In the last 2 months a lot of time has been consumed by certain business development threads and some tough business decisions. I will share more news on these threads as soon as I possibly can.
Sometimes it’s hard even for us to remember that we’re still a tiny start-up with less than a handful of people spread across multiple time zones. We’re fortunate that we’ve created such a stir with excited users, but we also have to be mindful of our limitations right now and mindful of how we’re setting and meeting your expectations.
- We originally estimated that we would complete all 3 phases in 12 weeks. We have been able to complete 2 phases but still continue to work on the 3rd phase. As of today, we do not have a concrete date for the General Availability of Scrybe, but we do feel it is within our grasp and we will try our best to actively use this venue to keep you posted on developments and milestones as we reach them.
- We have not been as timely as we would have liked in the last few weeks on build updates and on our user forum. Our mistake was not being as candid with you as we should have and by not providing as much visibility as we always had envisioned for our users. That changes today, and I as I said earlier, we are trying our best to actively use this blog for updating you on developments and milestones as we reach them.
We realize our execution is lagging, but hopefully you can chalk this up to a learning experience and continue to hold us to our word as we hold ourselves to the standard with which we set out. By now our build includes all the features shown in the intro video and we are actively working on sharing and user reported issues.
Thank you for your continued support and feedback.
Sabika
Scrybe Blog 
Sabika and the iScrybe team…
For as many angy people that are out there….there are just as many patient people like myself that appreciate your hard work and understand (even if it’s only a small understanding) what you’re going thru.
While I will admit that iScrybe has taken us on a rollercoaster of highs and low….I still remain excited and will continue to check back often for updates on this break-thru product.
I trust you and your team’s judgement to release it to the general public when you deem fit.
Good luck…and God speed!
Thank you.
That’s more like it. Thanks Sabika.
We’ll hold you to your word on keeping with regular updates…
Thank you for what I believe is a genuinely sincere response to all of our concerns. I truly have high hopes for this product and am pleased to see you addressing ALL of the problems in both your product and public relations.
Thanks again for your goodwill!
Bobert
I can just imagine the pressure you are under. It looks like this product will be revolutionary and you are communicating. Keep your eye on the prize.
Thanks for this, Sabika. I sincerely believe that communication like this will turn out to be a good investment of time, scarce though time obviously is.
It would make a good business school case study on how not to handle a start-up, and how to piss off potential customers. Do you have any business people involved in your start-up?
Wow – Shocking…maybe they need more beta testers…
Thank you for your sincere post. We look forward for more updates.
Thank you all for such supportive comments. 🙂
Sabika
Thank you for your honesty Sabika, good luck for the rest of the launch
If I were you, I would release some more invits, people like me gets highly frustrated not being invited and seeing this kind of post doesn’t help build future confidence into your product.
Didier
I’m afraid your time to market is way too long. You have made a text book error and provided a valid case study on how not to introduce a product. Lucky for you though the poor disillusioned locked out users are currently only a small minority with no mainstream headlines to speak of that could significantly harm the company’s reputation.
Your product had better be good, or the subsequent noise from the long waiting crowd could cause disaster. Hype always has a flip side.
I’m sure everyone appreciates candor but at this point more ink will not make a difference. It’s too late for that. Actions speak louder, and in this case, would scream. I would encourage you to post less, and deliver more. There should be no down side to simply releasing the beta (after your phase 2 ) to everyone who has signed up and then closing the sign up sheet on the front page until you are ready to really go live (something that should have been done long ago.) If you fear new beta usage will crush your infrastructure, then your problems are much bigger than expected. Your challenge now is to prove us wrong. Release the beta, and live with any consequences. These cannot be worse than what is out there already.
NB I couldn’t disagree more with the prior post : “…though the poor disillusioned locked out users are currently only a small minority with no mainstream headlines to speak of…”. Users who sign up to commit their time for beta testing are the most influential minority you can ever hope to have on your side. You cannot afford to run this risk.
I have to wonder how many of the nay-sayers have developed and launched their own product?
Stay with it Sabika..this is a fascinating and promising product which I’m sure will draw enthusiastic support and have positive impact on the re-unification of currently stove-piped and scattered information.
Cheers!
Keep up the work, let the results speak for themselves.
“Firefox 3 To Support Offline Apps….Firefox 3 will deliver support for offline applications. This is significant because you’ll be able to use your web apps – like Gmail, Google Docs & Spreadsheets, Google Calendar, etc – in the browser even when offline.”
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/firefox_3_offline_apps.php
This is exactly the kind of post/communication that goes miles to keeping your potential customer base feel appreciated. Thanks. I highly recommend that transparency and constant communication stay high priorities — even amidst everything else…
Sabika,
Are you able to state (specifically) what needs to be done before Scrybe is released, and a realistic timeframe?
Hi,
I don’t want to be a would-be beta tester of your product–I already have enough pain and frustration in my life.
I would, however, like to be a user of the final version of that elegant program envisioned in your video. Take your time, get the technology and interface right, deliver on the promise shown in the video. I’ll check back in a month and see how you are progressing.
It’s called vaporware. Look into it.
Consider me a supporter, and of the frank communication exhibited in your last message. I am in software development myself (product manager), six months into a two-year development cycle for a brand new product. Chin up – and if you do need another beta tester, unlike some others, I would happily offer my services.
I’m another of those yearning to play with Scrybe since early October, but I also understand the challenge you set for yourselves. Your growing understanding of the need for candid and current communication even as you make good progress on Scrybe will keep me engaged, following every word, anticipating my eventual access and the ability to assist you in developing the software.
Best wishes,
John
I have spent a considerable amount of time searching for an online “Getting Things Done” solution, combined with a decent calendar and note storing facility. Whilst there are many fairly good online tools out there, I would be interested to see how Scrybe could be utilised / developed to provide a first class hub for organising, planning and generally improving productivity.
The demo looks as if Scrybe will be both intuitive and enjoyable to use, meaning that it is considerably more likely to actually survive as a solution.
Good luck with the ongoing beta which I would happily participate in.
Wow. I just dropped by because I signed up for the beta / mailing list and hadn’t heard anything in a long time. And here I find that you’re not only thoughtful about interaction design, but you’re also resisting the usual time-to-market BS.
Bravo, guys. Take the time to get it right.
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