Teyon - i totally get it. i think you've described the dilemma merchants experience and observe pretty well.  but you've also just described the situation for most of my friends and acquaintances and even most of the people i used to work with.  only they make music.  but while some stop playing in bands, or such, most just keep making the music they like and finding (or trying to find) ways to make money at it.

i know a young woman in NYC working 3 jobs so she can dance.  has she become an exotic dancer so she can pay her rent?  nope.  and she's highly unlikely to, even though she could make tons of money at it in a short period of time.

the family friends who are painters, sculptors, writers, etc. had the same problems.  none of them decided the solution was to give up on their vision. 

i totally understand that this is the choice many merchants face, and why they choose what they do.  and i don't think anyone is obligated or should make the decisions other artists i know have.  but if it were just the choice that were an issue, then our community wouldn't be different from those of other indie artist communities, and it is.

i don't know what the difference is, or what part of the merchant experience neither merchants nor customers can see that affects Poser communities in particular. but it actually seems to be pretty independent of actual money made.  most merchants here make way more than just about every musician i know (most making more than 0), and no one here has to lug around a drum set.  ;D

on quality- realize that you just described the top of the line models.  you've gotten better,  Stonemason's gotten better, Morris has gotten better, Aery Soul has gotten better, etc.  but the mid and bottom of the market is still pretty much where it was.  people are more demanding, because the people who stay and keep improving keep setting the bar higher. but there's still a lot of newcomers making basic stuff that has errors you'd never make. 

i guess what i'm trying to say is don't make yourself crazy trying to be perfect because it's what people ask for.  tons of people sell quickie little items of mid to low quality and still sell copies.  but, you know, it's like the difference between usability testing with focus groups and questionnaires and actual A/B testing.  ask people what they don't like and they'll go on and on.  ask people what they want, and they'll list the sun, moon and stars.  actually test what they do, and it will probably be entirely different from what they predicted (vehemently, no less). 

i always think corvas' !TheGlamorousCollection!V4 is a good example of how you can't go by what people say.  the dresses aren't latex or pvc tight or especially revealing.  they don't have any thickness.  they don't come with textures.  they're not even UV mapped. they're not conforming, they're dynamic. and they spent ages on the best seller list. 

what do you think would have been the response if he had asked in the forums, "will a set of 5 dynamic dresses and 30 materials with no textures, no UV mapping and paper thin edges sell well?"  how many features do you think people would have demanded?