IW Introduces Setup Fees

On September 1^st The founders of Inworldz will start to charge a $75 USD setup fee on the purchase of a new simulator. The tier will remain the same for an island at $75 USD per month. So if you plan on purchasing a sim on the IW grid after September 1^st, it will cost you a total of $150 USD for that first month and then $75 USD each following month.

Many residents have known about this pending setup fee for months. I remember it being tossed about this past spring, so it is with no surprise that it is being implemented. The justifications for the setup fee are many, as are the arguments against its implementation at this time. While there is never a perfect time to introduce new charges, recent stability improvements makes the proposition of a setup fee much more palatable than it was this past spring. If the founders were to continue to hold off on implementing the setup fees, I believe their ability to support growth would be compromised. The inability to properly support growth wrecked havoc on that other grid and should be avoided at all costs.

Knowing setup fees are imminent, may residents have, or are thinking of, purchasing sims before the fees take effect. Many of these residents plan on offsetting the tier expense for these newly acquired sims by renting out parcels. In a normal market this strategy is not only valid but the norm. However, the post September 1^st land market will not be normal.

On September 1^st, the supply of rental properties will be abnormally increased compared to the time period before the setup fees were announced. This is a natural consequence of many new sim owners racing to purchase before the setup fees are enacted. These new owners will now attempt to offset their expenses by offering parcels for rent. Thus adding to an already saturated market, as evidenced by the number of rental advertisements currently in the forums. The status change of these new sim purchasers from renter to owner will only further increase the supply of rental units on the market. For a period after September 1^st there will be a glut of rental units on the market and demand for these units will be exceptionally low.

One can argue this is the natural state of things. Supply and demand will always balance out in the long run and you would be correct. But, the move to equilibrium, while inevitable, is none the less painful. Many of the people who planned on renting out parts of their new sim to help cover costs are going to be disillusioned when they realize the rental supply vastly out weighs the demand if only in the short run.

The question now raised is, when should you buy that new simulator? If you do not plan on using rental income to pay tier then the answer is now, before the setup fees take effect. However, if you will be depending on rental income to offset tier expense, you need to take a second look before purchasing.

Ask yourself a few questions: How confident am I in my ability to rent enough parcels to cover tier? Knowing the market, at least initially, will be saturated with properties for rent, what pricing can I reasonably expect to charge? If I cannot cover tier with the rental income, will I still be able to pay the tier on my own or will I lose the sim?

The answers will be different for everyone. If you are confident in the timing and your ability to pay tier then by all means make your purchase now. If you have doubts though, I urge you to think twice before plunging into this market. Waiting a few months, while the ever increasing number of new residents eats up that surplus in rental properties, could actually save you more money than acting prematurely to avoid the $75 USD setup fee.

They Are Watching Me!!

Ever get the feeling you are being watched? How about being watched by a group of say, three or four people? You know the feeling I suspect. There you are, busy doing something uber important in your home or shop and then suddenly your pixel self gets a cold shudder.

You glance up at your radar but see nothing. You do a quick 360 with your cam and still, you see nothing. Everything is in place. Everything is as it should be, yet you know you are being watched. You can feel it in your core. There are eyes, pairs of eyes, just beyond your sight.

Ghosts. That is what I call them at least. It is the ghosts that causes your avi's skin to crawl every so often. Like many unbelievable things in IW, ghosts do exist. Lots of them. Not only do they exist but they are relatively easy to find if you know where to look. I have four of them watching over me right this minute while I compose this post. Don't believe me? I will prove it. Take a look at this picture.

There they are. All four of them are here with me and my close personal friend and alt, Yuuka. Yuuka and I are standing all tiny on the ground in the lower right. Actually, there might be a fifth ghost hiding in that lot but I am not completely sure. I sometimes think that some ghosts cannot be photographed but I still have to study that.

So now I am sure, you are wondering how you too can have a good-old-time tracking down ghosts. Well you are in luck, for it is really quite simple. Just go to one of the sandboxes and gaze up at the sky. For some reason (I think it is the warm air currents) they seem to like to gather over the sandboxes. On any given day you are more than likely to see at least one or two hovering overhead.

So there you have it. Now you know how to spot ghosts in IW. So next time you get that shudder running along your spine or your avi's skin gets unusually clammy, look up. You may just see a ghost watching over you.

MLP V2 Comes to IW

It is here thanks to Revision McCallen's hard work. The MLP V2 has been ported from SL to Inworldz for all to use and abuse. But the best part is, Revision has decided to open source the whole project just as it is in SL so we all have full access to use it in our own creations. Thanks to Ayla Holt, you can find the MLP all boxed up here: Community Center, The Park (139, 63, 21)

Some have wasted no time in employing the MLP. The creators over at MUSE! have been working diligently to get their set of animations loaded up into their newest lines of beds. Rumor has it they will be selling in the 2200 to 2600 I'z price range. While for some, this is a hefty price tag, early adopters are use to paying a premium for bragging rights. I am sure that price range will not last long once other creators bring their bed products to market.

While the MLP is a very welcomed addition to IW, I would like to remind everyone that the MLP is useless to the average resident unless they have animations to use with it. Right now the only people who can take advantage of this very generous gift to the community are the more established creators with access to appropriate animations. To make this a truly universal gift to the entire IW community, we need animations. It is in this light I would like to invite any and all animators to donate an animation or two to the community that can be used to make the MLP a truly universal gift.

I am not calling for a ton of animations to be given away free, only a few so the average resident can have some basic furniture such as a couch, bed or chairs without being beholden to furniture creators. This shouldn't be viewed as a threat to content creators however. The truth is, many residents will be more than happy to buy well crafted furniture. Yet not all residents are in a position to spend even a nominal amount for what is essentially a game.

We are bring a lot of ideas, products and customs with us as we migrate from other grids. Let us use this opportunity to import one of the better aspects of the other grids, free access to the basic elements of a virtual world. This should include the ability to make simple furniture functional. Revision McCallen has very generously ported and donated the MLP to the IW community so that all residents can create their own functional furniture. Yet the MLP alone is not enough. Basic animations need to be made available as freebies to complete the vision Revision has started. So if you are reading this and you have the ability to create animations, please consider releasing one or two to the community to use with the MLP.