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Hi there - co-founder/CEO of Helm here. We don't make the subscription optional at this time because the overwhelming majority of people on the Internet do not

Hi there - co-founder/CEO of Helm here. We don't make the subscription optional at this time because the overwhelming majority of people on the Internet do not have a static IP address with a corresponding PTR record, which is required if you want to have deliverable email. There are other ways to handle domain registration, DNS and backups on your own, but we believe the subscription is a pretty great value for the convenience it provides.

TedDoesntTalk 5y ago
How do you manage the spam reputation of the IP addresses you use for mail delivery when some of your customers may be sending spam?
- gsreenivas 5y ago
  We have relationships with key ESPs and email security providers to help with managing reputation/deliverability issues. There are much cheaper ways to send spam effectively than using a Helm so we haven't seen real issues around this.
  - dsr_ 5y ago
    The problem is not that spammers will buy your boxes and subscriptions and ISP connections in order to spam. The problem is that spammers will get into your customers' boxes and use them to spam.
noncoml 5y ago
I love your idea and execution. But requiring yearly subscription is defeating the purpose of "Break away from big tech" as I am now tied to your company instead of big tech. What's the point in this?
- gsreenivas 5y ago
  You can see elsewhere where I discuss what the subscription provides. I think there's a huge difference between subscribing to companies that share customer values around privacy and security vs being at the mercy of companies looking to extract as much value from your data as possible.
  - noncoml 5y ago
    OK, thanks for your reply. JFYI It's not what you think that will make or break your business; it's what your potential customers think, that matters.
    - gsreenivas 5y ago
      If people are lumping in all tech companies in with big tech, we should all be concerned about that.
      - Talanes 5y ago
        People who are consciously trying to de-couple from big tech are the same people who are conscious about lock-in effects.
        solarkraft 5y ago
        Not only that, those are one of the big reasons for the migration away.
        gsreenivas 5y ago
        There isn't any lock-in using a Helm. You can always access and export your data on the LAN using standards-based clients to get your data wherever you'd like it to be.
        diftraku 5y ago
        You say "standards-based clients", does this mean I do not have direct access to the filesystem? Or a shell account for that matter? Using email as an example, having to transfer email with drag'n'drop in something like Thunderbird is clunky, slow but works to a degree. Having direct access to the mailbox directory on the filesystem would make it easier to transfer out/in (assuming you already have your emails in the same format).
1vuio0pswjnm7 5y ago
Is the subscription mandatory. What about the minority of users who do have a static IP address. Should all users be given an option to arrange their own static IP address as well as to subscribe to a pre-packaged deal. They might be able to get a better price than $99/yr, or better terms. Whats to lose by having options. These are honest questions because I have often thought about a similar project where a static IP is required and wondered if and how it could support itself.
- gsreenivas 5y ago
  We might consider adding support in the future - we're not philosophically against it, but it is more work to develop and support.
  - solarkraft 5y ago
    It's honestly a red flag.
    - gsreenivas 5y ago
      A red flag for what? I would like to understand this better.
      - solarkraft 5y ago
        Company integrity/actually wanting to empower users. This unreasonably forces dependency on the company and bricks the device once support inevitably ends. That's usually a pretty good indication for a user-hostile company.
        gsreenivas 5y ago
        I'm not sure where you got that the device would be bricked. Can you point me to where you saw this? All data is accessible on local ports on the LAN, with or without the subscription service.
thesausageking 5y ago
How much revenue, if any, do you give back to the Nextcloud project?
hestefisk 5y ago
Could you offer both? It’s a cool product but I just don’t see the need for a proprietary middle-person.
philderbeast 5y ago
so provide a dynamic dns solution with one of the huge number of providers out there? there are plenty of ways to get around that particular problem (although a cloud server is one of the best). so why not provide the information and let the user decide rather then telling us all we need to use your subscription service.

TedDoesntTalk 5y ago

How do you manage the spam reputation of the IP addresses you use for mail delivery when some of your customers may be sending spam?

gsreenivas 5y ago
We have relationships with key ESPs and email security providers to help with managing reputation/deliverability issues. There are much cheaper ways to send spam effectively than using a Helm so we haven't seen real issues around this.
- dsr_ 5y ago
  The problem is not that spammers will buy your boxes and subscriptions and ISP connections in order to spam. The problem is that spammers will get into your customers' boxes and use them to spam.

noncoml 5y ago

I love your idea and execution. But requiring yearly subscription is defeating the purpose of "Break away from big tech" as I am now tied to your company instead of big tech. What's the point in this?

gsreenivas 5y ago
You can see elsewhere where I discuss what the subscription provides. I think there's a huge difference between subscribing to companies that share customer values around privacy and security vs being at the mercy of companies looking to extract as much value from your data as possible.
- noncoml 5y ago
  OK, thanks for your reply. JFYI It's not what you think that will make or break your business; it's what your potential customers think, that matters.
  - gsreenivas 5y ago
    If people are lumping in all tech companies in with big tech, we should all be concerned about that.
    - Talanes 5y ago
      People who are consciously trying to de-couple from big tech are the same people who are conscious about lock-in effects.
      - solarkraft 5y ago
        Not only that, those are one of the big reasons for the migration away.
      - gsreenivas 5y ago
        There isn't any lock-in using a Helm. You can always access and export your data on the LAN using standards-based clients to get your data wherever you'd like it to be.
        diftraku 5y ago
        You say "standards-based clients", does this mean I do not have direct access to the filesystem? Or a shell account for that matter? Using email as an example, having to transfer email with drag'n'drop in something like Thunderbird is clunky, slow but works to a degree. Having direct access to the mailbox directory on the filesystem would make it easier to transfer out/in (assuming you already have your emails in the same format).

1vuio0pswjnm7 5y ago

Is the subscription mandatory. What about the minority of users who do have a static IP address. Should all users be given an option to arrange their own static IP address as well as to subscribe to a pre-packaged deal. They might be able to get a better price than $99/yr, or better terms. Whats to lose by having options. These are honest questions because I have often thought about a similar project where a static IP is required and wondered if and how it could support itself.

gsreenivas 5y ago
We might consider adding support in the future - we're not philosophically against it, but it is more work to develop and support.
- solarkraft 5y ago
  It's honestly a red flag.
  - gsreenivas 5y ago
    A red flag for what? I would like to understand this better.
    - solarkraft 5y ago
      Company integrity/actually wanting to empower users. This unreasonably forces dependency on the company and bricks the device once support inevitably ends. That's usually a pretty good indication for a user-hostile company.
      - gsreenivas 5y ago
        I'm not sure where you got that the device would be bricked. Can you point me to where you saw this? All data is accessible on local ports on the LAN, with or without the subscription service.

thesausageking 5y ago

How much revenue, if any, do you give back to the Nextcloud project?

hestefisk 5y ago

Could you offer both? It’s a cool product but I just don’t see the need for a proprietary middle-person.

philderbeast 5y ago

so provide a dynamic dns solution with one of the huge number of providers out there? there are plenty of ways to get around that particular problem (although a cloud server is one of the best). so why not provide the information and let the user decide rather then telling us all we need to use your subscription service.