RC Questions

I know that, and I'd like to thank to everyone contributing to the unofficial list.
My post was a subtle hint towards Linden Lab, although I'm not convinced anyone from LL will ever read this thread.

This is the problem. The less they listen the more they are stucking in a dead end street.

All our ideas here are made to help them out.

But no matter how sensitive we scratch their bellys or how brutal we argue, no matter how soft, how intelligent, how robust and tough we act, no matter how smart some technical and kognitive hints are given to them: they don't listen.

LL is like a punching ball or a sandbag. Ever totaly unimpressed.

This is the major bug in LL's management.

We would help them to establish some nice social biotopes, as long this goes not against our dignity and interests.

The *purpose* as they have told us is to hide adult entries in search (places, events, classifieds, etc) from people not "authorized and willing" to see them.

Authorized = has taken the required steps to show they are *somewhat more likely* to be over 18. I say *somewhat more likely* because the verification process has lots of holes, both on false positives (letting people under 18 in anyway), and false negatives (keeping people out who are over 1.

Willing = has turned on preferences and checkboxes so the search terms are not filtered.

The reason given for *not publishing* the list is to prevent gaming of search. Gaming in this sense means "doing something to get around the filters, such as using other, related words". A big reason to show words which are *not* filtered is to promote exactly that - help as many people as possible to get around the filters, so they can continue to enjoy SL the way they want to.

Linden Labs will be forced to expand the filter list to the point of stupidity, or tolerate the leakage. The dictionary of sexual terms I am using has 47,000 synonyms (just in english).

We do not know how many non-english words are filtered. I did test a few words in multiple european languages and it seems only the english version is filtered. The reasons for this can be (a) they have not got around to it yet, (b) the vast majority of search entries are in english, and they can't be bothered.

I agree that there is no point in being secret. Anyone who wants to have their search entries seen (basically, everyone), will have an incentive to find out which words work and which do not. Testing words is easy, enter one, and it tells you if its filtered. As soon as someone writes a script or bot to do a dictionary search, the list will be 100% known (as opposed to my estimate of 90% known currently).

And don't forget, the entire filter can be defeated by unverified players. All you have to do is:

(1) Type http://www.google.com/ in local chat
(2) Click the local chat button to see the chat history
(3) Click the active web link to open the Media Browser
(4) enter "[filtered words] site:world.secondlife.com" to the google search

Nope.

Really? I haven't spent a cent to be part of SL - it's absolutely free of all cost, which is the meaning I think most would glean from that phrase. Ah the inadequacies of the English language....

Until they expand the list, of course. So one can find that their mature parcel became adult over night, just because someone at LL decided some term is 'adult only'.
Whoever is maintaining the list is apparently incompetent: .

I totally agree, Ann. Asking LL for numbers in favour, or complaining about whether it should happen or not are, in my opinion, futile. LL have already decided that this is the direction that SL is going. They have set the destination for the train, now we have to decide whether we want to ride along with them or not.

There ARE lots of very important details that still need to be worked out (an example is the whole search term thing), and I think residents can be very helpful in bringing things to LL's attention in order to try to minimize the damage.

The JIRA from RichD Tomsen (no relation) to try to put this on hold for a little longer while more of this stuff gets worked out is a very sensible idea, in my opinion - they still have a bit of a mess on their hands.

But to expect this to go away... I don't think that is going to get any traction at all.

As for censoring non american words why should they? the westboro church congregation that apparently controls linden lab can't read those languages anyway.

Where do we stand on covenants? I have the following paragraphs in my covenant:

"Are Pirates welcome?

Yes, we love Pirates. However no acts of Piracy on the island please. This includes (but is not restricted to) looting, pillaging and singing loud sea shanties after several flagons of ale."

It's a mature sim so I'm assuming that's ok although I'm wondering if covenants need to be PG and that breaches the no social references to alcohol rule.

I also have:

"Sex

Sex, keep it private please. No humping on your neighbour's lawn, even if your neighbour has invited you over!"

How are we supposed to list rules for adult behaviour if we can't use adult words?

Why I am suggesting people decide to make synonyms using words they would not possibly filter, like 'Linden'. It guarantees words in circulation that will not end up filtered while forcing LL to decide between letting the word be used or filtering something obvious (in this case, their own name).

My only concern in this whole fiasco is where will one send naughty SL children who need to be spanked? All spanking animations will be restricted to a location that kids can't go to.

(Just a joke to lighten up your Monday.)

OK, here's how I see this - I would really welcome some comments from people who can point out the flaws in my logic and why this wouldn't work.

Search terms are linked to something in-world, right? People & places. LL have already said that "people" aren't part of this filtering - they are concerned about places.

So every search entry - Event, Classified, searchable location is tied to a SLURL.

Each location in-world is rated either PG, Mature or Adult.

The only thing that can go on PG locations is PG-rated material.

Mature sims have be Mature or PG-rated material

Adult can only have Adult material that is searchable, because only people who are adult-verified can visit it, so no point making any content on these sims (mainland or Private Estate) Mature because people won't be able to see it.

So what is wrong with tying the rating of a search item to the rating of the land which it is on? Leave the Mature/PG on Mature land thing the way it is today.

Et voila - no need for gameable search terms, translations into other languages, or any real complications.

OK this isn't my idea - see http://jira.secondlife.com/browse/SVC-4199 for what I think is this suggestion.

This might not be perfect, but I think it hands-down beats any attempt at coming up with "adult" search terms.

So what am I missing - why wouldn't this work?

Hi y'all I've just added another protest poster to xstreet - full perm - loaded with all the key info links and textures for making your own variations. If you buy please rate it to keep it visible in xstreet search and please distribute widely if you can


https://uncensored.xstreetsl.com/modules.php?name=Marketplace&file=item&ItemID=1438430


^L^

Yes they will need to hire some more staff to test the 1.300 african languages and the 40 german dialects and celtic, retoromanian and hmmm? dutch? catalan? estonian? chinese dialects, basque..., oh much...5000 languages or so....and 10000's of regional and local dialects...

Cowboys learning sanskrit. This will be fun. Much tantra stuff in it. Alone along the caucasian zone you have 60 languages to learn, Lindens. Hurry, hurry! Hahahaha.

Because it makes sense?

When someone brought up the point of inappropriate results showing up in non-mature searches, it was pointed out that many, if not most of those hits were coming from improperly marked parcels.

This would go a VERY long way to actually cleaning up Second Life, and is definitely a better idea than the "tits are adult content" search filtering.

Hmmm? You get computers, screens, etc. and electric power for free where you live? No cent? Are you from some albanian mafia or is your equipment self baken from recycling material and windmill driven, or so?

(just a joke)

My SL times eating 100 Euros a year for electric power usage and since I am ingame I wasted three computers along the years...to have kind of comfortable speed and graphic impressions.

Maybe you steal your electric power from a neighbor? With the old russian wire trick?

Hmmm?

Tell the truth! Do you?

thanx yoki i didn't want to read that but it did make me smile - just a little.
H.

Just checked on the JIRA. Over 2500 votes and it's still unassigned to any Linden.

Oh come on, Wynochee - if someone advertises free coffee does that means that they will pay you to get a taxi to go and get it? Do you complain when they don't? Second Life is "free" because you don't need to pay any extra money to download the client, run it and wander around in SL, seeing the sights and interacting with residents.

Please - can we stick to the issue at hand?

Maybe at some later date LL will instigate rules that say you cannot cash out of SL unless you own at least a Sim's worth of land and thereby contributing to their server costs as Opengrid does. Maybe they will re-introduce the Prim Tax. Maybe the whole L$ model will change, after all its not real money so what do they care. Maybe this adult exercise is just another revenue maker to them, with all that server space they have after the open sim fiasco and notice this is due to happen at the same time as the Homestead price increase so that can slide it in without to much notice to the new general population and when will they start making having a free account not worth it so people have to give them more money lol like capping sizes of inventory etc. as data storage costs money. Maybe thats what they are hoping with people putting PIOF to access the adult stuff as they know its a big crowd draw although they won't admit it and they hope that these new PIOF will spend money

Nothing in life is free not even SL can work on keeping it totally free for all as it grows. If people do not make a stand against this to hopefully get some compromises and let as many people know that this is happening as LL do not seem to want to, what or who will LL do next? I do however see free accounts affected in some way with new rules in the future. A while ago they started looking at premium accounts so i think we shall some changes to all the account structures within a year, it makes sense with LL MO.

Yes its a done deal and I accept that but i will continue to point out where i feel something is wrong based on facts in the hope that people come after this are aware of what LL can do to its customers at a whim. I wonder when the next tier increases are coming

Not in SL's wildest dreams will they be able to attract enough business and educators to fill the void they are going to have in mainland by misplacing us *adults*...whoever made this botched plan needs to change their medication.
And by them making a word filter only covering the english language is discrimination in it's highest form.......wish we had a lawyer on the blogs, it might be possible to file an injunction to stop them in their tracks...until the time the viewer is set to ALL languages and actually works.

Make Ursula the PG continent...WAKE UP SL....that's the only way it will work without losing one hell of a lot of PAYING customers who are tired of years of mistreatment.
and a slowly degrading product.....the only viewer that was worth a damn was 1.18.
Bring it back!!!!

P.S. I'm willing to pay my fair share for a lawyer to stop this charade

And Anshe will go "KACHING" as people switch to cashing out through AnsheChung.com!

LOL well maybe not that silly, i was just musing over some crazy things

Well, I've spent quite a bit on it, what with buying stuff to make environments my friends and I enjoy and paying tier on places where we -- and others -- can enjoy them.

I don't begrudge it; SL is a very addictive hobby that I greatly enjoy, and I admire Linden Labs' enterprise and imagination in creating somewhere people can create their own content, let others use it, use others' content and everyone has great fun doing it. And, meanwhile -- which is the stroke of genius -- we pay Linden Labs for creating the content that's what makes SL attractive in the first place.

I'm not in SL to make money -- if that were my concern, it would be no-brainer, taking into account the time I have to spend making stuff, putting my money in an interest-bearing account at the bank, not SL. However, like many others, I do try to defray at least some of the costs of my hobby by selling my content and renting out parts of the sims for which I pay a not inconsiderable (at least to me) amount of money each month that otherwise I would have to earn in RL.

And it is driving me nuts to have my attempts so to do messed about something horrible by incomprehensible regulations.

It's all very well to say you can't divorce SL from RL legislation, but in real life, if I were battling with some baffling piece of well-intentioned nonsense from some bureaucrat in the European Commission, at least in theory I could pay someone for reliable advice on what it probably meant.

Here I'm stuck with trying to understand what me and my business partner can and can't safely sell on a mature sim (we think all our stock is ok) and how we can't and can't advertise it (considerably more difficult since no one's supposed to know what terms you're allowed to use) and then trying to work out with the owner of the sim where the main shop's located whether he wants to make his sim adult or mature or what -- and he's even more confused than we are, not least because he has to take into account what his other tenants may or may not want to do, and they're just as confused as everyone else.

Meanwhile, I'm having to go through a similar exercise with my own tenants; at least I know that I've decided I've little choice but to make my sims "Adult," but I'm still having to help some of them decide what they want to do, and also having to juggle contingency plans to replace people who leave so I don't have to dip too deeply into my own pocket to cover the tier. And, as part of this, I'm having to keep people hanging on who want to move from their existing places to the safety of my "Adult" lands and who are, understandably, anxious to know if I can accommodate them.

I don't want to have to waste my time dealing with this sort of nonsense. Give me some clear rules, including a list of words we can and can't use for our adverts, and I can sit down with people and we can try to figure out what to do for the best -- that's what I get paid for doing in RL, after all.

I come to SL to enjoy myself scripting and building things, and making friends, and playing, not to have to wrestle with yards and yards of virtual red tape.

Ah, yes, sure, sure. I was short in clown-mode.