RepRap Pyramid Scheme

Here is an idea to help spread reprap further/faster as well as help jumpstart those that are financially strapped.

The idea is based on those good ol make money fast schemes. We create a waiting list of people needing reprap parts and what they need to complete their machine. People that wish to donate parts send them to the person at the top of the list for free.

When someone completes their machine, they are then morally obligated to pump out twice the volume of parts they got for free in this program and send them to the people at the top of the list for free. If they can't complete their machine in a reasonable amount of time, they pass their free parts back to the list.

This is a really bad idea. Pyramid schemes are outright illegal most places. Even having the appearance of having created one is nowhere that I want to go.

I think that the same effect can be done either by suggesting that interested people simply offer their excess production of parts on eBay or through a swap thread on these forums.

Oh, it isn't actually a pyramid scheme at all. Sorry, I thought that was clear. it is actually exactly the inverse of a pyramid scheme. in a pyramid scheme, the wealth flows to the top of the pyramid, this is exactly the opposite, it distributes value down the pyramid to the most people, rather than concentrating it.

The use of the list is actually almost the same algorithm as the canonical classic list of names pyramid scheme except the list is traversed in a FIFO fashion rather than a LIFO one, thus inverting the whole value flow sort of. I tend to think of everything in terms of classic computing algorithms and base my metaphors on the same... It can make dating non computer science majors tricky.

And seeing as how the whole reprap distribution model is based on exponential growth, it is already as pyramidy as it can get.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/18/2008 11:20PM by John Meacham.

I rather like the idea. I'm currently building a machine and have just completed the electronics. Having gotten this far I went to the bitsfrombytes.com website to get my hands on moulded pieces to find that they are having a bit of a supply problem.

I'm sure they'll get it sorted soon but I'd be alright with trying rep-rapped parts, especially considering I could make some spares for the more delicate looking ones. I'm sure without any hard fast rules a simple waiting list would get serviced pretty well by enthusiasts. I'd send a few sets of plastic parts out for fun.

k.. thats my $0.02 worth. Seeing everyone's effort on this project is very encouraging and I can't wait to get it up and running!

Maybe call it a "Pay it forward" scheme, as pyramid scheme immediately brings to mind scam artists and criminals for most of us. It would save a lot of explaining in the future.

Or just set up a waiting list - I'll be quite happy to send parts along to the next guy once I get my Darwin running nicely. I'm stuck at the moment waiting for the plastic parts too. We could rank the waiting list by time and readiness; the folks with electronics, motors and rods ready to go would be at the top of my list. Other people with functioning repraps could do as they see fit, of course.

I'm pretty stoked about Nophead's progress with ABS - those parts are looking very nice! Can't wait to start making some of my own.

Wade