SL Certification

Hiya, Volunteers!
A bunch of us Lindens have decided to create a Second Life Certification. Obviously, this involves every last one of you since you are the most knowledgeable Residents in SL. We would love it if you would help us shape this project. To facilitate Resident participation, we have created a SL Certification wiki, which can be found at http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/SL_Certification. Please visit, edit, and discuss. Thanks for your time and consideration.

Its an interesting concept. I would like to see more information and details when they are realized. What I would NOT like to see is another idea that is prone to abuse.

Generally I am in favor of certifications of ability.
But that must be weighed with importance.

Example: In RL we have plumbers must be certifed to make sure our pipes dont leak and flood the basement, but the guys that work on your car (I am one of them) and make sure the wheels are on tight dont even need a diploma, never mind proof they can tighten the wheels. Its all about power, always has been and always will be. The Insurance companies fight to keep us car guys from requiring certifiaction cause it saves them tons of money thay would have to otherwise pay for highly skilled workers, and the ever powerful unions fight to require certfications for the plumbers so they can charge more. Which one would be more likely to kill you therfore should have certification?

What I would need to know about this SL certifcation is:
What does certification entail?
How hard is it to get and what does it prove I can do or not do?
What do I have to know and what advantage does it give me, and why should I have that advantage?
Also what DISadvatage does it give a non certified person and why?
Can the "certified" ppl ban or group together to try to keep down newcomers?
Can this be akin to the first inworld "unions"?
How much "clout" and politcal power does this create? It definatley is the first step in a new hiearchy that previously was only either Lindens or non Lindens.

Why start certifiaction in those areas? Why not certifaction in land sales (realtors) first and foremost!!

Sorry if i seem a little cynical, and I am probably overeracting, (you hit a rl sore spot) but it sure seems like the beginings of the polical machiine that ppl seem to think is not overly possible in SL. If nothing else its the beginings of a new society with an elite class.

And for the ppl that say it will stop scammers, whats to stop a "certified" person from pulling a scam? Or making a VERY costly mistake? Will there now be a way to get reimbursement if the "certfied" person costs me money? Will they be held enforceably liable? That I would likely be for. Accoutiblity is the most noticable thinkg lacking in SL.

Will there be any ethics and abuse oversight? Would you be interested in people partcipating that are NOT skilled scripters/builders/etc? I would be interested in that regard.

As I am not likely a "certifiable" builder as I have only done a few "builds" and have just started selling them, and also not an LSL scripter as I have not yet had time to even read the first thing about it. Would this make me less likely to sell any of my creations to the public without certification? Wont I automatically lose the "trust" of the ppl? And wont it be harder to climb the ladder to being a better quality builder then?

I can't help but stare at the "bunch of Lindens" and think aloud, I bet that this certificate is worth the paper it's written on.

Hiya! Thanks for the feedback. We've updated the wiki with a frequently asked questions section, and I think some of the answers there will be helpful to you. Unfortunately, I can't give you many answers at this point in the process. The reason for the wiki was to involve Residents in the process, from beginning to end.

Fix the bugs first. Unless you'll be handing out certifications in "Working with Broken System"

Great idea by the way! Sometimes there are good ideas, sometimes there are bad ideas, but the bad ideas could very well be good in the longrun if you give them a chance