Avalonia Accelerate is now available 🚀

[MikeCodesDotNET]

We’re excited to announce that Avalonia Accelerate is now available to purchase: 👉 https://avaloniaui.net/accelerate

Here's a short video of the new Dev Tools, to give you an idea of why we're so excited about it!

devtools-marketingvid-availablenow.mp4

You can read the full announcement here:
📖 https://avaloniaui.net/blog/avalonia-accelerate-phase1-released

We’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback!

[thevortexcloud]

According to the docs, some of the controls have WPF support? Are more controls planned for WPF support? I can see the logic for doing it (since XPF is a thing), but it seems odd to me.

Also the docs are rather light on technical details. EG the web view control states it wraps the "native browser engine" but does not say what engine is used on which platforms (I am guessing Edge on Windows?). Also is there a reason CEF/some other embedded engine can't be used for Linux? I saw that binary sized was mentioned but for many people that's not an issue (after all, every Electron app is basically a full copy of Chrome anyway).

The media player similarly has no mention of what codecs are supported (or what Platforms it works on). Although it sounds like you are wrapping libvlc/a Windows library?

EDIT: Just saw the 3d dev tools. Nice to know the Firefox 3D view is making a come back!

https://firefox-source-docs.mozilla.org/devtools-user/3d_view/index.html

[robloo]

Great work! Easy buy and look forward to trying these out in the next few weeks.

I'm also super thankful the business/enterprise licenses have a perpetual fallback!

For the WebView it would be great to know if intercepting redirect URLs from something like a NavigationStarting event was possible. I'm assuming it is as it's pretty standard for authentication needs but don't see the docs quite yet. I know all this takes time though!

Again, great work and congratulations on the release!

[maxkatz6]

Yes, NavigationStarting can be intercepted and cancelled.

[maxkatz6]

For authentication needs I would recommend WebAuthenticationBroker. Works similarly to one from UWP.

[kerams]

Is there any benefit to switching to WebAuthenticationBroker from the auth callbacks provided by Maui.Essentials?

[maxkatz6]

@kerams Maui.Essentials callbacks only work on mobile, mac-catalyst and winui 3.

WebAuthenticationBroker works on full MacOS/iOS natively, and full Windows/Linux via managed window implementation with native webview. Browser/Android are experimental though, but also supported.

[llfab]

I am sure that was very hard work. I like the general direction. Looking forward to more such tooling!

[kyuranger]

I have no objection to other points, but regarding Visual Studio Extension, I think the original Visual Studio Extension has too many bugs, and it is not appropriate to make the bug-fixed version a subscription project.

[maxkatz6]

It's a completely new extension with new XAML engine inspired by Roslyn.

[kyuranger]

All right.

[llfab]

I am happy to pay for a Rider like integration that also will be improved fast. Functions like "got to reference" from XAML to View Model will safe so much time that the extension alone for a ~100 € per year is a no brainer.

[PerfectlyFineCode]

Amazing!

I do however have one question regarding the pricing.

How come indie license is a subscription whereas business is perpetual?
The difference is only around €60. I don't see anyone ever buying indie license since it becomes significantly more expensive in the long run; to me it does not make much sense.

[MikeCodesDotNET]

We've seen more folks purchase the Indie subscription than Business. It's good to have options, and as the product offering evolves, staying subscribed makes sense to get the additional features.

[biwa]

I know Accelerate is primarily targeted at closed source developers, but it'd be nice to get some info what parts can help FOSS developers who are not in for the money.

For example the components will obviously not be usable, but what about the dev tools? Are they itegrating themself into a project that makes it impossible to build it without Accelerate? Will Reframe (planned for phase 3) just edit regular XAML files, so that someone without it can still modify the UI (and vice versa)?

[maxkatz6]

Are they itegrating themself into a project that makes it impossible to build it without Accelerate?

Developer Tools is split into two packages: AvaloniaUI.DiagnosticsSupport - integration library and AvaloniaUI.DeveloperTools.Windows - the tool (with other .MacOS and .Linux packages as well).

Both packages can be downloaded and installed without license. And AvaloniaUI.DiagnosticsSupport can be referenced on the open source projects too, without limiting who can build it.

But to actually open Developer Tools, you would need the license and Avalonia portal account.

[maxkatz6]

Will Reframe (planned for phase 3) just edit regular XAML files, so that someone without it can still modify the UI (and vice versa)?

Yes.

[VisualMelon]

Related to @biwa 's question above, what's the right way for individuals who aren't associated with a business to pay for Accelerate? I have no particular use for it at current (at work or otherwise), but as an Avalonia acolyte I'm keen to pay for it and see what it has to offer: I am stuck at the "Business Name" in the VAT section when trying to pay for an "Indie" licence as I have no relevant business association.

Realistically my (personal) use of Accelerate would be on hobby projects that have at most 10 intermittent (unpaying) users and occasional OSS stuff (i.e. debugging with dev-tools, as opposed to using the commercial controls), because I'm far too indolent to be doing anything more.

[MikeCodesDotNET]

At the moment, we’re unfortunately unable to accept purchases from individuals who aren’t associated with a business. This is due to ongoing issues with our payment processor, combined with the complexities of handling international consumer sales and tax collection. For now, Accelerate is only available to organisations with a valid tax ID.

This is a temporary situation. We’re actively working on a solution so that individual developers and hobbyists like yourself can purchase access without unnecessary hurdles. We hope it wont be long (fingers crossed only a few days) before we can turn consumer sales back on.

[MikeCodesDotNET]

@VisualMelon after speaking with our accountant, we've restarted sales for consumers 🙏

[VisualMelon]

Fantastic: I'll take another look later today/tomorrow

Edit: Wasn't expecting video playback with audio in the Visual Studio previewer: brilliant!

[homov]

Where can I find a trial version to evaluate whether this product is worth buying or not?

[MikeCodesDotNET]

We don't provide any trials of Accelerate, but you can read the docs and get a feel for if you think its worth buying.

[homov]

OK. I read the documentation. It's still not clear, for example, can I place my controls on top of MediaPlayerControl?

[JosefNemec]

I have couple questions:

1. According to the docs, WebView is currently based on system's "native" web view which is kind on unfortunate due to various limitations, some of which you mention in the docs. Is this long term plan for how WebView will be implemented and provided or do you have some plans providing implementation would be based on self contained distribution of CEF, independent to what WebView is on user's system? I know that you mention in the FAQ that people should consider using CEF as an alternative, but it's obviously not an easy thing to do and is something I would expect paid WebView to provide.

I guess same question for MediaPlayer that also requires certain dependencies to be installed on user's system, instead of being based on something like FFmpeg or GStreamer.

2. "Component Support" is mentioned as "Community" for Indie and Business licenses. Ignoring the fact that this looks really weird for "business" customers to get support from the "community". How will this actually work in practice? Am I going to have to ask the "community" to fix bugs I find accelerate components? Where do I ask for new features or to clear up unclear documentation? This is really not clear, not even from the FAQ.

3. Are there going to be some components from phase 2 and 3 locked behind enterprise or business tiers?

4. Is the cost going to increase as you include components from other phases or are these prices final?

[MikeCodesDotNET]

I can’t share much on the implementation details of the component. What I can share is that there is some discussion occurring about bringing CEF support to the WebView later this year.

Component Support" is mentioned as "Community" for Indie and Business licenses. Ignoring the fact that this looks really weird for "business" customers to get support from the "community". How will this actually work in practice? Am I going to have to ask the "community" to fix bugs I find accelerate components? Where do I ask for new features or to clear up unclear documentation? This is really not clear, not even from the FAQ.

At present, all support, regardless of tier, is handled through our support portal. That includes bug reports, documentation clarifications, and feedback. So if you hit a problem, it will reach us.

Over time, as Accelerate adoption grows, our goal is to cultivate a community that can help each other with how-to questions. But even with community support in place, we still want to hear about bugs and unclear documentation, and we want that feedback channel to stay open.

What we’re trying to avoid is the kind of ongoing one-to-one hand-holding that isn’t sustainable at lower price points. To give you a sense of the economics: Indie works out to around €5.50 per month after taxes and stripe fees. If an engineer spends even an hour answering a support query, that’s ~€40 of cost for €5.50 of revenue, wiping out the margin for more than six months. Just ten minutes of our engineers time already burns through the entire month’s profit.

So yes, we’re actively trying to limit direct support on Indie and Business unless it’s a bug or something broken. Enterprise retain full access to the engineering team, but for Indie and Business, the model needs to stay lean (or we need to drastically increase the price).

Are there going to be some components from phase 2 and 3 locked behind enterprise or business tiers?

Yes. Not all components will come to indie (at least initially).

Is the cost going to increase as you include components from other phases or are these prices final?

Pricing will increase with each new phase. Anyone who purchases during Phase 1 (what’s available today) will be grandfathered into future updates at no additional cost. The intention is to reward early adopters and provide stable pricing for those who support the project from the beginning.

The pricing in general is in flux. We are waiting to see how it works in terms of margins and support costs. We may need to increase the price before phase 2, but the goal is to keep Accelerate as cheap as possible.

[JosefNemec]

Thanks for clarifications. Bringing in CEF and having cross platform consistent features, at least on desktop, would be definitely huge plus, especially since the only usable alternative right is very expensive for solo dev free project like in my case. Accelerate's price definitely seems reasonable and affordable even for smaller projects, unless it goes up considerably over time, definitely thumbs up for trying to keep it affordable!

[kerams]

Has FastDroid been dropped? The website only lists Reframe, Rich TextBox and Hot Reload in Phase 3.

[MikeCodesDotNET]

Nope. We're are however waiting to see what Microsoft does with Android. We don't want to invest heavily in FastDroid only for Microsoft to sort out Android perf and it becomes a useless feature.

[Symbai]

The video is just a teaser. It does not show or demonstrate any functions, it does not explain anything. It is just a combination of video segments lasting a few seconds. The documentation also leaves plenty of room for questions. A trial version is not provided. So I'd have to buy it first to find out if it's worth the money. And why does everything have to be a subscription these days? If I need a new version, I would just buy it again, but if I don't need it, I don't want to pay again just to not lose access. For now, I'll pass on it until maybe there's a youtube video of someone showing it in action. And as for the media player, I'd need to see it in action, preferably in some app, so I can see if it's good enough or has the usual Avalonia limitations and issues.

[MikeCodesDotNET]

There is a fundamental misunderstanding here.

The Indie subscription is not the only way to access Accelerate. We also sell a Business tier that includes a perpetual licence. If subscriptions aren’t your thing, you’re welcome to purchase the business or enterprise tier instead. Nobody is being forced into a subscription model.

Also, while the website notes “community support,” every Accelerate customer is currently getting direct support from the core team, and we have no plans to change that in the near term.

Ultimately, the choice is yours. You can pick the licence that suits your needs or not purchase it. But let me be clear: this isn’t about forced subscriptions. It’s about giving developers flexible options and funding the future of Avalonia in a fair, sustainable way.

[Symbai]

If subscriptions aren’t your thing, you’re welcome to purchase the business or enterprise tier instead.

This argument is stupid, I'm sorry to say because business and enterprise tier cost more. If the price is the same I'm happy to buy one of the other tiers. When I talked about missing a trial version or a video demonstrating all the features, you talked about tutorials (3 minute video how to install Accelerate) and sent me links to them. That's not the same thing. When I asked why the indie tier is a subscription (which I never got an answer to, by the way), I was told that I could just buy the other tiers if I didn't like it. I have also given reasons why a subscription is not attractive for quite a few people (and also why a subscription in THIS particular case doesn't make much sense). It seems like this discussion isn't going to be useful. I'm not getting (real) answers on my questions. So I'll end it here on my end. If I'm the only one in the world with these questions and concerns, then it's probably the right thing not to address them at all, and I'm fine with that. Sorry for taking your time.

[MikeCodesDotNET]

The Indie tier is a subscription because it’s discounted. The Business tier is a perpetual licence and includes more (like the upcoming Visual Studio extension). You always pay more when you get more. That’s how pricing works everywhere.

The idea that we should offer a perpetual licence at the same price as a discounted subscription is absurd.

We've provided a way to evaluate the product. You can read the docs, look through sample code and watch a playlist of videos showing Dev Tools in action. Just because we haven’t given you a trial doesn’t mean we’ve offered “nothing.”

Trials are under discussion, but I can't promise if or when we'll do them. I personally don't like the idea of trials (at least for tools).

[llfab]

@Symbai: really? I find that this discussion is a bit unfair. I mean we are talking about 100 or 150 € (per year) for items that have taken months and years of development. I personally spend much more money on subscriptions like mobile phone, netflix or similar. Just spent the money and try the things for once. When you end up not liking it, that would not have been so much. And: perpetual or subscription. Who cares if it is about 150 per year.

If you do the math, it does need a large number of subscribers for 150 per year to produce meaningful value in software.

Think of it from a different perspective. If Avalonia were not there you would need to use WPF or UNO or Qt/Qml. Not sure if that would make you much happier...

[robloo]

The only reasonable thing I can think of for this misalignment is perhaps we are talking from some very different economic viewpoints.

Obviously, €150 means quite a bit different in Switzerland vs. Bangladesh just due to local economies and currencies.

Some companies switch to regional pricing models to help in this case but then users just use a VPN to get the lowest region pricing. (Would be especially problematic with highly technical users which we all are).

So I don't think there is any way to meaningfully continue the discussion. You simply can't please everyone and that's OK.

[workgroupengineering]

I'm happy for this achievement, but
i would like to understand now what will happen to the open version of DevTools and the extensions for vscode and visual studio.

[christallire]

We're not killing the free version.

We are moving to a closed source model for the IDE tooling, so we can reuse our Accelerate IP. The goal is to avoid needing to maintain two versions of everything.

There will be free versions of our IDE extensions.

Are you kidding me? Not only am I not allowed to contribute to DevTools, but will you eventually kill the essential tool?
You're killing the the free version and taking control of core part and commercializing it. I don't believe this happened.

[MikeCodesDotNET]

Not only am I not allowed to contribute to DevTools

I might have missed it, but I don’t see any contributions from you to Avalonia, so your frustration about DevTools seems a bit misplaced. The source code remains fully open-source, and you’re completely free to fork it if you wish.

You're killing the the free version and taking control of core part and commercializing it

We’re certainly not “killing” the free version. The open-source version is still available, fully supported, and included by default in all our templates. We’ve introduced a commercial option alongside it, but if you’d rather stick with the FOSS version, you’re more than welcome.

Correction: It looks like you have contributed 14LOC to Avalonia over the last 12 years. It was a genuine mistake on my part for not recognising this contribution. Thank you for helping us build Avalonia into what it is today.

[christallire]

Not only am I not allowed to contribute to DevTools

I might have missed it, but I don’t see any contributions from you to Avalonia, so your frustration about DevTools seems a bit misplaced. The source code remains fully open-source, and you’re completely free to fork it if you wish.

Yes, you missed it. And this is definitely public shaming/calling out. What are you doing? Gatekeeping? Can't I give you an opinion unless I am a contributor? This is very defensive and unconstructive.
Plus, "free to fork" if you wish? ARE YOU KIDDING ME AGAIN? Suck or leave it? OMG. I don't believe this is happening.

You're killing the the free version and taking control of core part and commercializing it

We’re certainly not “killing” the free version. The open-source version is still available, fully supported, and included by default in all our templates. We’ve introduced a commercial option alongside it, but if you’d rather stick with the FOSS version, you’re more than welcome.

But you're still might sunsetting it and freezing it.

[grokys]

The level of entitlement on display here is astonishing.

[llfab]

I also got a bit of puls increase. But it is what it is. No donations, no sponsorship but great expectations... :-)

[JanTamis]

Will there be an option to pay with PayPal?

[MikeCodesDotNET]

Happy to explore adding PayPal support.

I've enabled iDEAL payments, as I remember it being important when I lived in the Netherlands. Does this help you, or is there another reason for wanting to use PayPal?

[JanTamis]

It would definitely help, but if i had the option to pay with PayPal i would use that. Nice to hear that you lived in the Netherlands :)

[ykarpeev]

Thanks. Just tested it out. Looks good so far. Waiting for the visual studio extension.

I recommend linking this page: https://docs.avaloniaui.net/accelerate/tools/dev-tools/getting-started from the avalonia portal because the get started instructions there look like they're just for the webview/mediaplayer portion only.

[MikeCodesDotNET]

I'll get that fixed later today 🙏

[JanTamis]

will there be a jetbrains version of the visual studio extension?

[MikeCodesDotNET]

No plans at the moment as the JB experience is already much better than Visual Studio. We do however want to work with the Rider extension maintainer to make sure we can find a way for them to enjoy the new previewer infrastructure.

[JanTamis]

So if i understand you correctly there may be a possibility that the current extension may get the new previewer?

[MikeCodesDotNET]

Correct. We'd like to put the new previewer into all our extensions. We just need to work out how best to do this as we don't maintain the Rider extension.