Myss Terrie's Second Life Consortium Suggestion

First I want to thank my beloved Azaia for creating a separate section for SL discussions. I had considered it, but wasn't yet sure how many of the bevin were in SL. Since there appears to be a representative sample it is good to have a forum area devoted to a single theme.

Isis is correct about the money problems of working in SL. In MOUL we paid for a membership and it was all inclusive. I made the mistake of purchasing an annual SL membership and seemingly it has no particular benefits. I have been able to afford only a modest amount in L$ and the cost of doing most anything in US$ is prohibitive to someone like me with no income to spare.

Even with the money-thing I am amazed at the artistry and generosity of the D'ni Refugees, in particular Colorado and Anarta. Since I am currently "squatting" in the cave above the Gira Falls (my apologies for leaving stuff behind, but I do try to take everything with me before I leave the area) I have been longing for a common home like a bevin where I can hope to meet fellow travelers. (And if you catch me skinny dipping in the upper pool at the Gira Falls, well, I always wanted to on Relto, but MOUL wouldn't let me strip that far :-) )

I want to see the URU themed areas thrive -- or at least pay for themselves. Donations are one way to get the funds, but it would be more reliable to have bevin-based business. Owning land seems to be the biggest drawback and the only solution that makes sense to me is co-ownership with the cost spread across the members. No one person would have to bear the full cost and everyone could contribute whatever is within their means, be it financial, graphical or technical.

The web age of La Casa is my starting point, mostly because so many of my creative concepts went into making it. Converting those concepts to a profit-based SL place is where I will need a lot of help and advice from those bevin members familiar with the technical workings of SL. Here are some of my ideas (see the :La Casa floor plan to get an idea of what the following suggestions mean):

(1) La Casa was designed to be a B&B/hotel and could be that in SL with rooms that rent for a specified time. If we follow the current floor plan, this means building a Spanish mission with an exterior and gardens, an interior with two floors -- foyer, library, refectory and kitchen being the most important rooms on the first floor. Upstairs would be 18 or so small furnished bedrooms. Since bedrooms have hidden items in them, we could make staying in one of our rooms worth the money by constantly changing objects and links.

(2) There are three options in each room for an hallucinatory vision, via herbal preparations made from D'ni plants. These are by tea, incense and smudge stick. There are nine combinations of rooms and hallucinogens and one third of them will teleport the dreamer upon waking into an otherwise closed room instance (we call this sleep linking) where additional goodies have been hidden. There may be a way to implement the visionary dreams and the sleep linking in SL, keeping the most special books out of the library and the bookstore.

An additional part of La Casa that was never realized on the webpage was that of a tribal sweat lodge for vision quests. Again there could be a fee to take part in such a ceremony, and if done in the traditional skyclad we might get more of a draw. (Yes, I know it is terribly crass to mix URU and nudity, but when one is seeking funds nothing sells like sex -- or at least the appearance of things sexual).

(3) La Casa has a library of D'ni books -- some taken from URU, others are original works by FoF members. People can read the books while in the library. Linking books would have teleports to those ages already extant in SL. Original books could be available for sale, allowing citizens to take a book with them. Just as with RL books, the texts could not be altered or copied, but could be resold. Anyone could create a book which would be added to the library shelf as well as for sale through the bookstore.

(4) La Casa has a kitchen in which D'ni chefs could try their hands at cyber-cooking, after purchasing ingredients, such Ahnonay quab, tender young Teledahn mushrooms, seasoned with the spicy flavor of ground Ercana scrub. We might even host the Cavern's Iron Chefs with a free theme ingredient such as Gira catfish or Kemo megabugs.

(5) If folks feel better leaving La Casa's architecture behind, suppose we establish Bevin apartment buildings, allowing people to rent rooms, with costs varying for furnished and unfurnished apartments. Like the La Casa bedrooms we could offer a concierge service providing those same special preparations with visions and links into otherwise closed areas.

As much as I dislike the constant demand for L$ this is the way SL functions. I know that folks in this bevin have amazing abilities and can adapt. We can find the middle ground allowing the maximum enjoyment and participation at fees that are easily absorbed by the residents. I have no illusions about turning a profit on this. I just want to be certain that output = income, a balance between samples and sales.