will lead. When movie rental prices were fair, people bought subscriptions. When they weren't, they became pirates.
Reject rented software. Reject sharp practice. Avoid this company.
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I'm looking at the renewal ransom note as I type this. GBP £49, which is USD $61.
Attachments
$60 for me (GBP £49). They also appear to be running a market segmentation / currency exchange rate gouge.
The reason they said that they were moving to a subscription model was so that they could fund future development. I'm okay with that, and that's why, in general, I don't have a problem with paying them a subscription.
But after a year of development, they jump from Version 19 to Version 20, and all they've done is move a few info panels about and add an API call to a third party grammar checker.
Er … no.
But after a year of development, they jump from Version 19 to Version 20, and all they've done is move a few info panels about and add an API call to a third party grammar checker.
Er … no.
One app that's really doing this right is Agenda, which is truly a subscription (not a rental). You pay for a year's worth of new premium features, and then when the year is up those features are yours to keep even if you stop paying.
Not sure if any other developers are using this model, but I think it strikes a balance with ongoing income and fairness to the user.
Indeed, their model is interesting. I was just musing over that, though, and wonder if it is really any different than just purchasing a perpetual license for a new version at the time you wanted to upgrade to the latest features.
Haven't done the math, but if you can keep using the software after your subscription ends just like a perpetual license, then Agenda's model really isn't too different from the standard upgrade purchase model, maybe.
It's not that different at all. In fact, I let my subscription lapse for a while and will re-up at some point and "catch up" to the new pro features that have been rolled out since I stopped paying. I really like the way they work it and I'm happy to keep buying in as long as they deliver things I want.
And because I'm not forced to pay to continue using it, they're held more accountable for actually delivering new features that users would want to buy. Versus a rental app which you have to continue to pay for no matter how incremental the pace of improvements.
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Exactly. But once you've got a sufficient sunk cost (in my case, all the work I've done filing, tagging, organizing my work within the Ulysses database), you're paying more for continued access to the software than for the fiddling (sorry, "refinement") they do with the interface.
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If you use the proprietary functionality of Ulysses (storing your data in the Ulysses library rather than external folders, using the goal setting feature and so on), you will indeed get "locked out" of being able to do anything with your data except read it, once your
Storing your data in the Ulysses iCloud library might be convenient, and it gives you access to a bit more functionality beyond Markdown, like seamless image attachments and so on, but it is a risk. I keep paying for Ulysses because the UX feels good to me (subjective experience), but I also want to be assured that my data is accessible from any other text editor too. That's something that Bear lacks: the ability to support external folders (you can import them into the Bear library, but you can't access and work with text files and folders in place, as I understand). On the other hand, iA Writer can do it too, and it's also cross-platform (with Windows and Android versions as well).
I guess that Ulysses has always felt like a more comfortable and well-thought-out writing tool for me, despite its price and quirks. When you put it in the context of a "rental," though, and start talking about the long-term amortization (?) of this thing, it calls into question whether the value is really worth the hundreds of dollars you'll be paying to "maintain" your license over the course of several years or more. So, we come full circle to the meat of the discussion, which is the value we perceive or not with this new upgrade, and whether we individually feel that value is worth the money they're asking on a yearly basis. If I wasn't running a business, I would probably say no, it's not worth it. For people who don't use it as a tool of the trade, a good text editor (and there are plenty of those for the Mac) is sufficient, although maybe not as visually satisfying in some ways.
Yep. There's no text editor worth paying for… the model for that is over. Too many good text editors are available for free because they are the catalyst for other things.
In reality, they're only adding value in their lock-in / "filing" system. If you can break free of it and work within a folder structure… you know, like computer things… then you're never locked in.
Another option with a Ulysses importer is nvUltra: https://nvultra.com/help/importing#ulysses
Would also likely work with Obsidian.
In reality, they're only adding value in their lock-in / "filing" system. If you can break free of it and work within a folder structure… you know, like computer things… then you're never locked in.
Another option with a Ulysses importer is nvUltra: https://nvultra.com/help/importing#ulysses
Would also likely work with Obsidian.
...yet there are still so many people who are paying for "text editors." Why is that, do you suppose?
Same reason as bottled water. Advertising, and the presupposition that paid products are inherently higher quality.
I love this app and use it almost daily.
Not just for writing, also for presentation and project e-mails, as I have them at a specific place and can alter the text on the fly for further iterations.
I also add all my thoughts and ideas in here and it is incredible ease of use, and much better than any other app for this purpose I ever used. I never think a bit about the money I pay as a subscription to them, as they create an outstanding app.
If you do not like subscriptions, do not pay for them and find something else.
If you do not like subscriptions, a price or a product, just do not waste your time and energy ranting about it.
I say the only reason to complain is when you pay for a service and are unsatisfied with the quality or features of that application.
thank you!
Not just for writing, also for presentation and project e-mails, as I have them at a specific place and can alter the text on the fly for further iterations.
I also add all my thoughts and ideas in here and it is incredible ease of use, and much better than any other app for this purpose I ever used. I never think a bit about the money I pay as a subscription to them, as they create an outstanding app.
If you do not like subscriptions, do not pay for them and find something else.
If you do not like subscriptions, a price or a product, just do not waste your time and energy ranting about it.
I say the only reason to complain is when you pay for a service and are unsatisfied with the quality or features of that application.
thank you!