LK, as a daily visitor to the GOTD site, I wanted to compliment you on your thought provoking suggestions and post.

The quality of the software and services that is being offered here by GOTD is so contingent on the quality of the SW vendors that they are able to persuade on the merits of participating in such a marketing strategy/practice. That is to give away just enough of their commodity for just long enough to generate greater interest in their products to result in driving up revenue for the SW company/developers.

I'm sure this is not an easy sale for the GOTD folks, especially with those established SW vendors who have known & well established product(s) already in the SW marketplace. These companies no doubt have less to benefit from the giving away of their commerce than a startup/fledgling group that is trying to create some buzz around their products.

Considering these existing conditions / obstacles, I think GODT has done a remarkable job in attracting some top quality vendors to participate, but there is no way they are going to be able to negotiate that unbelievable giveaway product everyday of the week.

So I like your ideas, but I can also see some real challenges for GOTD concerning your suggestions. They have attracted a base of loyal daily traffic and appeal by establishing themselves as the "one new commercial software pack a day" site. I'm sure that the 24 hour get it / activated it or miss the opportunity for the free offer results in many patrons taking a chance by downloading and trying out new products that they might otherwise pass on. If people had several days to mull over software options, reading others negative/positive comments and then have a 48 hours period to actually download the software could be a deal breaker for negotiating with some of quality companies that have partnered with GOTD.

I would also venture to say that the staff at GOTD are probably time/resource strapped and for them to accommodate acquiring flash demos, write ups, a "voting system for peoples desired software" and then deal with all the feedback that this would generate could be a real drain on their operation. This could actually generate more ranting in the post than we actually already see today.

Just some of my meandering thoughts around your suggestions. I do like the fact that there are individuals like yourself who offer up creative suggestions to try improve on what I think is really a great service.

Yeah, I was stoked when I fired up my new lappy and saw office 2003 pro....until I launched Word and it asked if i wanted to register with a cd key or continue with the trial.
I was able to get MS to give me Office 2007 Pro for free, so I'm good. I want to a Enterprises Launch Event, and that was the door prize. Not bad for a day off work and 600 miles round trip. =)
GAOTD is easier for sure!

Oh MS does that everyday with MS Office too. It will run for a 60 day trial and quit. Although GAOTD software lasts as long as your computer(s) does.

Not the trial of Vista. What you are thinking of is the free Upgrade. The trial was full Vista Ultimate for 60 days, then it expired, as in no longer allowing you to log in without a full version cd key.

Microsoft offered Vista for free for 60 days? Really? Didn't you have to purchase a new computer to qualify for that deal?

Hi all,
In the slurry of whining about todays app, there was one comment that I feel deserves expansion. The poster said ". . . but I think GOTD is going to hit problems if too many offers-of-the-day constitute commercial software which doesn’t do anything already managed by freeware"
It does look like GAOTD is running into a problem with offering very highly desireable apps every day, and may be slipping into the trap of offering quantity over quality.
Based on that assumption, I have a suggestion.
Gather a list of say 4 apps, write on accurate descriptions, maybe some flash demo's. Then do a poll to see which 2 apps visitors would like to see offered as the GAOTD. Post each one for 2 days of the week. So, you have a 3 day poll time, a two 2 day giveaways each week. That will allow you to offer stuff that more people will want, cut down on the whining about the apps you do give, and reduce the chance that people will stop visiting because they assume it will just be another unwanted app, and it will allow you to offer higher quality apps, and not slip into the quantiy trap.

As for the visitors who are so harsh with these people, a few words. The apps given here are intended as a sales tool.
Did Microsoft offer Vista for free for a day? No, it was for 60 days and done. What are you gonna do after the 60 days is gone? Roll back to XP? Doubtful. They got you by the short and curlies!
Who else will offer a commercial app for free for a day? Forget whether you want it of not. Or even if it's any good. It's free because they want you to look at their other products, and hope that the given product will encourage that. They may fail in that when they offer a commercial app that they know isn't as good as freeware. Heck, the whole world buys Windows and we all know Linux is free and better, but it doesn't stop us from buying Windows, does it? When you donnt think an app is worth your time to dl and install, flame the vendor. With enough burns, they will stop offering their junk.
Most of the time, the flames are for an app not being useful for some. Some apps are gonna appeal to some people, not all to all.

Thanks
Keith