Getting priced out of this hobby
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I couldn't stand Adobe's subscription model, so I switched to GIMP. Took me a while to get used to it and, to be honest, I wanted to go back to Photoshop at times, but I've gotten used to GIMP now and am not going back.
...the real profit maker in the franchise restaurant business are fountain beverages. The cost per drink for the syrup, carbonation, and water/ice is a few pennies, so almost pure profit when you charge 2.00$ for a "supersize" drink mostly comprised of crushed ice.
I,ve been looking at the prices on some of my early stuf this random from 2001
Victoria's Up-Do Map Pak
$9.95
Victoria's Up-Do
$24.95
Thats 17 years ago
Become a PC Member Use Old Models.
...have you done model railroading? Even back in the 70s I was paying 25$ - 40$ just for a single accurately detailed locomotive (N Gauge). A full train set (locomotive and carriages) like the Trans Europe Express was around 120$ just for one powered locomotive (the other was unpowered) and carriages.
I’ve noticed some content creators switching to Patreon. I’m a fan. I like supporting artists who make content I can use.
My dad and my brother are both into model trains, and I nearly fell out of my chair when my dad told me the cost of one of the new controllers (I think that's what it was) he wanted to get.
I guess Patreon makes sense for those artists whose sales are not high enough to justify 50% cut to 3rd party store front. I think an artist has to be exceptionally productive to justify patronage and most aren't. I've been a patron of a developer just January and it is now May and they've had not even responded to any messages since January. I knew this developer was sort of quirky and aloof when patronizing their Patreon account but I'll given them til October before cutting off my patronage. Diificult new good things that aren't just another 3D model or similar 'just another' take time and effort.
Dollhouses are just as bad ;).
Laurie
I was feeling bad for spending $200 on a GC the other day, but I went and played golf today and the green fees with the cart rental and the beer and the parking and the lunch was just over $205, Geeze, no wonder I don't play that often, LOL! Now I have to take the GF out for dinner. How to I break the news I am broke, LOL
...yeah shopped around a bit looked at prices today. The TEE "Rheingold" series set I saw had only one locomotive and three carriages (all coaches, no "Speizewagen" [dining car] or dome) with a retail price of 329$. The one I had included the two other carriages and an unpowered locomotive as the actual train was "double ended". It could also run off conventional track power or though overhead catenary (like the real train).
Another hobby that became expensive is scale R/C aircraft. as systems today are all digital and multi channel to where you can raise lower landing gear, flaps throttle the engines, and even steer it while taxing. Also there are now mini turbofan and turbojet engines which allow modellers to build realistic jets.
..and yes it does have real afterburners. You are probably looking at about 8,000$ - 12,000$ there in just a single plane (the engines alone can cost anywhere from 1,600$ up to 4,000$)
Far cry from the old two channel pulse/servo systems and single cylinder glow plug engines I used to use.
If the textures were smaller; I'd buy less. I can reduce texture size effectively; increasing the quality of a texture is just about impossible.
That was an expensive ordeal but you probably used it for some type of business. Daz is just a hobby and won't be a source of income in the near future. I do not splurge or shop on impulse but Daz got me. I hate to think that it was a mistake but probably not. PC membership last until next year, so hopefully I will enjoy the freebies, use it, and be happy. It will be difficult for me to buy anything on high price at this time.
yes.. I was shocked when I went back awhile ago and saw the older pricing ... I think much was offset by a lot of free items.. I got one of the Vickys for free ... and several other figures way back. Then there was the huge PC packs ..etc.
The window on this is closed now. The 16% off of gift cards sale ended yesterday. If you haven't used your 10% coupon yet, that's still an option though. Plus there's the X-Morphs sale, but that has a steep buy in. The X-Morphs look like a useful tool for people that like to build/spin dial custom characters at least.
You had to buy any 3 new items for the 16%, but the new PC+ items qualified this sale. Add on the 10% from the X-Morphs (which would also qualify as 2 of your 3 new items;10% off of 84%=75.6%) and the 10% off using the one use thank you coupon (10% off of 75.6%) and voila! 32%. But as I pointed out, the GC sale is over now.
The buy in offset a good chunk of that 32%, but if you were banking a bunch of store credit you could still come out ahead.
Edit: looks like someone else already covered this.
Anyways, back on topic, yeah a LOT of the new items have higher price tags. It's becoming more obvious now. And this is comparing prices with just within the last year.
Until recently, I'd be agonizing over a $12-$15, 30% off item, to qualify a sale. Now I'm seeing more and more items crossing the $20 mark, even with that same 30% off. And those are standalone items, not bundled items.
So yeah, I don't feel bad at all about taking advantage of every deal I can find to offset that increase. I have nothing against the PA's, but my budget is still the same, and I need to stretch those dollers.
...nope, it was purely a hobby as there is not much of a way to make a living at model railroading unless you were a reseller/importer (and back then you needed a "brick and mortar" location to do so as there was no "online" shopping). Fortunately for the time, I was making a decent wage which if extrapolated to today's economy would be about 81,000$ a year.
thanks .. yeah, i would have passed on the buy 3 deal anyway.... there was a PC+ discount deal like that a week or so ago..it ended up costing $1 more than full price becasue of having to buy a couple items to qualify for the PC+ discounting ... so I passed.
One of the key items you get here from DAZ as part of that 50% fee - delivery. Depending on the size of a package and the popularity a private server could cost quite a bit in terms of monthly bandwidth allowance.
It isn't available I thought; would happily part with a good few hundred; well happily is not quite correct, but...
Carefully. :D
A year ago, I saw older versions of PS CC on sale. And the seller claims it comes with the original box and serial numbers.
If someone is underperforming just unpatronize but follow for a while. There are other artists who produce and quite regularly.
LOL I ant got noting but subscription.Hulu n Netflix is way way way cheaper n better then cable.Not every one has $700.00 for Z but every one has $10.00 for Mud.same for PS.
Subscription can be a good thing.
Saw Black Panther on amazon for $5.99 or $6.99.Way cheaper then going to the movies.
Minimum wage 17 years a go was what $4.00 compared to $8.00 now.
Just spend wisely.
Sounds good on the surface, but if everyone started doing it and charged even just 5 or 10 bucks a month for everything you use every day, the money would start flying out the door. EVERY MONTH. It's not sustainable when you think about it. Especially once everyone is doing it. For the few that do it now it may be doable, but I doubt highly it's going to stay doable.
Laurie
I've considered subscribing to Blender.org for $10 a month but nothing else. You really don't get anything but supporting Blender Foundation from it.
I think the subscription plan is is seen by companies as a neat and novel thing. And for those whose products are aimed at business, maybe that's the way to go. But for those that are aimed at individuals, I think they're quickly going to realize that paying subs for everything just isn't going to be something people are going to be able to do for long. I think maybe even someday some companies that have gone subscription will eventually go back to regular sales. Sure, tv, movies and video is one thing, but software? Think about all the software you use everyday. Photo editor for postwork, various 3D software for the 3D end (I use several), text editors, software aimed strictly at painting on 3D models, software like Marvelous Designer, password managers, antivirus, services like Steam, not to mention places for content like Daz, people that make HDRI, sites that provide texture resources....I could go on and on and on. Suddenly you realize it's a major chunk of change. Maybe too much of a chunk. Also take into consideration that subscriptions are either on or off. Don't pay? You don't play. At least if you buy a piece of software, you can use it even it's two or three versions back. Can't do that with a subscription.
No, I don't like the subscription plan much. LOL
Laurie
On this 'split' thing. One point of consideration... Gift cards.
The PAs have nothing to do with these, this is all on Daz's end when they are purchased. I'm guessing that when an item is bought, Daz just looks at the discounted price of the item when determining the split. It'd be an accounting nightmare to track every dollar inside any particular store credit total.
So, my guess is that Daz3D is essentially giving up part of their 'cut' when they offer gift card sales. Which makes sense since I've personally NEVER seen a 50% (or higher) off gift card sale. Maybe some of the longtime Daz customers might remember such a thing (Gift card discounts of say 40% or higher), I've only been a Daz customer for a bit over a year now.
...I used to use gift cards when I did everything by cash and money order. I'd send in a money order to cover the cost of purchasing a GC before a sale so it would be in my account in time. Worked pretty nice and was very secure.
Definitely agree with original post.
Prices keep going up and up. The pay doesn't.
I cut down on new purchases. Then cut down again. Now I think it is time to find some other artistc outlet. Maybe learn how to draw badly with pencils. I can buy a lot of paper and pencils for $20. :D
It was a fun hobby. I made some art that I'm proud of.
But this is a rich person's game now.