[Icehouse] Monochrone Stashes - LAST CHANCE TO BUY

[Alan Anderson]

On Aug 2, 2007, at 12:36 AM, swandive78 at email.com wrote:

> ...[five tubes instead of four] could be anywhere from ten to forty  
> dollars more than I might spend on a particular project with the  
> stash system.

First, that's only true if your project requires full old-style  
stashes.  One game I've been noodling around with uses only two of  
each color/size combination.  In contrast with your concern, I'd have  
to pay a lot more with the stash system than with Treehouse.

Second, ten dollars is the suggested retail price.  Who pays that  
these days?  If you're that concerned about cost, you don't have to  
buy direct from Looney Labs.  A collection of five Treehouse sets of  
both varieties cost me $60 two months ago.  I just checked, and  
they're still going for $5.99 a tube (advertised as a 33% discount,  
so it's possible that it will increase to $6.33 soon).

Third, how could you possibly have to spend an extra forty dollars?   
If you just need one stash, it seems to me that color would not be  
important.

> what if I wanted to make two sets of "zero pip" pyramids?

Then you might actually be better off with Treehouse than with single- 
color stashes!  Two Treehouse sets can give you *five* sets of ZPIPs,  
one of each color, with a single pyramid of each color left over.  A  
pair of monochrome stashes will only yield ZPIPs of those two colors,  
with much more left over.

> ...[the difference between having Icehouse pyramids for sale  
> and...not] has not been "demonstrated" at all.

Okay, it's been "strongly implied" then.  Treehouse sells enough to  
be worth offering.  Single-color stashes do not.  That was the  
expectation behind the change, and it's obviously been validated.   
Most recently, as Kristen stated, "...demand for the monochrome  
stashes has reduced to a trickle, and it does not make sense to keep  
them around forever.  Please join us in being excited that the shift  
to Treehouse means the pyramids are finally selling well in stores!"
> In the long run, not offering single stashes does not, in itself,  
> make more money for them.
I suppose it depends on your point of view.  I don't know the  
specifics of Looney Lab's finances, but I can call on my experience  
with electronic components.  It costs more to supply them --  
significantly more, since there are so many different colors of  
monochrome stashes to maintain, in contrast to only two Treehouse  
varieties.  Not supplying them might not literally make them more  
money, but it obviously lowers expenses.



I think I'm coming to understand your concerns better, though.  You  
prefer to buy your colors in bulk, perhaps because that's how you  
learned to use the Icehouse system.  But the longer I think about it,  
the more it seems to me like wanting to buy only the clubs from a  
deck of cards, five of each card at once. :)