LW and industry knowledge

[speedmonkey]

I work in a bookstore, and screw around with LW for fun. But at the very least I know what other 3D packages are.

In the last 7 months I have worked in this store, I have met only one person into computer animation that knew what LW was. These are people I have conversations with, and they own something or are going to buy something, I would say 5 or 6 people a week.

They think I am insane when I tell them about LW. I am not by any means a hardware/software prostelizing geek either.

I know its an old thread, marketing. But everyday at work I run into this. I am not blaming newtek, just curious about why there is such an information gap.

[mkiii]

I'd hardly call 7 months of occasional converstaion with customers of a book shop an in-depth poll.

How many of them said they were using Maya, 3ds Max or XSI? How many were using Bryce & Poser? Why would someone think you were insane... Maybe you *are*?


Anyway, people generally don't buy 3d Apps like Lightwave from a book shop. And I don't know any 3d Artists that would ask a guy in a bookshop who 'screws around with LW for fun' for advice on his next 3d purchase anymore than he would go to the dentist to get his car fixed.

PS Stop lallygagging & get selling books you slacker :rolleyes:

[wacom]

Hey there is no need to be so harsh to this person. While you have some points that are more than valid I think he has a few good ones too.

I work in the .com part of a semi-major local bookstore chain. I work with several people who "dabble" in 3D fairly seriously and none of them use LW. There is a major factor in this though- they don't own the 3D packages they use unlike myself. When I tell them the price I payed for LW they go white in the face with fear- it quickly turns to a worried expression when I tell them how much the package they're currently using costs. So if we were going to get a real idea of how many of these customers SHOULD know about LW we'd have to ask them the pressing question of which one they really own.

Still I think you should cut "book store" workers some slack as they aren't regular "service" workers like the 16 year old kid who's flipping burgers. Unless they're working for Amazon there is a good chance they have at least a college education and some artsy interests outside their job. What happened to you mkiii to make you have such a problem with bookstore workers? They must be some "hip cats" where you are.

Your also bashing people who patron a real life bookstores and for what? I seriously doubt that the average person who walks into a bookstore to purchase a book on any software product is an idiot- let alone those who are buying a book on a 3D package.

Regardless- I think you should give this guy a hand. A person who works in a bookstore should know SOMETHING about the section they cover and this guy is trying. If anything we should give him a hand in the future so that he can inform his customers better. Hell he's free advertising for NewTek and right now that seems to be all that they can afford!

Originally posted by mkiii
I'd hardly call 7 months of occasional converstaion with customers of a book shop an in-depth poll.

How many of them said they were using Maya, 3ds Max or XSI? How many were using Bryce & Poser? Why would someone think you were insane... Maybe you *are*?


Anyway, people generally don't buy 3d Apps like Lightwave from a book shop. And I don't know any 3d Artists that would ask a guy in a bookshop who 'screws around with LW for fun' for advice on his next 3d purchase anymore than he would go to the dentist to get his car fixed.

PS Stop lallygagging & get selling books you slacker :rolleyes:

[speedmonkey]

Why are you attacking me?

Every day at work, I don't think that is too occasional. Sorry I don't work 17 hours a day for some game company cranking out the next quake clone for 12 bux an hour.

I would rather ride my mountain bike, and like I say screw around with LW. Which I own in case your wondering.

I actually have pretty good conversations with these people. I find out what they do, where they went to school and what software they use. Most of them work for companies, so they may not have a choice in what they use.

The point of my post was industry knowledge if you read it. Maybe I am just a curious person or something. But don't you think if you work in an area you would at least know what LW is?

That was the point of my post. Maybve there is a complete and uttlerly different way to reach these people that is needed.

Sorry if I offended you MKIII, I'll get back to slackin.

[mkiii]

Speedmonkey & wacom. If you think that was an attack, then I suggest that you both stay indoors, cos the world out there is full of disagreeable people.

Maybe I should write [joking] after each line so you don't feel quite so insulted.



:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

[wacom]

We interact with a lot of diffrent people everyday- many almost spit in our face just for trying to help them (though many more are great). If you had to "act" nice to jerks to keep your job you'd be SOL. Sorry if we don't take things as lightly as you do.


Originally posted by mkiii
Speedmonkey & wacom. If you think that was an attack, then I suggest that you both stay indoors, cos the world out there is full of disagreeable people.

Maybe I should write [joking] after each line so you don't feel quite so insulted.



:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

[speedmonkey]

Its all cool. But your just as guilty as I am of misreading....LOL....But seriously maybe we could talk about the topic?

I have at the very least seemed to manage to get some peopel to look at it. I think when people think I am insane, it has to do with the fact that they have invested so much into learning something, time, expensive school, expensive software, it disturbs them to think something might make it obsolete or threaten that investment.

So maybe, it would be an idea or angle in the marketing to make people understand that their investment is not threatened by something new. That the concepts they learn can transfer or something along those lines. Not sure how to word it. Instead of being "the best" maybe it should be more like "you already know how to drive, here is a better car"

[mattclary]

If the people in your stores were really 3D pros (and not, say, college students), then I assure you they would have heard of LightWave.

[digimassa]

:cool:

Showdown in the bookstore :D

[mkiii]

Wacom: I'm afraid you lost me somewhere there.

You gotta lose that chip. This is a forum dedicated to Lightwave, not the pros & cons of how hard life is working in a shop.


So what about my question?

'How many of them said they were using Maya, 3ds Max or XSI? How many were using Bryce & Poser?'

[speedmonkey]

The breakdown is something like this. People that as best I can tell have paid for the software, or use it in a company use either Maya or do archetecture stuff with other programs.

Most of the people I would peg as pirates use 3DS. I have yet to meet anyone using Poser but vaguely remember someone doing something with Bryce.

There is a college one block away that teaches LW I have discovered, and luck will have it our copy of Inside LW sold the other day when I was not there.

It may be a mind chillingly boring job so I have to entertain myself somehow, but I don't think I have complained so far about working in my store or the people that come into it.

I always ask people what kind of project they are working on. It is interesting and I have, it may suprise you helped a great number of people with a wide variety of problems from server side scripting to *gasp* 3D animation. And yes, I work in a bookstore, can you take a guess why I was hired? I am very happy to never have to tweek some stupid flying logo to Bobs special color of blue again, but hey thats me.

I will try to get more information from people in the 3D department, perhaps I will find out something useful. Maybe they are all spies...and the mind control ray is.... no wait....