"AW" = Andrew Warren
"JM" = James Musselman

AW > 4.  There's nothing wrong with adjusting your rate in proportion
AW > to the product's value to the client.  I have three rates, for
AW > example, for software development:

JM > What happens when the "high rate" client finds out about the
JM > other rates?

    James:

    It's easy to miss subtle nuances in e-mail, so rather than
    getting upset by what I (probably mistakenly) see as an
    implication that I'm gouging certain clients, let me clarify:

        1.  I don't have high-rate "CLIENTS"; I have high-rate
        PRODUCTS. If a client wants to build and sell a million
        electronic gadgets, each of which contains my software, I
        charge him a certain rate for that work.  If he then
        discovers that he needs some software for a test-fixture in
        his factory, I'll often charge him a different rate.

        2.  My pricing structure is no secret; most of my clients
        are aware of it.  As I said, THERE'S NOTHING WRONG with
        having a different rate for different products.

AW > My standard contract guarantees free software bug-fixes
AW > forever, for instance.  Lots of people tell me this is stupid,
AW > but I don't mind... I think the guarantee's important, and
AW > besides, it doesn't get used very often.

JM > It sounds like you don't write very complex programs, or maybe
JM > you are the first programmer to achieve perfection, or how do
JM > you define a bug?  Do you work for companies that never change
JM > their minds?

    Sigh... Again, I'll assume that I'm reading too much into your
    questions, so I'll just take them at face value.

    From paragraph 5c of my contract, which relates to the "free
    bug-fixes forever" warranty:

        i.  Definition. A "defect", for the purposes of this
        provision, is any element of the Product which does not
        substantially comply with the specifications referenced in
        Paragraph 1.

    Clients change their minds ALL THE TIME; changes to the spec,
    however, are not bugs.

    As for your "you don't write very complex programs, or maybe you
    are the first programmer to achieve perfection" comment...
    When's the last time you found a software bug in your VCR, your
    car's ignition controller, etc.?

    As one of the more-clever software-tools companies once said in
    their print ads, "40 million VCRs can't be wrong".  I closed my
    last message with a long description of the difference between a
    garage-built "program" and a professional "program product"; the
    difference between them, and the largest reason for the cost
    difference between them, is the TESTING.

AW > When you build a REAL product for a REAL company, however,
AW > thingsare different... You'll need to have Gerber files,
AW > drill tapes, silkscreens, assembly drawings, etc.; your code
AW > will probably have to be written to a higher standard; you'll
AW > need to find REAL sources (and maybe second sources) for all
AW > the parts; etc.

JM > You're very optimistic about most companies being so capable!!

    You're right; they're often NOT capable of doing all that...
    Which is why they hire me.

    -Andy

=== Andrew Warren - fastfwd@ix.netcom.com                 ===
=== Fast Forward Engineering - Vista, California          ===
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