Open Spaces Announcement & Talk with M and Jack Linden

Being pleased and accepting of it are two different things. If you need to insult people to get your point across, please refrain from replying to my comments.

Great Pubnico definitely isn't laggy.

Argent: I have no doubt you get along with those people. *grins*

If you are not Snowflake Fairymeadow's Alt perhaps you two are soul mates.

I *am* an export in system administration and large system management. I've worked on systems that can kill people... real people, not avatars... if they fail. And yes, you can manage resources... but the systems that do that cost significantly more, and the software imposes significant overhead, and they'd have to charge more if they used them. And even if they did that there's overhead per sim that can't be magicked away by Sun or VMware.

I am starting to believe they are "M" hiding under those names lol

Lets do some math..

The average open space cost 250 dollars.. say you own 20 of those and you charge 125 dollars a month.

so 250 x 20 = 5000 initial investment.

After 5 months at 125 a month for the 20 open spaces = You've gotten your money back. You profit from anything over 5 months at an average of 50 dollars per sim profit per month.

50 (profit) x 20 sims = 1000 dollars.

Raise the tier to 95 dollars a month .. that cuts 20 dollars out of your profit margin per sim..

So now its 30 (profit) x 20 sims = 600 dollars profit.

If your sims are payed off after you've owned them for say 5 months. 600 dollar profit still isn't bad. You have room in your profit plan to absorb 20 dollars or you raise your profit marging by say 10 dollars to compenstate and lose 10 dollars. but 20 x 10 = 200. So thats only a 200 dollar loss on profit for something that is totally payed for.

There is still plenty of room for profit at the price of 125 dollars on average after markup from the 75 dollar initial rent that is the going rate. If you have your open space rented out at 125 dollars a month, - you pay lindens 75, you either pay the price profit , or you dont. Your still making money either way, unless you have over half open.

Perhaps lindens should offer a refund on sims less than 3 months old at the time of the first posting, anything older should by this point be payed off from profits. Based on the theory of numbers above.

The factors of profit versus spending is hard to calculate to an exact number because there are to many factors.

Seriously, why ponder the whys and wherefores anymore? Why waste the time. To me it is obvious that they want us GONE. If you are the kind of person who wants to live cheap on a private sim, they don't want you. There's the door. See ya.

What they want is a lot of people foaming at the mouth at auctions, bidding like mad instead of sending a pittance setup fee. They want population compression on the mainland, and they want scarcity in land, which is their commodity, after all. They want people who don't want that to give back the hardware we bought them and not let the door bump us on the way out.

In the future, if you want an estate, they want you to be bidding on a 65k surrounded by Linden water and paying, well, god only knows for it. They don't want hardware to ever enter our minds. Well, they really don't mind if we don't have minds.

Old fogies fade away soon enough anyway. It's no big loss, and what loss there is they paid for this summer by taking $250 from untold numbers of people for a service they now refuse to honor. They just... decided they didn't have to.

So stop with the statistics and server stuff. They really don't care about that. They don't care about you, either. They'd be happy if that number in this months statistics said -5000 under servers added. Think of all that mainland they could auction with that hardware...

and yes, there will be people to buy it. don't feel so special. Either the FTC will make an inquiry about this, or life will go on, and the revolving door will keep turning. It's their servers, our imagination, and frankly I think they feel our imagination is overrated. That's their real hubris in all this, they can't see how we have been glamming up what they were too talentless to make presentable.

We need to get over ourselves. They aren't shuffling us around, because they don't care if we leave. I think they'd just as soon be rid of us.

Say you own 20 of these and charge 90-110, instead? Or maybe you charge 150? Or maybe you charge 80? That 125 is pulled straight out of thin air. Is it realistic? I don't know. Do I doubt it? Yes.

Two problems with your maths here, first of all no accounting for advertising costs or tenants leaving, secondly, and probably more importantly, who the bloody hell is getting away with asking for 125 dollars a month in tier payments?

From what I have seen, a lot of people are paying around 95-105, except for those dealing with VAT.

In addition to what Argent says.

It doesn't include VAT for those who are not in the US.

It also doesn't include the time it takes to setup the island (like terraforming and community areas) and get renters. It doesn't include the cost of turnover on residents.

It doesn't include advertising costs to get the rentals filled.

And it doesn't include the cost of the full sim that one must own before purchasing an OS sim.

It doesn't even allow for the people who bought it at the higher than $250.

It also doesn't include the people who are not renting them out, but are using them for projects, open space for their full sims, etc.

Firelight

Well stated. Unfortunately, the evidence mounts hour by hour that LL really does not care about the every day consumer supporting SL:
Three [?] responses from Jack;
no dialogue;
Mr. M's marketing background indicts his currents mistreatment of us; and
posts here are being deleted that annoy LL.

The following is a link to one of the funniest PR strategies I've run across. Maybe we can purchase a copy of this DVD for Jack and Mr. M. It uses very simple words to convey a very simple, yet effective, message.

http://www.giveemthepickle.com/pickle_principle.htm

NICE SITE PARA ;o)

Three problems actually...

Reguardless to if someone made a profit or not, does not give linden labs the right to steal 250 usd from people just because they stopped offering the product people purchased.
LL sold a product.
They are effectivly recalling that product.
They are offering to replace with two infearior products
If you do not want the replacement products a full purchase price should be refunded. If somone made money from that product or not is nobodies busines but their own. Just because some one made a profit does NOT give a company the right to steal money from them. Not to mention she also assumes everyone rented them out for 125 dollars a month. some people did not rent them out at all.

Nice article here : http://www.impomag.com/Scripts/ShowPR.asp?RID=10113&CommonCount=0

IF LL WOULD TRY TO UNDERSTAND THE MESSAGE IN IT ....................

Ensuring Customers Aren't A Flight Risk

by Anna Wells, Editor, IMPO

"The new economy demands we make smarter choices—in the case of an airline, perhaps this means overselling flights to minimize empty seats—hedging your bets, so to speak." -Anna Wells


I find myself in airports quite a bit—the various demands of my job entail a moderate amount of travel, and some stretches are worse than others. While I’ve yet to meet a person who really enjoys airline travel, I’ve found myself particularly frustrated as of late.

On a recent trip, I was delayed on a layover because another flight was late, and there were several passengers that needed the same connection as I did. The airline ostensibly found our time less valuable than the money it would cost them to re-book these other passengers, so they held our plane for almost an hour and a half. I’m sure these passengers appreciated “catching” their connection—and I tried to think of them, really—but it was hard to curb my irritation with having to drive home at 1 am.

Only two weeks later, I arrived at the airport for a flight to Baltimore, and was told my reserved seat was no longer available, because we were in an “oversold situation.” I was matter-of-factly told that I could purchase an upgrade to business class if I’d like, otherwise take my chances at the gate, but “no guarantees.”

I’m not sharing these anecdotes because I have a personal ax to grind (okay… maybe a little…) but more to serve as an indicator of a growing trend towards cost cutting measures. The new economy demands we make smarter choices—in the case of an airline, perhaps this means overselling flights to minimize empty seats—hedging your bets, so to speak.

While sometimes this seems like the most pragmatic approach, it sets a dangerous precedent to take these kinds of chances, when it’s the customer who will ultimately pay. In manufacturing, it’s perhaps tempting to also approach cost cutting in an aggressive way. Whether it’s cutting quality through sourcing inexperienced labor, importing inferior parts, or running equipment longer than it should go before replacement, it’s risky behavior—especially since it's the customer who likely contends with the consequences.

In my case, the airline is so focused on efficiency that it winds up being inefficient—and, far worse, alienating its customers. Often, one false move with a customer means an account is lost altogether.

Besides the risk of losing valuable customers, the trickle down costs will come back to the scene of the crime in the way of returns, cancellations, downtime—a company’s worst nightmare.

Creative cost cutting is good—in fact, we should all be encouraged to think outside the box when responding to these less than stellar economic conditions. The important thing though, as always, is to remember the needs of your customers. Personally, I could show you a list of airlines I now refuse to fly, and will be the first to admit: a good customer relationship is something that is often much more difficult to build than to destroy. Don't let a focus on the bottom dollar cloud judgement, and potentially interfere with this critical investment.

Well the product isn't fit for purpose so I agree as long as refunds are honoured all the way down the line. So if a resident paid upfront for the openspace they ultimately get the refund. If any refund lines the pocket of an estate owner at the expense of a resident then I won't agree at all.

Aura, may I ask you if you are renting any plot in an OS sim? Just curious, because in that case you have all my respect for your opinions.

Wow. When I first came to the US, visiting Hawaii in the mid '70s, Farrell's Restaurant in the Ala Moana mall soon became one of my favorite places to hang out. I'm sure they got tired of us dumb Aussie kids showing up and ordering the cheapest thing on the menu every damn day, but they ALWAYS provided great service with no cause for complaint, and I kept coming back to them for years.

I don't remember hearing the Pickle story before, but I can believe it.

Lines the estate owners pocket... not even sure what you mean by that.

Some estate owners are in it stictly for money, but there are a great deal more that actually give a crap about the people they rent to and care for their estates and the people who frequent them.

talk (tôk)
v. talked, talk·ing, talks
v.tr.
1. To articulate (words): The baby is talking sentences now.
2. To give expression to in words: talk treason.
3. To speak of or discuss (something): talk music; talk business;
4. To speak or know how to speak in (an idiom or language): talked French with the flight crew.
5. To gain, influence, or bring into a specified state by talking: talked me into coming; talked their way out of trouble.
6. To spend (a period of time) by or as if by talking: talked the evening away.
v.intr.
1. To converse by means of spoken language: We talked for hours. See Synonyms at speak.
2. To articulate words: The baby can talk.
3. To imitate the sounds of human speech: The parrot talks.
4. To express one's thoughts or emotions by means of spoken language: talked about the pros and cons of the issue.
5. To convey one's thoughts in a way other than by spoken words: talk with one's hands.
6. To express one's thoughts in writing: Voltaire talks about London in this book.
7. To parley or negotiate with someone: Let's talk before continuing to fight.
8. To spread rumors; gossip: If you do that, people will talk.
9. To allude to something: Are you talking about last week?
10. To consult or confer with someone: I talked with the doctor.
11. To reveal information concerning oneself or others, especially under pressure: Has the prisoner talked?
12. Informal To be efficacious: Money talks.
n.
1. An exchange of ideas or opinions; a conversation.
2. A speech or lecture.
3. Hearsay, rumor, or speculation: There is talk of bankruptcy.
4. A subject of conversation: a musical that is the talk of the town.
5. A conference or negotiation. Often used in the plural: peace talks.
6. Jargon; slang: prison talk.
7. Empty speech or unnecessary discussion: much talk and no action.
8. A particular manner of speech: baby talk; honeyed talk.
9. Something, such as the sounds of animals, felt to resemble human talk: whale talk.

I don't see any talk with LL going on at all.

and from the previous announcment forum.

dis·cus·sion (d-skshn)
n.
1. Consideration of a subject by a group; an earnest conversation.
2. A formal discourse on a topic; an exposition.

There was no Discussion in the previous forum.
A valid question that seems to elude a response from Linden Lab-
"Will there be a refund on OS setup fee if you want to abandon?"
among many other unanswered questions in this "talk"

While I think the new changes are an improvement to the original post, I don't think it will make everyone happy. Speaking for myself here, it's not made me completely happy. Sure, the prices make a bit more sense, but how about grandfathering the tier for those who already own openspace sims?

It isn't fair that you would grandfather tier for those still paying 199.00U$ on full prim sims but not on openspace sims.

Please grandfather those who own openspace sims already, thank you.

This is not a personal attack in any way, but how can you say the prices make a bit more sense, when it is the same price rise albeit put off for a bit longer only with more limitations put on it?

I'm not sure leaving is the best thing to do if you are angry with this. I think abandoning your sims is exactly what they want, though I understand people simply can't pay this. LL understands it too, that's why they did it.

But you don't have to pay LL a dime to be in SL. You really don't have to make them any money by staying. Other than the pittance in upload fees, you don't have to really benefit them by creating, though our creations are what sell their world.

No, by getting rid of us they are erasing their history, in a way. All the witnesses get mad, or sad, and leave. Or they just waste away and leave after a month or two. Or they get converted to believers and move onto some ugly little bay city 1024 they paid a mint for.

There's a middle path. Stay, remember, and don't play THEIR game. If you don't want to benefit their economy, keep creating and give the stuff away. How would they get by if everyone who got displaced by this stayed right on using their resources and didn't send them a penny in tier ever again?

We've been told that our opinions don't matter. We've been told that our setup fees are inconsequential, though I think that is a farce. Well, they took us. It's over. Leave it to the FTC. What we do now will determine where SL goes, not what LL decides.

Stay, please. I've decided to. I revisited what William Gibson said about SL. When asked if SL was what he forsaw regarding a metaverse he said SL was what teen girls would have made covertly in abandoned corporate basements in the metaverse. I was kind of offended by that.

Now, I'm not. SL isn't what is made in the corporate basement, SL is the corporate monolith. We are the teenage girls and boys. Let's play in their basement and not pay them a dime. Let THEM pay for OUR fun for a while.

LL You have not offered anything but a stay of execution. You allowed us to use 3750 prims and now you want to pull them back. For me and my partner and friend, We have never had more than 4 avatars on our sim at any given time and currently use less that the 3750 prims allowed. You want to upgrade this to a homestead, which is way too costly. Now, since we have lived on an island paradise, now it will be stolen from us, Why would we even consider giving you my money and time and go live on an UGLY, OUT of Control, No restriction Mainland piece of property. You allow people to put up UGLY UGLY UGLY ads, all kinds of unrealistic crap, and I have to live by it. Hmmmm, I am not sure I can do that, Your attempt to appease people here is Wrong, and not very customer relations oriented.

I hope all people do not get snookered by your lame attempts to appease them, while continuing to give them the shaft. I still feel like you do not have your customer’s best interest at heart or that you even care. Offer us some better options at a reasonable price. Offer a grandfather clause or something for those of us who do not operate a business or commercial activities on our sims or even have but a few, say 4 to 10 avatars on their SIM on a very limited bases. Offer us something FAIR. The money we paid for our SIM is lost as I am sure we cannot resale our SIM now. Thanks for you time and please consider each user when you make these decisions.