Here's a very quick update of current plans.
Ilan would like to have a Welcome Center up and running by early September, ready for the OpenSim conference and for the opening of the Kitely Market.
Because this timescale is too short to properly develop, test and include the ideas put forward in the various forum discussion threads, yesterday I suggested to Ilan via PM that the Welcome Center be released in two stages:
Ilan thought that the two-stage plan made sense: "let's pursue it".Dot wrote:Stage 1: Prepare a very simple, tightly focused but attractive KWC using Paislee's circular structures as a modular kit. This would focus solely on experienced SL and OpenSim users, with the goals of helping them sort out their avatars as quickly as possible, and converting visitors into Kitely members. Message delivery would need to be done as simply as possible; for flexibility this might be best achieved by current users being inworld (so this basic KWC needs garden hangout spots). This KWC would take up the land area of a single region, with the other three regions done as sea. This is more likely to be (and look) completed by the deadline.
Stage 2: Over the coming months, work on a more detailed, complete 2x2 KWC, using as many elements suggested and agreed upon by the discussions so far to make a "blow your socks off" low-lag welcome center. This would take account of the needs of the different audiences already identified, and incorporate quest-based learning and journey paths. The deadline for this stage might be the end of the year (say for when Hypergrid is enabled).
The skills are out there to make a really good Welcome Center, but to do it properly we need more time to think it through, develop it and test it. Doing it in two stages -- getting the simpler one up and running while the final one is developed -- would help.
So, for this first stage, I created a new one-region world (to give a better idea of land mass), and Paislee is laying out the circular structures ("pods") and paths from her experimental region, Ruminations. Next step inworld is to sort out the landscaping and begin to plant the garden (so donations of low-lag trees, plants and shrubs are very welcome!). Once this is complete, it will be exported as an OAR and reimported as part of a 2x2 megaregion.
If you'd like to follow progress, here's the world page: http://www.kitely.com/virtual-world/Dot ... WC-stage-1
In parallel with this, we need to sort out how to deliver the various messages. I think the easiest and quickest way to sort out parameters at this stage is for those interested to discuss this inworld -- so that we can see what would work, what the issues might be, ... Then we can hopefully agree on a plan, split up the work, and develop and test what is required by the deadline of early September. Not long! Keep it simple!
The other aspect that needs fleshing out is what to provide for new users to quickly spruce up their avatars. We've not yet discussed that in much detail -- better get that going...
And while all this is going on, we can be learning what works well and what not so well, and thinking about how to produce that final "blow your socks off" Welcome Center for the next stage. Phew!
