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Will Inventory Control be Fixed?
Jessica Elytis
Goddess
Join date: 7 Oct 2005
Posts: 1,783
06-08-2006 03:43
Hiya,

Wanted to post here, not in a forum where it can turn into another flamewar.bitch-session.

But is LL planning to redo this Inventory Managment system?

I'm sorry if this sounds whiney, or imature, but I ca't think of any other way to say this: This system sucks.

I read the reference manual on all the features (Thank you for providing the links Torley) and I know new systems can take time to learn and adapt to (all of the SL interface is new at first). This current system does not follow the current world, however. It is not a working tool to bring into our world. Things effect are not things we (the residents and more the builders of the world) need. The things we need are not in place.

Everything done to the new Inventory Management is very nicely done. Kudos to the programmer(s), but it is not what was needed.

I highly reccommend the person, or team, involved with implementing this, goes and speaks to residents in-world. From those who don't carry much inventory, to those that have a huge amount of inventory, builders, scriptors, texturers. All the walks of life within SL that use the inventory on a daily basis. A 'reality check' of how inventory is actually managed as opposed to what looks good on paper or in a lab.

Again, sorry for any whining or hard feelings.

~Jessy
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When your friend does somethign stupid:
From: Aldo Stern
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Torley Linden
Enlightenment!
Join date: 15 Sep 2004
Posts: 16,530
06-08-2006 15:52
Hey Jessy,

No worries at all. What you said is A-OK.

The thing I can't emphasize enough is that this is part of a bigger set of inventory tools. The problem I see so often in the community is opinions which cancel each other out. I heard some real grumbling--and rightfully so--about:


"OH, LINDENS, YOU ADDED SEARCH AND MULTI-SELECT... WHERE'S ALL THE OTHER INVENTORY IMPROVEMENTS? IT'S LIKE YOU *ABANDONED* IT!" so... rather than wait a long, long time, changes are being made today. But this brings up complaints from other Residents who go:

"YOU SHOULD WAIT UNTIL ALL THE BUGS ARE FIXED, OTHERWISE IT'S IRRESPONSIBLE TO THROW THIS DOWN ON US!" countered by the Resis who go:

"THAT'S WHAT PREVIEW IS FOR!" counter-countered by even more people who go:

"THERE WAS NO ANNOUNCEMENT FOR PREVIEW!!! HOW THE HELL WAS I SUPPOSED TO KNOW?" counter-counter-countered by:

"I'D RATHER THAT LL HAD A PROFESSIONAL USABILITY TESTING LAB SO WE AREN'T GUINEA PIGS FOR THIS CRAP!" counter-counter-counter-countered by:

"BUT IF YOU GET OUTSIDERS, THEY DON'T *UNDERSTAND* SECOND LIFE LIKE ACTUAL PEOPLE WHO PLAY THE GAME DO!!!" counter-counter-counter-countered by:

"INVENTORY WAS FINE THE WAY IT WAS! WHY DON'T LINDENS SPEND TIME FIXING BUILDING PROBLEMS? THEY PISS ME OFF!" counter-counter-counter-counter-countered by:

"DON'T YOU GET IT? THERE ISN'T JUST ONE TYPE OF LINDEN DEVELOPER, THEY'RE WORKING ON DIFFERENT THINGS! NOT *EVERYONE* IS WORKING ON INVENTORY EITHER. SHEESH." counter-counter-counter-counter-counter-countered by:

"STFU DUMBASS! I LOVE TO SHOP AND I LIKE THIS FEATURE WHEN I BUY NEW THINGS BUT WHY THE HECK DOES IT SHOW EVERY DAMN FOLDER IN MY INVENTORY WHEN I SEARCH????"

eventually someone goes,

"LINDENS DON'T KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE TO LIVE IN OUR WORLD!"

followed by,

"OF COURSE THEY DO! THEY STARTED THIS PLACE! THEY ARE LIKE THOSE MACHINES FROM THE MATRIX!"

subsequently followed up with,

"MEH, BUT THEY HAVE LOST TOUCH!"

some moaning and groaning, chortling... and then:

"I THINK A LOT OF THEM HAVE ALT ACCOUNTS TOO! WHO'S TO SAY SOME OF THE BEST BUILDERS/SCRIPTERS/CLOTHING MAKERS AMONG US AREN'T LINDENS?!"

and so on and soforth.

Eventually... someone or someones comes in and whispers gently what specifically they'd like to see fixed and how they approve of what's good--and want it to be better, doling out constructive criticism meant to benefit us all--and in the center of the storm, this speaks the loudest of all.

True story.

And this has happened many times... not just with inventory. ;)

(That's me, watching the forums. :o) )


So what I'll confirm we DO want to help with:

* A number of notable inventory bugs, including the couple VERY annoying ones I blogged about, have been entered and queued for squishing already. Fast action is being made to fix 'em. Everyone who spots a new bug should immediately strive to do it step-by-step, over and over, and then ask a friend if they can do it too. Both people should then send in a bug report via HELP menu. I call it "buddy bug reporting" because you feel better knowing you're not the only one having a sucky problem.

* Yes, "Show all folders" in the filters should be turned OFF by default to be consistent with the way peeps are used to from older versions of SL!

* There's gonna be more changes, yeah!!! Just as it says at the end of the You've Got Inventory! guide:
What's Ahead
We've already aggregated a lot of feedback from the community; the new "inbox" and filtering features are the first pass in a series of Inventory improvements to come. Hopefully, having these additions today makes putting everything in its right place easier for you. Enjoy!
The changes weren't made based on some premature decisions cooked up in a day; rather, they stem from a lot further back, but only had an opportunity to be worked on recently, largely 'cuz of everything else going on.

The implementation isn't ideal, and I've made my fair share of suggestions. I'm very candid about that.


What I'd solidly recommend for anyone who wants to help us help you get a better inventory system: please post in Current Version Feature Feedback (there are already some threads there) with specific details of what works badly, how it confuses you, and perhaps use an actual example of daily use in which you demonstrate how things go horribly wrong.

For example, here's one of mine--actual suggestion from me to the devs to help communicate what the problem here is:
"I've really been enjoying being able to sort fresh stuff I acquired, but... I don't like how in the Recent Items tab, if you delete an item of yours that's inworld, it goes to the Trash--as expected--but it clutters up your view. How? The Trash 'folder' expands, and chances are you have a lot of junk. On top of that, Trash goes to the top of Recent Items, clearly blocking what else you have in the window.

Easiest way to test this is to create anything, like a cube, and then press Delete key. Watch what happens in Recent Items! :( So I believe Trash should be a special exception and always stay at the bottom of the list. Could this please be done?"
It's the advice I give because I live by it--and it's what I was doing since before I worked at Linden Lab. And I have found it to be very effective.

Amongst Lindens, I'm kind of a John Coffey-type character, because when Residents radiate pain from broken things, I really feel it. I absorb a lot of that agony. I carry a lot of suffering on me as a result; it's important to experience that pain, tho, or else we would never know how bad things can get. And conversely, what's good and true in the world, and how much better they can be.

Ultimately, we want to make things easier for you so you can have a better Second Life. I wanted to communicate this to be clear on our intentions. :)
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