Welcome to the exciting world of software engineering. Stay tuned for a rollercoaster ride of fun and thrills as we peek behind the curtain of the world’s best eCommerce software, and learn the secrets behind the masters of selling stuff online. Okay… not really. This is more of a controlled rant.

Let me first say that we at Kryptronic love our customers. We feel like kindred spirits in the ongoing Davey Vs Goliath battle of small business owners versus corporate giants like Amazon, Ebay, Walmart and the other big boys who sell everything cheaper than everyone else. We love the undying optimism it takes to say ‘The heck with it! I’m sick of making other people rich! Time to stake my own claim!’

It’s all good.

We offer really high end eCommerce shopping cart products at some would say ‘insane’ prices. Our software is dependable, mature and in its 8th iteration and we’re darned proud of the results our customers get with it. So why the toaster comment? Alright, you asked for it.

For some reason, a certain segment of folks out there… we’ll call them toasterheads seem to think that software, unlike any other product, should work for infinity and be supported for free until the next Ice Age. We’ve actually had comments from customers using our version 4… developed circa 2001 who’ve complained when their product stopped working. 2001! Here comes the toaster reference…

If you had a purchased a toaster, or a TV, or any appliance, and it had worked faithfully since 2001, you’d likely toss it in the trash, and nod in appreciation for its 13 years of faithful service. You’d then happily prance to your local appliance store, and purchase a new whateveritwas to replace it. Yet somehow, folks view software differently. It’s like those of us who create it, and sell it have no bills to pay, mouths to feed or toast to toast.

Here’s the deal. We create and sell software. Usually, we release new versions of that software every 2 years. In the meantime, we offer free service upgrades that reflect new features in the software and adjust the software to reflect an ever-changing world. Once we move on to a new version, we continue to support the older versions to the best of our ability. But… we stop releasing upgrades to the older products once they have fallen behind by 1 version. We do this because we have to focus our resources on meeting the challenges of the present, and the future.

I’m just spit-balling here, but I venture a guess that if a new kind of electricity was developed and your old toaster didn’t work with it, I doubt the toaster company would release a patch for your old toaster… no, they’d release new toasters and you’d happily march into the store and buy them without one question asked. Also, it’s important to upgrade your software to reflect a changing world, keep your security tight and support the latest and greatest changes to the server hardware and software where your web site lives.

We sell software for a living. We have no personal problems with toasters, we own toasters and as a matter of fact, we like toasters quite a bit. No toasters were harmed during this editorial. Does anyone have any jelly?