Quiz

I got to see someone special in concert last night. Before the show, I managed to get a picture of the playlist.

Can you guess who it was?

Answer

“michaelwilson-there.com@live.com” is not me

It’s come to our attention that either someone at the email address ‘michaelwilson-there.com@live.com’ is claiming to be me, or someone is claiming to have corresponded with me at the email address ‘michaelwilson-there.com@live.com’.

Neither are true:

• I do NOT use the email address ‘michaelwilson-there.com@live.com’. Anyone at that email who claims to be me is lying, an idiot, or both. If you get email from them, feel free to reply in the appropriate matter.
• It’s impossible for someone to be communicating with me at the address ‘michaelwilson-there.com@live.com’. Anyone who claims they have communicated with me at that address is mistaken.

There’s employees will ONLY email you from “thereinc.com” email addresses, and we will NEVER ask you for your password, credit card number, blood type, or DNA sample (and no, despite what you may hear, we do NOT ask for “an arm and a leg” to subscribe to There, so we won’t ask for those, either).

That is all.

Pannstars

Gotcha!

Taken with a 200mm lens – 4 seconds at f/4.

Feature Request Response

We’ve had a feature request that I wanted to respond to publicly. It’s actually not a new request – I’d just forgotten about it.

The request is that “When I ignore someone, they’re not allowed to see my chat, or hear my voice”.

Sounds easy, huh?

Well, unfortunately, it’s easy, but very expensive. Here’s why: To do this, as other members came within “earshot” or “chatshot”, we’d have to fetch their “Ignore” lists, see if you’re on it, and see whether or not to suppress your chat/speech for them (or vice-versa, right?).

Basically, that’s probably almost every avatar in the sector.

And, since we obviously don’t want to download your ignore lists onto other people’s computers, this would have to be done on the server (it would be done on the server anyway, but I know someone’s going to ask).

Now, imagine that every avatar in a sector is fetching the ignore list for every other avatar in the sector to see if they’re on their ignore lists – it’s the most evil of algorithmic problems: the “N-Squared” problem. (Ok, not the MOST evil, but you get the idea).

So, if we implemented this feature, we guarantee there would be no more griefing because no one could move because the system would be so busy looking up ignore lists.

If you’re discussing something sensitive, or don’t want people to hear/see what you’re saying, we can suggest some alternatives:

• Use a private person to person or group chat.
• Move to a private place.
• Speak in the Wyandot, Tsetaut, Chitimaca, or Klingon languages.

I hope this answers “Why can’t you do this” satisfactorily.

P.S. I took the picture above at the BNP Paribas Tennis tournament this weekend. I liked it because I took it using a manual focus camera which is not known for sports photography with a very minimal zoom lens (it’s a Leica M).

Trials and Letters of the Day

Trials

Here’s the current Trial Status:

Low Cost Trial Stats (91 trials, 24 conversions, ~26%)

Not bad, Not bad.

First Letter of the Day

Dear Michael Wilson, Samsyn, Bruce, Mackie, and all other staff members whose names we don’t know:

Thank you.
Thank you for reopening There, for giving us our virtual home back so that we can visit with good friends, play cards, decorate, race buggies, and so much more. You and your very limited staff are doing an outstanding job.

We are puzzled and dismayed at the negative emails you receive, and decided to let you know that there are many Therians who appreciate all you do. We love There, we are thrilled to be here, and just wanted to voice something positive. Don’t let the turkeys get you down!

It’s everyone except me who deserve the credit, but most of all it’s the good members of this Community who deserve the Thanks. We are really thankful you’re here, or back, and are doing all we can to keep you here.

Second Letter of the Day

I would like to have my account deleted, since I will not be needing my avatar anymore. I tried the trial, and sad to say, the people on there.com do not like new people.

Letters like this break our hearts. You know, no matter how much we advertise (when we do), or no matter what we build, Mean People always trumps. Unfortunately, that’s one feature we can’t write, and it’s all up to you.

I will say that if you see anyone being rude or griefing newbies, report ‘em, preferably with chat logs or video, and we’ll have a little chat with them. Of course, that doesn’t “undo” the rudeness they inflicted on that newbie, but eventually we might educate or weed out these idi..er, self destructive immature individuals.

January, February numbers, Trials and More

January numbers:

Income (this period) from all AvMans
Subscriptions: $14,010
TB Sales: $19,518 (avg $23.34/purchase, $629.61/day)
Gross Income: $33,528

February numbers:

Income (this period) from all AvMans
Subscriptions: $13,440
TB Sales: $17,526 (avg $21.26/purchase, $625.92/day)
Gross Income: $30,966

I’m also very happy to report that a long overdue bill was paid (to Makena) this month, to the tune of $65,650.

Trials

We’re very happy to report that “Low Cost Trials” have been on for some time now, and we’re seeing very nice numbers – a 35% conversion rate no less. Of course, we’re sure this is due to some “start up” niceness from former members, but it’s still nice to see.

Now, and this is the topic for a later post, we have to figure out how best to use it.

Comment of the Day

I had to share this:

Listen Michael, although I doubt I will get a reply, you really need to consider selling the game, it’s obvious you have no true devotion to the revival or upbringing of the ‘game’ and it’s honestly quite sad, the ‘game has so much potential, honestly though, what is the point in camping the URL and letting the games value rot? You need to either put an investment into this game and bring it back, sell it, or close it, because honestly as of right now- it’s a haven for 40+ with an average number of about 20 people online, with the direction you’re headed the future is grim, you either need to invest into advertisements or SELL IT,or you could always take the ladder and close it rather than giving people false hope. Stop being the most unprofessional CEO in the history of buisness, calling people out because it’s your ‘personal blog’, oh because that excuses you acting out like you’re 14, I’m just being honest with you though- the whole situation of There is quite pathetic, if you put any type of viable effort into the thing- let alone some sort of non-initial (other than the re-creation) this game would be back on its feet in a reasonable amount of time, but so far- it’s only been down hill. It’s nice to drive around in my buggy like the old days but as of right now- I can only guess it won’t last for long, you really need to make some kind-of major decision in the near future, because right now, you’re failing as CEO.

I’m re-ordering my business cards to read “the most unprofessional CEO in the history of buisness (sic)”. Kind of catchy, no?

Email of the Day

Here’s a nice email I got today:

Hello im (removed) ((removed)) I have been playing this game for a long while before it closed, as you can see this is a new account that i have made. There are alot of people unhappy with things in There, but oviously Mitchel Wilson doesn’t care about people here and he seems to only care about the fact that There.com is one of the “best” virtual worlds now. Lots of people wanted to change their name tag colour but Mitchel does not alow that and so am I asking why? But thats not the main problem. The main problem is that he does not at all care about what the people want and I know what they want. Some people want they’re teens to play There again and some people dont want to pay a monthly fee also lots of people are getting bannded now then back when There was 13+ and i want to understand why? What do you care about the most? Your making this game boring now and now there are little people playing and that might not matter to you because all that matters is the money thats enables you to live. I have always wanted to do something in There, maybe help it grow or something but from what i’ve been hearing and from what I saw, I think that this game will soon close and this time temporaily. All I want is that you make There a better place and that if there is anything i can do tell me. Even though your saying that your doing all you can to make it a better place, there are things that people want that you dont know about and that i haven’t mentioned. People want alot of things in There and maybe you could change some things, infact why dont you appear yourself in zona island and answer a few questions.

Thank you for your time.

From: (removed)

So I wanted to respond to these statements publicly, since, apparently “everyone” has these concerns.

• “viously Mitchel Wilson doesn’t care about people here and he seems to only care about the fact that There.com is one of the “best” virtual worlds now.” I think my actions – supporting There when it never made money, then supporting it’s re-opening speak for themselves here. Well as much as I’d like to speak on the topic. Oh, but I do believe that There.com’s community is and has always been the “best” virtual world communities there are.
• “Lots of people wanted to change their name tag colour but Mitchel does not alow that and so am I asking why?”. The answer to that is that the There Games would become a far less fun, since you’d have everyone changing their nametag color to “join” the team they want, not to mention changing them mid-games. It would be Lance Armstrong all over again (“I NEVER used nametag coloring substances”).
• “Your making this game boring now and now there are little people playing and that might not matter to you because all that matters is the money thats enables you to live.”. The problem with that statement is that I don’t make any money, heck, I don’t even collect a salary. And oh, I don’t know what to say about “little people” playing. Do you mean like “Short People“?
• “Some people want they’re teens to play There again”. We’ve discussed that here many times. The fact is to allow people under 18 in world requires that we supply a level of Customer Support and Moderation we can’t afford, not to mention the liability aspect. I know that lots of people think if they, or their parents, or they impersonating their parents, sign a document agreeing that There is not liable, that’s “good enough”, but it’s not. Not to mention the fact that a lot of people have commented that There is BETTER when we ask teens to please go do something different with their youth than hanging out in a virtual world. I’m pretty sure everyone in There would rather see teenagers reading, or outside, or studying, socializing in Real Life, or even taking a class in spelling and grammar than spending all their time in any virtual world.
• “some people dont want to pay a monthly fee”. We’ve talked about this a lot. If we don’t charge a monthly fee, two things happen: One, we get thousands of Alts, not to mention Alts of Banned Members and Griefers. Two, There.com goes broke and closes, this time forever. Actually just one thing happens: There goes broke, and closes.
• “also lots of people are getting bannded now then back when There was 13+ and i want to understand why”. I can’t quite parse that sentence, but we will continue to ban people that break the Terms of Service, abuse the Developer system, or Developer Submissions review system.

At the end of the day, the way you can support There is like everyone else does: Throw events. Greet newbies. Start a neighborhood (if you can afford it). Teach people stuff. There are LOTS of opportunities to help There, and some fantastic examples everywhere.

“You took money out of my account…”

We get a lot of questions from people who believe that There has taken money out of their PayPal Account, perhaps more than once, perhaps early, etc.

While we sympathize with you, it’s important to know that There doesn’t take the money out of your PayPal Account.

Unlike that past, when There accepted a credit card, and charged you every month (well, charged you), PayPal subscriptions work differently:

1. You tell PayPal “I want to subscribe to There.
2. Once a month, Paypal takes the money out of your account and sends it to There.

There has no way of asking for your subscription. We just get the money from PayPal.

Here’s the same thing, in SamSyn’s words:

subscription (a PayPal recurring payment) and that gives PayPal permission to withdraw $10 each month, which they then give to us. That’s all we do, sit around and wait for PayPal to send us the money. We never talk to your Bank.

PayPal, on the other hand, has to GET the money from somewhere. That’s something THEY do, not us. As I understand it, they first look in your PayPal balance and, if that can’t cover it, then they look to the ‘reliable backup funding source’ you set up with your PayPal account. We have no contact with this ‘backup funding source’. As to when PayPal feels the need to transfer funds from your backup funding source to your PayPal account balance, we just don’t know.

I mean, it’s POSSIBLE that PayPal “thinks ahead” and says “Gee, we just covered this month’s payment, but now the PayPal balance is zero and maybe we should get a head start on getting some money in there to cover next month ahead of time” That is entirely a guess, you would have to talk to PayPal to find out what their strategy is.

…we just receive funds from PayPal that you have authorized them to send us, we never reach out and take anything

Again, we sympathize with you, especially if you think too much money has been taken out of your account, but I hope this shows that, unfortunately, it’s not something we can control.

November, December Numbers

I realize I forgot to post the numbers for November, AND December. Oh well, better late than never:

November, 2012

Income (this period) from all AvMans
Subscriptions: $14,310
TB Sales: $21,087 (avg $25.28/purchase, $702.9/day)
Gross Income: $35,397

December, 2012

Income (this period) from all AvMans
Subscriptions: $14,170
TB Sales: $20,236 (avg $26.98/purchase, $652.77/day)
Gross Income: $34,406

And, just for fun, all of last year! (I haven’t reconciled this with the P&L page, so don’t hold it against me if they don’t match up).

Totals, 2012

Income (this period) from all AvMans
Subscriptions: $185,830
TB Sales: $323,943 (avg $25.59/purchase, $885.09/day)
Gross Income: $509,773

Status on Trial Accounts

SamSyn has been updating this thread on Thumdar.com with information on the trial. We’re getting there.

I’ll have a post later today on December’s numbers, plus a round of 2012′s numbers.