End Stipends Now - An Open Letter to King Philip

Why don't you take a journey to Active Worlds. Now you have a real life example of what can happen when a company breakes their contracts and agreements. Active Worlds use to have 10000 people a night but now they have about 20.

You know I came to SECOND LIFE to escape all this trash you just mentioned. And I expect Linden Labs to honor their contracts.

As have many of us, albeit for different goals in-game.



It's funny how so many people are failing to grasp this fact.

Lewis

I totally support Jamie Bergman's Petition.

Yes, President Phillip, end Jamie Bergman's stipend Now.

rofl...

Who says I have to buy your products?

Theres plenty of alternatives out there for most things.

There is an easy solution to this: buy stipend $L out of the Lindex

Stipends are an important part of the SL economy.

Stipends enable players to enjoy coming into SL and rewarding the content creators.

Linden can manage the economy by simply managing the inflow and outflow of cash, they are the Federal Reserve.

No need to destroy player's ability to enjoy SL - simply manage the economy by CLOSING THE LOOP, and buy the $L off the market to pay for stipends.

Then, we will have a managed economy like every other civilized nation.

thanks,
Aegif

No, 27% in the last 4 months.

I have not now, nor ever have been, in the business of speculating in the L$ for profit.

Except for one small problem... with no new money coming in to the economy, and the continued presence of sinks such as upload fees, classifieds etc - eventually we run out of money, and you get less and less L$ per dollar as it heads that way.

Lewis

Urm... wasn't the TOS just changed to allow the Lindens to introduce new money into the economy by selling L$?

And I wonder what situation they would anticipate resulting in having to introduce this new money into the economy by selling L$?

That is true... but you have to remember that many people rely on their stipends as their spending money, and don't want to blur that line between reality and a computer game like some do here by wasting more real cash on game cash.

Lewis

ActiveWorlds also started charging people more just to play, as opposed to playing for free, even going from free access to having to pay just to log in. SecondLife has been charging people less and less, doing the opposite with going from charging a monthly fee just to play to letting people play for free or fr a reduced amount.

Earlier in this thread someone made the statement that there were a hand full of people who seem to be doing most the complaining about getting rid of the stipends. Now I am not an old timer like a lot of people around. I joined SL in September 2005 as a basic member (free) and received my 50 lindens a week. I soon found out that I could not do want I wanted in SL (As it is advertised) with only that amount. So, I decided to purchase my preimum membership. For my $72.00 a year I was told I would be able to have 512 sqm of land (free-well almost free (512L), and a weekly stipend of 500 lindens a week. Again I found I was limited in what I could do with 512 sqm and only 117 prims. Even using low prim items I was very limited in what I could have. Now I own 9120 sqm of land, have put in or my own rl dollars over $800.00 to $1,000.00. All of which I purchased from the lindenX. I do not create items to sell. I am now constructing a house for my land after buying many many pre-fab ones. Most of these were paid for with a combination of my weekly stipends and the lindens I purchased from lindex. I have bought all kinds of fun things to play with, cars, planes, boats, etc... My inventory is now well over 15,000 items. To me this is a form of entertainment (and I might add a very expensive one). Yes, I spend that much in RL for other forms of entertainment as well. I love to play the slots and drop that much in a month. That is beside the point. What I spend on my entertainment is my business. This is a very expensive form of entertainment in anyones book.

My point is this. There are really only a few who seem to be doing most the screaming and you know who you are....RBD and a few others. The total percentage of those who read these forums are extremely small compared to the number of residents in SL. My guess is maybe at the most 1 to 2 %. Most of the residents in SL are here to play the GAME. Sure it is suppose to be a platform, but if there was really a true way to find out just how the 98% of the real SL player feel you would find out that the majority of them will leave SL if the stipends end, because most of them are playing it as a GAME. And most of the rely on their weekly stipends to stay in the GAME. Yeah, there are a good many people who create fantastic things in here and deserve to be paid for their time and creativity. I know I have spent a bunch on their things. But you take away the weekly stipends and see how much they are able to sell then. SL will lose it's player base, creators will lose their customers, and in the long run SL will lose business. I know someone will say good riddens and more will come in. Again I say look at the true player base. Just how many newbies really stay after they sign up....Just what is the average number of residents on line at any given time.

I think you will find again the majority come in, see just how much it cost to play in here and most stay as a basic member. It would be again nice to know just how many preimum membership LL has. I would bet the ratio is more toward a large number of basic accounts and a much lesser amount of preimum memberships.

I really do enjoy playing in here, and as long as the stipends continue I will stay and spend my RLs plus stipends to play. End the stipends and I go back to my basic account, sell my land, and squat where I can and probably not be on as much.

This is bad business to end the stipends because a hand full of people are afraid they are going to lose money.

More 2 lindens worth.......

P.S. excuse my spelling and use of the language...just a little hot at those few who want to spoil it for the many who really enjoy this program.

An excellent point. People who come to Sl for the enjoyment of it are less likely to troll the forums... most dont even know what going on in all these discussions.

I wonder if we randomly asked a stranger what they thought... what would they say?

--
How do you want to save the falling Linden value? Be heard!
Poll: Teh ultrimate solution to the falling L$ problem! zOMG!

No, my customers are established individuals who are looking for quality products. I shouldn't be impacted more than SL as a whole.

In answer to your question. I have had the pleasure and honor of being appointed as an SL Mentor. I am in-world a lot more hours than most on here and meet a lot of residents, both new and old. I would say I probably have explored at least 60 percent of the realm of SL. And on almost every single occasion when t a new person in SL I get asked several questions: 1st most important question - How do I make money in here to "Play This Game"? No joke that is almost a total quote? 2nd - What all can I do in here? 3rd - how can I get land and create things. I have put together several notecards, many many folders of all the free things I have found and collected (From men's clothes, ladies clothes, free vehicles, free houses, etc) and give them to those who want them. I try my best to tell them how to make money I (and escorting is not one of them) where to go to learn how to create things, and where to go to find the great creations that people have made in SL. I provide them with a folder of nothing but 100's of landmarks to go see, to buy things, to find out just what SL has to offer. I go to a lot of the nicer clubs in SL (The Blue Note, Trader's) and have made more friends in here than I really have room for on my friends list. Even a lot of the older residents and that is a bunch, still refer this this platform as a game. They are here to have fun, here to relieve the stresses of every day real life, to just enjoy the socializing with friends, and a lot of them build/create things for themselves or make for others free of charge just for the enjoyment of doing it. I have even had some beach parties on my land and they come and visit there, dancing, chat, and enjoying the socializing with the other residents. I bet I can count on one hand the number of people I have met in real life that even knows the forums exist. Even since this thing about the linden rate has raised it's head in the forum, I occasionally ask those I meet "What would you do if the stipends were taken away"? 90 per cent or more tell me they would at the least: 1st stay basic, or if they were preimum members would go back to basic, and a smaller amount would leave SL. They could care less about the forums.
They use their weekly stipends to pay rent, buy things, and yes even tip the good clubs. Most do not spend the money, or have the money to go buy large amounts of lindens to pay rent or buy things. Again, take away the stipends and you will see a lot of people drop back to basic or leave. This is not just me sayings this, this is a large amount of the "real residents" of SL...many of whom support the creators, the land barons, and the big clubs.

No, we don't all agree on that .. only the people who agree with you agree with that. Naturally you believe those people are the only ones whose opinions count ...

I met a noob at the shelter today and these were just about the same order of questions!



how nice of you, its good to see people helping our newer players



this is really the point I was trying to make. Most people dont care about the forums, the dropping L... theyre here to have fun in a game.

eh, i tried to point this out yesterday, no one seemed to a) care b) pick up on it or c) notice at all. Im not sure which

I'm sure established players have more than enough of what you're selling. I'm sure they even got them at Yadni's Junkyard. Its newbies who don't know to go to your 'competition' that are your customers.

Stipends again have nothing to due with the value of L falling. Nothing to due with money does. It all comes down to greed. The current exchange rate of the stipend itself would be on the basis of 1.25 - 500L which i think the stipend should be based on lindex average on monday night. If these greedy people push the value lower we get a bigger stipend if higher we get less. We get a about a 1.50 usd oversight per month in L value when compared with Lindex. But thats not the issue most people dont figure that. What these people that whine about stipends needing to be cut forget to realize is they will only profit from it while they have the L in their pockets. After its out of their pockets if the people that bought it hold onto it guess what your basically screwed. I will then laugh.

Someone posted that the stipends should be re introduced if things get out of hand. Thats just whining when things go either way. What you have now is a medium that can be abused and is abused by greedy people. It wont devalue unless these people want it to. Stop whining for something that will only help about 5% of the population of SL yet hurt about the other 95%. No one other then you people that have money alot of money or sell their L want the stipends gone. Your argument is the stipend is making the Value of L drop. i laugh at that simply put you people control the value of L. And you choose to put it in at a lower value. Your not forced to due so because it wont sell you do it to sell faster. People will buy the L if you leave it in but your to worried about covering your tier to care. So stop whining about something that doesnt help the mass of people in SL and get over yourselves seriously.

My post may seem like rambling to alot of you and it very well may be partially but most of its facts dealing with how people in general are. Frankly if LL does remove it they might as well come to alot of our houses and just spit on our faces and say f you. It hurts everyone wether you people realize it or not. I just simply think your to set in your ways to realize what you yourself are proposing doing.

Exactly! SL is one of the few that encourge currency sales (the other that springs to mind is Ultima Online). In most other games, get caught buying currency (and yes, sales still happen) and you can kiss your account goodbye. That and in most other games, you can tell a currency buyer on the spot....best armor, weapons, equipment, etc that cash can buy you...and zero real playing skill. A loser (and group with one of the eBay wonders in other games and you'll see how well loser fits).

Since there are a lot more online games Where both the company TOS and the player culture discourage buying currency or look down on those that do, the average player that is not new to online gaming comes in with the established lesson that currency buyers are losers and to be avoided.