Dear Nerds,
The idea behind the tiers in fact came about because I felt that the previous Patreon was, frankly, an injustice to the project. I myself am a Patreon supporter to a couple of projects and for my contribution I get very little except the warm fuzzy feeling associated with belonging. After looking at the subscription rate of IN I was shocked however, how can this be sustainable? The project looked to an outsider (long time lurker) as one which I could get behind and help along for as long as I could. I certainly had an emotional tie to the SGI platform (mid 90's IRIX Admin) but I felt there was a vibe in the community as a whole, something I couldn't put my finger on, but certainly I wanted to help.
Problem to Solve
A donation feels like charity right? Especially when it's take and no give. I watched a GamersNexus video the other night and Steve brought up a very interesting and pertinent example of my point. A generous donation of $50 was given in his live chat. Steve was clearly embarrassed to receive the gift. He said (not verbatim):
"Thank you for the donation, that is very kind, I would rather at least you buy something from the Merch Store though so at least you get something for your money"
This was just a very recent and obvious example, but the idea behind this new Patreon is on the exact moral compass as GN.
We need a product.
Tiers
To reaffirm the intent; this is not a pay-wall. The Patreon continues to be a choice, do or do not, it's all good. There are a number of new options however, that are designed to allow your donations toward IN to continue but now with a product for you to take as well as introduce a level of responsibility with the admin team to deliver. This last point is an incredibly powerful statement which is borne from my service background. Ultimately any 'paid' service comes with a level of expectation from the customer. IN is very clearly and resolutely a volunteer-based platform with no definable business strategy, however by staging the new Patreon, IN makes a statement of intent to deliver on features and services for the patrons of that Tier.
Anyway, long story short, patrons supporting the platform will receive services, have a say in community strategy, receive regular news updates, plus take away that same fuzzy happiness feeling for supporting IN!
How does it work?
Existing Patreon accounts have been given a choice to move their subscription up or down to the new tier system. Once you've done that Raion should get that feedback and make the necessary adjustments to the lounge access etc. You can also reach out to me in the forum or as a PM and inform me of your Patreon details and Tier then we can work on that access. The VPN system is up and running and although the Origin200 is out of action there is an Onyx2 /IR3 to get access to. I'm in the middle of preparing some videos covering the service(s) and examples of how you might find them useful.
Summary
There is no pay wall. Cast off your prejudice and join the
Ferengi. Trade your donations for services!
