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appdevelopmentagencyno1 · 1 year

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Hidden Costs of Software You Need to Anticipate AFTER You Launch

After months of hard work, your software is finally up and running. But as you’re going through your finances, you notice that your monthly expenses haven’t gone down—if anything, they’re going up. What’s going on? There are hidden costs of software that you need to anticipate after you launch your project. Honestly, this is something that I always have to remind my clients whenever they’re developing new software. They assume that once the project has been developed, the expenses are going down to zero and they’re done paying. That’s not the case at all, and it couldn’t be further from the truth.

Here’s an analogy to explain the situation. Let’s say you upgrade from renting an apartment to buying a house. Would you assume that after the down payment, your mortgage will be your only expense as a homeowner? No. Look at your expenses. Your water bill, gas bill, electric bill, and everything else will go up because your house is bigger than your apartment. You might have other expenses creep up on you that you’ve never had before, like a gardener or a landscaper to maintain your property.

Software development is the same.

Whenever you scale up from a small project to a bigger project, there are certain expenses that you’ll incur on an ongoing basis. Everyone is so busy determining the development rates, they forget about the post-launch web development company.

In this guide, I’ll explain the top five hidden costs of software you must anticipate after you launch. Who developed your software? The app development team will continue to maintain your software even after you launch. Your software is going to evolve with the market as new opportunities present themselves. The vision will also evolve based on customer demand.

You always need to remember one thing—stagnant technology is dead technology. Look at companies like Facebook, Google, Twitter, and all of the other global giants out there. They’ve done a pretty good job at developing software, wouldn’t you agree? Everything you can possibly think of has been developed. So why do they have an army of engineers working behind them? Software development is never finished. Between maintenance, new features, customer demand, and just scaling the platform, you’ll always need your staff to maintain this. On average, look at how often mobile apps are updated and enhanced.

Roughly 30% of apps are updated at least once per month. An additional 53% of apps are updated every six months. So you can’t plan to let your development staff go after the launch date. The team members who developed the app will continue to stay on board. The truth of the matter is this; if you get rid of people, your software will slowly die. Remember, to maintain a competitive edge in this crowded market, you must constantly evolve. The software you started with needs to change and adapt over time.

Hidden Cost #3: Maintenance

Before your launch, I’m sure you’ve gone through the technology to make sure that everything was working properly. All the bugs were found, fixed, and you’re done—right?

That’s not necessarily true, especially in the mobile app space. While you might have fixed the bugs for certain devices or specific operating systems, devices evolve over time. When this happens, your technology or application could regress. Take a look at the average cost to maintain an app in the first year after launch. Some of you probably know why software development is expensive. But why is it so costly to maintain? What are companies spending $10k-$25k+ per year on?

As new demands come from Apple or Google, your compliance levels might downgrade. New legislation comes into effect for the quality of your app, the security of your app, or the privacy of your app. All of these things could change. I’m referring to things like:

GDPR compliance in Europe

CCPA compliance in California

ADA compliance across the US

International compliances

PCI compliance

HIPAA compliance

The list goes on and on. Your technology needs to evolve as all of these things change.

Refactoring

Refactoring is another side of maintenance that’s worth highlighting on its own. The idea behind refactoring is that you write code that’s just good enough to pass basic testing, compliance, limitations, or something else. Then you go back and clean it up at a later time. Here’s a simple visual explanation of how refactoring works. Some of your code that was put in during development might have been “good enough” at the time. But as you scale, it must be rewritten to manage the new traffic load as your business grows. To be honest, these are good problems to have. It means that your app is growing. But you still need to anticipate the costs ahead of time to be fully prepared.

Training is the most underestimated expense in terms of hidden software costs. The biggest mistake that people make is assuming that their staff who is maintaining the app is going to stay with them forever. But that’s not going to happen. In reality, some of your staff will make career decisions and leave you. You’ll be unhappy with other team members, and you’re going to fire them. This is just standard procedure when it comes to running a business. There will always be turnover in personnel. What happens when you lose someone with crucial domain knowledge? Don’t assume that whoever you hire will be able to replace that person immediately.

I know some of you might think that engineers are a dime a dozen, and you can find them anywhere. But even if someone is a blackbelt and an expert, they will not be an effective part of your team as soon as they come in. This takes time. So how can you avoid these expensive training costs? The idea here is to avoid single points of failure with human beings. You wouldn’t want a single server to run your entire mobile app, right? If the server dies, the app dies with it. The same thing can be applied to people. If you have one person with so much domain knowledge—what if that person gets hit by a bus? Can you and your business actually continue without them?

You need to cross-train people. Make sure that your capacity isn’t at a bare minimum. Always have at least one spare person. If you only need two people at a minimum, then you should probably hire a third person. So if one person leaves, you’ll still have enough to operate. When that happens, you can always hire someone else as that “spare tire.”

Hidden Cost #5: Strategic Costs

Strategic costs are incurred whenever your business sees a new market opportunity. You need to shift gears quickly to make sure that you can actually address the market need. Lots of times, market needs are time-sensitive. So if you wait six months to take action, it might be too late. In terms of technology, just 34% of companies seek to get first-mover advantage. If you fall into this category, it can give your software a significant edge over the competition. Strategic costs will creep up on your technology and force you to shift gears in terms of your priorities.

You might even need to hire a few extra people to make sure you hit your target on time. So the anticipation of these hidden costs is so important. Sometimes you need to hard-code certain elements to hit that timeline. You’re essentially “hacking your way” to a solution that needs to be brought to market as soon as possible.

Read more: Terrific Style Tips for Your Small Business Web Site

Pro Tips and Best Practices to Prepare For Hidden Software Costs

Now that you’ve seen the top five hidden costs of software post-launch, it’s time to share some tips that will help you plan accordingly to anticipate those costs. Spending money after your launch is inevitable, but you don’t need to break the bank. These tips can help you save some money if you plan accordingly.

Develop Your Staff

We already established that you need to maintain your staff. But to help keep costs low, you need to develop them using the golden ratio, which is something I’ve discussed in previous posts and videos. Here’s the idea. Use local and remote resources enough, so the combination is in the correct balance for your business. This type of staff development will allow you to scale up efficiently without breaking the bank.

Servers vs. Maintenance

We’ve also talked about the hosting costs and maintenance costs, separately. However, these two hidden expenses are actually interconnected. Sometimes it makes more sense to pay more for hosting fees, so you won’t have to maintain as much on your own. For example, let’s say it costs you $1,000 for a fully-managed host. That’s nothing compared to the cost of having a staff member maintain a cloud hosting solution on their own.

So go ahead and pay for it without thinking twice. It’s cheaper and becomes a headache for someone else to deal with—not you. You won’t need a staff member that constantly has to deal with server maintenance. So try to find a hosting provider that will cover these things. While the initial price tag for this service might seem expensive, you should always weigh it against the cost of having an individual from your staff working on it. The hosting cost will always be cheaper in the long run than maintaining it on your own.

Strategic Partnerships

It’s crucial that you have a partner who understands your technology. This could be your host, an web design agency that you’re working with, or a platform that you’re integrating with. Whoever it is, make sure that they understand your vision. It’s important that they have the ability to help with the big picture during changing times. Opportunity costs and the costs of making mistakes is extremely expensive.

A strategic partner can save you time if they are an expert in a particular field. Or maybe they’ve been through this before and already made mistakes that you can learn from. Your strategic partner is highly valuable and can save you a ton of money over time.

Anticipate Today, Solve Tomorrow

It’s obvious that you need to anticipate future problems and opportunities. We’ve been talking about this throughout the entire guide. Anticipate those problems today, but solve them tomorrow. Not all of today’s problems do not need to be solved today. You might be developing something right now that’s good enough to get to market without hiring two or three new developers. That’s fine. But you need to anticipate the delayed costs that you’re going to pay for later. This is especially crucial for new businesses. A dollar today is much more valuable than a dollar tomorrow. Be strategic with the debt you incur so that you’re in a good position to address the problems when they eventually come up.

For example, let’s say that you know that your server will fail when you pass 100k users. That doesn’t mean you should pay for that capacity on day one when you have zero users. The money could be better used elsewhere. But when you finally reach 100k users, it’s a good problem to have. By now, you probably have a successful business that will allow you to pay for the added costs. However, if you’re paying for that infrastructure today, you’re burning through precious dollars now on a hypothetical problem that might not happen for another year or two.

Conclusion

The costs associated with software development do not end after you launch. If you’re building an app, you must anticipate the five hidden costs that I’ve outlined in this guide:

Maintaining your staff

Hosting expenses

Maintenance

Training

Strategic costs

Anticipating these ahead of time will ensure that you have enough money in the budget to be successful. Otherwise, the quality of your software will suffer. Keep my pro tips and best practices in mind as well to help save money on software development.

I hope this guide was helpful. Use it to anticipate future costs whenever you’re developing new technology.

#web development #app development #mobile app development

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celestialspecial · 2 years

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These Beautiful Torments (Pt 3)

Recovering from the fight that has left him badly wounded both physically and mentally Billy tries to piece together the parts of his past. To remember who he is, or was, but it’s never that easy is it?

Warnings: Trauma, Depression, Eventual Smut, Violence, Unplanned Pregnancy- Canon? We don’t know her. (If I missed any feel free to let me know)

You shivered at the cold goo applied to your belly, watching the wand wave over the small bump starting to form. Trying to fix your attention on the screen instead of focusing on how cold and uncomfortable you felt. But soon a little flicker popped up, a frantic but strong beating noise.

“There it is.” Your doctor turned a few knobs on the machine, fine tuning the picture in frame, a small form took shape with the small beating heart loud and clear over the speaker. You stared at the image for what felt like an eternity feeling a welling up of emotion in your chest. “Did you want to know if it’s a boy or girl?”

You did want to know, but you weren’t quite ready yet. That made it too…real. Not that this moment wasn’t real enough. But after knowing the gender came picking out names, nursery items, birthing classes, all things you should be doing with the father. The father that couldn’t remember your first date let alone the night this baby was created.

“Not yet. But maybe eventually?” Your doctor smiled nodding her head as she took a few screenshots of the screen, printing one for you in the process. “We can set up your next appointment. Have you been feeling alright…for the most part?” People in the hospital talked, HIPA violations be damned, she knew that you often sat bedside for the sorry case two floors up. She never pushed or inquired about the father, but you could tell she had an inkling.

You pulled your shirt back down after she rubbed the remaining gel off your abdomen, tucking your sweatshirt around yourself tightly, pushing up from the table.

“I’ve been alright. Doing my best to ah, relax, but you know how it goes.” She clicked her tongue at you.

“I know how things can be, but I’m going to email you some more documents to read over regarding the next steps.” Documents that you could only assume were presented to couples, but you’d have the joy to read over on your own.

Gathering your things you made your way to the elevators, wondering if Billy would even be awake. Stepping off the elevator you wandered slowly down the hall before approaching his room. Patting your bag, making sure the little ultrasound photo was tucked tightly away.

Billy sat upright in bed, at least as best he could in the strapping they had him confined in. His eyes were closed but you knew he was awake, as soon as you set your bag down his eyes popped open, fixing you with his gaze. There was something else in his eyes today, was it- warmth? You weren’t sure but you wanted to believe it was, to grasp to that hope.

“You’re early today.” He mused, following your movements as you pushed a chair close to his bedside and sat down.

“ I was downstairs for something,” his eyes went wide and he shuffled as much as he could to sit up straighter leaning towards you.

“You’re sick.” Oh if he only knew the half of it.

“No no, I’m fine.” He eased up but only by a fraction, still pinning you with his gaze.

“Then why were you here?” Not an aggressive question by any means, there’s no edge to his voice, but pure curiosity, concern even.

“I just had a check up is all.” You adjust your sweatshirt as subtly as you could. “Plus it worked out cause I was planning on coming to see you anyways.” Those obsidian eyes trailed over your face, as if searching for deceit, knowing it was there in some regard but not sure how. You knew that look, whenever you’d try to plan surprise parties for him or any small notion of something being hidden he’d sniff it out in a heartbeat.

While this Billy might not have those events to reference back to, his instincts were still the same. “How is your therapy going?” Changing the subject, hoping that would work. He sighed, eyes flashing to the table that his sessions were always conducted at.

“I don’t know. I feel like sometimes I’m getting close to something but then it vanishes yet again.” Your heart sunk at his words, feeling tenderness for his plight, not even imagining how awful it must be to forget, everything, not having your own memories of better days to comfort you.

“It’ll come to you. I know it will.” It didn’t feel like a lie, but even if it was it made you feel better saying it, maybe it’d have the same effect for him.

“Why hasn’t Frank come to see me?” You prayed your face didn’t look as sick as you suddenly felt. Was it the question or the morning sickness again, you couldn’t tell but suddenly felt very weak.

“I ugh…I don’t know. I-“ haven’t talked to him? Hate him at this point? For ruining your life and his friends? You didn’t quite know how to respond. “Maybe-“ before you could finish your sentence your stomach turned and you couldn’t ignore the sudden need to free your breakfast. Leaping up and jumping into the bathroom on the side of the room making it just in time to revisit your eggs and fruit from this morning.

“Fuck.” You swore, spitting into the toilet once more before flushing it and realizing this was gonna be a hard one to talk yourself out of, considering how you’d just lied and said you were healthy and well. Returning closely to your seat ignoring best you could the stare Billy was giving you.

“You are sick”

“I’m getting over the flu. A nasty bug that’s been going around.” Good this was good. “Maybe I’m not fully healed. I should leave just in case I’m still contagious.”

“So You’re going to lie to me too.” Bad this was bad.

“No I'm not I-“

But he wasn’t looking at you anymore, refusing, his body stiffened, you could feel the anger bubbling up.

“Hello Billy. How are-“ Krista. Walked In and paused seeing you sitting by his bed. Perfect. You could tell she was displeased with your presence. “Oh, y/n. I didn’t expect to see you here.” You stood up so abruptly that the chair screeched almost falling over. It definitely brought Billy’s attention back to you two. His eyes darting back and forth between you both.

“I was just leaving.” You felt your hands clench into fists, you didn’t feel like being patient or kind anymore, thinking it best to just leave before you really did snap.

“Hey, can I speak with you a minute outside?” Krista dropped her bag onto the chair you’d just evacuated, adjusting her blazer and motioning to the door.

“Sure.” Clipped. Frustrated. The two of you stepped out, you couldn’t even look back to see what Billy was doing. You didn’t even care at this point.

“I thought you were going to give it a rest visiting for a while?” She asked once the door was closed behind you.

“I’ve seen him a couple times more recently and he was fine.” She seemed taken aback.

“You’ve seen him multiple times recently? And you didn’t think to clear that with me?” You were on edge, seething, wishing you could slap the dumb look off her face, therapist helping him be damned, all you’d done was the bare minimum and you were being talked down to. Like a child. And you’d had more than enough of your fill for the day, maybe forever.

“GOD FORBID, I want to visit my boyfriend.” Krista's face turned more angry as well, you’d pressed a button, one you had guessed might be there but didn’t want to test, seeing as this person was supposedly helping his healing, but fuck it. And fuck her.

“You’re being irrational. He needs space, he needs time.”

“Yeah we’ll I’m the horrible fucking person who wants to see the father of my child more than once a month. You’re right I’m SO irrational.” And you were done, you could feel your heart rate skyrocket and remembered Karen’s warnings about stress, so you turned on your heel and marched down the hospital hallway. Savoring that split second reaction you saw on Krista's smug face, the sheer horror and outrage that she’d need to reign in for her and Billy’s session would get you through the evening.

Maybe even into next week. Today you were done, tomorrow was another day. Maybe you did need a break. Something about getting an ultrasound then going to visit Billy directly after made you feel raw. Then getting a slap on the wrist for craving some form of intimacy, even in just the form of talking rubbed you the wrong way.

You hadn’t been in in a week. Billy sat in bed, or by the window when allowed, but every time movement was at the door he’d immediately look over hoping to see your face. When it wasn’t you he’d return to whatever thought he’d had before, usually kicking himself for losing his temper with you.

He’d just started to remember your name. He’d repeat it to himself silently in his head, over and over to sink it in. The pretty girl with the nice voice, the sweet smile, who smelled nice and when she was there his days seemed less scary. He might not know who he is but he knew a beautiful girl when he saw one. You claimed to be just friends but he knew there had to be more.

He could feel it deep down. He didn’t miss the longing in your eyes one day, when he caught you staring at him during a break in your reading. It was in your voice, like honey, a softness that felt familiar. Your scent, citrus and sunshine, blanketed him when you’d sit close by and it was all he needed to close his eyes and fade into it. If you were truly just friends he was a damn fool. To pass up an opportunity to have you, to touch that soft skin that called to him everyday you came by.

“Billy, you seem distracted.” That was putting it mildly. Krista stared at him over the edge of her clipboard. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“What did you say to her?” He remembered them in the hallway, he couldn’t hear what was said but raised voices came through. Then Krista had come in and he’d had the shortest therapy session yet, before she all but stormed out only to come back the next day and seem somewhat composed.

“ I just reminded her that even though she means well sometimes her presence isn’t helpful to your healing.” Billy shot up, the chair toppling over behind him, knocking into the wall loud enough to alert the guards outside who ran in, poised to grapple him to floor if need be. Krista held up a hand to them.

“Why would you do that?” Anger piercing his voice. “Her being here hasn’t changed anything.” She stood as well, barely even coming close to his chin.

“Exactly. Maybe her being here isn’t triggering anything so therefore - “

“Therefore you get to decide who comes to see me? Who I can talk to? Am I your patient or your prisoner?” He took a step towards her and the guards immediately jumped to wrangle his arms behind his back, moving him back towards his bed.

Billy didn’t fight them, he’d rather be tied down and her leave than free and having to deal with someone else lying to his face under the guise of being a helper.

“You won’t tell me about her and I want to know why I-“ blinding pain stabbed him behind the eyes, causing him to fling a hand to the left side of his head, crumpling over the bed. The guards didn’t seem to care and haphazardly shoved him back onto the mattress, pulling the closures over him.

“I don’t bring it up because of this.” She motioned towards him laying on the bed eyes forced shut waiting for the pain to disperse. “I care about you. I care about you getting back on track.” He fixed her with a poisonous stare.

“I want you to leave.” Krista gazed back at him, defiance in her stance but after a few moments she rescinded, tucking the clipboard under her arm and tossing her bag over her shoulder.

“Fine. I’ll leave, but I will be back. I’m not giving up on you.” A fake smile danced in her lips, a façade, Billy knew one when he saw it. He had gaps in his shattered skull but he didn’t forget his training, his years of fine tuning his perception, of being able to identify an enemy when he saw one, and today she wasn’t his ally. Not by any means.

You turned around in front of the mirror in your apartment, it’d been over 4 months and you hadn’t moved any of Billy’s things from where he’d last left them. You smoothed a hand over your stomach, noticing how hard it was going to be to conceal your secret going forward. A round curve was becoming more prominent, and with it getting warmer baggy sweaters and jackets would look out of place.

The reality that you’d either have to fess up or avoid seeing him weighed on you. Did he even deserve to be kept in the dark? Karen’s guidance ran through your head. Billy is strong. He could handle it. He could at least handle knowing you two were together. You felt your mind starting to go into overdrive before your phone beeped. You picked it up expecting to see Karen’s witty response to an earlier text and almost dropped the device in the process.

Frank. Frank had texted you. “Meet me at our diner? 10.” You wanted to respond with, “why? So you can finish me off too?” But thought better of it, instead sitting on your bed head in hands. Dropping your phone to the side on the mattress. Relaxing just didn’t seem in the cards for you tonight. At the rate you were going, maybe not ever. Dialing a few numbers you heard the dial tone until,

“Hey!” Karen.

“Hey… what are you doing right now?” You asked, fidgeting with the hem of your top.

“Just grabbed a glass of wine. About to sit and watch some mindless tv, wanna join? With the I- ugh- tv part?”

“Frank just texted me asking to meet.” A moment of silence.

“Holy shit.”

“I don’t know if I should..” you wanted answers but this was also the guy who destroyed his best friend, what did that bode for said friends girlfriend you wondered.

“Did you, want me to come with?” You considered her offer for a minute, but realized if frank was texting you and you alone and someone else came along, even someone he knew, it might be cause for abandoning the meeting.

“No I think I need to go alone, but it’ll be at our diner.”

“I’ll be close by.” She didn’t need to go into details, but you trusted her and knew that if you needed help for whatever reason she’d be there. Deep down you didn’t think Frank would reach out to only hurt you. He was…had been your friend. Right?

You drove to the diner, arriving by 9:30 so you could go inside and grab a seat of your choosing. Walking in-you quickly realized that that idea was not unique to you. Straight ahead at the end of a line of booths was Frank, sitting, his eyes transfixed on you as you made your way over to the table. You wished this was under different circumstances, that you could smile at him, hug your friend, but it was hard to deny the anger that you had roiling just under the surface.

Being as cordial as you could to the waitress, while gritting your teeth ordering a water while Frank asked for a black coffee. He was the first to speak,

“Never knew you to turn down a coffee.”

“Yeah well things have changed,” he nodded solemnly. Not saying anything further. “ What do you want exactly, Frank? And why reach out now, of all times?” Pleasantries be damned. He signed, rubbing the bridge of his nose, eyes scrunched in thought,

“I know you might not understand why I did what I did..”

“No I don’t think you understand why you did what you did-“

“He killed my wife and children.” Frank hissed across the table at you, the abrupt blunt response edging you back into your seat.

“Do you know that he did that for sure?” He shook his head, almost a look of insanity in his eyes.

“I have enough proof to know, plus him trying to take me out on a carousel didn’t seem like too much of an admission of guilt huh?”

“There’s more to the story. I know there is. Rawlins was a piece of shit and he was taking advance of Billy somehow, I just know-“

“ Listen I know it’s hard to hear this shit y/n. But the truth is Billy was lying to all of us.”

“I know you’re too involved to take a step back and I’m sorry Frank, I can’t even begin to understand..” you paused in your sentence, hand unconsciously drifting to your belly, maybe you COULD understand to some effect. “But Karen and I haven’t given up and she’s digging up dirt that I know exits. If you’d just”

He groaned, leaning back and wiping a hand over his eyes. “You up and dragged Karen into this bullshit?” You felt the simmering rage start to overflow.

“If you didn’t notice SHE’S the only one to stick around!” He recoiled at your raised voice. The punisher, cringing at you, that was rich. “She believes me! She remembers the Billy we all knew and loved and unlike his best friend she is willing to accept that maybe there’s something we’re missing,”

Frank rested his forehead against his palms, elbows braced on the table as the poor waitress hesitantly refilled his coffee cup. Your water sat untouched.

“I’m pregnant.” The words just somehow fell out of your mouth, eyes looking down at the fists in your lap, clenching and unclenching, fighting for some control. Frank’s hands dropped to the table in a loud thump that made their waitress look up and over. His eyes were wide, eyebrows drawn up, you’d never seen him look this shocked, this forlorn before,

“Is it-“ He hesitated, mouth drawn tight, choosing his next words carefully no doubt.

“It’s Billy’s if that’s what you were going to ask.” You bit your lower lip hard, praying for the stinging behind your eyes to disappear. With that he took in a deep breath, leaning back in the booth, rubbing at his eyes in thought. “I’m about 19 weeks.” Frank could do the math, you could see it register on his face.

“Does he…know?”

“No. He doesn’t even remember that he and I were together.” He could barely meet your eyes after that. He knew what he done at the time was what he needed to do but the conflict of hurting you in the process was also weighing heavily on his mind, you could tell.

“I know he hurt you, I know you two may never be what you were before, but I’m asking you to find it in your heart somewhere to be open to the possibility that maybe we don’t have the full story.” You managed to get out, your heart racing a mile a minute. “Why…why did you reach out to me?”

Another long uncomfortable pause before he let out a sharp breath. Finally raising his eyes to meet yours.

“I wanted you to know this had nothing to do with you. Billy was my brother, and you were just as much a sister to me. But what happened to me, what I’ve been through? You don’t come back a whole man after that- when I found out Billy had betrayed me…I lost it. You don’t know how much I wish you’re right, that there’s something else but what if there isn’t? No matter what, it doesn’t bring my wife and kids back.”

Your head dropped in acknowledgment, you knew it wasn’t fair, that the tragedy that your friend had been through was more than a person should be forced to bear. There was no going back to normal but the inkling, the small spark of hope that Billy’s name could be cleared to the world but more importantly to those closest to him, maybe this was all worth it. The stress, the anxiety, to be free from his past once and for all.

You stood up from the table, adjusting your top and jacket before turning to Frank. “You know how to reach me.” He nodded as you began to move away.

“Hey y/n.” You stopped in your path, taking him in again sitting in the booth, polishing off the last of his coffee. “I know things are shaky, and I don’t deserve your compassion, I get that, but I still want what’s best for you.” He inclined his head before nodding towards your stomach. “You and the kid.” You blinked in recognition of what he was saying before turning once more and walking into the night.

#billy russo #billy russo fanfic #Billy Russo x Reader #billy russo x female reader #Jigsaw!billyrusso #jigsaw!billyrusso x reader #the punisher #the punisher fanfiction #marvel the punisher #marvel fanfiction #marvel #ben barnes #ben barnes character #frank castle

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justanaspiringsomeone · 7 years

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Can we talk? ~Dialogue~ Kuroi(pink hair):What do you want, Rokuriki Rokuriki:Relax, I just want to talk

#really happy I finished this #enjoy my trash #hope to draw digital more #but who knows #nanbaka the numbers #nanbaka rokuriki daisen #Nanbaka oc #my art #Kuroi Hipa

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zebruh · 4 years

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i hate the people at my job so fucking much

im surrounded by anti vaxxers who think having an autistic child is a worse fate than having a dead one when they know im autistic

nearly everyone is a Huge transphobe and says that if they had a trans child they wouldnt want anything to do with them because theyre defying gods will

my manager goes out of her way to correct ANYONE who genders me or the openly trans guy correctly

my bosses are super transphobic as well and say that we shouldnt respect trans workers pronouns because its an inconvience to everyone

nearly all of my coworkers think corona is a myth or something created by the government to prove how much power they have over their people so they refuse to wear masks and get angry when i remind them that theres two whole ass laws requiring us working to wear masks

my manager constantly breaks hipa by telling all of us working the names of her therapy clients and what they have going wrong in their lives

costumers are constantly giving me shit for wearing a mask and asking for them to follow the laws that say all people in a salon must wear a mask or else the salon will be shut down permanently

people arent fucking tipping anything in the past week ive made 50 in tips MAX when usually im pulling in a few hundred

im getting just my base pay at work so thats just 9.50 an hour to deal with all of this extra chaos on top of the usual

one of my coworkers is using again and is constantly high off his ass at work and thats triggering my ptsd because all he does is talk about what sort of drugs hes using and how much he missed using

just. im gonna fucking die from stress ive been getting bad chest pains and i know all the binding ive been doing isnt helping either but ive been super dysphoric about my chest lately im just gonna fucking break down soon and either get fired because i did something stupid or quit because i cant fucking take the stress anymore i just want to cry i hate my job so much i hate my coworkers and my bosses i just hate everything so much dude im so god damn stressed ive started smoking again and im pissed that i started but its the only thing that immediately gets me to relax a little bit

#vwitty banter #im tired.

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ohitsjustjimmy · 4 years

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My Top 5 Albums Of 2019

Number 5: Shaped By Fire by As I Lay Dying

“I had locked away myself in a captainless ship, destined to destroy ashore.”

To start things off, we begin with a band that played a big role in getting me into the Metalcore genre. This album didn’t make the list from being the most original release. It also wasn’t as endearing or risky as other artists’ work that I’ve given a thorough listen to this year. What makes it a spot on this count down is the band’s ability to just play what they know, and even with it being practically the same sound they’ve had since their incarnation, they still retain the ability to create a record that offers something definitely palatable while being really more of the same. Accomplishing that is no simple task, although of course opinions on this sort of thing will be divided in more ways than one. With incorporating things like clean choruses that don’t detract from the brutal mix of guitar riffage, pulsing drums and the one and only Tim Lambesis leading the pack with his trademark vocal fierceness, which sounds just as intense as it ever has. Another highlight for the record is that just like some of the other ones in their discography, guitarists Nick Hipa and Phil Sgrosso have matured from composing every song in drop C. Is that a subjective statement? Sure it is. Is it true though? Most definitely. With songs like the album’s title, both Hipa and Sgrosso show their technical prowess in stemming from each other so seamlessly between rhythmn and lead. This, along with the rest of the album is a definite positive that keeps it from sounding stale. Jordan Mancino is no slouch as well, proving that after all these years of pounding away, the talented drummer still gels right in with the sound that the band is aiming for. Lambesis and Co. have perfected their metalcore craft, and show no signs of getting softer any time soon.

Number 4: Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind by Logic

“This a marathon, not a sprint.”

Bobby could be quite possibly the hardest working man in Hip Hop as of right now. Very few artists can constitently put out quality releases one after another, even when changing his style between albums. While Supermarket was a complete 180’ from the young man’s incredible rap resume, YSIV showcased his love for boom bap and proved to be an excellent product of his craft overall. Here in 2019 we have Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind, which has all the shiny production that is practically now a staple in Logic’s sound, mixed with his trademark intricate lyricism and streamlined flow. Also having the ability to carry a tune definitely helps the album even more, which is something he also proved partially in 2015’s The True Incredible Story. Transitions like the one from the title track to Homicide keep things sounding fresh and unique. Eminem’s feature on the track is also a strong point who uses his zany flow perfectly. Another standout track is Commando with features G-Eazy. The track proves that despite people’s beliefs about the two’s relationship they can indeed make a track together, and a good one at that. BOBBY is handsdown my favorite track on the album, as I am a sucker for a clean beat consisting of samples which is something Young Sinatra is no stranger to. Even after 8 albums, Logic remains a force to be reckoned with and shouldn’t be taken lightly when compared to other artists in the hip-hop scene trying to be as intricate, yet accessible at the same time so effortlessly. There’s a reason why his fanbase is so strong, and will inevitably grow with time.

Number 3: All Hail by Norma Jean

“Give it death ‘till it comes alive.”

The once Christian Metalcore outfit hailing (see what I did there) from Douglasville Georgia has made their most endearing, yet brutally beautiful record yet. Despite struggling with various members both entering and leaving the band, frontman Cory Brandan Putman has successfully kept them on track both creatively and consistently, and their 8th album is a gritty, angst injected example of it. With bangers like [Mind Over Mind], Safety Last and Landslide Defeater, the group takes ques from their previous efforts and cranks them past the highest number on the dial. The band has always been one of the more peculiar acts in the genre, with All Hail being no different. Downtuned guitars and brutal vocal performances aside, Putman and the gang place traces of more delicate melodical harmonies throughout the album, like the beginning of my favorite track /with_errors. The track’s chorus also showcases Putman’s ability to be harmonius when he needs to be, then back to traditionally discordant. All Hail is a rewarding listen exactly like practically everything else in their discography, which should definitely prove true to both newcomers and long time fans alike.

Number 2: The Act by The Devil Wears Prada

“Build me up to tear me down.”

While being primarily Metalcore just like Norma Jean, TDWP have also tried their hands at different sounds and audible textures which are littered throughout their discography. The difference between the two bands however is that this is a turn of direction for them that is completely new and unique from their usual formula. While All Hail was more of a progression for Norma Jean, The Act is more like a departure when comparing the two. Mike Hranica and Jeremy DePoyster put the sounds of their previous efforts on the back burner in favor of a more deliberate writing style that focuses on stronger song writing and bigger choruses. Some of the best examples of this are tracks like Chemical, where Hranica tries his hand at guitar and my favorite track Wave Of Youth, having some of the most memorable lines on the entire album in my opinion. While the tracks mentioned can be considered “simple” in a way compared to their usual style, them being willing to take a risk like this is something that I do commend. Please Say No might be one the slowest songs the band has written, but both the context and musical presentation enveloped me in it’s glooming lore, ultimately making me appreciate the album’s farfetched direction even more. The following track The Thread reminded me that they are still an integral force in Metalcore even after all these years, with pulsating verses and one of the most fierce breakdowns the band has orchestrated in a long time having mike eerily screeching “You Should Speak Up!”. That moment also counts as being one of the more memorable ones on the record along with Wave Of Youth. With an album like The Act, the band had to realize that making such a polarizing album would undoubtedly turn some longtime fans off. The reason why I love it so much however is because they weren’t afraid to do so, and to my ears the end result paid off.

Number 1: Compassion by Royal Coda

“Somehow your sadness is someone’s ecstasy .”

From his introduction into spotlight thanks to the band Dance Gavin Dance to the present day, Kurt Travis has remained to be one of my biggest influences within the realms of Post-Hardcore even after all these years. Despite being overshadowed and eventually replaced by Tilian Pearson, Kurt didn’t let that put out his creative flame and went on to gradually assemble the supergroup named Royal Coda. The groups first album titled by their name was released last year on Blue Swan Records, and took me some time to really sink my teeth into. Despite loving practically anything Travis puts out musically, I didn’t immediately fall in love with every song on the album. It was experimental, yet hard to completely indulge in, with only a handful of tracks really grasping my attention. Compassion on the other hand, is what that album should have been, in every way. The album’s opener Ruby Leaf sets the tone perfectly, showcasing incredible musicianship between Sergio Medina and recent newcomer Will Swan, guitarist for Dance Gavin Dance. Sergio and Will’s musical chemistry has shown in other projects like the supergroup Sianvar, however their styles have never complimented each other quite as well as they do here, with tracks like the incredible single Numbing Agent and my favorite track Becoming The Memory. Both tracks amplify the members’ talents so effortlessly with the latter being funky and angsty simultaneously, a definite nod to Happiness. Arms Race For God’s Grace, while not being as infectious as the other two tracks mentioned has one of the most heartfelt lines on the record. Kurt crooning “When the authorities came to lock me up for good, I ran as fast as I could to you” gets me everytime and helps the album as a whole grow on me more than it already has. The track Don’t Stay Long features Hail The Sun’s Donovan Melero on both verses and chorus, and his words here certainly never dissapoint, writing an ultimately gripping chorus in the same fashion as he does with his own group which adds melody to the madness. If Happiness is Kurt’s magnum opus, then Compassion is the closest thing to a predecessor that he’s ever done.

What are some of your guys’ favorite albums to come out this year? I’d love to know.

#as i lay dying #logic #norma jean #the devil wears prada #royal coda #shaped by fire #confessions of a dangerous mind #all hail #the act #compassion #tim lambesis #cory brandan putman #mike hranica #jeremy depoyster #kurt travis #will swan #sergio medina #donovan melero

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heartslogos · 3 years

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the declassified texts of the inquisition's elite [192]

(631): Unfortunately the rum ran out midway through our viewing and we had to suffer in silence for the rest of it.

“This is some sort of breach in protocol? You let them drink on the job?” Leliana’s eyebrows raise. “Cullen, I’m very surprised. I didn't think you had it in you. I mean sure, you’ll bend the rules now and again. But I’ve never known you to be one who’d outright break them.”

“One, they were off duty. If they’re off duty, not in public view where it can be reported on social media or talked about on some news tabloid, it isn’t my problem. I am not going to police the private lives of my officers.” Cullen flips between three pages in the same report, frowning as he starts and stops the note he’s trying to make on it. Cullen scratches out the note he’d just written and starts over. “Two, it would seem incredibly unkind of me to be stern with them and deny them any reprieve considering what they had to watch. Three, you’ve only really known me for the past two or so years and this me is a drastically different me from prior to the Inquisition.”

“What were they watching?” Josephine asks. “It wasn’t for work, as you said.”

“I needed someone to review old training footage,” Cullen says, pen tapping against his notepad as he scratches another note out. “We need to update some of our training materials to meet new standards. Or at the very least, meet current ones in a less…antiquated way. As you can recall, most of the videos we’ve been using for training our recruits were either borrowed from other institutions — “

Josephine and Leliana both grimace, instantly recalling some of the training materials their own departments have been using, as well as some of the things they’ve had to watch in their own time.

“And those were probably filmed twenty years ago,” Leliana shakes her head. “Oh, I remember those. So old. The hair! The fringe! The animal print!”

“ — or we filmed them ourselves behind a portable building with a cheap tripod and no microphone. Needless to say, the quality is quite lacking and the scripts were awkward.” Cullen turns another page in the report. “These reports are inconsistent. Who allowed this to get through?”

Cullen flips back to the front, scanning the page for the list of names of approvals and checks that allowed it to get sent to his hands before sighing.

He writes a quick set of instructions down on a sticky note and applies it to the top, setting it aside to be handed off to one of his couriers later.

“It’s not incredibly pressing. The information in the videos is somewhat outdated and could use a refresh, but the basic premise remains true for most of it. But I needed someone to run through the videos and take notes. Actual notes. Not pretend to watch and apply their own common sense and experience to bluff through any questions a person could ask about it later. The worst ones I want removed from circulation immediately and replaced. The rest we can work out a timetable for.” Cullen glances up towards Josephine. “Apologies. I understand some of this will overlap with your departments. I would have said something to you sooner, but I wanted to have something concrete to approach you with rather than a general statement of our training materials are outdated.”

“No, no, I understand. If you’d come to me and said you wanted to replace your training materials I would have had a dozen questions and I would have had you start with the same anyway. It’s appreciated.”

“I had Rylen ask around and find any volunteers to watch through all of the training videos and take notes. It’s…painful if you’re forced to pay attention and be serious about it. It’s like the HIPA training videos we make our documents team watch every year but it involves fake combat scenarios.” Cullen sighs. “Very. Very. Fake combat scenarios.”

“I think I’ve seen a few of them,” Leliana says, “And honestly I had to let my eyes glaze over after a few minutes of them. I’m not sure what they’re supposed to be training you in.”

“Frankly, I’m not sure either and that’s a major red flag if there was any.” Cullen starts flipping through another report. “I assume they wanted to start up some sort of drinking game — you know. Take a shot, or sip, whenever a person on screen…I don’t know. Touches their sunglasses meaningfully?”

“Is that really something they do a lot in these videos?”

“You’d be very, very surprised, Josephine.”

“Do you not remember the fashion back in the seventies?” Leliana says, “The glasses? The big hair? The bigger earrings? The even bigger platforms?”

“I remember, I choose not to dwell on it though.”

“Well. It’s volunteer work and they’re doing it on their off time at their own pace. If they want to attempt to have some fun with it then by all means they should go do so. But apparently they burned through their liquor faster than they thought they would. Either they underestimated how poor the training videos are or they deeply over estimated their ability to withstand the second hand embarrassment.” Cullen’s lips curl in a faint smirk as he shakes his head. “Aside from the fact that I have several other things that need doing, there’s a reason why I’m not the one reviewing those tapes. Maker’s mercy, seeing them once was enough for me.”

“Delegating like a true commander. I hope that the officers who were in charge of this endeavor weren’t entirely wet behind the ears.”

“Rylen wouldn’t have offered the job to anyone he didn’t trust to be able to review and notate the videos accurately. They’ll be experienced enough. I think they’re going to attempt another watching later this week once they’ve rallied themselves a bit. Maybe I should send them something. I’d stop by but I have a feeling they’d rope me into staying with them for solidarity, and watching those tapes is something I’m trying to actively avoid right now.”

#heartsfic #gather your party and venture forth

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