I make games and other software
by Steve Pavlina, founder of Dexterity Software. Reproduced with permission. Part of a series. In the Association of Shareware Professionals newsgroups, we often discuss whether or not it’s worthwhile to create a business plan for one’s shareware business. There is often much confusion about what level of planning is appropriate for small companies in our rapidly …
by Steve Pavlina, founder of Dexterity Software. Reproduced with permission. Part of a series. Many independent developers are skilled at networking a home office, but they’re often lacking in the area of human networking. In early 1999, I knew my lack of networking was going to hold me back if I didn’t do something about it. …
by Steve Pavlina, founder of Dexterity Software. Reproduced with permission. Several months ago I decided to conduct an informal but lengthy study of successful shareware businesses. The primary question I asked was this: Why are some shareware developers more successful than others? I looked at dozens of shareware businesses with sales ranging from only a few …
by Steve Pavlina, founder of Dexterity Software. Reproduced with permission. Part of a series. Given all the responsibilities that shareware authors face, it isn’t surprising that they seldom take the time to conduct project postmortems. A postmortem is a procedure whereby you summarize a project’s history and analyze its positive and negative aspects. The goal of …
by Steve Pavlina, founder of Dexterity Software. Reproduced with permission. Part of a series. Many independent developers eventually find themselves in a situation where they must negotiate a contract for the first time, such as for a publishing deal. And many developers are taken advantage of on their first deal because of a lack of basic …
by Steve Pavlina, founder of Dexterity Software. Reproduced with permission. Have you ever had the experience of looking back on your week with the sinking feeling that you didn’t get as much done as you’d hoped? When building a business, your time is perhaps your most valuable asset, and your income is a direct result of …
by Steve Pavlina, founder of Dexterity Software. Reproduced with permission. Part of a series. A frequent complaint from indie developers is that indie team projects commonly fall apart without ever releasing a finished game. While it’s very difficult to complete a game as a lone wolf developer, some report that it’s even harder to form a …
by Steve Pavlina, founder of Dexterity Software. Reproduced with permission. Part of a series. Why is it that some shareware developers seem to be hugely successful in financial terms, growing their sales from scratch to generate tens of thousands of dollars in income, while the vast majority struggle to generate even a handful of sales? The …