I'm not sure that my posts came across the way you replied, so I will try to answer in an attempt to clarify my meaning. Not that I am in any way saying you are too goofy too understand (big grin here.) them. By the way I am very impressed with your handling and moderating the board to even include in your post to me the word "comments?" That is professional as it's not the last word, but yet an invitaion for a discussion - very cool. (trust me I know about communication break-down) but I digress...
Well people expect me to respond to their question as if it's the first time I've heard it and as if the customer can do no wrong. I have no qualms about being honest with rude people and closing things down when they threaten a positive forum experience. Conflict interests me. I'm one of a few people who can find logic even when I am furious.
Jim gets hundreds of e-mails a week from people demanding the "rest of their $20" so to speak. The demand for more Aquarium stuff has been 10:1 over requests for Butterflies. Some have even tried to associate the Aquarium realism as being a masculine thing and the Butterfly Garden as being generally a feminine thing. This is what people have actually said, i'm not making it up.
I am not sure I mean't that the additonal features of the aquarium would be money-losers, I was just trying to make a point that there are a lot of people who would find the screensaver great as is and even better with a 3D background period....Like I said my mothers friend has an earlier release of the SS and is happy with that and hasn't upgraded yet. Why, well they may not even know there are updates and/or choose not too. Not everyone will care if there is anything more done to the screensaver now, let alone after the 3D background is finished. Jim even changed the default settings to all the slots to random.... That to me presents itself with the proof that, to them, the SS is very cool even with just the 3 fish they thought it had.
I was the main person pushing them to make the Aquarium default to 7 random slots. There are thousands of users who thought there are only 7 fish instead of 20. I did it for two groups of people.
-Those that download the Aquarium and are furious that they can only see the 7 default fish. (Nowhere in any documentation, read-me, or pop-up message-- EVEN IN 1.1-- does it say what keyboard commands exist).
-Those that download the Aquarium and don't realize they only have 7 fish.
Here are the major support questions (hundreds of these a week) we get feature-wise:
#1 Where is the Octopus? How do I download it?
#2 What is the background flat? Where is the 3D background? How do I download it? When will you have multiple changeable backgrounds?
#3 How do I turn on more than 7 fish? How do I see the other fish at that feldoncentral.com site?
Now, I am not a marketing person, I fly planes for a living. But the general public are always wanting something new and different....
I understand what you're saying. Jim is not approaching this directly from a marketing point of view (in fact there really isn't any marketing that I've seen except some opportune TV appearances) but also from an artistic point of view. He's been telling people about the Octopus since August 2000. You would have a line of people outside his door with rakes and shovels and implements of destruction if he pulled the plug now.
And I still think his experience creating the 3D background will be vital in the creation of the Butterfly Garden.
Footnote here, For selling the aquarium, Jim you need to hit the local aquarium shops or distributers to sell it there as well. Man people love salt tanks and they are so expensive to have. ( I have 4 fish tanks myself and Jim's is the most stable one I own
The Aquarium can be resold in those stores if they inquire, but small retailers aren't receiving any literature, so it's entirely reflexive/word-of-mouth. If you know some pet shops and stores that should be selling the Aquarium, point them to
www.serenescreen.com so they can start getting it at wholesale.
Prolific has had no success getting Best Buy, Circuit City, Wal-Mart, etc. to carry the Aquarium. So far only Fry's is on board and they only have 21 stores.
PS My personal opinion as I think I said before, finish the 3D bakground, take some tiem to enjoy the cash and then do the butterfly garden. people will buy the creature packs after they have had a 6 months to get used to the ones they have now....Also, Jim needs a seahorse. I have them for real and they are very feasible tankmates but very hard to keep, so they would be cool to have for a no hassles creature on the SS.
I'm confused. So when would the creature packs including the seahorse be done? A year from now?