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<H1>Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</H1>
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<LI><em>To</em>: <A HREF="mailto:mud-dev#kanga,nu">mud-dev#kanga,nu</A></LI>
<LI><em>Subject</em>: Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry </LI>
<LI><em>From</em>: Matthew Mihaly &lt;<A HREF="mailto:diablo#best,com">diablo#best,com</A>&gt;</LI>
<LI><em>Date</em>: Thu, 17 Feb 2000 23:07:15 -0800 (PST)</LI>
<LI><em>Reply-To</em>: <A HREF="mailto:mud-dev#kanga,nu">mud-dev#kanga,nu</A></LI>
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<PRE>
On Thu, 17 Feb 2000, J C Lawrence wrote:

&gt; Unarguably both are physically capable of being equally "excellent"
&gt; for whatever your definition of "excellent" is.  Further, I doubt
&gt; any of us would argue that there are "free" MUDs out there that are
&gt; of at least equal "quality" to the commercial offerings, taken as a
&gt; whole and not in specific aspects (we all have flaws) for whatever
&gt; your quality metrics are.  However, (and I consider this a fairly
&gt; safe broad and sweeping generality) each has a different concept of
&gt; their target market, and their commitment to serving that market.

I might also add that lumping all commercial muds together is a
mistake. A small commercial mud is generally going after a considerably
different market, and doing so in considerably different ways, from a
large commercial mud.
 
&gt; You have to _name_, _want_, and _get_ your product.

You also have to have the resources to execute your product. I don't see a
hobbyist pulling off something equivalent to UO/AC/EQ.

 &gt; How does all this plug into things like customer service, help
&gt; files, tech support, and such?  On the one side purpose achievement
&gt; defines what level of assistance you need to provide to your terget
&gt; market and how important it is.  Its a fairly simple equation all
&gt; told and on the commercial side there are money and resources on
&gt; hand (to some level) for making sure it is done.  On the hobbyest
&gt; side however, its easy to overlook these "boring" things, and far
&gt; too easy (and attractive) to just dump them and tacitly reclassify
&gt; the target market as "people who can understand this stuff without
&gt; my help and none o' them luser idiots either".

&gt; Just how many OpenSource applications out there have decent
&gt; user-level documentation that a non-IT person has a chance of
&gt; understanding?  

Amen. A lot of programmers program for fun. I don't know anyone who writes
documentation for fun.


&gt; ** I know of a highly profitable jazz (***) radio station, now sadly
&gt; closed, that had incredible key affluent demographic penetration.
&gt; Their total listening audience was not large, but it dominated
&gt; certain demographics.  On that basis they were able to charge, and
&gt; easily get, fees for advertising that were fifteen or more times
&gt; that of local pop stations that had audiences of, literally, a
&gt; hundred times their size (but was mostly listed to by less affluent
&gt; teeangers/young couples, etc).

This is exactly what I believe small commercial muds are good at, or can
be good at. 

--matt




_______________________________________________
MUD-Dev maillist  -  MUD-Dev#kanga,nu
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<li><strong><A NAME="00428" HREF="msg00428.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</A></strong>
<ul compact><li><em>From:</em> &lt;adam#treyarch,com&gt;</li></ul>
<li><strong><A NAME="00413" HREF="msg00413.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</A></strong>
<ul compact><li><em>From:</em> Bruce &lt;bruce#puremagic,com&gt;</li></ul>
<li><strong><A NAME="00412" HREF="msg00412.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</A></strong>
<ul compact><li><em>From:</em> J C Lawrence &lt;claw#kanga,nu&gt;</li></ul>
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<UL><LI><EM>From:</EM> J C Lawrence &lt;claw#kanga,nu&gt;</LI></UL></LI>
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<ul><li>Thread context:
<BLOCKQUOTE><UL>
<LI><STRONG>Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</STRONG>, <EM>(continued)</EM>
<ul compact>
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<LI><strong><A NAME="00404" HREF="msg00404.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</A></strong>, 
Justin Rogers <a href="mailto:justin#mlstoday,com">justin#mlstoday,com</a>, Fri 18 Feb 2000, 03:25 GMT
<UL>
<LI><strong><A NAME="00407" HREF="msg00407.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</A></strong>, 
Matthew Mihaly <a href="mailto:diablo#best,com">diablo#best,com</a>, Fri 18 Feb 2000, 05:03 GMT
<LI><strong><A NAME="00410" HREF="msg00410.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</A></strong>, 
Matthew Mihaly <a href="mailto:diablo#best,com">diablo#best,com</a>, Fri 18 Feb 2000, 05:59 GMT
</LI>
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<LI><strong><A NAME="00405" HREF="msg00405.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</A></strong>, 
J C Lawrence <a href="mailto:claw#kanga,nu">claw#kanga,nu</a>, Fri 18 Feb 2000, 04:59 GMT
<UL>
<LI><strong><A NAME="00411" HREF="msg00411.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</A></strong>, 
Matthew Mihaly <a href="mailto:diablo#best,com">diablo#best,com</a>, Fri 18 Feb 2000, 07:14 GMT
<UL>
<LI><strong><A NAME="00412" HREF="msg00412.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</A></strong>, 
J C Lawrence <a href="mailto:claw#kanga,nu">claw#kanga,nu</a>, Fri 18 Feb 2000, 07:35 GMT
<LI><strong><A NAME="00415" HREF="msg00415.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</A></strong>, 
Matthew Mihaly <a href="mailto:diablo#best,com">diablo#best,com</a>, Fri 18 Feb 2000, 07:49 GMT
<LI><strong><A NAME="00422" HREF="msg00422.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</A></strong>, 
Bryce Harrington <a href="mailto:bryce#neptune,net">bryce#neptune,net</a>, Fri 18 Feb 2000, 17:43 GMT
<LI><strong><A NAME="00426" HREF="msg00426.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] code base inquiry</A></strong>, 
Matthew Mihaly <a href="mailto:diablo#best,com">diablo#best,com</a>, Fri 18 Feb 2000, 20:44 GMT
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