It maybe just my impression but it seems to me sim racers are prepared
to pay quite significant sums for hardware but are penny pinchers when
it comes to software! Wheels and pedals, gear changers, cockpits plus
the inevitable PC hardware upgrades in terms of cpus, graphics cards,
memory and screens are typical products a sim racing enthusiast is
looking at.

Unlike other genres there is not a steady flow of titles being released.
A typical console gamer will fill up a shelf in months that a sim racer
takes many years to fill.

2006 has seen only NetkarPro and the Hudson rFactor add ons that I can
think of. Both of which have been at the receiving end of certain sim
racers vitriol for ripping us off.

Now we all know that NKPro was hardly a model of release management, yet
I was surprised how many on RSC took a view that it wasn't just the lack
of communication that was the issue but that they had been conned (and
getting very vocal about it). I have made some bad gaming choices over
the years with other genres to take a view that sim racing software is
very good value such that if the investment in NKPro doesn't pay off
then so be it. Hopefully though it will bear fruit in the future, then
we will feel we played our part.

As for Hudson Kerr's updates, my view is here is a guy who is looking to
bring professional updates in addition to the hobby groups. Quite
frankly I don't think he is going to get mega rich at our expense. Yet
if he can turn his day job into working on sim racing updates then it
has to be to our benefit in terms of quality and speed of production and
we can then choose if we think it is of sufficient value.

On the basis rFactor is now a year old, sprucing it up with some
excellent updates whilst we wait for a new version seems a reasonable
approach.

Of course there is also some excellent free stuff for rFactor, but I can
vouch for Hudson's work as being at the absolute top end of anything
that has been produced, so you know where you stand if you are looking
for the best. If you have upgraded to a mid or top end graphics card to
improve the visuals by being able to increase resolution, AA or in game
detail then it is a relatively small cost.

My concern is that if we don't support new ventures like NKPro or
Hudson's updates then the already niche group of suppliers of our
products will become even more niche and it will limit our options. The
same goes for ISI and Simbin. Their approach is continual evolution of
their products. They will not seem like quantum leaps yet they need a
steady income stream to survive, which require our continual investment.
Having experienced the drought of products when Papyrus stopped
producing open wheel sims due to financial pressures we should be aware
of the consequences.

Cheers
Tony