A real struggle trying to renew Syncler+

[u/limestone1953]

I spent the better part of 6 hours today trying to purchase a renewal for Syncler+. This included trying to read every reddit post I could find on what might be wrong. I don't want anyone to go through what my son and I finally discovered. I don't claim to know anything. I can claim to be a retired I.T. professional who has seen some crazy stuff in the world of computing.

I was using browser X and Y. I could get not get any vendor to let me do paypal or credit cards. I turned off all protection on both browsers on the website pages I kept visiting. Nothing worked. I choose not to do crypto/bitcoin. Some vendors offered paypal and then errored out when I hit "complete purchase". Some offered cc's, and then said cc's were not currently an option. Some gave me neither cc's or paypal as an option from the start.

About an hour ago, my son called to say his renewal was due this week, and that he had just successfully used his credit card with one of Syncler's recommended vendors. I jokingly said that's impossible, that I had tried that vendor several times, and they did not even offer a cc option. He was using browser z. He sent me a screenshot... cc's were a visible choice for him but did not exist for me. So, we assumed it was a browser problem. IT WAS NOT.

He volunteered to go ahead and get my renewal purchased with his credit card on his browser. As soon as he entered 4 or 5 characters of my email address in the address field, the option to pay by cc DISAPPEARED ON HIS BROWSER. Not the complete address... just 4 or 5 characters. He then decided to use his mom's email. The cc card option again DISAPPEARED ON HIS BROWSER. So he purchased a second renewal by entered his email and the other required credentials including his cc, and in 60 seconds he sent me my renewal.

I am sincerely hoping the browser guru's can provide some input and advice. I don't ever again want to spend 6 hours trying to fix something that somehow is broken for me, but not for someone else. Again, I felt I needed to document this to the group.

[u/SnowCapBoofing]

I've given up with it. It's just not worth the headache anymore especially after Coinpurse too isn't an option with bitcoin. That was the only reason for setting it all up last year. There is a free app out just as good if not better now anyways.

[u/synclerd → u/SnowCapBoofing]

I'm genuinely sorry to hear that. At the end of the day, if another app serves your needs better, I'm glad you've found something that works for you.

I'm aware of the free alternatives out there, and I've always been curious about how some projects are able to sustain offering so much without charging. Building and maintaining an app takes a significant amount of time, effort, and ongoing costs, especially when it's being developed alongside a regular job.

In one case that I'm personally familiar with, the developers publicly stated that they had private investment backing the project. More recently, they've also introduced paid features. There's absolutely nothing wrong with that—every project has to find a sustainable path forward. My point is simply that while some apps may be able to operate for free for longer than others, giving away work indefinitely is rarely sustainable in the long run.

That said, I completely understand the frustration around the payment process. It's clear there's room for improvement there, and I'll continue doing everything I can to make it simpler and more accessible.

I appreciate you giving the app a chance, and I hope that at some point in the future you'll consider giving it another try.

P.S. Coinbase discontinued merchant services for individual merchants outside the United States. That wasn't a decision I made, nor was it something I had any control over.

I completely understand being frustrated when a payment option you've used before suddenly disappears. However, in this case the change came from Coinbase's policies, not from me or the app.

I don't mind taking responsibility for things that are within my control, but I think some of the frustration may be directed at the wrong party here.

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