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I’m downloading the second 2 hours now, and I’ll try to upload both files to youtube. Hope that’s okay!
Here is the link to the 1st 2 hours! I’ll have to upload the second half (with the specials) tomorrow. It takes a long time and I have to get to bed. <3
Melody, I hope this is okay! I uploaded it as unlisted. I’ll take it down if you’d like me to.
WOO! Thank you Stephanie!! You’re a godsend 😀 I couldn’t get this to work for the life of me!
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Please visit My Webpage to see my art and PYO's that I've done in the past!Okay, so forgive me for how long this post is, and I know some people are probably going to slam me for saying some of this, so before you do please just keep in mind these are my personal opinions and thoughts. I am NOT blaming or even intending to imply anything bad about anyone or any particular event from last night’s livestream, no one at Windstone or among the participants.
I REALLY (and I do mean REALLY) appreciate the sentiment for why Melody said she wanted to try this livestream approach, and heavens, but Melody and Griffin had exceptional amounts of patience last night! I truly have nothing but kudos and appreciation for them for going through all that work!!!!!
Based on comments on this thread so far, this may be just me, but personally as much as I love the show off grab bag livestreams, I do not think doing one and allowing people to pick their poads for the Kickstarter campaign is a good idea (I see the same concerns for pre-pulling select poads based on preference emails from early backers too actually…). So here are my thoughts on why this maybe should be re-considered:
1. We are still very early in the Kickstarter campaign, and more than just forum members will or already are (hopefully!) backing the project. So whatever is offered now in the campaign has to also be done, equally, for later/future backers, which seems like it could get pretty overwhelming if the number of backers continues to really climb…I’ve been involved in other Kickstarter projects that got overwhelmed that way…
– and especially if later backers feel they won’t get to pick from the same amount of choices, that it will be down to just the ‘leftover’, less desirable poads not claimed by the earlier backers. (I don’t like calling any of the poads not desirable because they were definitely all pretty darn gorgeous last night! So no one take offense, but we also all know that everyone has preferences and favorites and it can be pretty crushing to think you have a shot at one of those, only to find out they are all completely gone and claimed; or worse maybe, were pre-pulled before you even had a chance).
2. If I was looking to back the project now, after the livestream and early backers have already emailed in or otherwise claimed poads, and I already see what may be all my top favorites shown in the campaign videos, that were supposed to be fair game for all, are now pre-selected and gone, it doesn’t really encourage me to back the project, and its even more frustrating I think if they are already a backer, couldn’t make the livestream (or did and it still didn’t matter), and didn’t get even a chance to claim any of their favorites.
3. It also doesn’t match what is described/advertised in the Kickstarter, which is that these are all blind grab bags. The Kickstarter page really needs to be updated since that is not actually true anymore (unless its reverted back to a true grab bag of course).
– The advantage of a true grab bag is its a raffle, you know cost and the prizes, you know your odds basically of getting the ‘prize’ (or ‘prizes’) you want most, and you made a decision to roll the dice and try your luck. But, regardless of when you backed the project, you also know the odds that you may get your top choice(s) won’t change. The livestream changes that; so its awesome for those that could attend it all start to finish and were successful in getting their requests “heard” and heard first on the stream so that they could claim all their favorites. BUT, its not so great obviously for those that missed it entirely and whose favorites are now all gone, or who attended but couldn’t get their requests fulfilled (for whatever reason).
4. Also, just got to say it but a few times in the livestream what you may call special add-ons or options were offered as well.
– Some people were allowed/told they could add-on the special poad for example, which is not an official Kickstarter add-on option; and
– I think at one point Melody even offered up painting semi-custom matching sets for those that liked an already painted adult poad that wasn’t already one of the paired sets, wanted it to be, and had signed up for a paired set…which is an awesome idea and is a typical, totally bend over backwards for us crazy Windstone collectors Melody idea! But it may not be feasible once the campaign ends and Melody realizes just how many backers may fall in to that group.
So I would just caution that anything offered that is not already an official Kickstarter option, just needs to be something that can be added to the Kickstarter options officially and committed to for everyone.
5. I’d also caution against adding add-on options that right now, are basically the defining elements that divide a lower and upper tier, especially those upper tiers that have limits on the number of backers.
– Take the special poads again for example, those were all in tiers with limited spots and so the only way to really get one was to go to an upper tier and go there early while spots were still available. To be frank, the entire point or draw behind the upper tiers in a more art based Kickstarter like this one (one that offers what you may call out as limited, custom art options as benefits to a higher level tier & pledge) is precisely because its only at those tiers that you can snag the more rare and limited options. So if those options suddenly become no longer limited part way through the Kickstarter, or are being provided to people that had not pledged to that tier (and especially if its preferentially before those that did)…I’m sorry but that is not exactly a great thing to do to the backers that have properly stepped up and pledged to those tiers obviously. Business wise, it is also not good to do because you don’t have to increase your pledge upfront to account for add-ons during the actual campaign, you typically also get an option to add to your pledge to accommodate selecting add-ons when the Backerkit survey comes as well at the end of the campaign. So it can mess up a campaign pretty good obviously if most of the backers wait until the survey portion to up pledges and to only up it purely for the extra add-ons, and I imagine it can overwhelm Melody as well if the survey results come in and suddenly 300 backers have all added on the special poad or something.
So my two cents for whatever its worth on the more business-based reasons for why this idea of getting to pre-claim poads should maybe be reconsidered…AND…
If there are more livestreams done, I would strongly recommend they be limited to one type of poad per stream, maybe should only occur either at the end of the campaign or when a limited pledge group is full. Especially for the paired poads and specialty poads that are limited to explicit tiers and a set number of backers; focus those livestreams on the actual pledged folks for those particular poads since that would be a much smaller and more manageable group (and a much shorter livestream too). You maybe should also consider not doing the mini poads and maybe not even the baby poads as livestreams…for those, because people can or have signed up for tiers with really large quantities of these, I think you may be better off doing a general “show off the options” type livestream like you usually do (which can also entice people to up pledges for an add-on once they can see those options better) and then if you still want to accommodate preferences, just stick to asking people to email you general preferences only on colors, patterns, or eye colors, that you will then do your best to accommodate (but no hard promises).
So actual personal opinion time on how last night went for me…to be honest, I absolutely hated it! Even if offered again, and even though I still have several poads to claim, right now I plan to flat out avoid future livestreams and emailing in preferences even if offered and think I will just rely upon the traditional grab bag to randomly get what I get. I truly hated how the livestream worked out in reality last night. I did not think it fun, just very VERY frustrating and realized eventually that it was only making me really upset, to the point where I finally just called it and exited out once we switched from the special poads back to the regular ones again. Call it bitter grapes if you really want, but to be blunt, so few of us have pledged to the tiers with the special poads, and yet when that time finally came last night and I tried to claim the one I really wanted from actually the very start of that process, not only was I not able to, my requests kept getting lost or overlooked it seemed in the general chatter that started to occur at that point and in the end, even after being the first to try and claim that particular poad, multiple times no less, it was still not only given away to someone else but after that I wasn’t even able to claim my second or even third choice because we switched back to the regular poads before I could. That was one of the most frustrating points in the night, but I had similar issues with the earlier parts of the stream too when trying to see and claim some of the other types of poads; not to mention the lag got really bad at times from all the people and you’d have 10-15 minutes of colorful fuzz where you couldn’t make out anything that was going on, and there were times where it wouldn’t even post my comments in the chat. I did really enjoy seeing them all up close and I really wish it had been just a regular show-off live stream of the options; but from here on out I personally have decided that I think I prefer to stay happy and ignorant. In the end, I’ve never gotten a grab bag I was unhappy with or didn’t fall in love with ultimately whenever its been a true grab bag, but I also usually try not to spend a lot of time trying to pre-select explicit favorites because I find I can enjoy and appreciate the one I actually get a lot more if I don’t fixate on a particular favorite or two just based off photos when we all know how difficult it is to photograph a Windstone. So bitter grapes or not, I want to try to get back to actually enjoying this process which I think for me, means I’d prefer to remain in the dark, not watching livestreams where I have to truly pick out a top favorite right then and there, where because of the situation I found myself starting to fixate and getting more and more upset when I couldn’t claim my top choices…I’d rather keep thinking that those that caught my eye the most in the original class videos are still available and I will even to the end, still have a legit shot at getting them because otherwise I felt like I was mainly just watching my odds of that continue to go down, to the point where I even questioned my pledge level some…because as more livestreams, or the results of livestreams I couldn’t make (since it was purely a miracle I got off work and home in time to even make part of last nights stream) occur, its quite likely just going to keep getting worse. So I’m truly glad that for some people it really worked out and you guys had fun and are happy. But personally, how I felt after last night was mostly stressed, unhappy, and extremely frustrated…which are not the emotions or memory I want to have in association with such an awesome event.
Zloy720, sorry to hear you were frustrated with the livestream or weren’t able to pick certain ones. I was watching the comments the whole time and most of the time if comments got overlooked, they were usually just repeated or replied to after others had turns. Some of us even tried to point out comments that went by too fast to help others. I was trying to be vigilant in making sure I helped others or waited to take a turn commenting. I thought everyone was actually pretty good that way, taking turns and not being too pushy. I think the lags or delays or fuzzy screens probably depended mostly on someone’s internet speed or type of computer or phone they might have been using as mine didn’t have much lag and I only noticed it go fuzzy for a few seconds a couple times.
Just to comment on a couple other things above, Melody did say before the kickstarter started that people could ask for certain colours of poads or make requests or pick ones from pictures so those that were following before the release were excited to get the chance to make requests for ones they loved. I agree for those who didn’t know early or joined in later they may wish they had a chance at other poads but Melody also did say before this started that the regular adult poads weren’t limited and she could always paint more so for people who wanted certain ones that missed them it sounded like she was willing to paint other similar ones that were popular. She also said she only painted about 6 sets of the adults and babies as she didn’t think they would sell as many and also said she would paint more if people wanted sets or wanted to paint one to match an existing one.
As far as being able to pick them this time instead of them being a blind grab bag I am really truly thankful to Melody for allowing this option for people to choose because some of us, (especially who might live outside the US) have to pay a lot for shipping and customs fees. With the already high cost of some of these items it would be too much for a lot of us to risk getting poads we may not want when we are already spending hundreds of dollars. With trading we have to worry about not only the first shipping charge but also the trade shipping charge, customs for some of us and insurance and tracking and hoping something doesn’t get lost or damaged. So especially with the higher priced items, I have never been a fan of blind grab bags for those reasons and would probably not pledge as much and try getting different poads if I thought I might not get a single one I liked. If I bought 5 poads, let’s say, big or small and had to spend an extra $20 or so in shipping trading each one plus another 10% of the value or so for customs on each one, I would be looking at $100 in just shipping plus probably another $100 or more for customs. That could buy a whole other poad!
In regards to the way the livestream was done I again have the upmost respect for Melody and Griffin for being so patient and taking so much time to make sure people saw pieces and got pieces they wanted. I agree it wasn’t perfectly done but it was the first try for something like this so everyone only learns as they go. I agree if there were separate livestreams in the future for separate batches that might help for it to not be so long or for people to have trouble re-watching it because of the length. I also think there is probably an easier way for people to pick ones they like like by posting class photos with numbers or have them numbered or sectioned off in a livestream but with that said I thought it went surprisingly well and seemed fun and everyone seemed happy. Most people who liked the same ones were able to find similar ones instead and everyone seemed very gracious about letting people have turns picking or letting someone have a piece if they already got another one.
Looking for rainbow or pink & teal grab bags!
Also thanks Stephanie for posting that video but guess what! I found another simple solution to watch both halves of the livestream. I went through it again and clicked to open the videos in a new tab and there was a cloud link at the top so you don’t even have to download it to watch it! Here is the first half again and the second half below it. Each is two hours long and you can go backward and forward on these to skip to certain times.
First half:
Second half:
Looking for rainbow or pink & teal grab bags!
I thought it would post the links but it posted the videos themselves. If you want the links, I posted them in the comments on kickstarter page. On the videos above you can adjust the volume and enlarge them to fullscreen by clicking on the symbols on the lower right of the videos.
Looking for rainbow or pink & teal grab bags!
I’m up too late. Yeesh. Thanks Kim for posting those!
I just wanted to add to the conversation about the Kickstarter, live stream, and choices on Poads – I agree with some of your points, Zloy. I was really concerned when I realized that we were allowed to claim Poads basically right away – a few hours passed before that came to my attention and I was really, very worried that I was going to miss out on something because I hadn’t realized it was an option right away. I had thought there would be a survey at the end of the campaign or something like that where Windstone would just do their best to give you your preferences. It wasn’t very clearly stated that the option to choose your Poad was going to be something you could do immediately, and I was trying to be mindful and not bombard Melody on day 1 with requests. When I figured that out though, I felt like I HAD to say something as soon as possible, or miss out. I didn’t like that feeling.
I will say that there was *some* information about choosing your own Poad in the Kickstarter itself – it’s located in Melody’s video where she’s showing off some of the Poads and the book, and she mentions that this is “kind of” a grab bag, in that if you have special requests, you can ask for them and they’ll try to get your requests to you. Again, it wasn’t super clear or obvious and it was a little buried in the mix, and if the intent from the beginning was to allow people to choose their Poads, it should definitely have been more clear that was the case (and with instructions on how) so that everyone could start out on the same page.
However:
I’ll be frank – it’s far too late for them to change this now.If they decide to do something like this again in the future, I think that they will learn a LOT about how they can do it better just from this experience alone. I could see even during the livestream that they were thinking of ways to do it better, and there were suggestions from the viewers that were great too. But at this point, there are too many backers who already have 1 or 2 of their Poads picked out – or ALL of them – for Windstone to turn around and say “nevermind, we are resetting everything”. I know of at least a few people who have picked their Poads, and may not have gotten their favorites, but are happy that they can sit back and know they are getting something they’ll like. Essentially, they don’t have to participate any longer and they’re thrilled about that. If everything was reset, those people would end up with totally random grab bags that they were not expecting, and that could be a pretty big disappointment when they were told they would be getting specific Poads.
I know it’s not ideal, and I agree that things could have been done better – but I just don’t think it’s possible for it to change back to a complete grab bag at this point without upsetting even more people.
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Please visit My Webpage to see my art and PYO's that I've done in the past!Zloy – I agree with your points and that this approach has drawbacks, but as Hannah says, it can’t be changed now. Chalk it up to experience!
Melody had said that people could choose Poads, or colors of Poads, because she is worried that buyers will get a Poad that they don’t like if it is a true Grab Bag. In my opinion, it is unfortunate that so much emphasis has been placed on the Poads. As I have said before, this is supposed to be a Kickstarter for BOOKS, not a way to sell Poads. However, the Poads seem to have taken over.
All these comments regarding the selection of Poads for Kickstarter is appreciated–different people see things differently and that is not a bad thing. I appreciate the comments Zloy made–makes a valid point. I also want to thank Stephanie and Kim for posting videos. I really wanted to see the special Poads again but did not want to watch almost 3 hrs of video.
I just wanted to comment and say that this is Melody’s first Kickstarter. We all know that the Windstone staff does bend over backwards for us–they want to make us happy. You won’t find this anywhere else. Melody does amazing art and it is awesome that she wants to share that with us and even encourage our artistic side by making paint-your-owns–let’s not forget the monthly raffles–who does this? It was exciting for me to see all the Poads and that I could personally choose the one I wanted. Melody did make a comment during the stream that people were sometimes unhappy with what they got in grab bags so she thought by letting them choose their Poads would help. That is so appreciated! She doesn’t have to do this but she wants to. That stream got me wanting more of these beautiful, special Poads. If more people want to do the higher tiers or have add-ons then she will have to paint more. Yes, it could be overwhelming but it is also a learning experience. She’ll learn from this Kickstarter what to do and not to do if she has a next one. (Really hoping she’ll do one for The Rue.)
Again, all comments are appreciated and I’m sure Melody will appreciate them as well. She wants feedback from us to see what she is doing right or maybe doing wrong. She may already know that she has a lot of painting to do! They are patient with us and we need to be patient in return–maybe it’ll take a little longer to get our awards but to me it would be worth it knowing that Melody is doing all she can to accommodate us.
I agree that not leaving the Poads a pure grab-bag was probably not a great idea… Almost everything I read on the Kickstarter, as a backer, indicates that they are a random grab bag (the small mention via the video is easy to overlook, especially for those that are hearing impaired); especially if one of the Kickstarter’s goals is to introduce new people to Melody’s work that may not have seen it before. The true newbies to her work that are being introduced via the Kickstarter are apt to feel confused about this “grab bag that isn’t” and the selection process that seems a bit mismanaged. People can get very fussy over Kickstarters (I’ve been part of many at this point both running them and being a backer) so I hope everything works out without a headache! I think the stream was neat to see the Poads, and a great idea; the claiming was what surprised me.
But what’s done is done, and hopefully all goes well! I really truly hope that it is a success and is more fun than trouble.Volunteer mod- I'm here to help! Email me for the best response: nambroth at gmail.com
My art: featherdust.comI haven’t yet backed the project, and didn’t see the stream when it was live, so take my opinion with a grain of salt :)!
I agree whole-heartedly with the last thing that etruscan said: I think it’s important to remember that when you pledge, you’re backing a project (that Melody is very passionate about!), not shopping (in the traditional sense) for Poads. Melody really, truly, is pulling out all the stops for her backers, but it’s impossible to make everyone happy.
This is clearly a learning experience for everyone involved, and I think it’s best to simply know that you’ve chosen to support something so near and dear to Melody’s heart, and to just enjoy the ride c:
I’ll weigh in, even though a part of me doesn’t want to touch this with a 10 foot pole… however. I can see both points, zloy brings up very good arguments as well as everyone else. This is certainly a learning experience for Melody to help her decide how to run things whether it be future grab bags or another kickstarter in the future. That being said, Melody spoils us and to those who argue that point, don’t know Windstone too well. Melody is bending over backwards to try and make as many folks as happy as possible. Even when she does this, there are still folks who are going to be bitter. It’s how it always goes.
Just as any other grab bag, I did not get any of my top choices, but I will admit being able to select at least pieces I liked shot my pledge up to almost DOUBLE to what it originally was and I’m sure I’m not the only member in that boat. So as many negative impacts on the kickstarter, I’m sure there were also just as many positive impacts as well from the existing fan base clamering to be able to actually pick their poads for the first time.
As someone who has sort of lost the love for grab bags, I was thrilled with the opportunity to pick items I actually KNEW I would love once I received them. Trading gets frustrating, and sometimes you also get burned entirely. (thankfully 99% of the folks on here are honest, but it’s always a risk) Plus the additional costs involved sometimes as Kim had mentioned. The only disappointment was that I didn’t know this option was actually an option before hand so I missed out on pieces I really loved, but I was still able to pick others I also love and that’s enough for me, and I think most others will still be happy to have something they will at least like on the first shot.
Whoever said it first was absolutely right, this is about books and “The Veligent”, not Poads. (Well, I guess it’s about both, but you know what I mean) I think it may have been less nerve wracking on Melody’s part for folks to just pick a theme or a color combination in the surveys after the kickstarter closed and Melody would do her best to honor those requests. (no promises of course) But we are spoiled and once one person was able to pick their poads the flood gates opened and everyone who could, jumped on board. I’ll freely admit, I’m on that bandwagon just because I didn’t want to be left out of the chance of selecting mine since everyone else was, but maybe for the next time around. (for Melody’s sake) We should sit back and just perhaps have a broad choice of basic color schemes or styles next time around. (i.e. I would like a poad with leaves, or I would like a Poad with a lot of pink and purple) just for the fact that Melody already does so much for us I don’t like to see her kindness taken advantage of and we need to be sure not to do that.
I was also pleased to see, that despite a few folks wanting the same items we didn’t act like animals. It is still early in the campaign though so I’m trying to stay positive that everyone will continue to behave themselves. Plus, don’t forget, the items are not going to be shipped out as soon as the kickstarter is over. It may take several months for Melody to receive the printed books and in the mean time I have a feeling she will have to paint a lot more Poads. So there will be more folks. There will also be more streams.
Got a busted Windstone?
drag0nfeathersdesign@gmail.com
*OPEN for repairs**SEEKING GRAILS*
Arc-en-ciel Emperor
Siphlophis Male Dragon
Calypso Hatching Empress
Ivory Moss Sitting Baby Kirin
Tattoo Mother Kirin
Emerald Tabby Male Griffin
Tie Dye + Orion Hatching Royalty
Indigo Rockfish + Flame Tabby Little Rock Dragons
Dragon Quail + Obsidian Frost Old Warriors
Betta Sun Dragon + Male Dragon
Dreamscape, Orion, Poison Dart, Fireberry, Spangler + Tigerberry DragonsI agree drag0nfeathers – I can see both sides of the argument. And I was absolutely estatic to be able to pick a Special Poad only because my luck with GBs isn’t too great, but I’m satisfied with the one. I do plan to up my pledge and will get another set of books and several Mini Bean Poads and maybe one or two of the Babies. However I had always planned on just noting on the survey the general colors or patterns themes I would like and then leave it up to chance on what I do receive. It would be too exhausting to try and hand pick every one I’d like and not necessary anyway in my opinion. I think all of them are Awesome and I think I’d be happy with most of them.
It was fabulous to have the opportunity to pick a Special Poad though and I sincerely thank Melody, Griffin and BiPolarBear for their hard work and patience with us. It is a learning experience for all of us.
IN SEARCH OF MY NEXT GRAILS:
Black Peacock & Butternut Adult Poads
Kickstarter 'Rainbow Tiger' Bantam Dragon*~*~*~* Ela_Hara: The DragonKeeper *~*~*~*
*** Come visit me on deviantArt at http://ela-hara.deviantart.comVery kindly, I love how far out of her way Melody and the Windstone crew go. They are absolutely one of the top companies I’ve ever known for this and I think it’s why we have such a great community!
My point was mostly for newcomers. One of the major reasons the Windstone crew wanted to run a Kickstarter was to introduce new fans to Melody’s work, as Kickstarters often get seen well outside of the fan base of any one creator. I was there in person when we initially started kicking the idea around and we talked about it for hours (and quite a bit in the years since then!). I’m concerned mostly that some of the “grab bag– but not really” stuff can be a little off-putting to new folks that don’t really know our community or its history with grab bags, trading, and how hard Windstone works to make sure people are happy with what they get. Without that history, and that understanding, and all the lead up we’ve all had via the forum and Melody’s social media… it can be a little confusing and off putting. Especially learning about it in retrospect! That’s all! In the end, I appreciate all that Windstone does. I’m very happy for any successes they have. I will always promote and support them.Volunteer mod- I'm here to help! Email me for the best response: nambroth at gmail.com
My art: featherdust.com
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