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Need Software Made -- How Much Would it Cost?

by The Oilman
16 replies
Hello

I am looking to have some software developed, something quite lean (much like scrapebox's level of leanness).

What it would do is several tasks, primarily involving adwords research.

The program would be similar - in weight - to these:

The Toolinator

But also have a few more elements to it........ but not nearly as complex as scrapebox.

I realize its a HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE range of things I am talking about here.. but ROUGHLY -- what does it cost to have stuff like this made?

Thousands, tens of thousands? Six figures?

ALso, how does one know what sort of language to have something created in?

If there are any experts on this stuff I'd love to talk.
#cost #made #software
  • Profile picture of the author InternetSuccess001
    Hi,

    I am an expert in software.

    It really depends. If you go on the cheap, you can get something put together for you for a few hundred dollars, but then chances are it won't work or do what you want it too. (It may look like it does, but it doesn't). Since you aren't a programmer (assuming that) -- you wouldn't know how to communicate effectively to get exactly what you want.

    If you did find a 'good' programmer and could tell him 'make something exactly like this' -- a rough estimate (I haven't taking a look at all the specifics of that specific app, so could be off) -- but an estimate would be probably minimum a few thousand. (Of course there will be people that chime in and say 'oh but I could do it for a couple hundred!' - but then they don't know what they are talking about. I.e., it would be like going on the cheap. For a quality app, it requires testing/debugging/code design/interface design/licensing, etc, etc, and that doesn't even include a website, etc).

    So bottom line, you can outsource to India for a couple hundred, but it will most likely take you a year to get developed, and net result not work as you expect. Or you could outsource to a skilled programmer in a developed country for $3k starters, and then expect a decent to quality app that actually works maybe within 3-4 weeks.

    John
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  • Profile picture of the author The Oilman
    Thank you.

    Yes I first need to start out with someone who can see my idea and tell me what language to have it done in.. and where to go with it.
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    • Profile picture of the author InternetSuccess001
      Language for this kind of application doesn't really make a difference, unless you are looking for 'ultra-fast' speed, in which case C/C++ would probably be your best bet.

      If you want to send me a PM with more specifics, I can give you an estimate. Please note, I will not be in the market to do it (because I am quite busy with a number of my own projects) -- but I can give you an estimate that you can then use as a basis when contacting other people.

      Thing is, you will probably want to go with quality over price, which means it will most likely be a bit more expensive. There are thousands upon thousands of programmers that will and probably can do a 'decent' job, but it will most likely have lots of bugs, and might get more customers upset than it's worth. You may also need to hire someone on a parttime basis to do updates as your customers 'do' find bugs. (While ideally it would be bug-free from the get go, unvariably there are things that even a skilled programmer/developer/etc couldn't forsee).

      So yes, probably minimum 3k for a good job, for something similar that you posted here.

      John
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  • Profile picture of the author The Oilman
    Hey

    I found out that scrapebox is made with DElphi + Assembler. I told this to a friend and he laughed at me.. as if its old outdated stuff.

    But scrapebox is super fast, lean and mean. If I want that, should I look for a delphi programmer?
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    • Profile picture of the author temp_12000
      Originally Posted by The Oilman View Post

      Hey

      I found out that scrapebox is made with DElphi + Assembler. I told this to a friend and he laughed at me.. as if its old outdated stuff.

      But scrapebox is super fast, lean and mean. If I want that, should I look for a delphi programmer?
      it is not the delphi faster, it is how it is coded makes it faster, which means you need a good developer. language really does not make much difference.
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  • Profile picture of the author The Oilman
    Well what are the things I should avoid if I want to avoid SLOW. For example, I find Adobe AIR stuff slow. Like market samurai. So damn clunky.
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    • Profile picture of the author powerspike
      Originally Posted by The Oilman View Post

      Well what are the things I should avoid if I want to avoid SLOW. For example, I find Adobe AIR stuff slow. Like market samurai. So damn clunky.
      Adobe Air, and other similar languages (Silverlight...) are pretty much an abstraction layer over the programming language. Sometimes called an interpreted language.

      If you Try and stick to something that is considered Native Code, Like the languages above you'll Be fine.

      If your working on the internet, You'll find that the language won't really matter at all - all the slowness will come from interacting with the internet (trust me on this one *couf*).

      If you are going to be some serious internet browsing (in any form) with an application, it's not really how well coded the application is for the speed, it's how well it can do it's multi threading.

      - Justin
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      • Profile picture of the author CyberSorcerer
        Ok a few things to cover here:

        Adobe Air is done with Flash, Flex and AJAX, along with HTML so it is the like having a JAVA application running on your desktop.

        Market Samurai is stickly done in AJAX which is one of the reasons that it's slow. AJAX, running as a desktop application will always be slow.

        Coming from someone that is very verse in programming and knows a number of languages, I would say looking for someone that knows C# to develop your application. You will get it done cheaper going with C# than any other langauge. If you go with C/C++ there will be a greater change that it will have vulnerabilities in it, which isn't good for your name or brand.

        Again, these are only my opinions and everyone has one.
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        • Profile picture of the author InternetSuccess001
          Originally Posted by CyberSorcerer View Post

          Ok a few things to cover here:

          Adobe Air is done with Flash, Flex and AJAX, along with HTML so it is the like having a JAVA application running on your desktop.

          Market Samurai is stickly done in AJAX which is one of the reasons that it's slow. AJAX, running as a desktop application will always be slow.

          Coming from someone that is very verse in programming and knows a number of languages, I would say looking for someone that knows C# to develop your application. You will get it done cheaper going with C# than any other langauge. If you go with C/C++ there will be a greater change that it will have vulnerabilities in it, which isn't good for your name or brand.

          Again, these are only my opinions and everyone has one.
          Hehe, as an aside -- I disagree with the vulnerabilities side, or maybe we are just talking about 'different' types (in which case we are both right ). C# is more open to getting stolen, with managed code, etc, unless the programmer knows what they are doing, as opposed to say C/C++. However, if you are talking about exploits like memory leaks, etc -- then yes, C# is more 'noob friendly'. You will need to have a skilled C/C++ programmer to prevent making those kind of (silly) mistakes.

          John
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          • Profile picture of the author Matthew Iannotti
            Originally Posted by InternetSuccess001 View Post

            Hehe, as an aside -- I disagree with the vulnerabilities side, or maybe we are just talking about 'different' types (in which case we are both right ). C# is more open to getting stolen, with managed code, etc, unless the programmer knows what they are doing, as opposed to say C/C++. However, if you are talking about exploits like memory leaks, etc -- then yes, C# is more 'noob friendly'. You will need to have a skilled C/C++ programmer to prevent making those kind of (silly) mistakes.

            John

            I disagree - there are some very good obfuscation tools on the market that can be used to protect c# programs.
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  • Profile picture of the author vndnbrgj
    The benefit of Adobe AIR is being cross compatible. Meaning, it can be used on Windows and Apple without any extra programming. But, yes, it can be slow.
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  • Profile picture of the author InternetSuccess001
    Hi,

    Got your PM -- answering... again, language doesn't matter that much. If you can find someone who will do it in Delphi & assembler, then that is a-ok. I highly doubt scrapebox used assember (because they don't really need to -- its really only used for super tight super fast graphics optimization code)... but delphi possible (essentially Pascal). If your friend laughed, it was probably because he thought it was wierd they would use assembler. (Wouldn't make sense).

    If you want "fast" code (i.e., that works, and is written well), then you will need to pay more, and find someone who does quality work. And you just need to specify that you want quality. Best way to find it is to ask for previous examples of their work.

    Ok, so assuming you are running this on Windows systems, any of the following languages (in particular for that app) are what you can (or best bet) to write it in:

    Assembly, C/C++, VB6, Delphi, .NET (VB.NET/C#).

    If you want support for Windows XP machines, then you should probably avoid the .net. (XP is about 10 years old, so only if you are looking for older compatability -- there are actually people using those kinds of systems, in fact I do, but for different reasons.) .NET does come preinstalled with newer versions of Windows.

    As stated previous, I'd suggest you look for an american/canadian programmer, that has 5-10+ years programming experience, and good quality. You'll get what you pay for, and you won't likely find one willing to work on this project for less than 3-5K US, especially if you are planning on reselling it (which, obviously you are, and obviously they will know. They aren't dumb, they are programmers after all). You can find some good programmers on the freelancer sites if that is what you want to use.

    Don't bother outsourcing to 3rd world countries (ESPECIALLY not India. While some programmers *are* actually good from India, if you don't know what you are doing programming wise, you are more likely to find someone that will take you for a ride and won't actually complete the product. Or, they will delay it so much that you will get fed up and just pay the remainder. It is just part of the 'business culture' among a lot of them. Again -- some are very good, and I have worked with some very skilled Indian programmers - but a lot handle business differently).

    That's about it.

    John
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  • Profile picture of the author oghenez
    is this offer still open?
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    • Profile picture of the author GeoFan
      It may be possible to find local freelancers, via craigslist. Can you write detailed functional specs?
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  • Profile picture of the author oghenez
    am a developer with many talents, i can send you my previous apps you need, please let me know.
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  • Profile picture of the author pmbrent
    One way to get an exact amount on how much it would cost is to post the job on odesk, scriptlance or somewhere like that.
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