Class Subsidy Cut

So, for those of you who haven't heard:
http://slnn.com/index.php/article/about/instructorpaycut-redaktisto.html
http://www.secondlifeinsider.com/2006/11/09/cutting-instructor-payments/
So, what as instructors is our response going to be? Personnaly, as an instructor, I am going to keep teaching, but I am profoundly dissapointed. This is a major break with LL, and a damn shame. SL is a heaven of capitalism, but some things still deserve to be subsisized. At least we should get some free uploads so we can upload our class slides, but they are denying us even that.

This doesn't surprise me in the least.

Shame tho, there were some awesome classes I had been to in the last few weeks. I myself haven't taught recently but enjoyed doing so when I had the time.

It's certainly consistent with the direction that LL has been going in the recent past; cutting services, raising costs.

My feelings are mixed. On the one hand, classes are a valuable service, and I certainly don't want to see them disappear from Second Life. On the other hand, singling out one group of volunteers (Instructors) for payment while giving nothing to other groups (Mentors and Live Help) never did seem fair. I would have rather seen equity reached by giving something to those other groups, rather than eliminating pay for teachers, but it's not going to happen.

Business models that require charging fees for beginning classes are unlikely to fly. The target audience has little or no money, and will be reluctant to spend it on classes. Classes are one of the things that help people understand Second Life well enough to make a commitment to it; until that commitment is made, people mostly don't buy any L$.

Sponsorship models might work, but a problem is that the skill set for teaching and the skill set for marketing aren't the same. There are plenty of people who are good instructors, but won't be good at lining up financial support. Conversely, there will be good marketers who will be able to get support for classes, but will be poor instructors. In this Brave New World of no public education, guess which will be most visible?

THe main reason we were getting paid over other groups of volunteers is because we have exoenses...we have to upload class textures, slides, hell all kinds of stuff. We actually produce things, although that also means there is logic in saying we could sell them. Frankly though, I dont believe we should have to.

Quite frankly I'm not near as concerned about losing teacher's pay, however, I do worry what all this signifies for the stability of LL. I'm actually considering quitting, thisis the final straw in a series of moves that seems to show that LL is unstable financially. I'm not going to pay for anything about to go down the drain....

And I would like to add that there's a bit more to teaching what it may seem to students. It isn't just that you go to a class, spew out our notes, get out of the class. It may take from days to even a week to come up with a class idea, make a functional item, make the notes and think how it would be easiest for people to be able to make themselves, how to present things, prep it, rehearse it, make the supplies...whatever it takes, and it takes a lot.

Then, maybe tutor some students who are a little slower, maybe 3-5 at a time, stay after class to see that they finish their item...there's so much to it, that most don't even know. I haven't been a greeter etc, so I wouldn't know how much work they have to put to it, but us instructors work for our classes, before, at the time, and after.

Many of my students, who have since become instructors themselves, have told me they never imagined it was so much work. And I'm sure students don't think that, which only means that we're doing a good job...lol.

About the matter itself, it has been in the air for a while, and some people were prepared for the day. Having no LL control over education isn't good: no control to the quality of classes, instructors, the chances for basic instruction for beginners.... I don't know what's up their sleeve, why they're doing this... but this is what will happen and we're just going to have to live with it.

Of course LL isn't financially stable and viable. What else do you expect when they think the 10% who pay, subsidising the play of the 90% who don't, is going to work out - especially when they want that 10% to pay even more for the privilege?

It's unfortunate that the current leadership don't seem to want to listen to their paying customers - who are the ones who not only create their world, but keep it going.

Linden Lab are rapidly equating EA and SOE's level of incompetence. What is it about online games that companies seem to have absolutely no clue how to successfully run them?

Lewis

Yes, but there is a difference between financially unstable and scrambling desperately to dig yourself out of a hole.

Perhaps one of the factors behind the price increase is LL is concerned that at the current rate of growth, all of SL will be unconnected private sims. So they're making it more cost-attractive to stay on the mainlaind.

And... Go prove you can run a successful self-supporting gaming company already. Sure your armchair quarterbacking and vulturish
heckling may be more fun and less work, but if you're going to put this much effort into it... you could just as well do something positive with your time instead, no?

Nice theory... if mainland prices don't go up. As far as I know, they are, it's just a case of when.



I'm quite sure I couldn't make any worse a job of it than the current team are. With a CFO whose previous escapades saw almost 70% drop in share prices in 18 months, and whose company has been repeatedly exposed as a scam... a CEO whose idea of management is to let people do whatever they like whenever they like... Customer Service that doesn't exist... making 10% of the community pay for 90% of the costs and let the rest stay free, and a company ethos that appears as nothing but contempt for the very individuals who are keeping their 'dream' alive, what could I possibly do worse?

"New Age" thinking and "Tao" crap do not make a successful company. Being prepared to take calculated risks whilst recognising age-old managment techniques that are proven to work is where growth comes from, when coupled with recognising a market gap and filling it. When job success and satisfaction is measured by how much 'love' you get sent... it's just a joke.

All I am seeing is short term panic moneymaking measures at the expense of long term growth and financial stability. You don't need to spend years in college to recognise bad management when you see it.

Be grateful that I care about SL and its potential; otherwise I wouldn't be trying to offer my help, time, effort and money to keep it alive.

Lewis

Ah! You're taking the "tough love" approach?

It looked so much like "Spitting in the faces of of your hosts" that I mis-interpreted it.

I apologize for my error. Carry on, fight the good fight, rah rah.

Once again, Developer Incentives were mentioned, but I never could find out what they are. Inquiring minds want to know. Has anything about this been posted anywhere?

No, they are going to raise those prices, too.

coco

Okay, now I'm genuinely confused... LL has been allowing private estates to be connected to the mainland continents? I thought when they auctioned off entire sims on the mainland they were merely treated at large parcels, not private estates.

Or... are you saying that the price hike is going to hit high-tier non-estate owners as well? (if so, please point me at where this was said, I can't find it!)

(Developer Incentives used to be extra L$ awarded monthly for the top traffic generating land owners... I've seen and heard nothing about any chance of them coming back.)

The price hike is going to hit the mainland, yes. Read the blog, because it is right there struggling to get out of between the lines of everything Mr. Z. has said.

As for allowing private estates to be connected to the mainland continents, funny you mention that. I heard tonight (rumor only) that a tier drive was conducted for a private estate, and it was arranged that it be connected to the mainland.

coco

The price of buying mainland land will surely go up now, even if tier doesn't. The cost of private islands sets a ceiling on what mainland is worth, and that ceiling is being raised. If the tier were equal, it wouldn't be worth paying more for a mainland sim than the fixed price of an island; On the other hand, if mainland tier is lower, it might be worth paying a higher purchase price to get the land, so the ceiling goes higher still. That means higher auction prices for land (and thus more $$ for LL), as well as higher prices when us residents buy the land from the barons who buy those mainland sims.

I certainly know that there is more time involved to teaching than the class session itself: I am an instructor, too.

The other volunteer positions (Mentor and Live Help, and Greeter if they're still active) don't involve as much preparation time. (They do require a good knowledge of Second Life.) But their basic work shifts are longer than the one hour of a typical class, so I suspect that the total amount of time spent on their volunteer work is similar. I know Mentors who give things (I mean stuff they have to buy, not just their own creations) and/or money to newcomers at their own expense, though it's not a job requirement.

I sincerely hope Linden Lab aren't equating EA - I've been bitten by them before, and all this is giving me a terrible feeling of deja-vu.

I used to play another online game quite a few years ago called Air Warrior - it was a World War 2 Flight Sim which I got interested in after watching my husband playing for a while. After playing for a few months I decided to apply to be volunteer to help other players enjoy the game as much as I did, after after several weeks rigorous training I was let loose as a Game Assistant, patrolling the various arenas, helping new as well as more experienced players as well as generally making sure everyone played nicely. We had a rota and worked a total of 6 hours a week in exchange for a free (work) account, and we were seen as a friendly face who was willing to help with any problems. I even used to help people when I was not working especially if there were no Game Assistants available in a particular arena when someone needed assistance. Then Air Warrior was taken over by EA.com.

Within a few months of the takeover, all the volunteer staff were informed they were no longer required! As well as Game Assistants, this included Trainers who helped new players actually learn to 'fly' and fight in their virtual aircraft - all volunteers and all given the boot. Suddenly there was nobody to help new players with their questions and training, although some of us did form an independent group to try to continue our work unofficially. We no longer had a free account of course, but we still tried our best to provide the help that players needed. Then EA.com brought in their own 'EAGurus' - who were actually employees of a Call Centre in India! Apart from the fact English was not their first language, they had no idea of how Air Warrior was played and were totally inept at answering even the simplest questions - what a sick joke!

Things went rapidly downhill from then and just over a year after being taken over by EA.com they finally pulled the plug on Air Warrior - and left a lot of people angry and upset at losing a major part of online life and a lot of friends they had made through the game. Fortunately by then many of us had moved to another flight sim and as more people are discovering it we are gradually becoming reacquainted with old friends...

Anyway, my point in this post is that this is making me feel very much the same way as I did when EA.com dispensed with the help of their volunteers. It spelt the beginning of the end for Air Warrior, and I sincerely hope it doesn't spell the beginning of the end for Second Life.

As I did in Air Warrior, I will continue to help people in Second Life by continuing to teach... but it saddens me to think we are not valued enough to earn any kind of compensation for our work.