When good scripts go bad :(

Hey guys, I have a scripted gadget that I had hoped would be a big hit, well received, oft purchased, etc. Obviously since i'm not running to the bank that didn't happen. I have been considering either selling the rights to the script to the highest bidder or making it open source.

My questions are a) have any of you done this, how did it go, was the person able to make it better? and b) would you suggest open source over selling it? Or perhaps just hanging on to it for another couple of months until i have the time to improve on it?

I'm not really looking to make L$ off of this anymore as I've been able to produce bigger and better scripts since then, but this was sort of a personally favorite project and i'd really like to see someone, anyone make it work. I have yet to see anything else of its type here in SL so it does have value.

If you think it will benifet the community (it uses novel ideas, algorithims, etc) then Id say open source it. The philanthropist in me always wins out when it comes to novelty.

However, if the script is really specific for a particular purpose and is something you put alot of time into, sell it
==Chris

how are your bigger n better scripts doing, financially (thats a rhetorical question, I don't need details )? mebbe it's about marketing? I'm not saying you're bad at it or anything, but really, I've seen some totally fantastic stuff in SL that most people I burbled about it to had simply never heard of, and vice versa.

I've also seen some fantastic stuff with poor end user documentation and advertised feature lists, so that many potential customers don't KNOW they're potential customers because they don't really understand or know what your product does.

Like I say, not trying to say anything about you - I have to confess I don't know your products - but it surely cant hurt to have some people look at the product, and critique it and your marketing/documentation. You might find that with a little suggested tweak here and there that you simply hadnt thought about, things may pick right up.

Kris, that is totally possible actually. I usually tend to do very well on the marketing end...that's what I do irl (or i will upon graduation), but here's the real E! story....the script took a long time...the building of the container it uses took awhile....and when it came to marketing the damn thing I just got lazy.

And as far as the script itself being innovative, I don't think it is. The idea, yes, but the way the script is written is fairly common.

On a somewhat unrelated note, has anyone else noticed this phenomenon... My biggest seller is still one of the first scripted gadgets I made (The Couple's Cuddler) and it was possibly one of the EASIEST scripts i've ever done. My newer ones are more complex and just don't do as well.

If it's something you are really endeared to, I'd say hold onto it till you get some time to complete/upgrade/market it. Once it's out in the SL world there's no telling what will happen to the poor innocent little thing..

I've noticed this!

The simpler, more obvious, easy stuff you made in 20 minutes sells like gangbusters but the lovingly crafted huge project dies...

And it's more pronounced with scripting than *anything* else!

Why is that!?

I think there is a difference between 'open sourcing' software and 'making the source code available for anyone to use'. A successful open-source project requires a great deal of support, more so probably than proprietary software does. The documentation needs to be more extensive, and better maintained, code revision/testing mechanisms need to be put in place and managed, etc. Also, I think the 'marketing' issue does not go away - if the product had limited visibility when it was a shrink-wrapped purchase, it will probably continue that way even if the source code for it is made available.

If you're happy with it, and it gives you a warm glow when you think of it, then keep it - that is the 'value' it is generating, so it is not wasted.

In my experience, it's sometimes simply because the sort of person who wants to script wants to make a big challenging project, whereas the person who wants to buy scripted stuff just wants to hug their friggin' SO for once.

I get a lot of pleasure from giving things away; I really need to clear through my inventory to find more things.

It's a loss leader as well. If it's good but it's just not selling for some reason, make it a freebie that shows how talented you are. Just remember not to release something along the same lines later, of course, as it won't sell.

Thanks for the feedback, ya'll

I think i'm going to hang on to it for now. Like was said, it is a pet project of mine and I still want to see it do well. Maybe after I graduate in a few months, i'll have the time to spend on it.

And I think that only other scripters *really* can appreciate the complex gadgets that scripters make. Everyone else only sees the end product. That could also be why I can slap a 500L price tag on something that took me a few hours to script and it sells, but the ones that take forever will only sell for about 100-200L We get no respect I tell ya!