Virtual Land Dispute Spills Over Into Real World (player sues LindenLab)

completely agree. No offense Sir but people are going to see you as a reporter whether you are off work or not. Take any reporter. Say she/he is out to eat and makes comments about.... well anything. People arent going to say "Oh so-and-so just said this" they are going to say "that reporter from <any news affiliation> thinks this!"

Did that make sense?

I don't disagree at all...

however...

I don't see why complaint or expression of dissatisfaction has to be presented in the form of an insult or as ridicule. In fact, in doing so, one discredits one's point of view, and one appears to be nothing more than a negative whiner.

When presenting a differing point of view, complaint, or expression of frustration, it is of the utmost importance to explain what the problem is... why you see it as a problem... and 1 or more ideas to resolve the issue.

Otherwise, what's the point in posting?

There is too much butt kissing these days.. Its time for folks
to tell it like it is... If Linden Labs is screwing up, I'm going to
point it out and shine a spotlight on it..

If they don't like it, then can shut me up by fixing the problem
with the spotlight on it.... (ie: A L$50/million a month growth rate
in the Money Supply). In 7 months, the money supply will be
L$1/Billion Linden Dollars..... If its too much now, Imagine
it in Dec'06..

Like I said, the Linden Dollar is going into the toilet and its
all thanks to Linden Labs Policy. Not traders, LindenX, or the
boogy man. And now they are going to Sell Linden Dollars directly
to players?? Meaning even more L$ will be pumped into SL?
Hahahah.... L$315 might look like a gold mine compared to
the future value of the Linden Dollar...

I'm not saying you should kiss butt... not at all. But stating your point like a teenager who was told they can't take the car is counterproductive. Anything you say after... "LL should be sued" ...sounds like "waaaaaah, waaaaaah".

I would also like to point out a very simple fact. Linden Labs will do what is best for Linden Labs. That's business. That's life. You aren't going to convince anyone that your point is worth more than a dirty diaper presenting it the way you do.

Adding to the controversy by being part of the drama isn't going to be the solution. Like I said before...

1) State the problem.

2) Explain why it is a problem.

3) Offer a solution set.

Otherwise... what's the point? As a businessman myself in RL, I can tell you from personal experience that I would be much less likely to even listen to what you are saying, presenting it the way you do.

So, tell it like it is... but do it without all of the "waaaaaaah", and perhaps add some useful contributions to the conversation.

In my experience (and, yes, I am in a position to know), presenting LL with a solution to a problem that has been well thought-out by people at the forefront of an industry doesn't work either.

Have you ever thought that simply because an idea is well thought out, it might not be within LL's best interests at the time, or enough of a priority, to move forward with it? None of us are privy to the internal conferences/meetings/discussions regarding the development of SL and the implementation or removal of various tools, features, policies, or services.

Either way... if you whine... people tune you out.

You're new enough not to know the relevant history. Suffice it to say, this topic was discussed thoroughly last fall.

Now, I guess when LL paid to have my business partner and myself flown to SF to meet with them, listened to our ideas, went off and implemented a half-assed version themselves, and ignored the logical and well-posed arguments in favour of the alternate implementation we proposed that would have allowed LL to support currency trading while not expropriating the business of the two guys that built their economy for them, I lost my faith in their desire to develop a world in cooperation with their users.

"Why do it right when you can do it by Tuesday?"

The first thing I learned in business is this... if you don't have a contract, you aren't guaranteed anything. If you do have a contract, you aren't guaranteed everything.

The second thing I learned in business is this... if you build your business around someone else's services... you had better have a plan of action for when that someone else changes their offerings.

As you have pointed out... I am new enough to have missed the events of last fall, but I do not see how arguing with insult will be any better than offering a well thought out suggestion. You might even get more support from other players if your ideas are presented in such a manner that does not cross the line into "attack" as opposed to constructive criticism.

If LL is such an evil and horrific organization... why are you still here? I'm not implying you should leave, just trying to understand why you stay.

I pre-paid for a year's premium membership. I'm sticking around, collecting my stipend and cashing it out. In the meantime, I post.

Everybody in SL will love to know that.. Bust your azz building a
business in SL, just as LL has promoted you could do. Then if you are
too successful and making boatloads of money, Linden Labs will
swoop in, steal your idea, call it their own, and muscle you out of
the market place...

Sure makes being a developer in SL a constant worry that your blood,
sweat, and tears will all be for not, in the end... LL will reap the rewards
while you took the risk.

I've lost track of who's doing the whining here.

Any help here? Anyone? Bueller?

This from the same person that actively lobbies LL to appropriate MY business. Don't be such a hypocrite. You must either be FOR, or AGAINST, key issues such as LL stealing resident business. Straddling both sides of the issue only deals a blow to your own credibility.

I don't see the world in FOR or AGAINST. I jockey to whatever
side yields the best results.

A Stock Market is a great idea and your business is awesome.
The problem is the interface to facilitate trust, ownership, etc...
is very limited through an offsite webpage verse a hardcoding
within SL...

Somebody might own 5000 shares in Cyberland, but that doesn't
translate into squat within SL. More people would feel safer in their
share ownership if they could see a blurb in the upper corner of their
SL client that said 5000 Shares of Cyberland, just like they do with
their Linden Dollars. Then a GOM style offsite trading platform of
shares through your site would be perfect.

But right now, if Shaun Altman got hit by a bus in RL, every nickel
of my shares would become dust when your web hosting firm doesn't
get its monthly check. Whereas, if they exists in SL, King Philip
could get hit by a bus and I'd still be able to trade my shares.
Cause Jeff Bezos would roll in and run the show.. heheheh

Can you arrange this?

Tell me how we can enhance the feeling of trust, ownership, etc. I'm always listening. If it makes sense, I'll do it.



You're assuming that I haven't thought of that.

The best trust is the ability to take out any human involvement
in the ownership process...

Lets take Cyberland for example. Even though people can buy
share ownership through the website, it doesn't translate into
anything tangible within SL itself...

Compare this to the Linden Dollar. Regardless of what happens to
any 1 person, the linden dollars I see in my game client will always
be there. At least until Globespan Capital Partners $11/million dollars
runs out. But then its lights outs for everybody, including Cyberland.

What are the safety nets with Cyberland if Shaun Altman died tomorrow?
Who is gets control over the Company's L$4,243,092 of cash? Who's going
to pay Linden Labs tier fee? If the Cyberland Trading floor goes belly up
after the dead Shaun Altman is unable to pay his bill, where am I going to
trade my Cyberland shares? Who is going to confirm that I own 1,000,000
shares of just 100?

The issues isn't really with the trust in Shaun Altman, I'm sure you are a
honesty man. Its more of a question of security if something happens to
you.

In the event that something happened to ME, Cyberland would be liquidated immediately. You wouldn't have to worry about trading your shares, just showing up at the ATM and making a withdrawal. Like I said, I've thought about this.

Maybe one day it will be a real company and I can offer a better solution. For now, this is the best I can do.