linden labs The Scam

[Nikki2298]

21 minutes ago, Phil Deakins said:

Nope

Assuming that Sparkly's post is correct, the buyer is offered a choice of Linden Home. There is no suggestion that every design will be available to choose from. I.e. Here's what's available. Choose one.

 

All Premium members also enjoy
A free Linden Home of your choice

If we are to enjoy a free Linden home of our choice, but our choice isn't there, is that a valid statement? No, it is not. It's a very deceptive statement that they should clarify. 

[Phil Deakins]

8 minutes ago, Nikki2298 said:

It's not correct IMO, read my reply to him. 

What Sparkly posted is the relevant page. I do not read it as a guarantee that every style of Lindon Home will be available whenever I want one. You read it differently, and that's your choice. I think I'm right in saying that you're the only one who has posted who reads it that way.

[Phil Deakins]

1 minute ago, Nikki2298 said:

All Premium members also enjoy
A free Linden Home of your choice

If we are to enjoy a free Linden home of our choice, but our choice isn't there, is that a valid statement? No, it is not. It's a very deceptive statement that they should clarify. 

You can definitely have a Linden Home of your choice, provided you don't choose one that isn't actually available.

I think you need to need sleep on it. You seem to have boxed yourself into an original opinion and can't let go, regardless of how anyone else explains it to you. I do think you need a timeout.

[Eirynne Sieyes]

@Nikki2298I can understand an angry reaction to not receiving what you expected. We're Human. That's how we react at times. 

Keep in mind that Patch has made it very clear that people who are unhappy with their upgrade, for any reason, will be reimbursed. That is a generous, customer-oriented policy.

Edited November 6, 2023 by Eirynne Sieyes

[UnilWay SpiritWeaver]

Quite a LOT of us with Premium Plus don't have and don't even desire to have a ranch theme.

I use mine for:

1. A log home that I picked in the EXACT spot I wanted it.
2. A 1104m plot on mainland-Zindra (that group bonus is handy) in an out of the way region.
3. Free uploads of images. Give me time, I WILL fill the servers with all the images they can hold. Working on it.

There are other perks too, like the stipend. But the reasons above where key. #2 and #3 are why I've kept it.

As for Ranch Homes - they DO become available. People leave. But you have to keep spamming that page refresh to get in before someone else when somebody leaves. That noted - I've got the ranch home kit on two accounts and I've held a ranch home maybe 4 times because... it's not that hard to get one. It's hard to get one I personally like (because the theme just isnt me - yet. There are other themes I love that I originally didn't care for).

Premium Plus is about getting 2048m of tier. They're giving you that, even if you can't manage to time picking up a ranch. A ranch home is just one way you could use that tier.

 

[Phil Deakins]

I thought I'd better go into the process of upgrading to P+ just to see if any actual Linden Homes were pictured or stated that could lead a person to think they can have one of those. I reached the Tilia payment page, which is where I backtracked, of course. If any Linden Homes were actually shown or described or anything like that, then I'd need to change my opinion again, but no Linden Homes of any kind were shown or stated, and there is no link pointing to anywhere that shows them. So I stay with my opinion that it's not a scam. However, I do think that the A free Linden Home of your choice statement could be worded to indicate that all styles are not necessarily available all the time.

[Rowan Amore]

Anyone who has followed closely the release of Linden homes knows that not all types are available at any given time.  Houseboats were impossible to get for a long time.  Stilts on water are still at a premium and get scooped up quickly.  Nowhere does it say you are guaranteed any particular linden home.  Nowhere.  Period.  You are guaranteed a home.  Pick one or don't.  I've never had one on Rowan.  I chose to use my 1024 on a double prim mainland parcel so I'm getting the same benefit of being premium plus (LI of 703) without the added cost.  Sure, I paid a pretty penny for it 3 years ago but it's more than saved me in rent.  

 

[Kylie Jaxxon]

"Anyone who has followed closely the release of Linden homes knows that not all types are available at any given time...not everyone follows though   Although I do agree with the rest of your statement

 

[Love Zhaoying]

I'd agree it could be seen as a "Scam" if Linden Lab had promoted repeatedly that there were 2048 Linden Homes available for Premium Plus members.

But Linden Lab did not promote this repeatedly.  It's always been "Soon", or "Coming soon", etc.  The 2048 homes were only very recently released.  

So, a lot of users (like myself) took advantage of Premium Plus quite awhile ago for OTHER reasons, besides the possibility of a 2048 Linden Home.

 

[BJoyful]

21 hours ago, BJoyful said:

Paraphrasing Pauli... I my humble opinion most of the above is fundamentally "not even wrong" 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Not_even_wrong   Thanks for the surprising Like @Nikki2298 but...

 

[Polenth Yue]

On a practical note, in the time since this thread started, the original poster could have snagged a ranch. They're not always available, but they're available pretty often. No theme is as difficult to get as just getting a house in the early days of Bellisseria.

[Love Zhaoying]

11 hours ago, Polenth Yue said:

On a practical note, in the time since this thread started, the original poster could have snagged a ranch.

Great point! Some users may not know about the "retry" function but instead, "try once" and walk away disappointed.

 

[Lewis Luminos]

Premium Plus gets you a guarantee of 2048sq. m of Land. It does NOT guarantee you a 2048m Bellissetria home.  This was clear even before it launched, so you would have known this upon purchase. So long as there's mainland available as an alternative, it's not a scam.

And we all know there's plenty of mainland available. Buy some and build your own ranch. You don't need Bellisseria for that, no-one talks to their neighbours in Bellisseria anyway.

[Love Zhaoying]

20 minutes ago, Lewis Luminos said:

Premium Plus gets you a guarantee of 2048sq. m of Land.

There may also be a misunderstanding whether the Premium Plus with 2048sqm includes any "tier fee"; if you buy a Mainland parcel of 2048m, you don't need to pay any additional tier fee.

You only need to pay additional tier fee if you buy land OVER 2048sqm (with Premium Plus).

[Garnet Psaltery]

Running a scam involves a degree of planning and organisation that is not necessarily within LL's grasp.

[diamond Marchant]

On 11/6/2023 at 8:34 AM, Nikki2298 said:

That sounds like deceptive advertising to me in the realm of a scam. 

NOT a scam. A scam is a deliberate attempt to trick or deceive. Not getting what you want at a particular time in Game of Homes is akin to ordering avocado toast at a restaurant and being told they are out of that menu item. (btw, I have never ordered avocado toast, however, I did order Punkin Pecan pancakes at Dennys and they arrived sans pecans)

Meta Comment: This situation may suggest why SL does not appeal to the masses but maintains a dedicated smallish population of fans/residents. We fans see numerous seemingly negative  issues as "problems to be solved" or as "a challenge of the game". Others might see them as headaches and scams.

Edited November 7, 2023 by diamond Marchant

[Persephone Emerald]

9 hours ago, diamond Marchant said:

Meta Comment: This situation may suggest why SL does not appeal to the masses but maintains a dedicated smallish population of fans/residents. We fans see numerous seemingly negative  issues as "problems to be solved" or as "a challenge of the game". Others might see them as headaches and scams.

I think users of SL do have to be able to put up with alot of less than ideal situations in order to continue playing in SL. We're constantly dealing with slow rezzing times, lag, voice not working, group chat not working, strangers wandering into one's house, banlines, security orbs, multiple bodies and clothing sizes, mesh clothes not fitting perfectly, complicated HUDs, alpha glitches, annoying sound effects and gestures, annoying users, minimal support for inter-user conflict, confusing rules and governance (including figuring out who's in charge in different situation), etc. 

The Bellisseria home regions reduce occurances of some of these problems, which may be partly why they're so popular.

Edited November 8, 2023 by Persephone Emerald
* slow rezzing

[Love Zhaoying]

1 hour ago, Garnet Psaltery said:

Running a scam involves a degree of planning and organisation that is not necessarily within LL's grasp.

It's hard to grasp objects with furpaws!

* makes grabbypaws at *

[Marisa Starbrook]

On 11/6/2023 at 8:37 PM, Polenth Yue said:

On a practical note, in the time since this thread started, the original poster could have snagged a ranch. They're not always available, but they're available pretty often. No theme is as difficult to get as just getting a house in the early days of Bellisseria.

I’m proof of that little window. I check  out the land page to see what is available, and a couple times a ranch was available in the past month. And I got it!

Houseboats are my favorites, but it’s all about location. It took 4 months of refreshing the land page and waiting with bated breath for a region release. Now there are lots of houseboats available. It takes time for the Moles and Lindens to build all the new regions to accommodate the demand. 
 

Edited November 8, 2023 by Marisa Starbrook
Just had to blather on

[Teresa Firelight]

Words Hurt. I find sometimes people on forums are extremely critical of LL and the moles. They forget that they are real people behind those keyboards, who are working hard to make SL a nicer place, to provide more Belli homes, etc.

I haven't discussed this with any moles or Lindens, but I know from my own experience that when I get demoralized on something, I work slower than when I am excited and enthusiastic about it. I am guessing that could apply to the real people who do the mole work. They do their jobs, and they do the best they can at them... but when a few vocal residents loudly and repeatedly criticize their work and assign bad motives to them, it has got to be discouraging.

I understand that people are upset because the demand for 2048 homes exceeds the supply. I get it! And I understand that people want to express their upset/disappointment at not being able to get something they think they have paid for due to limited availability. BUT is it really necessary to express it OVER and OVER and OVER in a hostile attacking way?

[Love Zhaoying]

4 minutes ago, Teresa Firelight said:

Words Hurt. I find sometimes people on forums are extremely critical of LL and the moles. They forget that they are real people behind those keyboards, who are working hard to make SL a nicer place, to provide more Belli homes, etc.

I haven't discussed this with any moles or Lindens, but I know from my own experience that when I get demoralized on something, I work slower than when I am excited and enthusiastic about it. I am guessing that could apply to the real people who do the mole work. They do their jobs, and they do the best they can at them... but when a few vocal residents loudly and repeatedly criticize their work and assign bad motives to them, it has got to be discouraging.

I understand that people are upset because the demand for 2048 homes exceeds the supply. I get it! And I understand that people want to express their upset/disappointment at not being able to get something they think they have paid for due to limited availability. BUT is it really necessary to express it OVER and OVER and OVER in a hostile attacking way?

I see this, and agree. Unless someone is somehow upset "in the moment", why would they accuse Linden Lab of a "Scam"..and stick around / still be here? Sometimes I wonder if it's a "cultural", "regional", or "age difference" (generational) thing to use word "scam", as if making serious accusations.

There have been similar threads in the past, where the accuser either "laughed it off", or went on "attack mode" - attacking anyone who defended Linden Lab.

Perhaps some think that by using a "serious" accusation word such as "scam", they will get some satisfaction from LL?

[Teresa Firelight]

Good News for everyone who has been frustrated by the inaccessibility of the ranch homes... 16 new regions have appeared on the map and the moles are doing the quality checks on them... it wont be long now!

However, I recommend that when they do open up, you grab yours quickly. The last time they released 11 regions, they were sold out in less than 2 weeks.

[Love Zhaoying]

4 minutes ago, Teresa Firelight said:

Good News for everyone who has been frustrated by the inaccessibility of the ranch homes... 16 new regions have appeared on the map and the moles are doing the quality checks on them... it wont be long now!

However, I recommend that when they do open up, you grab yours quickly. The last time they released 11 regions, they were sold out in less than 2 weeks.

Even after they "run out", won't they come up occasionally due to the normal "Game of Homes" shenanigans? Or is that less likely, since Ranch is the only (AFAIK) 2048 theme?

 

[Matthieu Quander]

3 hours ago, Love Zhaoying said:

Even after they "run out", won't they come up occasionally due to the normal "Game of Homes" shenanigans? Or is that less likely, since Ranch is the only (AFAIK) 2048 theme?

 

They already come up occasionally now.  I don't see why adding more would make that less likely.  

[Teresa Firelight]

another large batch was just released .. over 180 of them at this moment on the land page... I am guessing they will sell out in 1 or 2 weeks but they are available for anyone who wants one right now