Hello 
We released Gallery Pro a couple of days ago and, thanks to your feedback, we’ve already added a couple of great new features:
You can see both of these in action in the video below.
The update is already live in the Elements Store, so just head to the Updates tab to download the latest version.
Do let us know if you’d like us to add anything else to Gallery Pro and we’ll see what we can do 
Just started playing with it. Is there away to add a thumbnail to a video currently or could this be added?
I have Rapidweaver Classic, which isn’t all that useful without the Stacks plug=in, which costs money. The Stacks plug-in isn’t all that useful without individual Stacks; each of which costs money.Developers come and go which requires purchasing additional Stacks.
I understand you wanted to get your mitts on that Stacks/plug-ins cashflow. Maybe you squabbled with the Stacks team or Stacks plug-in developers. I don’t know. Your solution was Elements, which does look nice, but it’s subscription only.
Elements was supposed to be an all-inclusive platform. That is, subscribe and get all the toys. No Stacks plug-in required. But now you tout Gallery Pro which works under Elements. It’s back to the old pricing plan. To get the functionality of a picture gallery, Elements is insufficient, so you have to shell out an additional $1oo or so to get that functionality.
So nothing has changed, it’s RW _+ platform + plugins all over again. Except, you’ve just cut out the middleman. Now it’s RW + plugins and the entire indie developer community is cut out.
I don’t see that this is a better state of affairs.
Thanks Ben.
I know it’s impossible to fully protect our images, but that’s a great addition.
Les
Thank Ben, really appreciate the fast response to our requests as customers.
Hi @mokane99
Thanks for sharing this, I do understand the concern.
The old RapidWeaver + Stacks ecosystem could absolutely become expensive over time. That’s fair.
But Elements wasn’t created to “get our mitts on plugin cashflow.” It was built because the web has evolved, and the architecture behind Stacks simply wasn’t designed for how we build modern macOS apps and websites today.
Elements is a ground-up rebuild with a more future-proof foundation.
Elements is fully capable on its own. You can build complete, professional websites without buying a single additional component, including fully functional image galleries using the built-in Gallery component.
If you’re curious, here’s a breakdown comparing what’s included in Elements vs Stacks.
Gallery Pro is an optional, advanced gallery for users who want additional features like enhanced lightbox controls, EXIF data, sub galleries, and much more. It’s not required to make Elements usable, and that’s an important distinction.
The subscription model we’ve chosen funds continuous development, frequent updates (we’re adding 6 new components in Elements 2.0), and long-term sustainability.
We’re a small Mac-focused team, and building quality software in today’s environment requires a predictable revenue model. The alternative is large, infrequent paid upgrades, which many people also dislike.
It’s also worth noting that you can cancel at any time and keep the version you have. You can resubscribe later if and when it makes sense. That gives you flexibility similar to the Classic model if that’s what you prefer.
The indie ecosystem isn’t being cut out. Quite the opposite!
The long-term goal is to support third-party developers within a modern, sustainable marketplace. We’re building the foundations properly first before opening that up more broadly.
It’s completely valid to question the direction. But this isn’t RW + Stacks + framework + additional stacks all over again. It’s a stronger core platform with optional extensions for specialised needs.
Thanks again for your feedback, I hope you’ll consider supporting us going forward. If you have any more concerns, do let me know
Not currently, we would need to add support for this within Elements resources. I know we have discussed this previously, and it is something we’d like to add in the future.
If you’re using a YouTube video, the thumbnail you set in YouTube will be used be default, so maybe that’s an option for now?
First of all, you should free yourself from the idea that this is a subscription. It isn’t.
You purchase the product once and can then use it for as long as you like. In addition to buying Elements, you also receive the option to get updates at no extra cost. That means free improvements and/or new features.
After one year, you have the option to extend this access to improvements and feature enhancements. You can do that, but you don’t have to. If the features Elements has at that point are sufficient for you, you can continue using it normally without any limitations. That’s the deal, and it has been communicated clearly.
If you take some time to explore Elements, you should notice that the substance of the components included is absolutely sufficient to build a good and professional website. All the essentials are there.
That some components are limited or only available as a basic version is something you simply have to accept. To stay with your example of the image gallery: the basic version delivers exactly what you would expect from a BASIC version. If you want more functionality, then you have to pay for it. That’s no different from buying a car. You wouldn’t argue with the car dealer that everything isn’t all-inclusive. The basic version of a car comes with a steering wheel, an engine, and four wheels. If you want more, you pay for it. That’s just how life works.
Developers also have families, spouses, children, cat and dogs, and maybe even a sailboat. All of that has to be paid for as well.
Whether the price being asked is always fair is not for me to judge. But ultimately, it’s up to each individual to decide whether an additional upgrade is worth it.
I think it is fair to say the direction you have chosen aligns with a high ARPU strategy, meaning Average Revenue Per User.
Rather than focusing primarily on significantly expanding the user base, the emphasis appears to be on increasing revenue per existing user.
That can be seen through:
Making the top tier increasingly attractive or essential
Clear feature segmentation
Premium priced Pro components
A forthcoming official store with revenue share
Hosting as an integrated offering
Messaging that favours in store components
Careful protection of component boundaries
This approach resembles models used by platforms such as the Apple App Store or the Shopify ecosystem, where the platform is tightly managed and vertically integrated.
If I had to summarise it simply, it feels like a controlled platform monetisation model. Or put more plainly:
Fewer users, higher yield, tighter control.
What this is not:
A community growth model
An open ecosystem multiplier strategy
A low margin, high volume expansion approach
What it is:
A predictable income model
Potentially sustainable without explosive growth
However, it likely comes with trade offs:
Reduced ecosystem vibrancy
Greater pricing sensitivity
Lower independent developer participation
It is a legitimate business model. It is simply a departure from the more open, community driven philosophy that RapidWeaver operated under successfully for many years.
That’s a very confident analysis (feels almost like an AI summary of our business 
), but it’s speculation IMHO.
I understand you’re carrying some frustration. You’re a developer who wants to sell components for Elements but cannot currently do so, so I’ll consider your comments with this in mind.
Having said that, you don’t have access to our internal discussions, financials, developer plans, or long-term strategy and it feels like you’re trying to present a definitive guide for our intentions that isn’t grounded in actual information.
Elements wasn’t created as an ARPU optimisation strategy. It was created because the previous architecture had reached its limits. Rebuilding the foundation (no pun intended) was necessary.
We’re obviously aiming for a sustainable revenue model. We’ve been really clear about that from the start. This includes an in-app marketplace, optional paid-for components, and integrated services where they add value for Elements users.
That’s not a “fewer users, higher yield, tighter control” strategy (why would we be aiming for fewer users). That’s a modern software platform.
There’s a big difference between required purchases to make the core usable, and optional additions on top of a strong core.
That doesn’t reflect reality.
Building Elements was a complete architectural rebuild. An ecosystem doesn’t appear overnight. It requires stable foundations, clear boundaries, and to be sustainable for both us and third-party developers.
The suggestion that we’re “closing the platform” simply isn’t true. A few objective things that go against your suggestion:
The components we ship use the exact same public APIs available to every developer. No private hooks, no special privileges.
We’ve open-sourced our core components.
The developer APIs are fully documented (I actually re-did all the docs just a few weeks ago).
We’ve released free build tools to help developers create components efficiently.
Those are not the actions of a closed or vertically restricted platform.
What we’re trying to do is build a modern, sustainable foundation first so that when the ecosystem expands, it does so on stable ground rather than repeating the fragmentation issues of the past.
We’re focused on long-term stability and growth.
Anyway, I’d like to keep the rest of this thread focused on the Gallery Pro update. I’m happy to continue the discussion with you in a separate thread 
Thank you so much for your response… I was considering responding
I was in the car and I read the post and thought about it and thought about it and it didn’t quite hit me correctly thinking of all the options and trying to think of your business model and trying to think of what you’re trying to accomplish and it didn’t quite match up
I bought Gallery Pro this morning and hadn’t yet seen the 1.1 release publicized; thanks for the quick update. I’ve already been implementing it in one of my sites, it’s well worth the money. I must say I’ve been having fun, thanks for the great work!
Oh well .. you got me on this one. First plugin I bought. Just not worth developing all that myself with that price in mind.
Nevertheless. it seems the lightbox is not working. I just drag&drop the component on an empty page and tried it with some demo images you are providing. But the light box does not show when clicking on the image.
