I only read the first 3 pages of this thread and here are my comments.
I mine CND a lot and just upgraded my plates to 5B and can now use a Korss 400 so I bought a A103 amp and have been trying to hunt up there more now.
The main issue I have there is the lag in a few of the domes. It's just bad to the point where I just want to get the hell out of the dome. For mining it's not so bad but I was in dome 14 last night and I click to shoot a mob...nothing....I finally get a shot off and now I need to FAP because all the while the mob is chomping on my armor. Took me a good few minutes to take down a Bery Stalker due to the lag and naturally for most mobs I shoot up there.....No loot.
I voted for more domes. They are crowded and over mined. There are very long what I call "dead periods" up there. Sure there cannot be a constant respawn of ores/enmats or the market would be flooded but I notice a certain period of time every day(when most Americans are on) that it is just dead up there, every day. I call this the "North America dead period" . Spwan times need to be taken off of their static times and set to DYNAMIC to make it the same for everyone.
Just sucks to log on and know I am going to lose if I mine over the next 3-4 hours.
Anyhow, I adjust to the dead periods and do quite well up there most times.
Storage: If it was implemented it would kill the housing market there. As a CND apartment owner storage is not needed. If you plan on spending any significant time on CND invest in an apartment. It makes the stay much more enjoyable. If you are just there for a couple days and get heavy there are traders up there to help lighten your load.
Shops: There are some empty and trying to find one that is actually open is not easy. There could be some modification to the layout and maybe green and red indicators outside the shops to show which are open and closed. I would love to own a shop up there but...
Pilots: Seems to be an ongoing battle between the pilots and customers. Best advice is get a couple that are on the most into your friends lists and plan your trip accordingly. I will stop by Twin, no pilots? PM a pilot that is on and find out what the pilot status is and have them help you line up a pilot that is coming down soon. Most are willing to help and this will save you a lot of time waiting around. I still think pilots need to band together and set the price at 20 ped for a while and see if that keeps the flow of pilots going but I know that will never happen. Some pilots want to make that extra 40 ped per round trip as it is all profit. So be it.
Auction Fees/Transport Costs: Well...They suck in the first place the way they are calculated but in order to keep the shops with some business and the pilots flying they need to be there.
Taxes: 5% is not bad. 1 ped out of every 20 ped I pull out is OK with me. Just keep giving me big HOFs and I am happy.
Would I complain if it was lower? Hell no.
In conclusion I think there are some things that should be tweaked and can be fixed to make CND more enjoyable but I have a pretty good time they way it is now. I adjust and deal with the bad and revel in the good.
One question I have is why do the mobs loot for shit up there?