A prototype is a preliminary model of something. Projects that offer physical products need to show backers documentation of a working prototype. This gallery features photos, videos, and other visual documentation that will give backers a sense of what’s been accomplished so far and what’s left to do. Though the development process can vary for each project, these are the stages we typically see:

I've worked with Squishable to iterate on a clone type of Ferris -- one who can be duplicated in their factory as many times as we have the money and materials to support. The Ferris plushie that you see in this Kickstarter's photos is the final prototype: He's what I have the opportunity to order 1500 of after gathering the cash! This Kickstarter exists to let you chip in for those production costs, and also cover the expense of shipping a Ferris from Oregon to your home or meetup.

Last year, I made a plushie of Ferris and published the pattern on my blog . Some people made their own, but most asked "Where can I buy one?".

Ever since the inimitable Karen Rustad Tölva published rustacean.net , Ferris the Crab has been the Rust community's adorable, cheerful mascot of choice.

Risks and challenges

Since I've already completed the prototyping phase with Squishable and we've agreed on a pattern and a price each for Ferris, the riskiest part of the process is completed.

The biggest risks remaining are:

* The factory may take longer than their estimated 6 months to produce the order of Ferrises. To mitigate this, I've done the software engineering trick of padding the delivery timelines by several months to account for any unexpected hangups.

* There might be a higher than expected rate of flawed Ferrises once the factory completes them. I'm mitigating this risk by padding the Kickstarter prices so that the order of 1500 will be funded at a point when fewer than 1500 Ferrises are promised to backers (exactly how many that difference works out to will depend on what reward tiers are most popular). That way, any especially unique Ferrises can get rehabilitated and customized into prizes or handouts for special events rather than giving backers an item unlike the promotional photos.

* The postal service might lose some of the rewards, but again, I have some leeway in the timeline and budget to provide replacements.