Rev’s Thought Dump

Starting this I have the very odd feeling that I’ve started a post with this title before. And basically I said the same thing… I’m still alive and I just haven’t gotten any code done. But I will… right?

I need more funding for my techincal endeavors. My options appear to be:

A) Put up an annoying PayPal begging button for donations.
Pros: Free Money
Cons: People might think less of me and it may not work… since I – unlike your average goth chick who does this – do not have any naked pictures of myself to give in return… and even if I did.. I might make more money be threatening to post them if I didn’t get enough donations.

B) Finish my applications UI. Finish – or begin even – the company web site. And sell a 1.0 version of the application
Pros: This is what I’ve intended to do for a long while! The joys of actually having a release to sell would be spiritually rewarding. =) I could justify paying for hosting on a domain that just sits there and collects spam.
Cons: That’d actually be work, man. Seriously though, it requires some dedicated time that, with the new baby coming, I don’t know if I can provide at the moment. I’m already taking time away from the computer to be with the family as it is. I don’t see it getting better after baby.

C) Try mini-contracting through Rent-A-Coder or ELance.
Pros: More experience and a chance to work on new projects in areas I might not normally try.
Cons: The whole time issue. I don’t think that 1 month before a new baby arrives is the best time to enter into a contract with someone. =)

D) Open source my application and put up a donation button.
Pros: I can get my app out there and on peoples systems – there’s a certain amount of satisfaction that comes from knowing people are using your stuff. The project would/could potentially grow much faster than it is now.
Cons: A big chunk of my effort was spent on license validation in the app. That’d all have to be chucked for OS – be pointless to have it. I’d still need a web site. And I’d still need to finish the UI to have a real release. Could I possibly make as much OSing with donations as I would selling it? Likely not. Perhaps in the terms of “making some hobby money” option D shouldn’t be considered. =)

Basically it looks like no matter what I attempt, short of just mooching, I’ll need to wait on it for a few months until after the new baby comes and he’s finally sleeping through the night.

That was a fair bit of rambling.

Anyone else have time issues with development? What’s your solution?