Announcing the $10,000 (USD) Linden Prize

What I found interesting is that the prize is specifically for Second Life projects that enhance life outside of SL. Linden Lab seems to be visibly throwing its hat into the augmentationalist (as opposed to immersionist) ring with this prize, acknowledging that they see they see the future of Second Life as an extension of outside life.

I'd appreciate it if you would keep this thread on topic.

What inworld projects would you consider nominating for this prize?

Ah, I misread.. The title kinda throws you I think.. Maybe it should be the "Linden Prize, $10,000 USD".

In any case, I wish all who enter good luck. As for me, I'll just sit back and watch.

Dreams!

You don't have to be entirely in the Augmentationalist camp, or the Immersionalist camp. It is possible to be in both at the same time. Or neither, for that matter. Or move back and forth between them.

Revised the thread title as suggested, thanks.

-- Katt

I made the same mistake, but noticed it right away and was quicker on the "Delete" button.

First parsed as "the Argumentationalist camp" and thought "Oh, that's the forums".

All snarkiness aside, I actually think this is a good idea.
When originally announced on top of Mitch Kapor's speech, it sounded a lot like the "Best use of our business partner's virtual office software"-prize (and I am honestly still a little wary that it may end up being that), but it does sound like it could be giving a nod to somebody who's truly pushing some boundaries with a new media.
LL needs to nurture that, rather than clam up, push people away, and try to invent and define their own new, correct use of SL.

Giving the prize in L$ makes sense. It is, after all, a prize for a project in a virtual world, so while it may be a little cheesy (and indeed likely cheaper for LL), it feels right. -And it may even result in a part of the money being spent inworld rather than just cashing out and walking away, depending on who wins.

In any case, it'll be very interesting to see who gets shortlisted and who wins.

ETA: I propose dubbing this prize the Philip Linden Hippie Dream Award, and I mean that in the best way possible.

(No more comments)

In before Relay For Life wins. Seriously, this contest seems designed for that project winning (by virtue of its success and forum of creativity). Can't say that would be a bad thing, as the proceeds would go to charity in entirety.

I personally would nominate W-Hat, for their groundbreaking dadaist performance art, music, and sculptures. Their program has outreached to many autistic RL children who vastly contribute to its community. Their corporate culture involves bringing RL ideas about novel social change to Second Life, entering them into a meta-conglomero-collaborative feedback loop, and then outputting these ideas back into the realm of RL to bring about actionable social change that has contributed to _real progress._

I am usually not in agreement with LL surprises. Lately, LL announcements have lead me down a very pessimistic path. I like this one, so I will rest my usual rants against LL.

Two reasons why I like this contest:

A. It is following the long held tradition of having the users innovate change within SL, and the existence of the contest as much as acknowledges the value of users for this purpose. Offering back to the community for the best innovation.

B. 10k USD is a nice large sum, so the work they will get will be worth far more. They threw the banner far out into the field, now many will fight hard to get to it, and inevitably fight harder than the value of the prize to win. That is a very wise move, I like it.

I think more initiative opportunities like this need to be offered in different areas of development within SL, by LL. Then I will feel like they are investing in the community that continues to build SL.

Don't know if I will be involved at all, but goodluck to those who are. Good going LL for whatever reasons you chose to do this contest. If I did participate I am sure spin offs of my work would yield a fair profit on their own over time even if I or my team didn't win. I wouldn't care so much about payoff in L$, whether it's LL printing money, or users taking a hit on limited withdrawals of L$, there are plenty of ways to get L$ out of SL. L$ is a fine medium of reward. Perhaps with your recent glut of abandoned sims, you could offer a couple rent free for two years as an incentive on a future contest. I think more events along this direction would be good for LL and the community of SL.

A few hypothetical examples might help (note —any resemblance to real projects is unintentional)

1. An amazingly beautiful building inworld with kudos from Residents is a stronger candidate if the build was created as a training for disadvantaged adults to learn new computer skills.
2. An inworld opinion poll of Residents on a ballot initiative is a stronger candidate if it were tied to a voter registration campaign that resulted in thousands of new voters.
3. A prototype technology to help sight impaired people access Second Life is a stronger candidate if it is a working product that is helping hundreds of sight-impaired people create an international support community.
4. A research study into small group social behavior in Second Life is a stronger candidate if the research is published in a peer reviewed journal that advances that field of knowledge and demonstrates that Second Life is a legitimate platform for study.
5. An interactive sound and art project in Second Life is a stronger candidate if it is part of a live exhibition is recognized by the curator as advancing our understanding of art.
6. A community project in Second Life is a stronger candidate if the its leaders have trained community organizers on effective recruiting and retention practices.


http://lindenlab.com/lindenprize/faq

Give the money to the people of libsecondlife.org and opensimulator.org to help the developement of opengrids.

@15
Catching up while I have a moment. We'll work with relevant applicants to make sure they are represented appropriately. We expect some will want RL name, some SL name, and some both.

I have a resident with a GREAT idea...
but he will need more then the 750 prims his OS sim will allow in januari ....

Your world ... your imagination ... LIMITED by the lindens !!

@34
If you love what W-Hat has done....find them and tell them! First, they'll be excited that someone really appreciates their work. Second, its that kind of encouragement that might get them to apply.

One of the things I hope happens during this prize is that we'll (collectively) learn about great projects that aren't high profile or haven't received a lot of attention, but are innovative, get things done, and are making a real difference.

Zoha with all due respect.... actually scratch that.... if you want to complain about open space sims do it on the dozen other threads that have popped up for that purpose rather than de-railing this one. Incidentally although I think it would be funny for you to enter I doubt having well meaning but ultimately pointless (due to massive ballot stuffing by alts and people who were bribed to vote a certain way) popularity contests on your sims counts as the betterment of rl for people.

I think it is great that LL is encouraging creativity and productivity with the residents. I am really enjoying SL as a new resident but I have noticed alot of raunchiness inworld and sometimes I wonder if SL is a place for a nice girl like me.

W-Hat has really improved my life. I am a veteran living with a traumatic brain injury and I can thank both secondlife and w-hat for improving my life immensely. My cognitive skills and indeed most of my memory skills would not have recovered as much if it wasn't for challenging my mind through secondlife and indeed being urged forward to create new and better builds for the community in the W-Hat sim (what). These individuals have been both a positive influence on my life and their encouragement has been nothing short of phenomenal. I am so thankful for their help in my life.

There's a vast difference between improving "the human condition" and improving "the way people work, learn and communicate in their daily lives outside of the virtual world." The latter seems targeted on applications of Second Life as a telecommunication medium. Does this suggest that projects outside that more narrow domain will be evaluated less favorably?

Improving the way people work, learn and communicate in their daily lives is a very altruistic thing to do.

Helping individuals IS improving the human condition. It's a little ridiculous to say it's not.

@44: The intent of the Linden Prize is more expansive than applications for use as a telecommunications medium, so there's no suggestion one way or the other. We expect applications across all sorts of domains