[cratylus]

Ok, I can see how it makes sense to try to determine unspoken
motivations if you really do think that.

Let me clarify my position on commercial muds existing: I think
it is awesome, and they represent the future and salvation of
mudding in general. I support people running commercial muds
not just on a "it's legal so it's ok" level, but on a "they
are doing positive things for my hobby" level.

So this:
Is not me. And yet I support a position you feel
doesn't make sense. Let me try to explain where my
position comes from.

I started mudding on an old LP mud called Darker Realms,
which by virtue of being "original LP" was non-commercial.
I didn't know anything about licenses or such stuff before,
I was just a player enjoying a free game.

Other muds I learned of and occasionally visited were the
same. They never asked for money, and when folks did
pitch in to buy RAM or whatever, they did it for a specific
reason that directly benefited everyone, not just them,
and it was not required. There was no mechanism for unlocking
anything with money.

*That*, in my mind, is free.

We can say that the United States Code declares "free"
to mean this, or that the FSF declares "free" to mean
that. There are all sorts of ways to talk about "free".

In my opinion, a free mud is *not* about "you can play up to
a point but then you have to pay", and it is *not* about
"everything is free unless you want the sword of a thousand
truths, you have to pay for that".

In your mind, such *options* are voluntary and do not
make the mud non-free. In my mind, such options represent
the intrusion of real world economics into the game
world, and most decidedly move the mud off the "free"
category.

After all, let's compare Darker Realms with a made-up
example. Let's say Dollar Realms gives you complete
access to every part of the game for free (if you
can manage to get to it), but only lets you advance
past 1st level if you pay a subscription fee.

By some marketing definitions of "free", Dollar Realms
is a free mud. If so, then what is Darker Realms?
DoublePlusFree?

My point is that "free" in a mud marketing context
apparently means something different to you and to me,
and this is not limited to us two. I think that as
a newbie mudder, if I saw Dollar Realms listed as
a free mud and then tried it and *then* found out
about the money requirements, I'd feel deceived.

It may be that Dollar Reams admins really and honestly
and truly think it is a free mud, but I sure would have
felt lied to, and I don't think I would be alone, and
that is why I think "free" in mud advertising is
insufficiently descriptive.

I'm not trying to undermine anyone's revenue, I'm
not trying to rob good people of their business. Commercial
muds are a plus for the community and bully for them.
I'm just asking that the advertising take into account
that for lots of people "free mud" doesn't mean
"oh, btw, you *do* have to pay for X, Y, or Z."

I do understand that you think my position is so
mistaken as to lack rationality. I disagree with you,
but I am extending you the courtesy of assuming
a good faith belief in what you are saying. I
hope for the same courtesy in return.

-Crat