If you were Linden Labs...

When should I deliver the declaration of war?

You deliver the photographs, I'll deliver the war.

They can stop making new releases public, though.

Which would basically mean the GPL client would no longer need to stay in sync with the LL client, and the open source servers (OpenSim) and client would actually have MORE chance of establishing a competing ecosystem with Linden Labs.

If I were Linden Lab, I would sell the company for what I could get now.

You mentioned their major problems, in that they do not prioritize projects, and that they only finish projects half-way. Both of those problems suggest poor management. That's what managers do- set priorities and oversee completion of projects. Can't blame the techs for that- that solely rests on management.

I was in Second Life approximately a year before Phillip left, and now about a year since Mark took over. Those problems of managment do not seem to have changed in the transition between CEOs. It's possible to just get unlucky and have two bad CEOs in a row. It's possible that if Phillip were the main player in choosing the new CEO, he chose someone like him, which includes all his negative traits. But now, I wonder if the problem goes up higher to a board that interferes too much (or not enough) to the detriment of the company.

On paper, Mark looked more disciplined when he took over, and had the credentials to do the job. But nothing has changed since he became CEO. Maybe that points to the source of problems being in a different place, to a source that hasn't changed substantially (the board).

Well, that's what you'd do if you *owned* Linden Lab. Not quite the same.

Hee. I get it.

If I were suddenly given dominion over all things Linden Lab...

Free cake!

I would quietly make a competitor built on all the strengths of SL and put in all the improvements that have been held back because of the need for legacy support. Then I would market it against SL and slowly (or quickly) take away customers. Then pretend that SL is throwing in the towel against such a new and updated competitor and close SL. Voila! The king is dead. Long live the king.

I would bring back 1st land as its a good way to encourage new people to buy land and eventually pay tier to LL as they buy more land

To prevent gaming the system, I would only make it available to people who have paid a years subscription.
If they have the yearly premium subscription this means as soon as LL have received their money.
If they have the monthly premium subscription this means after LL have received their 12th monthly payment.

I agree with Brianna on these 2 points. Heck, LL could even give the land away for free and we'd still be crippled by the tier charges. I understand why there has to be such a charge (server maintenance, etc.) but does it have to be quite so high?


Absolutely! But I feel your 1-year subscription plan is unnnecessarily restrictive. There are other ways of making sure the first land program can't be gamed. It was only gamed the first time around because of an inherent system flaw.

1. Create an entirely separate G/PG grid to market to business, educational, and other non-recreational users. Give it a different brand (e.g. Linden Life), so that there's a very clear separation between the two grids.

2. Leave the current grid as is, pre-Adult content changes.

3. Guarantee policies to land owners for a minimum of one year. In other words, if you buy mainland or a private sim, and operate it under the policies in effect at the time you buy it, then either you should be allowed to continue under those policies for a minimum of a year or else be reimbursed the purchase costs plus intangible losses suffered by the buyers.

4. Adopt a rigorous process for review of policies before enactment. In particular, no policy should be published unless it's been reviewed independently to identify vagueness and ambiguity, and no policy should be published unless accompanied by a significant list of examples to clarify the policy. Once a policy is published, but before it's put into effect, there should be a public review period during which any member can submit hypothetical examples, all of which must be addressed publicly before the policy goes into effect.

Finally, common sense.

Can you see this all the way back there? Read it and apply it then do as it says above-"shut the heck up!"

Personally, I would of used a different word then heck. But then again, I like spicing it up a bit. More fun this way.

You don't need to do anything to prevent gaming of first land. It was only game-able because 512sqm was worth more than the US$10 monthly premium fee. Now that 512sqm is worth closer to US$7 no-one would buy it unless they actually were legitimately new and looking for land.

Change the Management team, particularly M.Linden. (sack him)

Roll out 2 viewers ....ones that is light, less demanding on older PC's
and one with all the bells & whistles for more up-to-date computers.

Ditch the Adult Continent segregation.....make Ursula Continent the new PG Continent. All new accounts start there....and those Welcome Areas need some supervision too.

Reduce Tiers a bit right across the board (20%).....in this recessionary period it might kick start or stimulate growth to buyin,renting or leasing SL Land again.

A bigger crack down on stolen content....look like you mean business if nothing else.

I'd require all staff members to spend 1 hour a day inworld as a Linden. I'd give them monthly bonuses for numbers of lunch hours that they spend inworld as an anonymous alt. The more my employees understand my product, use the product, and interact with others using the product, the better off my company will be.

Oh, and re: that lunch hour/alt thingy... no holds barred. They can do WHATEVER they want. Yes, whatever.

With apologies to Beyonce...

If I ran the Lab, even just for a day
I'd clean up all the Mainland
Consolidate and close sims
Make Ursula PG and move on.

Take all of my staff
And have them make alts
And kick it with the furries
The blingtards and the escorts
So they will understand

People love Second Life
It lets them be themselves
Free of social expectations
And family obligations
Geography and disability.

If I ran the Lab
I think I could understand
How it feels to be a newbie
I swear I'd have a better plan.

I'd listen to residents
Clean up the info hubs
Send all the griefers packing
And require real life info
On file to be in Second Life.

If I ran the Lab
I'd lower Island tier
It's unfair that they have to
Pay so much more than Mainland
And I'd restore the old Homestead fee.

I'd put residents first
Stop making rules as I go
I'd set up a house of Congress
Composed of elected Residents
Bring every major change up for vote.

It's never too late for LL to go back
Try to fix the mistakes
We might forgive them like that
If we thought that they cared about us
We thought wrong

But I'm just a land baron
They think I don't understand
How it feels to run a business
Someday I hope they have a better plan.

They don't listen to us
They don't care how it hurts
Till they start losing our money
Cause they're taking us for granted
And everything they have gets destroyed.

New Avatar Mesh and... neck attachments!

I'm not sure what type of response to give.

I mean, is this meant to be a parody of "If I were Linden Lab, what would I screw up today?", aka a Roleplaying exercise?

Or, am I to say what I would do if I were in "control of" Linden Lab as an absolute dictator?

I think the former would be more fun.

If I were Queen for a day i.e. Jane Grey* I would lower land tiers. Encourage investment.

To make land nearly impossible to own seems counter productive.

(PS well done Ayesha)

* I know, more than a day!

I'd halt the adult changes for now and build a heap more land on Ursula.

Implement an LSL call to get sim dimensions like I suggested three years ago, so in three years we could implement low density sims, a kilometer on a side, without breaking as much content as it would now.