I was surprised at the mail I received this morning to say the least. But I am going to remain reserved in my judgments until some kind of reaction is necessitated.
I consider myself lucky because I never had to go through a UBB phase. I never liked the board, and I came right to W3T and myself and my users have enjoyed it ever since.
I don't believe for a second Scream would make any decision to jeopardize a project which has been his baby for over 5 years. I trust him to make the best decision for himself, W3T and, most importantly, for us.
If InfoPop can provide him with a larger development staff and a shorter generation time, I'm all for it, especially if that allows the incorporation of the essential features we've been needing for a long time.
However, I like many others, am wary of the change in business practices. Regardless of how good the product is in the future, if I have to pay 100 dollars a year and still not own the product, it's simply not worth it. One of the greatest benefits of W3T as it stands is its licensing. Even if you don't want to pay anymore, that W3T v3.0 is still yours, and you're welcome to hack it up as long as you need. And that puts the power in the hands of the end-user.
And when it comes down to it, thats what W3T is all about. Power and flexibility for the admin and for the users. I'll keep my fingers crossed that when the dust settles, it will still be the product we've all come to love and support.
