The March of Folly*

@HereticLinden: I always concur with Zaphod... I may emphasize differently, but he's far more patient and articulate than I, and I rather envy that.

At the doubters:

We live in a construction area.

In a metaphorical sense: what used to be more like a smal apartment building has grown into a large downtown. Linden lab is widening the roads, upgrading the electrical grid, trenching larger water mains, expand the sewer system, re-fortifing single-story buildings that are now supporting skyscrapers, and many other analogies for expanding the computational and networking infrastructure that supports our world.

Most of that work goes unseen, but construction to help our world scale WILL result in problems, ALMOST (but not quite) as certainly as doing nothing.

We're bursting at the seems, and linden lab sometimes can't get to problems before we out-grow them. Don't blame just the unverifieds, they come and go, their turn-over is high. We have 6000 sims, which shows that there are *MANY* premium and renting residents who stick around longer, have larger inventories, leave scripted things on their land etc.

If the architecture and infrastructure for this world doesn't grow, it will collapse. It will grow at whatever speed it does. With rapid growth comes the MONEY necessary to make this world better. If growth stops, money stops, if money stops... Well, even sharks swim forward while they're sleeping because they must or they'll die.

If residents can't put up with the dust and debris of constant construction,
this is NOT the right world for them.


This is supposed to be a community, yes?
We should look out for each other, lend a hand, and help where we can by giving specific, HELPFUL constructive feedback. Even if it doesn't help... it's better than bitching and moaning.

Oh, and always wear your hardhat.

[edit: I concur with Talarus always as well... (except, uh, that one time we seriously bumped heads) I'm also glad he's more long winded than I by comparison. *poke* ]

As for the "Community Manager" thing, I nominate Torley. If only he wasn't stretched so thin as it is. Wait, isn't that his position already? Just askin.

Tim
In Love with Second Life

Goin to bed.

Heretic,

I thank you for your obvious concern, which goes far beyond just posting responses...it is refreshing to see you (and your other more-proactive colleagues) actually out, invested in our process, too.

Okay, here goes:

1)I believe that the crux, after reading months of these blogs/forums/posts/responses, etc. is this: We hear too much from Linden Lab of the technical and PR angles with regard to what is broke, what is fixed, what is in-process, and what is destined for the slag pile in SL.

2)How do you fix this? What would walk miles and miles past having town meetings with featured speakers...well it is SO simple it defies imagination...you need to put Lindens, or a group of residents, or ANYONE you pay, out on the grid, EXPLORING for more than two or three (more?) hours a week in Linden Village behind a desk...and talk to your customers in the language your customers use.

[bold]Your customers (we, the residents) do not normally want to hear "We got 967 Bork-Reports on Issue #773, which is affected by our server station in Dallas, and it's ability to recycle blah blah blah"...what they want to hear is Heretic Linden standing up in a town meeting, and saying "Yes, folks, I really SEE what you are talking about with 'Bork Issue #773!' When I was out on walkabout yesterday in the Alpine Regions, I ran into three folks (Hey, to Billy, Jacque, and Dobie! Thanks for the convo!) who told me they'd been having the same problem all day, and yes, I saw it too! So when I got back to RL/LL, I ran over to Cory's cave and woke up the sleeping bear, and we put our heads together...and, Cory....can you update us on what's going on with #773?"[/bold]

Good posts on this thread and I have learned a few things...thanks to all, including heretic L who listens.

Zaphod's construction analogy really is helping me understand a few things..thanks. Parsomony and Mrs. Showdog hit it right on target about communication.

Parsomony suggested, in another thread, an idea which had so much merit my knee jerk reaction was to automatically dismiss it out of hand and say "No way..never happen..LL won't do THIS in a million years." Its possible though I suppose...

The idea was for LL to set up some sort of resident advisory council made up of some of themore sane and rational people....not sure if it would be drawn from the community at large or just forum posters. This is abrilliant idea and I nominate Brenda Connolly and Zaphod Kotobide.

Anyway...I am keepingmy fingers crossed and hoping for the best and that LL, SL and all of our AVs survive the many challenges that face us.

The "construction" analogy was Rusty's. But I'll take some credit for agreeing with it.

May I be so bold as to add Talarus Luan and Susanne Pascale to the list of prospective nominees? (BTW, Susanne, I am sort of crossing my fingers that "sane and rational" is your paraphrase? LOL

I think it is a pipe dream but it would be lovely if it could happen. I think Talarus would be a good choice generally. He has a good handle on the technical issues, like Zaphod, and he communicates clearly. We have have had a pretty heated debate in the past, but I do respect his opinion. If I may mention one criticism of Talarus, he tends to get over passionate in his arguments and might, sometime, inadvertantly cross the civility line. His unterstanding of the technical issues would be very useful, so long as he could use some moderation in expressing his opinions.

If such an honor were ever offered to me I would have to decline. I really have no grasp of the technical issues and my presence would be counterproductive. Brenda Archer would be a far better choice. I would add Coco Koala to the list also, if a list ever happens.

Not sure what you mean by the inquiry about whether sane and rational is my paraphrase. They are just two of my favorite words, probably because examples seem to be so rare in RL.

I don't know, but I really think LL is trying to fix the bugs mentioned in POL. I hope so and am giving the benefit of the doubt. Also, thyey are communicating with us, the customers, much better. HUGE steps in the right direction.

They have their hands full with the age thing right now, so lets give them some time. Also, keep in mind, despite the faults in the system and the grid and communications and even with social issues being unaddressed, SL is still pretty darned awesome!!!

I'm optimistic. I really really am.

How did I miss that? I don't know if I can be considered one of the most sane and rational people here. If that's so, I have really screwed up.

Lmaoooo!! Don't let it go to your head. There are very, very few sane and rational people posting here.

Thanks for the vote of confidence, Susanne. My specialty is ecommerce so I'm not sure how directly relevant I'd be around here... but I do know about customer service, and I am a midbie.

Parsimony hit the nail right on the head with a good way to approach things in a town meeting, too. It would be wonderful for both understanding and morale.

I'm willing to pay a few bux more on my premium if it would let LL staff spend a few hours each day in-world on the clock... there is nothing like being there, being in the vibe, being part of the test sample, not having to think about anything but surfing the wave.

Firstly, there's been no announcement of even a hint of any kind, so any kind of nominations are beyond premature. That said, I am happy that some think highly enough of me to make such a nomination for an important role (thanks! ). While the notion is appealing on some levels, I don't presently have the time nor the inclination to get involved in something like that. I would have to have a LOT more faith in LL's ability to make it worth the time and effort involved, and given my experiences with other development companies (including being a part of them), when I see the same mistakes being made, I have to believe in the worst, since I have seen it come to fruition from both sides.

When something real comes down the pike, and it is something where I feel I would and could make a real difference in, I'll be happy to volunteer (or offer myself professionally for hire, whichever).

In response to criticism, to be judged and criticized based the experience of a handful of posts in a forum under a hotly-debated thread by someone opposing me in said debate seems rather shallow and petty. I've nearly 800 posts in this forum alone, and judging based on such a limited sample of experience seems a tad inequitable to me.

Wow, I didn't even notice that advisory council bit before.. interesting idea, in principle anyway. Immediate problem I see has nothing to do with the idea itself, but with the lack of an effective communications channel to and from the masses of Second Life residents out there. And the question isn't only would Linden Lab embrace and support such a thing, but would the resident community?

Thanks for the nod, but I'm afraid I might be a bit too biased in some areas to serve effectively on such a council.