16 sq meter plots - what is the point?

Flying around SL, looking for the best land buys (being the land baron in waiting that I am *evil grin*), I have noticed a lot of nice large lots spoiled by 16 sq meter plots owned by someone else and not for sale right smack in the middle of them. Is there a point for these 16 sq meter spots, as they seem to be the only land that person owns in the sim. If I were to purchase these large lots and build, will have to make a clear path to the 16 sq meter plot so as I won't be in violation of blocking access to that land in violation of the TOS?

Is there a cure for this or am I just seeing an abberation or is this a subtle form of extortion?

Your thoughts are welcome.

Its a less-than-subtle form of extortion.

The out-of-control forms rez a spinning prim of smilin' George W. Bush.

I have seen this too. Its nothing new, it has been happening since the beginning of SL. Someone gets the idea that if they hold a 16 Sqm plot in the middle of a larger plot, the owner of the larger plot will pretty much be forced to buy the 16 Sqm at almost any price to have full use of the land. I have seen the 16 Sqm plots go for as high as 10K! Its very bad business practice, and I used to negrate a lot of people for doing it. Its stupid, unfair, and just plain wrong. So yes, it is extortion. Just don't buy a plot that has a 16Sqm chunk taken out of the middle of it, thats all.

Timmy, do a search on Hank Ramos and his micro-empire of 16ms if you want to read all the past discussion on this.

I agree it is extortion, pure and simple. 99 percent of the cases I see of 16m lands for sale are extortions. Some of the sellers try to claim they bought it for the same price and have to sell if for that -- in which case they are merely land flippers trying to play the land game with extortionists lol.

In one percent of the cases, it is a parceling error and the person just sells it for next to nothing or the going rate for that sim next to that property to that owner.

The FYH crowd tries to get really stretched thin on this one, claiming that 16m parcels are only used for a putative future communication device, or legitimate ad signs or something of the sort. They try to make it sound like the putative good of these 16ms in some fake future and good world is worth the drag of having to deal with griefers.

I'm for negrating and abuse reporting 16m extortionists. Extortion isn't a crime under the TOS. I think if the Lindens begin to get more ARs wth the title "extortion" they'll begin to think of how to stop racketeering like this as it is in RL. So I think if you catch site of one of these 16m barons, negrate them, and AR them with a heading EXTORTION.

I do own a few, and they are not for sale. I use them for server redundancy actually. I have multiple systems that use in-world and external rpc communications, and if one sim goes down, the backups can be used. The server prims are always undergound or invisible, and low lag. One 16m plot can get me 3 prims of random server goodness.

In hanks defence, For a log time those plots were being used by sl companies to ship out updates, Most of them now are used for mapping projects and other services. As for the barrons using them to make obceen amounts of money I cant comment. (Well I think they suck but thats me)

These purposes aside, I have a vague recollection of hearing about a "game within the game" that involved "collecting" sims by owning a small chunk in it.

If that's the case, then its possible that these small "game pieces" used to be on the edge of someone's parcel. But that over time with sales and parcel joins, what was once on the edge of several medium parcels ended up in the middle of a larger one.

Of course I could be completely mistaken, and this never happened at all.

Brian,

Are these 16 sq meter parcels that you own on the edge of a sim, where it doesn't cause havoc or are they in the middle of a sim or landlocked in some other way?

Another question I guess is this: If I were to build up all around that 16 sq meter parcel, so as its not built over, but there is the definite space, am I in violation of the TOS for access to that parcel?

Most are on the edge of a sim, one right on the edge of Linden owned land, underneath a road, and I do have one in the middle of a sim, but I try to keep out of people's way and would sell if someone had an issue.

Well, I wouldn't AR it, and if the Lindens saw it I would say I have no problem, because I don't ever go there, just leave a prim or two running an RPC script.....so, no I guess.

So, I would be in violation of the TOS?

Possibly, but would it be enforced in this situation, is the TOS selective in anyway if the 'victim' chooses for it to be enforced or not?

There was some interesting discussion on this topic in this thread from last October:

/120/86/25210/1.html

A lot of 16m plots (and 32, or 48 etc) are caused by the tier system. Because the tier system is in incremetns of 512, odd sized lots, especially lots that have 16 or 32 extra m2, don't sell. Who buys 1040 m2 lot? You have to chop of 16m2 to make it 1024 in order for it to sell.

If the tier system was changed so that you pay for exactly the number of m2 you have, with the tier levels affecting only the rate per m2 progressively (like income tax schedules), then I think a lot of these could disappear because people could buy a neighboring small plot without going a whole tier jump, and a huge incentive for chopping these little squares off parcels would be eliminated.

It wouldn't completely end the problem, but it would eliminate the built-in incentives to create these things and remove a disincentive to getting rid of them.

Buster

often those are also used to house old land-scanners, id harvesters, or other wide-area sensor systems... and yes generally it can be extremely difficult to get them 'back' from people once they have them

Wow, go away for 8 weeks, and you become the Pariah of SL! I sure got an earful when trying to rejoin the SL community tonight from one resident for "forcing" them to buy a plot.

Well, I guess I had better give the USD$-1757.32 profit I made on trying to help educate people in SL off my various land deals and such. Anyone want to pay me?

Hi Hank, welcome back. And thanks again for your free script library and all your generosity to other residents. Helped me lots. I'm having a bit of difficulty, though, decoding your latest, above. Could we give it another go? I think your finger slipped, yes?

I think the '-' sign being missed could throw you

I got the minus profit, Hiro. It was the "off" bit that puzzled me.

I'm sure off = from hehe

Like Timmy points out, to expand you ARE forced to buy this piece or build a U shaped swimming pool to let him have access to his precious 16 sq. , extortion, well, you decide. I was shocked that someone I had so much respect for does this to make a living. Yes, he gave us a library full of free Linden scripts and some of his own personal stuff, not challenging that. I guess that's why I was so shocked at the 100L a sq meter. I have given newbies thousands and thousands of L's , does Hank want to give me part of that money back?

I started this thread, not to attack anyone one person and defintely not to attack Hank. No, I started this thread, because as I have been expanding my land holdings in Moen (to support and expand Night Mountain, which will be rebuilt starting on July 1, 2005 - Shameless plug), I noticed three land owners in Moen who own just one 16 sq meter plot each. None of these land owners are Hank and only one of them has responded to me about either trading their 16 meter plot for one at the edge of the sim where it does not harm me or for me to buy it out.

I understand that some of these 16 sq meter plots are there due to several different land transactions and also to provide in-world server relays and that is fine. And that also answers the question originally posted.

Now, I ask that this thread not be turned into an anti-Hank forum (see the original, unedited quote below by Polly). I refuse to allow it. If I see anymore Hank Ramos bashing, I myself will ask that the Lindens to remove this thread and start banning procedures under the new rules against anyone who has made a personal attack on Hank. Hopefully I have made myself clear.

Well, my experience was with *shh shouldn't say his name* I wasn't the first to mention his name so don't attack me. This is exactly why this game is the way it is. No more forums for me. I apologize "H" your right in doing what you do, some people deserve to pay 100L's a sq meter. Lot's of luck Timmy.

When the plots are for sale for $1600L or higher, it is simple extortion. People who are doing this care nothing about the community, just lining their pockets

It is against TOS to name names in these forums.

There are 3 prominent people in SL that are currently selling these plots in SL at extortionist prices, at the detriment to the community.

1) A well known and wealthy billboard advertiser in SL.

2) The figure who you are trying to protect, Timmy, who seems to be trying to exact his revenge on the community who isn't paying him back for all of his noble and selfless deeds.

3) A former player who IMO has a small chance at returning to SL, and was bashed on these forums for illegal land scanners.

I am not sure if there is a solution to this. But make no mistakes, this is pure and simple greedy extortionist tactics.