New Lower Tier in the C.D.S.

The Confederation of Democratic Simulators, the CDS, Second Life's oldest functioning democracy, has just released their new, lower tier rates. The CDS began in 2004 on the SL mainland as an experiment in self-governance that has grown to a community of 5 sims whose citizens run the sims. Anyone who purchases a parcel in the CDS becomes a citizen of the CDS and is able to participate in the democracy.

I joined Second Life in May 2010 and I spent my first three weeks exploring the grid, seeing what Second Life was all about. My first exposure to the CDS was when I discovered Alpine Meadow, one of the five sims of the CDS. First I fell in love with the scenery and architecture and than a citizen explained to me what the CDS was all about, being the oldest self-governed community in Second Life, and I found the concept quite intriguing so I've been a citizen ever since.

The issue of tier restructuring is an excellent example of how the democracy works in the CDS. When I joined, the CDS had very few vacancies, land was a hot commodity. Since that time, just like in real life communities and like many estates across the Second Life grid, the CDS has experienced a higher rate of vacancies than in previous years. The CDS gives its citizens tools to express their opinions, thoughts, suggestions and ideas through in-world meetings and the forums located on the web portal. One of the recurring topics was the issue of tier. Some citizens felt it was too high while others felt it was just fine. So as a citizen of the CDS who happens to enjoy working with numbers I took it upon myself to do some research and see how the CDS pricing compared to others. I discovered the CDS tier was slightly above the median, there were estates with higher tier than ours and there were estates with lower tier.

There were three main goals to my tier restructuring plan.

1. Reduce tier to a more competitive level with other estates


2. Have a uniform tier across all 5 sims


3. Have a double-prim parcel's tier be exactly double that of a single-prim parcel

As each sim was brought in-world they were calculated for tier on an individual basis so each one would be self-sustaining. This resulted in 5 sims with a wide variety of tier, all different from each other. The second goal of having a uniform tier for all 5 sims would have resulted in a large increase in tier on two sims, a significant drop in tier on one sim, only a slight drop in tier on the remaining 2 sims and an overall savings estate wide of only 3%.

Further calculations proved the other two goals successful. The 5 sims of the CDS are four full region sims, two single-prim sims and two double-prim sims, and one homestead sim. The two single-prim sims were reduced to US$ 3.25 per 512sqm. The two double-prim sims were reduced to US$ 6.50 per 512sqm. The homestead sim was also reduced to a more competitive level with its own tier set independent of the other four due to the low private land to public land ratio. The proposal was submitted to the Representative Assembly of the CDS for approval and is now in effect. The result of the new tier structure is an impressive savings of 23% estate wide.

https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AszbEvp-qxb3dGNOSXlLQmR1b2tOeDNmWHZZSGc3ckE&hl=en_US

CDS Celebrates 8 Years of Second Life!

Work progresses quickly on the CDS SL8B pavilion. Five rooms will highlight the five regions of CDS while the center rotunda will highlight our democracy, vote and constitution. Our Rosie Gray of NFS is the architect. Doing a great job! 

The interior rooms will be decorated in a styles representative of our five regions. The rose in the center will probably focus attention on a voting booth. As you can see we still need items representative of each region.

The CDS pavilion is in the SL8B Dazzle region. We have several neighbors who might generate some good traffic. These are Maven Homes, the Virtual  Kennel Club and Zeus. Also, as you can see, Rosie's build is striking and eye-catching in a rather flat landscape.


The SL8B regions will open to the public on June 20th and run through July 2nd.   Save the date for a CDS kickoff on the 19th!  

An Evening with Damian Carbenell

On April 17, 2011, we enjoyed the music of Damian Carbenell at the Quay.   

We had a wonderful time.  Damian was in wonderful voice and treated us with new and familiar songs.   

Well over 40 people bopped and danced on the quay.  

Thanks to all who came out to enjoy one of the most beautiful spots in CDS--Locus Amoenus at the Quay!

Christmas with Craig Lyons

The Confederation of Democratic Simulators hosted a wonderful Christmas show by Craig Lyons this past December during Christmas week.  


A temporary log and snow stadium was created in Alpine Meadow to accommodate more than 40 people in a beautiful Alpine Christmas setting.

More Photos of Octoberfest 2010

Great fun was had by many during the Octoberfest   celebration.  Anna Toussaint played a big role in advertising the event and hosting some of the events.

Most of the events took place on the Platz at Neufreistadt.

Revelers glowed under the moonlight at events carried on into the mountain nights.

A goodly number of non-citizens visited the sims for the wonderful music.

Everyone was dancing.

A variety of musical genres were showcased during the festival.  Octoberfest was capped off with a gala on the Schloss terrace.   It was a night of great fun followed by fireworks commemorating the sixth anniversary of the foundation of the Confederation of Democratic Simulators.

Keila Forager and Tor Karlsvalt

Thanks to Rose Springvale who lead the Representative Assembly through one of its most productive terms. 

    Tor Karslvalt provided the fireworks for the ball.

Arria Perreault

Some Oktoberfest 2010 photos

Unfortunately I couldn't attend the main events, but managed to capture a little bit of the fun.  

There were some interesting vendors present at the platz.

Sonja

Lillith and Rosie dancin' up a storm.

Delia

Scenes from Neufreistadt

I really enjoy the moody mountain atmosphere we sometimes get in NFS. 

Floralia is Coming!

Floralia is on the way . . . May 27 - 29 in the regions of Locus Amoenus and Colonia Nova!  See the Floralia page for up-to-the-minute information.

Available Land in CDS

Interested in buying land in CDS?  Prices for available parcels are located here.

Contact Anna Toussaint or Tor Karlsvalt.

Spring In CDS

Warm rays of sun and soft breezes have melted all our snow!  So it is spring again in CDS.  Come enjoy the bright green of spring.   

Cozy, Mountainside House in Alpine Meadow!

Featured Parcel -- Alpine Meadows DH6

Our beautiful Alpine sim is the location for this rugged house built right into the mountainside.  Located right next to the famous Cantina Mexana, it has two levels with a first-floor walk-out.  With walls of beautiful redwood and stone, it has fireplaces both upstairs and down.  Best of all, it comes with double prims

Price:  L$2,000
Prims: 234
Area: 512 square meters
Current owner: Rudeen Edo
See it here!

From the Southest

Upstairs

Downstairs

Featured Parcel -- Alpine Meadow DT3

Gracious Condo Living in the Mountains of CDS

Beautiful, two-story condo in Alpine Meadow, with lovely plank floors and a working upstairs fireplace.  Situated on 512 square meters that supports double prims.  And there's a back yard!

Price:  L$5,000
Prims: 234
Area: 512 square meters:
Current owner: Rudeen Edo
See it here!

Upstairs Bedroom

Plenty of Light!

Featured Parcel -- Locus Amoenus P.15

In beautiful Locus Amoenus, on the river and near the quay, with a cool house included.  Gorgeous sunsets at no extra charge.

Price:  L$7,774
Prims: 234
Area: 512 square meters:
Current owner: Rudeen Edo
See it here!

 

What is the CDS?

The CDS, Confederation of Democratic Sims, is the oldest functioning democracy in Second Life.  All the details you could ever want can be found in our website, but here's a quick overview!

CDS started on the SL mainlaind as an experiment in self-governance.  It was placed on the old snow sims and encouraged by Linden Labs in 2004.  (The main plaza in Neufreistadt is named after our original contact, Haney Linden.)   Soon after that,  Linden Labs started selling private islands, and our first sim (originally called Neualtenberg) was born.

Because we are a democracy, the citizens run the sims, not a single landlord as you see in most of Second Life.  To do this, we have a federal government with three branches: the Representative Assembly, or "RA," (legislative branch) a Chancellor (executive branch) and the Scientific Council, our judicial branch.

Most of our citizens are as interested in the experiment of democracy in virtual worlds as the land and design ... but we put a lot of effort the latter!  CDS plans land use and "zoning" in the same way as real world cities, and as you can see when you go there, the results usually are gorgeous. We have covenants, and we take them seriously.

There are at present five sims . . . click on the name to be taken there in Second Life.

NFS:  Neufreistadt -- "New Free State" -- is a typical medieval Bavarian village, located on a cloudy mountaintop.  If the "fog" bothers you, touch ctrl, alt, shift and the minus sign, all together, and it will be turned off.  Shop the Neufreistadt Marktplatz, chat with friends in the Biergarten or spend some quiet moments at the Kirche (church). The MoCa (Museum of Contemporary Art) is not to be missed

AM: Alpine Meadow, to the North of NFS features mountainside home sites, a few pubs, an outdoor amphitheater called the Old Bowl, and beautiful landscapes, including a river tumbling down the mountain.

MON: Monastery, our newest sim, houses the CDS Monastery, hosting exhibits connected to wisdom, meditation, and knowledge. It is non denominational, and all visitors are welcome.  But if you go, beware the ghost!

CN: Colonia Nova -- "New Colony" -- is an interpretation of Cologne, Germany under Roman Rule in about 50 AD.  Public buildings here include the Thermae (Roman Baths), the CDS Amphitheater, an event partner site for the Metanomics lecture series, and the Praetorium, home of our governmental meetings.  Particularly striking are the docks along the River Rhenus.

LA:  Locus Amoenus, "Pleasant Place" in Greek, is an extension of the Roman colony.   As the name implies, it is exceedingly lovely, with some beautiful homesites.  The public beach is one of the nicest around, and there is a quay on the harbor where events are often held.  Be careful about attending one of the evening concerts there -- you may come away hooked!

We've got many ways to participate in community life: government offices, NGO's with specific areas of interest and artistic, educational and fun events.  By far our biggest resources are the many fascinating people who make up the CDS.  If you are interested in learning more, using one of our buildings for an event or business, or buying land and joining us as a CDS Citizen, IM Anna Toussaint, Public Information Officer.