Xfrog talks with Floraworks. Store now offline

[moodflow]

Well Jack,

That's good news in a way.  Definitely don't let your school work down, but at the same time, this is a great opportunity!

Congrats!   

[RArcher]

Sounds like they are terrified that your trees are going to kill their overpriced DVD business.  If you do end up doing work for them, I am not a lawyer, but make sure you don't sign anything that says you cannot make and distribute your own trees!  What better endorsement of your work than the competition trying to poach you.  Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

[reck]

I wish Jack all the best in whatever he decided to do. If it means cutting back or stopping Floraworks all together due to real life issues I can totally understand that. Being offered a job at green works is a testament to how good this lad is at what he does.

However, speaking selfishly for a moment, this is bad news for the Terragen community. Floraworks offered a quality product at reasonable prices. With them potentially out the picture now it means that green works has little to no competitor and can continue to price their products at very high prices. This means to a lot of "hobby" users of terragen it's very hard to justify spending that much on plants and may have to do without in the future.

[JimB]

me personal life has suffered alot because i spend so much time on the computer i have fallen out with friends and even family and my school marks have plummeted.
and i do not really fancy spending my entire 8 weeks of my summer sat in front of a computer.

CGI as a paid job, sucking the life out of your world? How strange....  

Jack, I suggest you simply slow down and concentrate on the other stuff for a while. No need to quit, just pace it more, I'm sure we'll all live. Plenty of time for 16 to 20 hour shifts later.

[cyphyr]

I guess Greenworks are saying you cant sell your models, or at least those modeled with X-Frog. Real shame since yours are way better than the one they sell on their dvd's. What will happen to the store regarding the models made with other software, surely you can still sell those? To be honest I would take their offer, its almost like the CIA employing a hacker, better to keep the real threat under close scrutiny And your not going to get an offer like that many times in your life. Good luck what ever your decision.
Richard

[Mohawk20]

It's a great compliment for you. Asking you to get their models up to you quality... Wow!

I'd say you should take the opportunity, but only with good agreements about worktime and private life.


Congrats anyways!

[Tangled-Universe]

I guess Greenworks are saying you cant sell your models, or at least those modeled with X-Frog. Real shame since yours are way better than the one they sell on their dvd's. What will happen to the store regarding the models made with other software, surely you can still sell those? To be honest I would take their offer, its almost like the CIA employing a hacker, better to keep the real threat under close scrutiny And your not going to get an offer like that many times in your life. Good luck what ever your decision.
Richard

I can't imagine that Richard. They can't prohibit people to sell models created using their software. That's where they made the software for!
Roughly put it could also mean, for example, that we aren't allowed to sell our renders as posters because we used Terragen to create them.
It's a product of creativity, produced using tools/programms like Xfrog.
If Jack used existing Xfrog models, modified and sold them at floraworks,...well...then you're probably right.

Jack: like others said, whatever your decision is, all the best with it. Just take your time to overthink your situation and don't let other people decide for you or put pressure on the time you need for your decision. Like Moodflow said I certainly wouldn't let school down, because it's something you can always fall back on in the future, you can rely on it. It's indeed a great opportunity and probably very tempting
Mohawk is right about working out an agreement on worktime and private-time.

Good luck!

Martin

[buzzzzz1]

Good to hear from you Jack and thanks for the explanation.  Martin said it, besides you are too young to let one thing tie you down this much.  Family, Relationships and your Education should be top priorities. Good Luck in whatever you do.

[dandelO]

Lots to think about then, Jack!
You really must have them running scared. Remember though, you could keep Floraworks going and it(and all your plants) would still belong to you, or, you could model for GW and be working for them, who would, in turn, own all your models!

Tricky but, it's a really great oppertunity for a job.
If you didn't already have Floraworks I'd say it was a no brainer, as it stands though, it's a hard decision: Keep what's yours and build an empire or, fold to the Bigman, for more money in the short-term. Good luck, whatever you do!

[rcallicotte]

Thanks Jack for the update.  I'd say someone in your shoes should slow down (like JimB mentioned) enough to think about what you can do with your life.  Don't get stuck doing work you'll not like and take the advantages you can. 

You're a great modeler and changed the face of Planetside's TG2 for all of us.

[otakar]

Jack, just a few words for someone who's been following your 'adventure' with interest.

First of all, it's a great situation to be in, to be offered a job without seeking it out in the first place. Second, you are still in school and this should be your priority. Getting an education is something that's very hard to postpone. On Floraworks, I think you and OB have gotten a blazing start and I'd hate to see it die. Of course it's of great benefit to us hobbyists, who can barely afford TG, if at all. From a financial standpoint, you'll have to ask yourself what you think your business can generate vs. a job at Greenworks taking into account time spent in either capacity. Then there is the business ownership vs. working for someone else issue...

Here's what I will tell you. If Floraworks keeps going, I'll make sure to make a purchase as a small statement of support. I am sure I won't be the only one, either, especially if you decide to make up for the cancelled Black Friday Special

Good luck!

[sjefen]

I don't really understand. Greenworks is offering you a job, but why can't you keep selling your plants?

As for the job offer, if I where you, I would have said yes, but that's just me.
You have to do what you think is best for you and your future.

- Terje

[FrankB]

And now my 2 cents on this.

First: School. No Greenworks now. It would be a bad deal no matter how much they pay you.
Second: When you finished school, you will have increased you modelling skills even further. If Greenworks still exists by then, they will still want you, I reckon. If they have someon else by then, it's not the end of the world.
Third: IF they still want you by then, they will want you very badly. Which puts you in the position to negotiate to run your own modelling business next to your normal job. Alternatively, you could work as a freelancer for GW (improving their models and whatnot), and still grow Floraworks. Another Alternative would be to license greenworks as a reseller of your models. You could go for that last option right now, earn royalties on your way, and it's a win-win situation for both parties.

Good luck,
Frank

[bobbystahr]

First off, congrats on having your skills validated by as someone said, "being poached by greenworks"...a fairly high compliment to your skills I'd say.
In view of that I'd have to agree with the well thought out views of FrankB in the post preceeding this one...sound advice indeed. Once again congrats on the cool offer.. ...

[buzzzzz1]

Another thought and perhaps I shouldn't think so much? but, I do understand you prioritizing your time more wisely and not having time to create new plants. However, if you haven't violated any copyrights against XFROG you should be able to continue selling the Plants that you've invested so much time in creating. I and others were happy to finally have a place where we could purchase individual plants at a reasonable price instead of having to purchase a full CD of plants from XFROG.  I think I would reconsider opening the site back up for sales. Screw XFROG!!  Something just seems to be missing from this whole situation?? I might be totally off base but I just had to mention what I'm sure others have been thinking, but didn't want to ask.

Cheers