Mac – Why are some Mac apps not available on AppStore
dmgmac-appstore
One example is CheatSheet. I searched it on the AppStore but couldn't find it.
Best Answer
There are a number of reasons developers may not want to go through the Mac App Store:
Apple Developer account is required with paid annual subscription of
$99
Apple review process may block certain features or APIs
Apple determines that the app does not follow other guidelines (ui, content, etc)
Apple requires some features to be implemented or will not pass review (example, 64bit compatibility)
Apps on the App Store run in Sandbox, and do not have access to other parts of the system except through Public APIs
Pricing... Apple takes 30% of the purchase price
Users are insulated from the developer... its like buying an electronic widget from a big box store but never turning in the warranty... the developer has no idea who is using their product.
Time limited demos are not allowed (developers get around this by doing In-App Purchases for "Pro" features)
They (the developer) has malicious intent (rare, but can happen... more often with free software though)
But there are also a number advantages for developers too:
A great place to get exposure for your App
Don't need to deal with purchases or refunds
Support is limited to technical details and feature requests only
Don't need to build in copy protection (serial numbers, activation, etc) because authorization is handled by the Mac App Store
App is downloaded from Apples network, so don't need to worry about hosting bandwidth (an issue for popular software)
I use AppShopper.com to get information like this. In the right sidebar of every page, it shows the total stats of all the app stores. For example, as of 18 Sep 2011 at 5:10pm GMT, the sidebar shows:
Best Answer
There are a number of reasons developers may not want to go through the Mac App Store:
But there are also a number advantages for developers too: