Why lowering setup fees in SL isn’t as great as it sounds

Tags

"second life", costs, economy, money, setup fees, tier

Last November Linden Lab lowered the setup fees for buying land in Second Life.

At the time I was quite enthusiastic and felt that it was a great step in the right direction, hoping that more prices would start coming down, especially tier.

And even though I still think that this was a good step in the right direction, I’ve had a little time to think it over and now realise that this news wasn’t as great as I first thought.

For people who never looked into buying regions, it of course sounds great when they lower the price from $1000 (!) to $600, but if you have been in SL a little longer and ask more experienced people for advice, you’ll learn that paying even $600 is still a lot more than if you bought one second hand from another SL user.

For instance, if you join one of the Land selling groups in Second Life (such as the one I joined called ‘For sale by owner’ or here on the SL forum; Regions for sale) and are patient, you’ll be eventually offered regions for as little as $300 or even less.
I joined the group a while ago and have even seen them being offered for $100.
And you can even buy a ‘grandfathered‘ region there, if you’re lucky.
And yes, you may still have to pay $150 to move the region, $100 to transfer and $50 to rename it (even though in many cases this is already part of the deal and if you do all those things at once even LL will charge you less), but even then it is still cheaper than buying a new one from Linden Lab.

After all, fewer and fewer people are buying land and many want to get rid of their region, so the market is good if you’re a buyer.

So, as long as second hand regions can be bought for $300 or even less, having them now for sale at $600 is not a very good deal.
Looking at the stats, it is clear that the lowered setup fee did not cause a increase of regions being sold nor did it stop the total amount of regions declining.

In the end we end up in the same old situation; SL is too expensive for many people.
I still think they should lower the setup fee even more or scarp it.
And of course they should also lower the tier, even if it is just by a small amount.
But this is of course scary as the tier is what pays the bills and if they lowered them they would lose income without being sure that many more people would actually start renting land.

I will not buy an Oculus Rift any time soon

Tags

headset, oculus rift, virtual reality

So, the Oculus rift is finally going to be commercially available.

They are now available for pre-order  and will start shipping from March 28th onwards.

But… and here comes the sting… it is going to cost $599.

That is just too much.
And here in the Netherlands you’ll even be paying $750.
This does not even include their special controllers.

And that while Palmer Luckey himself only a few months ago answered a question by Road to VR about if the consumer Oculus Rift price would come in around that $350 ballpark target with;

You know, I’m going to be perfectly honest with you. We’re roughly in that ballpark… but it’s going to cost more than that.

Must be nice to live in a world where $599 is roughly in the same ballpark s $350.

Either way, it seems they are selling them, lots of them.

But as excited as I am about all the new tech that is coming, I am not willing (or able) to spend this much on a headset.
Especially as I’ll also need to buy a new computer to handle VR properly as it doesn’t even work on my MacBook.

So even though I’m grateful to Oculus for sort of kickstart the VR renaissance, I also think they messed up.
Not only because of the high price they are asking for it but also because I think they missed the boat.
All this has taken them so long, that the competition has been developing other headsets as well, cheaper ones.
The Oculus will not be as much a seller as it would/could have been at half the price.
I think this may even slow down the spread of VR.

If even someone like me, who is crazy about VR and wants a good headset so badly, thinks that the Oculus headset is too expensive and will just not buy one, imagine what the average gamer or potential VR user will think
And let’s not even think about .general gamers, museums, schools and regular folks will think about this ‘toy.
While they should have brought us a good but cheap Rift that everyone would have wanted to buy and thus make sure that VR headsets end up in as many households as possible.

Do they really think we all want or need those special headphones, a game, a remote and an x box controller?
Because we pay extra for those, maybe not much, but it adds up.
Did they really have to spend so much time to develop all these extra things and their special new controllers?
I personally think they should have sold a basic Rift before Christmas and then sell all that other stuff separately for those who want them.
Now they missed the holiday sales and ended up with a very expensive toy.

But Palmer explains;

To reiterate, we are not making money on Rift hardware. High end VR is expensive, but Rift is obscenely cheap for what it is.

— Palmer Luckey (@PalmerLuckey) January 6, 2016

I think and hope that the competition will now step up and offer us a good VR headset for at least half the price.
Oculus may have just ruined the opportunity of a life time.

I am secretly looking towards the people at Apple.
We know they have been acquiring quite a few VR related patents and are working on something…
And at least if they build a headset it will work on my Mac…

Will you be getting an Oculus Rift?

Photo copyright; Oculus.

 

The Infinadeck, a truly omnidirectional treadmill

Tags

infinadeck, omnidirectional, treadmill

A year or so ago I saw a video showing the Infinadeck, an omnidirectional treadmill to be used for Virtual Reality.
I loved it and got excited about its potential.
A couple of days ago they released a video showing the new and improved version;

I know, I know, it is huge.
But it is a lot smaller than the previous version;

Once more it is the potential that is exciting, not (yet) the actual device.
Right now it looks great and seems useable in an arcade, laboratorium  or military HQ.
But too big for my room and probably too expensive, for now.

This will become interesting to us all once it gets even smaller and cheaper.
It has to fit in a regular room and be affordable.

But this is still early days, it is not important what the device looks like now but what does matter is how it has improved in the last year and how it actually works.
It is brilliant in its simplicity.
I once tried to think about how an omnidirectional treadmill would work and my brain exploded.
But their solution is so basic yet so sophisticated.
I think this might be the technique to go with.

Is this something we VR users want?
Yes and no.
I guess it depends on who you are and what you do in VR.
I personally love realism and would not mind at all being absolutely exhausted after a VR gunfight or having to actually walk everywhere in Second Life.
I think it will be fun but it will also finally give us a chance to actually get off our fat backsides and get some exercise without having to stop doing what we love.

The Teslasuit, a full haptic experience in VR

Tags

haptic, suit, tesla, teslasuit, virtual reality, VR

Even though I am generally promoting a VR experience that involves fewer wearables and not more, here is one gadget I might be tempted into wearing.

The Teslasuit allows you to undergo a wide array of sensations while exploring or gaming (or whatever else) in Virtual Reality.
From the expected bullet hits and punches, it also promises to let you experience wind, water, heat, cold and even something as subtle as a hug or stroke.
Yes, they really do promise that during your next visit to a VR beach, you’ll feel the water at your feet and the wind on your body.

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Incorporated within the suit is a mesh of sensors that pick up and translate actions in VR into electric impulses that you’ll experience as pressure.
It is called neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) and is generally used for exercise, physical therapy, etc.
You’ve probably seen it done with little patches stuck to the skin.

It comes close to the Haptic Suit we know from the bestseller book ‘Ready player one‘, soon to be made into a Spielberg movie.

 

Just like with most VR related gadgets and VR itself, it is hard to imagine or understand how well it works and how much an impact it makes until you’ve actually tried it.
So checking out some of the videos that show people wearing and testing the suit is what got me excited.
Have a look at some of them by clicking here.

It is still early days and like many other gadgets being developed for VR these days we know that it is only the beginning and things will continue to get better, cheaper, lighter, etc.

I can imagine a not too distant future where VR haptic suits become even lighter and thinner, much cheaper and will cover your entire body, including your face and hands.
And that they can also be used to send signals to VR, not just receive them and when you close your hand, your avatar will close her hand.
I think that giving us gloves that allow us to actually feel what our avatars are touching or holding, or at least create some sort of sensation when you push a button or open a door, will change a lot of things.
I think the Teslasuit guys are working on those as well, and perhaps next a haptic balaclava so you’ll feel it when I slap you in the face for telling a dirty joke in my virtual bar in 1920s Berlin in Second Life.

When we have the ultimate suit that does everything, we will no longer need to place sensors in our rooms or wave controllers about the place.
And maybe they’ll add heat and cold pads that will be able to actually make you feel colder or warmer.
Maybe one day we can get rid of all our gadgets and wearables and just wear the suit and the headset to do everything.
One suit to rule them all.

The benefits of these suits are obvious; VR experiences become more real, more complete.
In games you actually feel a hit when someone shoots you, when you go sailing you feel the wind and the water, when you are with someone you care about you feel their hand shake, their hug or their hand on your shoulder.
And yes, I am avoiding the obvious, I’m too much of an old fashioned prude to discuss VR hanky panky with you lot.
I’ll leave that to your dirty, dirty imagination 😉

The Kickstarter went live yesterday and they hope it will get developers on board who will start creating experiences for their suit.
Their goal is £250,000 and as I write this the total stands at £7,649 £9,758.
Check out their video below and the Kickstarter page by clicking here.

 

Personally I am very excited about this development, not specifically this suit, because right now I couldn’t even afford one and I think that this technology still has some way to go, but it is more the potential that I love, I can see what this will be used for in the future.
It is the possibilities that are most exciting.

All pictures copyright Tesla Studios & Kickstarter.

 

Lab Chat is coming back – on January 21st!

LabChat

Lab Chat returns on January 21st – with Ebbe Linden (aka Ebbe Altberg, CEO of Linden Lab) answering more of your questions!

After the success of our first episode in November last year, we are delighted to announce the second episode of Lab Chat, recorded in front of a live audience and then broadcast on numerous streams including Second Life’s You Tube channel, AviewTV and SLArtist as well as being available in audio and written transcription.

The second broadcast will be at 10.30am SLT in the LEA Theater with seating available on LEA2, 3 and 4.

Lab Chat Episode 1, photographed by Torley

How do you submit your questions?

You enter your questions on the special Linden Lab Forum which will be opened for questions shortly – we’ll tell you when and where to go!

The questions to feature on the show will be chosen by the Lab Chat team…

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happy 2016 & we are on vacation…

Happy 1929!

the drax files radio hour

happy 2016 from the drax files radio hour with jo yardley

well by the time you hear this you have transitioned into a new year & we wish you dear listener all the very best and our beloved world of second life just equally a grand old time in 2016.

jo and i will be taking a vacation until the next lab chat which will hit your ear-waves before the end of january = stay tuned and watch these pages.

now listen to our year end ranting…

…and be sure to check back on the awesome archives of this program to smooth out our time of absence these next few weeks!

just a few shows made in 2015…

final treat before we leave = the birth of draxtoriusBIG on the firestrom orientation experience – to be continued….

happy 2016 everyone!

the drax files radio hour [with jo yardley] is a…

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