The End – And Perhaps Not The End – For Journler
4:30 am, October 21st, 2009, Giles Turnbull
Philip Dow, the developer behind Journler, has announced that work on the app is at an end. While he will continue to provide support for users, there will be no new releases.
In a brutally honest and open blog post, Philip spells out precisely what brought an end to Journler – its own success.
For those of you who’ve not heard of it, Journler was (is – you can still download a copy of version 2.5.5) a powerful, flexible tool for writing, researching and creating. It earned glowing reviews all over the place (not least from me, writing first for O’Reilly in 2005 and then two years later for MacUser UK).
What began as a simple app for keeping a personal journal rapidly grew into something more complex and powerful. Journler soon rivaled apps like DevonThink and MacJournal. All had their pros and cons, but Journler remained free for much of its life (even if only for personal use in later stages).
But as Philip explains in his blog post:
“As the number of users grew so too did the problems. In response to feature requests the program’s code became exceedingly complex. Bloat crept in. The volume of emails increased to a level I was not able to manage. The forum exploded with activity and I was no longer able to read let alone address every post.”
Desperate for help to deal with it all, but lacking the money to hire anyone, Philip found himself stuck:
“Emotionally I have been exhausted for many months now, but only in the last few months have I reached a financial breaking point. I am no longer able to live on income from Journler. Purchases have fallen below a sustainable level.”
Hence the news that work on Journler is ended.
A personal note: in his post, Philip makes a point of thanking all the people who helped him in the past, but I’d like to propose a vote of thanks back in the other direction. Thank you, Philip, for your hard work and commitment on an app that proved so useful for so many people. I’m especially impressed that you’re offering to continue user support, despite everything.
Ending on a positive note, there’s a sign of hope for long-term Journler users. Right at the end of his post, Philip says:
“Finally, I would like to hold out a last hope that Journler will continue in one form or another. If you or someone you know may be interested in picking up Journler where I have left off, please contact me. I would love to see Journler once again thrive in the hands of a capable developer or team.”
Now there’s an idea.
Posted by Giles Turnbull in News, Opinions, Software, Top stories | Comment on this article
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Sam, on October 21st, 2009 at 8:44 am
Thanks for your warning, Sam. We’re aware of an attack on the site and working on a fix.
Giles Turnbull, on October 21st, 2009 at 11:21 am
He should open source the code, and put the project up on Sourceforge or something. Let the opensource community help / take control of the project. Since it is such a successful application, it will never die away if someone can fix and/or add to the code. Keeping the code closed and not solving bugs / etc, is a sure way to end new users from picking up the program.
Joe L, on October 21st, 2009 at 2:25 pm
Surely open source is the answer here?
Simon W, on October 24th, 2009 at 12:20 am
Open source is only one possible answer- he may be looking to get some money for the current investment. And don’t call me Shirley.
Gorbag, on October 26th, 2009 at 6:27 am
I think the core story is the operating model Phil started out with. As an unfunded venture his promise got way out ahead of his cash flow. I think that is an interesting learning from this little, sad, story. And perhaps it’s is why models like the iPhone app “couple’a bucks for every app” may be more sustainable. As a committed user of Journler I was both upset and inconvenienced when Phil’s operation went belly up.
Doug
http://www.dougist.com
Doug, on October 28th, 2009 at 9:21 am
It doesn’t sound like it’s going “belly up” Doug. Read Phil’s latest post today:
http://journler.com/community/forums/viewtopic.php?t=4431
Bob, on November 3rd, 2009 at 6:01 pm
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I used Windows XP.
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Dueceevelmini
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I used Win Vista.
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Fowsideonee
Fowsideonee, on December 17th, 2009 at 12:44 pm