Homebrew developers/publishers… Time for a rebrand I think

[carmel_andrews]

Here’s the point I make, the history of homebrew publishing/development has its origins in what we then knew as ‘public domain’ software (or user written software)

 

Whilst the content available as ‘PD’ or User Written software was certainly useable, very few or little of that content approached or was equal to the quality of similar content available commercially (i.e. what you bought in the stores/shops etc.)

 

Let’s look at what we now refer to as ‘homebrew’ in as far as content publishing and development is concerned

 

Comparing say homebrew development/publishing and the quality of the content now (for classic/retro platforms) I would say that most if not all the content is approaching or equaling the same content available commercially way back when and in some cases actually exceeding commercial quality

 

And the same goes for homebrew development/publishing and the quality of the content presently existing for current formats like playstation, wii, xbox, psp, android and PC, like with the classic platforms, that available homebrew content in most cases is approaching if not equaling similar commercial content and in some cases actually exceeding commercial quality

 

And seeming as though on both fronts i.e. classic retro platform homebrew content and homebrew content for modern platforms we are essentially getting ‘commercial quality’ or better then commercial quality content, we should think about rebranding homebrew developers, development and publishing/publishers and update their title to something that reflects the quality of their content as well as their efforts

 

That is we call them 'Independent developers and publishers', let’s not belittle them or their efforts by referring to them as homebrew (remember that homebrew=public domain)

[TMR]

Here’s the point I make, the history of homebrew publishing/development has its origins in what we then knew as ‘public domain’ software (or user written software)

 

It predates any of those terms and indeed commercial software, going back as far as the first home computers and the Homebrew Computer Club. That said, the definition isn't set in stone and for some people at least it isn't "homebrew" unless someone has squinted as they soldered a new ROM into a cartridge.

 

Whilst the content available as ‘PD’ or User Written software was certainly useable, very few or little of that content approached or was equal to the quality of similar content available commercially (i.e. what you bought in the stores/shops etc.)

 

The higher quality backroom-coded titles tended to gravitate towards the commercial budget market; a lot of the games published by Mastertronic, Alternative, Firebird and so forth were put together by teenagers and twenty-somethings who coded in their spare time. A significant chunk of the full price market was written this way too with even more being developed by people who started in their backrooms and "levelled up" after a couple of games.

 

Only a fraction of public domain software was exceptional but the same is true of commercial software too, there wasn't really a quality threshold in place just because something came in professional packaging and the lines blurred even further when shareware started popping up.

 

That is we call them 'Independent developers and publishers', let’s not belittle them or their efforts by referring to them as homebrew (remember that homebrew=public domain)

 

That just sounds patronising...

[The Usotsuki]

Homebrew != public domain.

 

Nothing is PD unless explicitly placed there.

[+evilmoo]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturgeon's_Law

[Mclaneinc]

Carmel, why are you trying to reinvent the wheel, we don't need the M$ idea of creating a new name group to make it more saleable, we just need the peoples products getting out to be seen. Homebrew sounds fine to me, I know what it means, what to expect and where to look.

 

trying some daft new name will only confuse and hide the homebrew behind a wall created by the new name..

[kenjennings]

Half of the good ideas in IT started in someone's garage, and so are "Homebrew" that eventually ended up with a corporate logo slapped on it.

 

Instead of Homebrew, how about calling it Microbrew? Wait, they're using that one already for beer. (Though, it sounds like it fits the subject of computers. :-)

[toad]

Carmel, you said it yourself, homebrew software is exceeding the quality of many commercial titles. Thats what I associate with the term - high quality. I like the term homebrew. It implies careful craftsmenship by an artisan, at least in my head. I like other terms as well, but I immediately know what homebrew means right now...its working for me.

[snicklin]

Homebrew or whatever we want to call it is great as people can experiment and do things that the commercial world would never do.

 

When I moved from the UK to Germany as a young adult, I remember the music scene in Germany being similar to homebrew in that there was a lot more experimental music in Germany. To me, there was a lot more variety than in British music and to be honest, there was a hell of a lot of cr*p, but due to it's variety, it actually had more really good music than the British charts had. The average standard (in my eyes) seemed better in Britain, but there was more really good stuff in Germany. As far as I know though, the German charts have now gone the way of America/Britain and become very formulaic and with many imports, well, as far as I can see anyway.

 

And the great thing about homebrew is that there are no time restrictions. Imagine Sheddy trying to do Space Harrier in 3 months for a company!! It'd be nowhere near as good and it'd probably be a quickly ported version which was based on the C64 version and wouldn't be as good.

 

I'm alright with the expression "homebrew", though "bedroom coders" also sound goods to me.