NovaMind 5 for Mac in the Apple Mac App Store

We are very pleased to announce that NovaMind 5 is now available through Apple’s Mac App Store! The Mac App Store is the a convenient way to buy NovaMind, letting you purchase, download, and install it with just one step, and easily update NovaMind at the same time as you update other apps you’ve purchased from the the store.

But to be clear, the Mac App Store is not the only way to buy our software: we’ll continue to offer direct sales and updates through our own website as well. Through our website, we can offer much more flexible terms and options: trial downloads, upgrade pricing, and discounts for volume, bundle, and educational purchases.

No matter which way you buy our software, you’ll be getting the same product: NovaMind is exactly the same program, no matter whether you purchase it from the Mac App Store, or through the NovaMind online store (except for a few minor changes made to work with the store). We’ll also keep future updates to our apps in sync as closely as possible. Copies of NovaMind you’ve purchased directly through us will continue to update themselves as they always have, while Mac App Store updates will appear on the App Store (after a slight delay due to the App Store’s review process). And either way, you’ll have the same great support from our team here at NovaMind.

Here are links to each of the editions in the Mac App Store:

• NovaMind 5 Platinum
• NovaMind 5 Pro
• NovaMind 5 Express
• NovaMind 5 Free Edition

FAQ:

Here are a few questions you may be wondering about:

• Does this mean that I can run NovaMind on my iPad?
  No, this is still the Mac application – just another way we can provide it to customers. We have not announced an iPad compatible version of NovaMind.
  
  
• Why is it just “NovaMind 5″ when I download it from NovaMind, but on the App Store, it is “NovaMind 5 Express”, “NovaMind 5 Pro”, or “NovaMind 5 Platinum”?
  When you purchase from the NovaMind online store, the license key you enter makes it into the edition you purchased (Express, Pro, or Platinum). The versions on the Mac App Store are already in effect “pre-licensed” to be a certain edition.
  
  
• Why doesn’t the Mac App Store recognize that I’ve already purchased NovaMind?
  The Mac App Store only supports software which you’ve purchased directly from it, but for some other software, you may have noticed that the Mac App Store says that it is already installed (you still don’t get updates through the App Store – it just says it is installed, to help prevent people re-purchasing software they already have). Apple does this by looking at the “bundle identifier” and application version number of the software. Since we have to have different bundle identifiers for the different editions of NovaMind that are in the Mac App Store, copies of NovaMind bought outside the Mac App Store will never be recognized as installed by the Mac App Store.
  
  
• Why are the prices different on the Mac App Store as compared with the NovaMind online store?
  If you are purchasing in USD, you will see that the prices are almost identical (within 99c). Apple sets their pricing in “tiers”, so we chose the closest one for each edition. In other currencies, Apple prices these tiers according to their own methods. We use the exchange rates provided by our payment processor. As the value of currencies fluctuate, and depending when each company updates their exchange rate calculation, the price will vary. Sometimes it might be slightly cheaper on the Mac App Store, and sometimes it may be slightly cheaper on the NovaMind online store. Feel free to buy it from the place that suits you best.
  
  
• Does your money back guarantee apply if I purchase NovaMind from the Mac App Store?
  Apple’s support pages say “If you experience a technical issue with an app, first contact the developer of the app for assistance. Their support contact information can be found on the app’s page in the Mac App Store. If that does not resolve the issue, contact Mac App Store Customer Support.” The word on the street is that it is only under exceptional conditions that Apple would ever provide any refund. However, we take customer satisfaction very seriously, and if you find that NovaMind does not meet your needs, and we have been unable to resolve any issues, we will honor our own guarantee. Note that this means that we never get back the 30% commission that Apple have taken, so please do not treat this as a trial period. If you need to know whether NovaMind does what you need it to do before purchasing, please download our trial from the web site, or the free edition from the App store. If you have used the trial from our web site and then decide to purchase through the Mac App Store, then you can just delete the copy of NovaMind you have downloaded, and go ahead and make your purchase from the Mac App Store.
  
  
• What happens about upgrades?
  As always, minor updates are free, but major, full version updates (e.g. 5.x.x to 6.x.x) are paid upgrades. The Mac App Store has no provision for paid upgrades. This has caused a lot of headaches for developers, and many many emails to Apple saying that we need this capability. It is possible that Apple will heed this outcry from developers, and make provision for paid upgrades. If they do not, we plan to make some provision for people who have purchased through the Mac App Store to upgrade through our own online store. We sincerely hope that Apple will provide upgrade capabilities – and it’s in their best interests to do so, since they get a 30% commission on the upgrade prices, but Apple will do what Apple will do – we will do our best to look after you our customers.
  
  
• How does the licensing compare between the Mac App Store and software purchased directly from NovaMind?
  Software purchased from the Mac App Store is locked to your Apple Id, which you can have in use on multiple computers, so basically it’s locked to your use. Their licensing says “for personal, non-commercial use on any Apple-branded products running Mac OS X that you own or control”. We don’t know what they would do if they caught you using NovaMind for commercial purposes… When you purchase NovaMind from our online store, your license key can be installed on any of your computers so long as NovaMind is only physically in use on one machine at a time, so it’s a per concurrent user license. So, slight differences, but overall the same kind of thing. Oh, and you are allowed to use NovaMind for commercial purposes when you buy your license from us .
  
  
• Can I upgrade to a more advanced edition of NovaMind if I purchase through the Mac App Store?
  If you have a lower edition and want to upgrade to a higher edition (e.g. you have Express and want to upgrade to Platinum), you can not upgrade through the Mac App Store. If you are in this situation, please contact our sales team with proof of purchase, and we can provide a method of upgrading in our online store. Of course, if you do this, you are out of the Apple eco-system. Sorry it has to be this way, but their facilities don’t allow for upgrades either to another product or for major releases.
  
  
• Can I get an educational or crossgrade discount when I purchase through the Mac App Store?
  No, if you are eligible for either of these discounts, you will need to apply for the coupon and purchase through the NovaMind online store.
  
  
• What if I want a license for multiple users?
  The Mac App Store licenses are single user licenses as per the licensing information above. If you want a multi-user license, you will need to purchase it through the NovaMind online store. Volume discounts start at 5 user licenses.
  
  

If you have any questions that are not already asked and answered here, please contact our sales team at sales@novamind.com.