I think I have layed out the Reaktor situation about 4 times. It’s not about scale, it’s about separating the module posting website from the forum itself. You’re right, Audulus is not Native Instruments. But that is beside the point of examining whether or not to have modules posted on a separate site. As you start to grow this will become harder. The move into Discourse was a seed change — fantastic. Horrray.
But look what we have. Master clocks buried in a long thread. That is not a good way to position a product — full stop. When I have my head deep in my engine all I want to know is what I need to do to fix it. I do a lot of maintenance in life and either the ceiling is leaking or it isn’t. Sometimes I walk past broken things for six months and then one day a solution pops into my head. I have noticed that looking for upsides at the wrong moment can get in the way of easy fixes. “It’s not perfect but it’s better than it was” is a great motto. But I am always still scratching my head.
The clocks matter for syncing integration. There are a lot of people in all industries who will do without flashy new things if the alternative is tight. I have noticed that, really, the forum is our collective memory. This forum is better than Reaktor’s, but Reaktors builder/module/synth management system is better than this one in some important ways.
I like the insider trading. It’s cute and I like that this is small. It’s kind of not fair to newcomers or people with limited time — it also does not do justice to the astonishing value here.
The idea isn’t to abandon or look down on this organic object, but simply table ideas about doing it even better than NI. Then NI gets inspired and so on. To me, between the two I prefer to take the loss and remain here. But I still walk by that sticky handle, the loud cupboard, the finicky window or the plant that struggles on the west side of the house. But I am also aware that trying to make something better can always make it a lot worse.
For example, as I downloaded this updated module I have to share it to Dropbox, rename it from .txt to .audulus then share it to Audulus. I am working with it, but these small barriers are mountains for the initiate.
Also, for the last 6 months audulus freezes every third time I open it. If I was nervous and performing, I might think it was some other issue and screw up my confidence and have a terrible experience.
The Reaktor User Library. That’s what it’s called.
But, again, this forum is better than theirs so it would seem to me that it is a matter of besting both.
I would think that, these days, a site like that would take a day to make and would self manage. Also, there are a lot of smart people here in the shadows that could pull that off quick and if you could track the difference in end consumer interest the return on investment would justify the transition. But I don’t think people like this kind of talk.
It’s not about making bank, it’s about having the support to repair the monastery that houses the ancient scrolls.