I was just thinking about this, although it’s not something that’s going to affect me for a while yet: given the regular stream of tweaks and improvements that are being made by the development team, would it be worthwhile adding another tier to the licensing? A ‘perpetual updates’ version, which will obviously cost more, but will keep us included in the continuing work that is being done on this already excellent software? I know I’d happily pay for the upgrade.
Is paying every year really that much of a hassle?
Not really, no. It was just an idle thought. There’s likely to be a lot of users (I imagine) who will just stick with their last version, because many people are against the idea of subscription-style payment models (and yes, I know that this isn’t a ‘true’ subscription model, but it’s fairly close). This is one way of forestalling that, is all.
It just seems like either it’s going to be an exorbitant amount of money to be worth it for the LB team, or they’re going to lose out on money when you’re still using the program in 10 years.
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I agree. I like the “buy once and be done with it”.
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If it’s a business expense, it’s worth every nickle to keep up to date… honestly it becomes a b2b exchange…
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Seems to me that a buy it once model is a pretty terrible idea from a business perspective. This would mean that we would most likely lose this amazing and unusual situation that we currently find ourselves in.
This software is rediculously inexpensive. The updates and upgrades come in at a dizzying rate. Who else does this? I’ve been buying professional software since the early 90’s. I cannot think of a single other company that I’ve had this experience with. Adobe used to charge several hundred dollars a year for an upgraded package that usually left its users disappointed. Autodesk is flirting with wackiness right now although updates are plentiful.
We’re damn lucky to have this level of professional software and support. It’s pretty unusual. Also there is no nonsense with removed features trying to entice us into spending more money.
I love the honest approach, and am learning to accept the spoiling that Oz and team are bestowing upon me.
Now Oz, about borrowing those car keys… I got a hot date!
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We’ve got a Pinto with a Ferrari engine in the shop…
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Pricing will likely increase a little, but I very much want to keep it accessible to as many as possible while trying to maintain my sanity, and the ability to support my customers and myself.
To that end, there may be “feature specific” or “pro” pricing for things like built-in nesting or a print driver, which will require a lot of time to develop, but it’s not a bait & switch attempt, just a reflection of the difficulty of doing these things.
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I can understand that. Especially the nesting. I use your software every day for my business. I’m meeting with my CPA tomorrow to go over last year, and do projections for this year. Justifying LightBurn as an expense is very, very easy. For me nesting is not a big deal, but if it became an issue when billing for my time, paying more for that feature would probably pay for itself in one job.
You are doing the work of the old gods. Please never stop.
Also I’m very much looking forward to the eventuality of router specific software from you. 
I’m sorry, integrated nesting?
Seriously though, I wasn’t asking with a mind to making things more complex/less self-sustaining for you - it came about because I saw the ‘How the lightburn license works’ page, and thought that rather than give $25 per year for license maintenance, I’d rather give a lump sum that’s equivalent to a few years’ worth instead, if it helps to . I’ve always found when working on larger projects that larger-scale cash injections at point of origin tend to be more effective than drip-fed funding - obviously, that’s just my experience, and YMMV.
Regardless, I remain a huge fan of the software, and deeply grateful for your efforts thus far - having worked with some of the worst programs that the Chinese have to offer, this is a Godsend by comparison.
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have a look at Inventables with their Easel Pro. the introduction of subscription based “pro” was and is a disaster. They lost half their supporters. I guess it’s all about ensuring your “pro” features are indeed pro features
Their pro features are a bit laughable; granted, I started with VCarve-Pro and upgraded to Aspire, so I find Easel in it’s entirety to be pretty laughable. On the other hand, the base version is free.
One of my goals with LightBurn is to make something that nearly anyone can afford, while still making me enough money to justify doing it. I hope I’ve proven by now that LightBurn isn’t done for greed, and if I do have to put certain features in a paid tier, I’ll have good reason.
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Not all of us use it for business. Some use it as a hobby with income not being much more than the cost of the item. Affordability is proportionate to income. 
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