Does Alphasim actually WANT to sell aircraft?

[Warrant]

Tonight i wanted to purchase the FSX T-34C at Alphasim: My old account was not valid anymore. I tried to create a new account, guess what: not allowed to enter a "free" e-mail adress :isadizzy: (GMAIL)

Like they are to decide for me i have to obtain an e-mail adress with a provider?? Due to professional reasons i try to avoid that :karate:

Then they direct me to a forum that no longer seems to exist....

What the $%^&*

And they think such a display of (dis)trust is gonna make me send my creditcard info and well earned money to them????
I'm not trying to apply for a job here, i'm trying (at least i was) to buy a product for crying out loud!

Well, they can kiss my T-34C purchase beye-beye :gameoff:

I was used to better service at AS in the past..... Shame on them! :amen:

[Panther_99FS]

Let's wait and see what happens when someone from AlphaSim sees this thread....:)

[Mithrin]

I think their email is still working and they can manually do a paypal trick thingie to help you out.

[Warrant]

I think their email is still working and they can manually do a paypal trick thingie to help you out.

Thanks for the suggestion mate, but i dont want a Paypal transaction. I just want to go to the site and purchase a bird with the good old CC, like you can on plenty of other professional payware selling site's (and like i was able to with AS as well untill now!). Just an uncomplicated transaction, using an e-mail adress I desire, that's all. :hand:

If they can't meet these simple and normal requirements, then...No Sale! :kilroy:

[Panther_99FS]

Warrant,
When AlphaSim set up their new store, others had similar problems like yours...

Hang tight..it should be resolved...

[MCDesigns]

Thanks for the suggestion mate, but i dont want a Paypal transaction. I just want to go to the site and purchase a bird with the good old CC, like you can on plenty of other professional payware selling site's (and like i was able to with AS as well untill now!). Just an uncomplicated transaction, using an e-mail adress I desire, that's all. :hand:

If they can't meet these simple and normal requirements, then...No Sale! :kilroy:

Actually lots of commercial addon sites (outside of FS also) are now requiring emails accounts to be from a provider rather than one of the free ones.
Ease of purchase is a big selling point for me also. I have had sites where I went to purchase something not load thru my security settings, wanted me to use a different browser (ain't gonna happen) or require me to input way to much info that I felt was needed for an online purchase so I just went without or got something else, somewhere else..

Hope you get it sorted out Warrant :ernae:

[Kiwikat]

Remember, credit card info is not passed onto the vendor...

I don't necessarily agree with the no free emails deal going on there either. There's just nothing I can do about it, like many other things at AlphaSim... :wavey:

[fsafranek]

The no free emails bit has to do with experience Alphasim has had with known software pirates. They tend to use free email accounts so this is one easy way that you can fight back. Unfortunetly, there are innocent folks caught in the crossfire. Surely your ISP provides a real enough looking email address for you to use?

Just my opinion but the new T-34C is worth the hassle.
:ernae:

[Warrant]

The no free emails bit has to do with experience Alphasim has had with known software pirates. They tend to use free email accounts so this is one easy way that you can fight back. Unfortunetly, there are innocent folks caught in the crossfire. Surely your ISP provides a real enough looking email address for you to use?

Just my opinion but the new T-34C is worth the hassle.
:ernae:

Yup, they do. But i have to request one, which i will be using for one transaction (after waiting untill they provide me the mailadress). I don't want an extra e-mail adress that spammers bombard with their :bs:.
I have Gmail, and that one has been spam-free for years.

Besides, i'm the consumer/costumer here. I decide what my point or means of contact will be, and what information i provide! Not the vendor?!? That would be the world upside down :isadizzy:.
Like going to the super-market, and @ the cashier they tell you..."sorry, you can only shop here with a purple bag and pay with cash from 1th national bank ATM's only, and you have to leave a phone number registred with AT&T only, and no cell-phone numbers. Otherwise you cannot buy these vegetables".....
That would be catastrophic for the supermarket's business, right?

Kiwikat replied that no CC info goes to the vendor. Meaning the payment is done via other, secure means. What on Earth do they need another then my free mailadress fore??? Like an ISP provided mail adress is only even 1% more secure from hacking, spam, piracy acts and other forms of criminal behaviour....well, think again

:faint:

The vendor; in this case AlphaSim, should ask themselves the one magical question....Do i want to sell products or not?
If the answer is yes; they should reach out to the costumer, and not the costumer to the vendor!
(one of the first rules of commercial trade).
As i earlier mentioned: i'm not applying for a job or a bank loan here...i simply want(ed) to spend money and purchase a product!



I 'm gonna do just as Panther suggested:

Hang tight, and wait if AS comes with a solution to MY (the costumer) satisfaction :amen:

[CodyValkyrie]

For what it is worth Warrant, I agree with you. There is always a line that developers have to be aware of, when the consumer is screwing you, but at the end of the day THEY alone pay YOUR bills. You would think of all things, making a product EASY to pay for would be a must. I can deal with no forum, lack of customer support, or tons of other issues (not talking about Alphasim mind you, just in general), but having troubles paying? The government it seems has an easier time taking your cash.

[Kiwikat]

For what it is worth Warrant, I agree with you. There is always a line that developers have to be aware of, when the consumer is screwing you, but at the end of the day THEY alone pay YOUR bills. You would think of all things, making a product EASY to pay for would be a must. I can deal with no forum, lack of customer support, or tons of other issues (not talking about Alphasim mind you, just in general), but having troubles paying? The government it seems has an easier time taking your cash.

I agree, but as I said, I can't do a thing about it. I've talked about the free email thing with AlphaSim staff several times... I doubt it is going to change anytime soon :\

[Pepere]

I now look for PayPal. It's a good way you don't have to worry about you CC being compromised. The no free email thing I never heard of before. I have a freee yahoo and free msn email. why on earth pay for an email address. No purchases form them from me :woot:

David :wave:

[Warrant]

The government it seems has an easier time taking your cash.

My government in particular....... :Banane40: (but, no smoking!)

A small anecdote from my father regarding VAT charged over water taxes:

My father talking to a Dutch government tax admin: "..it seems you have charged me with water taxes double time; first off all the taxes themselves, then you charge VAT over the taxes!?!.....". The tax admin replies "..don't worry about that, if we don't charge VAT over your taxes, we will charge you on something else, to compensate for the income loss..."

This actually happened :faint:

[LonelyplanetXO]

Lol. Alphasim...I gave up on them a long time ago. Good luck.

LPXO

[wombat666]

IIRC Alphasim made no secret of their intention to cease selling 'direct' and move their product line to re-sellers.
Considering the way Alphasim seem to be the most pirated FS brand out there one can understand the rationale behind such thinking.
That said, they need this sort of bad PR like a dose of 'Hong Kong Dong', to use a crude but popular term from my long ago past!
:173go1:
Shame, as their move to GA had caught my interest.

[ndicki]

I spend half an afternoon trying to buy their CFS3 Meteor, a couple of years ago. I gave up in disgust. For some reason I can't remember, it wouldn't accept my Visa card; I even tried getting my bank to help, but it still didn't work. What a waste of time!

[deathfromafar]

After reading this thread, I checked my Alphasim acct which uses my original free email address I have used since first buying with them years ago. Everything with my acct is fine thus far. I haven't bought anything from them in a little while for one, economic reasons, two, in my cutting back, I only buy the models I simply have to have(like vintage jet USAF/USN models when they make them) and live without the others. I tend to spread my little available FS cash around a bit to multiple developers nowadays. I kinda hate to hear this latest bit about Alphasim. The wheels seem to keep coming off the wagon over there. I suspect if most people(like me) who use free email addresses get cut off from online purchases from Alphasim or any other developer for that matter, then they've seen the last of quite a few people's hard earned cash!

:rapture:

[Francois]

IIRC Alphasim made no secret of their intention to cease selling 'direct' and move their product line to re-sellers.
Considering the way Alphasim seem to be the most pirated FS brand out there one can understand the rationale behind such thinking.


Even if that's true, this hardly will change anything on it...... I bet you that ANY product they (or we) put out for sale will be available on the pirate sites within three days after publication...... and usually even BEFORE publication.

Alienating customers, or costumers.... *gg*, will NOT help to prevent that in any way and will only make you lose additional purchases.

We have been trying to close down, harass and annoy pirates sites, and will continue to do so, but customers come first. The real ones will buy anyway and the low-life downloading pirated copies usually are NOT serious simmers that we would care about anyway.

Just my .02 cents. :wave:

[jimcooper1]

I don't pretend to understand internet security but if you go to the page on Alphasim where you Register your details it does not appear to have a Security Certificate (https)

http://www.alphasim3.com/store/create_account.php

Personally I wouldn't even register with them if they aren't going to encrypt my personal detail.

I may be wrong and the data may be safe but my undertanding is that if you put personal details in a Web-Form then it ought to be a https page???

Jim

[Nick C]

I may be wrong and the data may be safe but my undertanding is hat if you put personal details in a Web-Form then it ought to be a https page???

I'm actually building a shop, very slowly (non FS related) and that's my understanding too. A quick look at Aerosoft and A2A shows the https setup too.

I always pay via Paypal at Alphasim, so this hasn't affected me. Not being able to use free emails to set up accounts is an issue that has been around for a long, long time, but setting up a new email from your ISP can't be that much of a chore can it, if you want the add-on in question badly?

[Sascha66]

I only buy CD products, don't know why not all vendors offer their products on CD. I don't even have CC and stopped using Papal after some trouble 2 years ago.

It must be possible to be able to install a product from a CD only! This would reduce piracy - I believe (without knowing anything about the actual problems involved) that the move to online sales has greatly increased piracy!

[Mithrin]

Sheesh guys, what can I say, count your blessings. The fact alone that you all (me included) can talk about a small issue like this is one of those blessings.

Oh and it's an online shop, no face to face checks, there has to be some security rules.

[michael davies]

Given problems like this and problems ( perceived or actual level of ) with piracy and their hints at other avenues of revenue, closure of forums and steady move to GA, I would think the on line shop with direct downloads will be a thing of the past in the future.

There are three ways to deal with free email accounts ( and many places like Alphasim don't allow them either ), let them exist to all customers, stop them to all customers, remove the product to an area that doesn't need email accounts.

You don't have to be Shirlock Holmes to see that Alphasim is going through a massive reorganisation from top to bottom, tightening the belts, closing ranks and loop holes, areas ( forums ) and subject matter ( off the beaten track models ) that generate little or no revenue. Models used to arrive three or four a month, now its one every two or three months, the quality has changed, the focus of the product and whats there in has changed too.

One other point, how many times have we seen vociferous posts like this in the past ?, more than I care to stomach TBH, how many have actually achieved something ?, very very few, in fact I think the last one was the Sabre nose, maybe a few FDE ones, but generally Alphasim just close more blast doors and go deeper underground.

Every body has their likes, whims and dislikes and you just cant please all the people all the time, I'm afraid to say someone somewhere is going to be displeased.

This in not an official response in any way shape or form, just comments based on past observation and closely following forums and threads there in.

Best

Michael

[tigisfat]

Ah, but they have changed things!! A serious complaint against a developer doesn't serve to change the developer, it serves to let people know who and what they're dealing with. There are lurkers and posters here who have no desire to deal with companies they can't agree with. It doesn't matter how bad I want a MSFS product, I want more than just it for my 30-50 dollars. I want honest dealings and to not be treated like a criminal.

Yes, these threads leave a bad taste in our mouths, but they are neccessary. It's not like the MSFS world is as negative as some say it is. For every negative thread here, there are a jillion praise threads. You can't argue with that math.

[michael davies]

Ah, but they have changed things!! A serious complaint against a developer doesn't serve to change the developer, it serves to let people know who and what they're dealing with. There are lurkers and posters here who have no desire to deal with companies they can't agree with. It doesn't matter how bad I want a MSFS product, I want more than just it for my 30-50 dollars. I want honest dealings and to not be treated like a criminal.

Yes, these threads leave a bad taste in our mouths, but they are neccessary. It's not like the MSFS is as negative as some say it is. For every negative thread here, there are a jillion praise threads. You can't argue with that math.

Not arguing with the math, just observations from a long time associate from the other side of the fence thats all :).

I didn't say Alphasim are all good, far from it, they have their faults and I've championed a few crusades myself from without and within in an attempt to get a result, sometimes successful, sometimes not.

There are threads and points that will probably be fixed, there are threads that are just going to drive them away, from bitter experience this one is going to do the latter and it doesn't matter how vocal people get and argue, the point is nothing is going to change, all thats going to happen is that people are going to get more and more upset and drag in others and then we have the usual bi monthly Alphasim slash and bash thread.

The lack of free email accounts for business is what Alphasim have decided, like it or not.

After nine years I've yet to work out how or why Alphasim got this almost fanatical picking over the bones criticism for everything they do ?. Its not as though they're a rogue trader, they don't steal peoples money, the product is average and the customer care is average, yet if an innocent read all these threads about Alphasim you'd think they were the brethren of Satan ?.

I heard a whisper pre Xmas the Alphasim might jack it all in, I have to hand it to Phil, I wouldn't have stuck it this long, for all his faults he has belief in that what he is doing is right and you cannot knock a man for his beliefs, disagree tactfully, yes, but knock down ?, not where I come from you don't.

Best

Michael

[eashouse]

...
What on Earth do they need another then my free mailadress fore??? Like an ISP provided mail adress is only even 1% more secure from hacking, spam, piracy acts and other forms of criminal behaviour....well, think again
...

Ummm... how are you here at SOH? Is your email grandfathered?

Many of the same arguments that you make apply to all websites that require a non-free email address. I've frequented sites where members have trouble registering even with an email account that isn't free (eg. Yahoo's premium).

Your recourse with AS is to not purchase - the only recourse with sites that require non-free email is to not donate.

[Kiwikat]

Respectfully Michael, you are somewhat wrong about what AlphaSim is doing and what direction they are headed in.

As it was said on the old unofficial forum, things will be returning back to how they used to be, at least somewhat. Meaning potentially more military models, less detailed projects, but more of them.

Many of the decisions being made and conversations taking place within the company are leading to my departure from the beta team after the islander project.

Off to bigger and better things... :friday:

[dharris]

I too have seen these kinds of posts in the past. I have found them interesting, and informative. I judge the post on whether everone is jumping on the bandwagon or not. If people defend the company or not. I have purchased items and seen these posts and if I have had a positive experience I post. Serves the public interest. If the companies involved cares to comment and defend it self all the better. If they ignore it, it is to their shame. I see no problem with "heaping" bad press on a company that wants to go their own way against customer convience. I always try to use companies that have good relations with their customers via customer service. It is my money and I want value and a way to "easily" resolve problems. I have purchased from Alphasim in the past, had a good experience with them. But reading these posts I would reconsider a future purchase if I personally find these problems evident.

[michael davies]

Respectfully Michael, you are somewhat wrong about what AlphaSim is doing and what direction they are headed in.

As it was said on the old unofficial forum, things will be returning back to how they used to be, at least somewhat. Meaning potentially more military models, less detailed projects, but more of them.

Many of the decisions being made and conversations taking place within the company are leading to my departure from the beta team after the islander project.

Off to bigger and better things... :friday:

Well I dont work for Alphasim so I have no detailed inside track as such, just based my views on what I've read and heard over the last few months ( said that in one of my above posts I think ?, if not I'll say it here ) , things do change so we'll all have to see where it all goes, I'm certainly not going to get into a row or loose sleep over it, those days are long gone LOL.

Be good where ever you go.

Kindest

Michael

[Panther_99FS]

I agree with NickC.
And what I really don't understand is why some folks find it extremely "bothersome" to use an email address provided by their commercial ISP???

[Warrant]

I agree with NickC.
And what I really don't understand is why some folks find it extremely "bothersome" to use an email address provided by their commercial ISP???

Depends on what ISP you have. And as mentioned in the beginning: i only use one single free mailaccount for professional reasons. :wave:

[Odie]

My commercial ISP mail actually now goes through Google's mail. A few months ago they farmed it out to the google crew. Email addy is still the same, but it's actually facilitated through google.

[Rezabrya]

i feel your pain man. A while ago i wanted to buy a plane from Alphasim and then ir ealized that they don't accept free emails. I had to call my isp and request a new email and then wait for them to approve it and finally it worked and i must say it was worth it. You can use Paypal but that is a big hassle just because you have to email them and then wait and type in a username and password and all that. I prefer just getting the payed email and using that but i understand if you don't want another email floating around.

[Boomer]

This whole AS bashing has been brought about because an individual doesn't want to abide by a companies rules for doing business. While your criticism of the redirect not working is valid the rest of this is IMO just sour grapes.

Reminds me of when I 1st got out of the Army. I briefly sold cars. Well I had this .... "gentleman" come in that wanted to pay cash for a brand new car. He plunked down 30K cash on my desk & expected to be able to conduct the transaction.
Sorry.... Because of concerns over money laundering & a whole host of other legal concerns that is not allowed. I kindly suggested to the gentleman to go deposit the money & bring back a cashiers check so that he could purchase it. Well said gentleman got really bent out of shape & started a tirade.

Long story short I told him to leave or he would be soliciting the services of a proctologist to recover his money.

IMO if you are unwilling to do business as prescribed then pick up your toys & go home. Dont stand on the sidelines bashing others because they are unwilling to do things your way.

[jmig]

Thanks for the suggestion mate, but i dont want a Paypal transaction. I just want to go to the site and purchase a bird with the good old CC, like you can on plenty of other professional payware selling site's (and like i was able to with AS as well untill now!). Just an uncomplicated transaction, using an e-mail adress I desire, that's all. :hand:

If they can't meet these simple and normal requirements, then...No Sale! :kilroy:

I am with your 100% Warrant.

Message to Developers:

Make it easy and simple for me to buy. If you don't I may just walk away.

[IanP]

I don't use my ISP-given e-mail address - because it gets over 100 spam a day and I have NEVER given it out or even used it. People just spam [everything]@ispname knowing that they'll get some hits.

I use the e-mail addresses from my wife and my webspaces. No-one has complained yet.

Ian P.

[Bjoern]

What the heck has happened to "the customer is king" ("the customer is god" if you are in Japan)?!?


I can buy rail and airline tickets online with my freemail address. I've signed up at an electricity company with it and did other official, highly personal stuff like sending applications via that account.
All of this is way more important and much riskier than buying one single aircraft online.

If I were you, Warrant, I would do that purchase the good old-fashioned way. An envelope, the order on paper, three sheets of white paper against curious mailmen and cash.
Just out of protest.



P.S: The guy who bought my old mainboard off EBay actually sent the payment via mail (hence the suggestion above). I was so impressed by that that I put a hand-written short letter into the packet congratulating him for his courage.

[Henry]

Free email addys?
here they are not allowed for auto registration
i know our system will not allow yahoo etc
often i get emails for registration and get a message saying
i pay for yahoo
its a tough decision, i probably spend about 2 hours a day
checking and responding
i do understand some people using free email
i use one myself quite often
but it is time consuming to check
and hard to find out who you are really dealing with
the other end
so i completely understand
H

[Panther_99FS]

Well....
The love/hate relationship soap opera with AlphaSim continues....

Stay tuned for the next exciting episode...:)

[Henry]

Well....
The love/hate relationship soap opera with AlphaSim continues....

Stay tuned for the next exciting episode...:)
bring on the girls :help:
LOL
H

[Boomer]

Look at it this way...

If you are at your local retailer & purchase something via credit card. When you present the card they ask for a picture ID do you take issue?
If so then there is nothing to be done for you, everything is an inconvenience. If you do not take issue then why is it so very different to be asked to provide a verifiable & traceable email address?

And no the customer is not always right, they just usually win out because the vendor is to much of a pansy to call them on it & stick to their guns.

[Warrant]

This whole AS bashing has been brought about because an individual doesn't want to abide by a companies rules for doing business. While your criticism of the redirect not working is valid the rest of this is IMO just sour grapes.

Reminds me of when I 1st got out of the Army. I briefly sold cars. Well I had this .... "gentleman" come in that wanted to pay cash for a brand new car. He plunked down 30K cash on my desk & expected to be able to conduct the transaction.
Sorry.... Because of concerns over money laundering & a whole host of other legal concerns that is not allowed. I kindly suggested to the gentleman to go deposit the money & bring back a cashiers check so that he could purchase it. Well said gentleman got really bent out of shape & started a tirade.

Long story short I told him to leave or he would be soliciting the services of a proctologist to recover his money.

IMO if you are unwilling to do business as prescribed then pick up your toys & go home. Dont stand on the sidelines bashing others because they are unwilling to do things your way.

Boomer:

First of all, it does not concern a 30k deal here.
Second, reading through this thread, I'm clearly not the only individual having problems woth this.
Third, If a vendor does not make it easy for me to buy stuff...i simply don't buy!
Four, It is not a matter of unwillingness towards AS (but IMHO i should not have to bend towards a vendor), i simply don't do ISP email adresses nomore (again...for professional reasons). :sleep:
Five, "Pick up your toy's and go home" does not sound like a rational response to an opinion.
Six, this is not an AS bashing, it is a simple fact that if they make it very diificult to purchase a product (that i have to meet all kinds of requirements iot buy from them), i do not purchase. How nice their product (and i believe it is) meight be.

I respect your opinion, and reply to you with respect. I'd like to be treated no different. :wave:

[Boomer]

My apologies, I meant no disrespect. :kilroy:

Our societies growing predilection to pander to those unwilling to abide by the rules has created moral indignation within me & this thread smacks of that.

I have made my point & shall say no more :whistle:

[Panther_99FS]

Henry,
I think we need an AlphaSim sub-forum...:faint::kilroy:

[Ferry_vO]

Four, It is not a matter of unwillingness towards AS (but IMHO i should not have to bend towards a vendor), i simply don't do ISP email adresses nomore (again...for professional reasons). :sleep:

Yet your e.mail adress is in your public profile for all to see.. Simply doing that will generate more spam than giving it to a (trusted) vendor..


Six, this is not an AS bashing, it is a simple fact that if they make it very diificult to purchase a product (that i have to meet all kinds of requirements iot buy from them), i do not purchase. How nice their product (and i believe it is) meight be.


Have you tried Paypal? In the Dutch version you can send money to your account directly from your bank (Or you can let Paypal transfer it for you); than all you need to do is make a payement to Alphasim for whatever you want to buy. No credit card info needed, and no ISP e.mail either. I can use my Gmail adress for that.

:)

[Henry]

Henry,
I think we need an AlphaSim sub-forum...:faint::kilroy:
hey we have no Mods
that are that mad :costumes::costumes: do we?
LOL
H

[Rezabrya]

you say it is hard to purchase from alphasim when in reality it is not. It is just like any other a/c developer with the way they do things. They don't allow free emails because they are trying to cut back on pirating. If you have an isp which you must since you are posting...chances are that they provide a free email address. i only use my isp email for plane purchases as they do get spam. i dont see why you are so adament not to get a isp email. it is free and it will make things immensly easier and will stop your complaining.

[Panther_99FS]

We're all disgruntled......:d

How long should we let this thread ride - seems like just about everyone has had their say...


hey we have no Mods
that are that mad :costumes::costumes: do we?
LOL
H

[Dangerous Beans]

Although I've never used one yet as well as the normal e-mail addy's my ISP provide disposable e-mail addy's that only work for a short time.

Might be worth checking if your ISP douse the same.

[Henry]

you say it is hard to purchase from alphasim when in reality it is not. It is just like any other a/c developer with the way they do things. They don't allow free emails because they are trying to cut back on pirating. If you have an isp which you must since you are posting...chances are that they provide a free email address. i only use my isp email for plane purchases as they do get spam. i dont see why you are so adament not to get a isp email. it is free and it will make things immensly easier and will stop your complaining.
part of the problem with isp emails is
i at home use at&t gord knows what my email is
i can never remember it
at the office i have another so i am covered
but not all people have the luxury of that
which is why i use a free hotmail account
i can check it anywhere
im not debating AS because we have the same rules here
but i do see a valid point for free emails
i get the address i want in free emails
my isp could be henry 16789-43 @ whatever
thats why i dont use mine
H

[Henry]

We're all disgruntled......:d

How long should we let this thread ride - seems like just about everyone has had their say...
actually i agree
this aint going nowhere
H