Jason Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 Just curious, why dont you post a donate link? It is purely choice on whether you donate or not, so its not like you are cornering the members for $$$. After reading your figure for the YMML project, i think you really should take all you can get. I know i would donate, they may be small but i would regularly, it all adds up. the scope of your vision needs to be matched with the loot in the coffers, I vote put up a donation link regards, Jason Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bendigoandy Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 Sounds like a good thing, but legal bullship no doubt raise its ugly head? So what about a self montering membership fee to the ""Gold Wing"" ....or somthing along those lines I'd be more than happy to join! and a spelling club. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Venema Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 How about a pre-purchase scheme for YMML to assist our cash flow? I might put up a poll to see if there's interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bendigoandy Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 Sure John : Lets see if we can get Adrian from The flightsim store on it, and you can have the cash before you can say "This is the final call for flight 666 to hellsgate"" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Webb Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 Pre-purchase thumbs up. You could always buy a few copies of each product too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penzoil3 Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 I vote for pre-purchase for AU Green and Red. I'll even pre-purchase the Pacific North West. The airport is beautiful, but it's just not on the list, sorry John. Sue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxter Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 How about a pre-purchase scheme for YMML to assist our cash flow? I might put up a poll to see if there's interest. Yup, i'll vote for that one... Cheers, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty073 Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 I will Pre Purchase any or Orbxs Stuff if it means Orbx can continue making Fine Products Shane Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biscuit Chucker Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 Count me in! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Baumanis Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 I don't know anything about Australian Company law and if it's feasable. What about selling shares? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason Posted July 27, 2008 Author Share Posted July 27, 2008 i do believe they are a public company, as stated in another post I can tell you it has cost Orbx and its shareholders over $100,000 to develop. We bought 3 pizzas, a few bourbons and some beer for the Orbx team tonight. No change from $75. Enough said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Hall Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 Anything that helps guys, I'm in, I have already bought extra copies and given them to friends, it's better than a donation, especially if you give it to someone who wouldn't have taken the chance anyway. By doing this your in effect spreading the word about how great the product is, they like it and buy the next release themselves. cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Venema Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 YMML is so close to release that a pre-purchase does not make a lot of sense. We may look into it for AU GREEN though, which is a little further down the track, but getting better with each beta build. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Harris Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 YMML is very very cool but not for me, I dont really like big airfields and many others make airports anyway, its the textures of the land of AU that is the thing i desire so i would prepurchase GREEN and RED if the option was there, without a doubt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Venema Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 I will Pre Purchase any or Orbxs Stuff if it means Orbx can continue making Fine Products Shane I think Shane has gotten the gist of what I'm trying to say here You want a "donation" button? Purchase YMML, whether you're into big airports on not. Remember, there's 40-50km of VFR scenery and two helipads to use anyway. That will go a LONG way towards keeping Orbx viable to keep cranking out FTX region packs. Hope that's unsubtle enough LOL! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gurdy Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 I too am happy to pre-purchase also ... we need to keep scenery developers like you guys in business... it would be too big a loss to the flightsim community to lose these talents.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumman Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 I'm happy to purchase YMML to show support too, even though I'd like to see priority going into Green and Red ahead of more airports. Unless of course someone can tell me where to buy a fuel truck to drive round the airport. Oh, and a limo to drive from YMML into the city ;-) Greg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penzoil3 Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 Ok, John, I give. If it helps keep OrbX viable, I'll buy the cottin pickin airport! LOL Sue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty073 Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 Now can someone turn the rain off in Perth so i can keep laying concrete and keep my business lol Shane Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Mason Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 I am all for pre purchase on all areas/future airports, if it means Orbx continues to prosper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russ White Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 John, Just doing a simple calculation based on quotes from above means that for YMML (assuming this project consumed all of the stated $100,000) you would need to sell 1667 copies at $60 each, just to break even! That sounds like a mountain to climb as it is, but then when you realise there are only 1451 current FTX members, and not all of them will be buying YMML, it's starting to sound impossible for you guys! \ I think we should all show our support by purchasing YMML 10 times each For those of you who have expressed concern about the $60 price tag, i hope the maths lesson above has put things into perspective! I work as a freelance graphic designer and artist, and understand the amount of work required to finnish large projects, $60 wont get you very much these days, and in the world of graphics it will get you even less! so to have this master piece for less money than i put in my car petrol tank each week, i would say is a massive bargain! John, and the rest of you Orbx guys.....i take my hat off to ya! Russ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tennyson Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 Hey Russ, When you line up to buy ten copies , can I have one? Seriously, though, I'm more than happy to pre-purchase from you guys, John. I'll pay for my copy of YMML today if that helps..........but can I have it tomorrow......hehehe, just joking (about having it tomorrow, not paying for it today, that offer still stands!) Frank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Venema Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 Thanks Russ for your support mate, it's appreciated. Your logic is quite sound, 1700 units is our break-even point for YMML, but you also need to remember than the number of forum members is not a direct correlation to the number of sales (not everyone will create an account and post). Also keep in mind that YMML is a whole new product line for Orbx which will appeal to users who have not yet purchased FTX regions. The whole FS market is very much a numbers game, and Orbx will be creating new boxed DVD distribution channels once all four FTX regions are complete, which will expose our products to customers outside the online FS community. Orbx prides itself on being unique from other developers, in that we are very open and transparent about our development progress (witness the many hundreds of alpha and beta shots we post with warts and all). We try to not be too "corporate" about our company and we tell it like it is without BS. We wear our hearts on our sleeves and sometimes it can expose our plans to competitors. That said, I started Orbx on the basis of VOZ being downloaded 300,000 times, but that has simply not translated into even a small percentage of VOZ users purchasing payware from us. All the stakeholders in Orbx took a risk with this venture, and we remain committed to creating the best products we can with our limited resources. The team is fairly small because the base funding is not there to grow to 20+ staff to crank out products faster. We are hoping that continued incremental sales will continue to build and allow funding for product expansion. I have some reluctance about any pre-purchase schemes for a number of reasons, the chief of which is that it will create a climate of obligation for Orbx to deliver in a more urgent timeline, and will place even more pressure on the dev teams to crank out product. I feel this may lead to a drop in product quality just to meet our obligations to customers who have already put their money where their mouth is. For those Orbx customers and loyalists who want to help us out, the only advice I can offer is to purchase all that we release and tell as many friends on the fringe about our products. A donate button does not make a lot of sense because I don't witness a lot of commercial developers who sell products and also have an additional donate button on their sites. So back to those numbers. If every single Orbx customer who has purchased an FTX region pack also purchases YMML, then it would have paid for itself and the surplus would be quickly diverted into resources needed for RED, Citscapes, other airports and PNW etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 Don't have a problem with any of the above - I'm certainly in it for the long haul ... I guess you'd call me a "tragic". ;) ;D Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Harris Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 yep fair enough, I will be buying YMML then But i think you guys should make GREEN and RED a priority Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Webb Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 I guess you'd call me a "tragic". ;) ;D I know what you mean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Venema Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 yep fair enough, I will be buying YMML then But i think you guys should make GREEN and RED a priority Trust me, we have 5x as many people working on GREEN as we do on YMML. As you can imagine, GREEN is an area bigger than AU BLUE, so the custom landclass work is enormous. The good news is that progress is on track and the entire FNQ coastline is done and the Whitsundays are looking terrific as well as some Great Barrier Reef tests we've done. Since GREEN is a hybrid region with large areas of grey, semi-red and red soil through it, we are still working on special textures to allow a gradual transition to the RED region. I am more excited about GREEN than any other region we've done so far; it will be spectacular. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Virtualwombat Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 How about re-focusing on the US Pacific Northwest as the priority? Seems to me the market limitation is that the product content is based in Oz, whereas your main market in in the US and Europe. A lot of folks have bought GEX and Ultimate Terrain, simply because the US is where they come from and where want to fly. Obviously this would be an unpopular move for those of us based in Oz, but if it a matter of survival most folks would understand. As Tom said, we're in this for the long haul. Cheers, Noel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Harris Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 yep fair enough, I will be buying YMML then But i think you guys should make GREEN and RED a priority Trust me, we have 5x as many people working on GREEN as we do on YMML. As you can imagine, GREEN is an area bigger than AU BLUE, so the custom landclass work is enormous. The good news is that progress is on track and the entire FNQ coastline is done and the Whitsundays are looking terrific as well as some Great Barrier Reef tests we've done. Since GREEN is a hybrid region with large areas of grey, semi-red and red soil through it, we are still working on special textures to allow a gradual transition to the RED region. I am more excited about GREEN than any other region we've done so far; it will be spectacular. Thx John, it is really amazing to actually get updates like this from devs, something I'm not used too I will Shh-up now and let you work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tennyson Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 Noel, Great idea if you're a yank! I personally wouldn't buy as many products if they were Yank based. It seems I've scoured the net for a lifetime waiting for some company to finally make decent scenery for the place where I live and it has happened. If ORBX started making USA overnight, I would stick to my Blue and Gold and you can buy all the USA you like. Frank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty073 Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 I agree with noel Yes it would make business sense to do amerian regions. But for us Aussies Orbx is what a lot of us have been waiting for in Flight Sim for a long time. Most other regions have there own developers for terrain and landclass where as Australia the talent is limited I mean most other countries have got decent terrain just with default Australia is just shown as desert. Classic before and after shot just need red complete to hide the yellow I Know what i would rather be Flying over. Shane Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GaryT22 Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 I've been using VOZ since the first release in 2005 and FTX Blue and Gold since they were first released and I got a computer that could run FSX. Like others I was very frustrated with the lack of scenery for OZ and VOZ made Flight Sim for me. I want FTX to flourish like VOZ did. So I want you guys to grow, prosper and stay committed to quality. But I am aware that there is a lag in your market in that many have not switched to FSX and that when you make the switch you initially go backwards (except for FTX), eg there are not as many prominent buildings in the Canberra scenery and the airport, as there are in VOZ. I've been flying circuits in a real Cessna 150 and get so impressed when I can see the hills and buildings I know so well in Canberra in my Flight Sim. Similarly VOZ AI and the delay in getting FTX AI have reduced my pleasure in going to FSX (I really enjoy being lined up watching a Virgin Blue jet land or Qantas Dash 8 (as I have experienced in the real world). So I expect your market may build as FSX slowly takes hold (I'm still frustrated that I can't get a Cessna 150 or Tiger optimised for FSX). I also miss North Qld in FTX, where I visit at least once a year in real life and have enjoyed flying around in VOZ. Hinchinbrook, which I have hiked around, was the start of my love affair with VOZ. So hang in there and with luck the market will build. I'm hanging out for FTX Northern Aust and will probably purchase Melb, Canberra, Brisbane and Sydney Airports as well if they come available. I can usually handle $30-40 per additional feature but above that I think twice and the expenditure has to be well spaced. I expect I am fairly typical of many users. I would have even parted with some readys for FTX AI if it would have helped. So I will continue to support you guys if you grow and deliver like VOZ did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mstyles Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 I vote for pre-purchase for AU Green and Red. I'll even pre-purchase the Pacific North West. The airport is beautiful, but it's just not on the list, sorry John. Sue Me too! I'll happily pre-purchase Green and Red! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Variometer Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 First, please apologize my broken english, I hope to find the right words to express my thoughts. Surely I'm not the big topic poster, but i do observe every single post in these forums with very high interest and I completely endorse Jason's idea of posting a donation link. I don't think, that the possibly incoming values will play a major role for the survival of ORBX (hope that ORBX is far away from being broken), but a donation link will offer the possibility of appreciating the fantastic work of the ORBX team to the contented customers of each ORBX product without having to purchase them twice or triple. I, for one, would also agree in paying a higher charge for the single products, but you can call me a flightsim junkie: when I find a new addon with good quality and support, I must have it. And the fact is, all ORBX products are first class and the support in these forums is excellent. We all know this, but that's the point: those guys, who have already purchased a copy, are convinced. And the others ? What I'm driving at is the big theme of public relation. About 1.500 mates have registerd to this forum. We are supporting each other, we are discussing about FTX, posting screenshots and producing video clips, but everything only within these forums. I remember the time when Mango and Cell were posting screenshots of the comming Acceleration Pack (was in on flightsimworld?). I was so infected by this screens, that i hardly couldn't wait for the release. Maybe we all should try to post our wonderfull screenshots and videos in every screenshot forum we can find. I think, almost every ORBX user has purchased special addons for airplanes or environment tools. Let's make screenshots of this addons together with the outstanding sceneries of FTX and post them on the webpages of the producers, if the have a screenshot topic. Remind you to the video posts of Timest in the Community Video forum: I'll bet, there will be many ORBX members, who will buy REX when it's released, because they are convinced of the product because of this postings. Maybe we should start a new topic, where all members can suggest additional ways of spreading the good quality of all ORBX products. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwolb Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 Anybody that wants to donate to me so I can keep buy these products, send me a pm so I can tell you how to send me money. Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bosch Posted July 28, 2008 Share Posted July 28, 2008 Maybe we all should try to post our wonderfull screenshots and videos in every screenshot forum we can find. I think, almost every ORBX user has purchased special addons for airplanes or environment tools. Let's make screenshots of this addons together with the outstanding sceneries of FTX and post them on the webpages of the producers, if the have a screenshot topic. Remind you to the video posts of Timest in the Community Video forum: I'll bet, there will be many ORBX members, who will buy REX when it's released, because they are convinced of the product because of this postings. Already doing so. I have English friends who I fly IL-2 with who also fly MFS and I'm doing my best to convince them that they need FTX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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