All camping is banned if it inflates ....

hard call...

on one hand, I give kudos to anyone willing to pay a few people to hang out on their land, and I don't think LL should be killing a business model that pays people for their time...

on the other hand, how do you tell if those people are really bots in disguise? in which case ll should be killing them because even if the bots all belong to a 3rd part, they're misusing resources to get their cash, basically at LL's expense. (remember it's 5 official unpaid accounts per-email)

if this happens, property goes for sale, membership goes to basic, and i won't give LL another dime.

I think that a business model that paid people for their time, but did not inflate traffic to game Search, would be a wonderful thing.
Kudos indeed to the person.

I wonder if the idea will ever catch on?

I don't understand why the ‘places’ search is still there. It's never been effective apart from at the very beginning of SL. In the early days campers were used to generate Dwell which distorted the 'places' search results, then that was abolished and as the bots evolved they took over the task of screwing up further the already ineffective search ‘places’. So we are talking over 5 years that the results of the ‘places’ search has been gamed. As evidenced by the large number of people still running the bots, LL is still not effectively dealing with the problem now despite recent policy changes.

Here is a solution Mr. M. Get rid of the places search, just pick up your phone call up a Linden who knows their arse from the elbow (I’m sure there are a couple left) and tell them to flip the switch. Shut the ‘places’ search down RIGHT THIS SECOND and be done with it. Problem solved. Job Done. Take the afternoon off. You've spent the money on the 'search all' engine, focus all your efforts on keeping those results clean and developing that system along with the classifieds.

penileizzable - made to look like pricks

I'm sure Pep will confirm this.

I think you would still have camping, but on parcels taken from search... for those that do want to share the wealth...

Or a rise in the various other means of making lindens.

It's happened.

Oh no it hasn't!

ooOOooooh yes it has

Yes indeed.
This situation presents a wonderful opportunity for people to give money to noobs and the impecunious without the danger of being mistaken for Search gamers.

Nope, it may well be on its last legs but this is the important paragraph:

"Are there other uses for so called Camping Chairs other than for Traffic? If you know of some please let us know in the comments below! However, the feedback and data tells us that by far the main reason for large numbers of Camping Chairs at a location is to unfairly gain a Search advantage."

So he pretty much thinks they're used to unfairly gain search advantage, but the coffin isn't quite nailed shut yet.

Be prepared for twisty things.

Oh alright then - spoilsport

What about lucky chairs, freebie rings, midnight mania, and the like?

Indeed, same sort of thing in a different disguise. I doubt anything will happen regarding those though.

What the heck is midnight mania by the way? I've seen this mentioned a lot since this blog post, I've never heard of it.

The only search I use in world on a regular basis and always has been is Search->Places, as it became gamed it has become harder to use but not sufficiently so and it is still much easier to find what I need than Search->All which is an abomination. The presentation and slowness of Search->All is enough to put me off using it without taking into account that it rarely brings what I want anywhere close to the first page. Navigating through to find what I want is like wading through molasses.
So, no, it is not a given that people want Search->All to go away, only those who have a blind love affair with the Google Search Appliance.
Sure this is all just my opinion, just like others being expressed here. I express it just to show some people feel differently than the vocal ones here calling on LL to get rid of Search->Places.

I expect those I mention above will come calling now to tell me how deluded I am and how I don't have a clue about such things. Tell it to the hand, I don't care. I will believe what I know to be my own experiences.

Another "Places" user here. It's all I use.

Midnight mania is a giveaway system some stores use. Everyone who clicks on the board is added to the total, and if the total reaches a certain number by midnight, everyone on the list receives a copy of the item. If the number isn't reached, no one gets anything. Once the number is reached, the board locks out further registrations.

Me three.

The main difference to me is that people using things like lucky chairs have to be actively THERE. You say "hi" and you're likely to get a response. Campers might as well BE bots, they're not there as part of the active population.

Thanks, I'll have to look into that one.

Some camping is still social, they give each other advice. However the big difference between lucky chairs and camping for me is that lucky chairs simply aren't as effective for traffic a bit like money trees aren't effective for traffic, people have ways of knowing when their letter is showing at a spot so they TP in and out really quick.

Some. Yes. I've even seen it. I made a camping alt once, just to see if my assumptions about campers were valid. And, pretty much, they are. With very few exceptions campers aren't there longer than it takes to get on a chair, and when you DO see a discussion it's like watching postal chess.

Region Yosemite Valley
Main Grid, Second Life


Summer 2012


"Hey Fred, great region you made here!"

"Yeah man, these scripted marshmallows blacken up just like the real stuff."

"Thanks guys. I spent hours working on this."

"Hey, that propane stove has the real manufacturer logo on it. Gonna get in trouble for that?"

"Nah man, I wrote the company. See that tent? I did the same thing. Total authenticity, I really had to do my homework, but they sent me custom photographs of their 1970's artwork."

*sound of crickets*

"Whoa, I love the star field behind the pines. This reminds me of camping when I was a kid."

"Jim and I could just chill here for hours."

"Hey Fred, I was wondering, ... Fred?"

"I think he crashed."

"Odd, he never crashes."

"Hey, who's that? In the trees..."

"What, where?"

"I swear, I just saw a Linden."

"No way. Jim, get real."

"Jim? Jim?"

*panic ensues*

"Who is out there? What are you doing to us? Why are you doing this to us!?"

*running through trees*

*Ree! Ree! Ree! Ree!*

[You have been logged out of Second Life by an Administrator]

I don't mean prancing around in drag with an outRAGEous lisp and darling gestures either, ducks.

Very good, Desmond

About your first post...

I am quite cynical when it comes LL (the company) but your idea had never occured to me before. Good thinking - whether or not there's any truth in it.