Today we will officially start the rebranding of the OpenGoo software as Feng Office Collaboration Platform.
There are some mixed feelings about the rebranding, as we have grown fond of the ugly name. But there are stronger reasons in favor of doing the change.
This post attempts to shed light on a few of the reasons for changing the name, and a bit on the process we’ll be following.
Economics
The first reason to do this move is an economic one. We better advertise our services at the Feng Office site. People and Businesses that subscribe to our services are vital to keep developing and improving the product towards our shared vision.
We hope that having easier access to our services will drive more people to subscribe.
Simplicity
Having two names (brands) increases the complexity when explaining what we do. It is especially baffling for customers that we send them to the OpenGoo forum when they have a question about Feng Office (What is OpenGoo?). We sometimes found ourselves on the need to duplicate information too.
This all will be simplified by maintaining just one site.
The name
To some people (native English speakers, mainly), the word “Goo” sounds disgusting. Not that ‘Feng’ doesn’t have its detractors (my friend Keith Teare just hates the name). But we’ve tested it, and it does get more acceptance.
There was also the connotation that OpenGoo was an Open Source alternative to Google products. We believe our product to be unique and with merits of its own. We want it to be regarded as such, and not as an alternative to any product (There is not one product with the exact same characteristics as ours). The name just wasn’t helping.
The migration process
We will start by redirecting each OpenGoo webpage to the corresponding Feng Office page, when applicable. Some sections (the forum, the Goo blog, the wiki) will remain the same for a while. We will gradually adjust the content to fit the new name.
Please bear with us during this process. We are thankful for your support and hope that you soon start benefitting from our simplified approach.
Congratulations every one!
P.s. Did you saw the download counter +20,000 downloads within a week!
And will you migrate the old blog into this one?
Thank you Dutchmen.
Yes, we do keep track of downloads.
We have also started getting an overwhelming amount of Feng Sky users. Not surprisingly, most people didn’t know about the service.
We are very excited for the growing ‘fanbase’. 😀
We’ve kept the old blog here: http://www.fengoffice.com/web/blog/
Congrats although I do admit being confused and still am as to what OpenGoo was prior. I had registered on the forums and now not sure what Feng Office is. Evidently it’s a company but are you selling services in addition to OpenGoo / FO such as hosting, office support, etc. It also seems that “try free” seems like a trial rather than the Open Source it used to be. Just my comments and congratulations to you guys. Glad to see a great idea like OG took off.
Feng Office was just the company name. It is now also the name of the software (which used to be called OpenGoo).
We offer a SaaS solution (Feng Sky) that includes hosting (no servers nor installation needed) user support and system maintenance. We basically take care of everything for you.
We also offer an on-premise solution (Feng Onsite) that includes technical and end-user support, system maintenance, and a warranty of proper functioning.
Congrats!!
What does this mean for the existing Open Goo versions? Will it be possible to upgrade (ex. Open Goo 1.5.3 to Feng Office 1.6.X)?
Will there be a free version of Feng Office? (Manageable on own servers)
@adrian.
Yes, upgrade is possible. Feng Office Community edition is free and open source.
Really nice, i