An Open Letter to LL, Over 1200 Sigs saying no new features until everything is fixed

I bet there are a lot more of us here than you think..

Well, I don't want to block unverifieds from my land, and never will, so that plan wouldn't work for me at all.

But I think it would be good if LL would stick with their plan of letting in only verifieds when the grid gets too full to work for everyone.

It is only fair.

coco

If votes are based on how much we pay, do we really want an SL run by just a few people? What about the people that do pay, a lot, that want new features and think that the unverified accounts are a good thing? You know how many people come into SL that wouldn't be able to because they can't or won't use paypal and their international CC isn't good enough for the use? It is so easy to just point the finger at these people and say that everything bad is all their fault. Does no one remember the griefer problems before the so called "06-06-06" day? I remember griefers bring the entire grid down before that day, and they were all supposed to have been verified. Griefing will not go away just because you get everyone to be verified. People can get around any verification system that is put in place.

Please, let's stick to the letter and not get distracted by the unverified debate!!

We all have our notions about what is or is not important for secondlife.

I think we can all agree that data corruption and loss is, if not the highest, then one of the top concerns, quickly followed by basic necessary functions like movement, viewing the world and searching.

I'm seeing even a few 'linden lab apologists' have signed the open letter.

I'm not proposing a halt to all new features until everything is perfect, nothing ever is entirely perfect... but I would gladly wait on sculpted prims (despite their extreme yummy factor) and voice chat (which I despise) if it helps linden lab focus on fixing the performance and related problems that are causing so many of us regular grief.

Let's do our best to keep this thread on a positive note.

Non paying customers has nothing to do with Linden Lab's obsession with creating new features that few of us want, or need, instead of fixing the basic platform. Some of us have been harping about this long before LL started free registration and yet I see them still charging blindly ahead giving us a new text font that is hardly readable while we still crash and burn.

I am sorry, I also want new features! New features are what bring people into SL. I think the next two features will bring us an SL that we could only dream about!

I would like to meet anyone who is coming into SL for the sculpted prims. If that person does exist, I would like to warn them that there is a very good chance their sculpture will disappear from their inventory one day never to return. A third of the things I returned to inventory when clearing my estate the other night are gone for good. That is the word of mouth anti-advertising I will be doing until we have a platform that works. I certainly won't be encouraging anyone to join until we are protected from losing money, land and items, no matter how neato the next feature is.

Think about how many we would have KEPT if the current features had worked better.

They my not be coming for just the sculpted prims, but they may become more involved because of them. My friends and I must be a really lucky crew, I don't know anyone that has lost any inventory or land. Overall I have very little problems with SL, since 1.8ish, so I guess my view is a little skewed. I have thought I have lost items before, but I was mistaken, they where just very oddly coalesced on me.

I also know that they are actively working on getting many of the things we find most annoying worked on. That is what the 1.15 release was all about. From what I heard, the next release is just a bug fix release. Windows 1.0 and 2.0 were pretty much flops. And 20 years later, Vista still has bugs in it. I want a better SL, but it is just going to take some time. This letter will not do anything but make people feel like they are doing something. This has been done before with no real result, and LL know we want these bugs fixed. They also know that new features are what keep people form leaving SL and helps bring in new people too.

I looked all over my sim for it too. Damn board set me back $15k lindens to get another one. I'm an example of inventory loss.

Well said. However, I still want my Siggy diving board back. I would ask him to replace it, but he has been unable to log in since 13.0.

Another thing: You know how when you are sitting on the runway and not moving, everyone calms down once the pilot comes on and informs the passengers of the situation and that they are doing their best? It would be nice if Phillip would get on the intercom and let us know what the heck is going on and that they really are trying to fix things. A little communication from LL might have saved the open letter from being written and sent to the media.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that SL is the best thing ever and bug free. Far from it. I just don't agree with this letter. I think there needs to be a balance between features and bug fixes. Some need to be fixed while new features also need to be added. No matter how many people you give a problem, it will just take time to redesign the back end while trying not to break everything in the process. As you can see with the friends list, it doesn't always work as planned. It is a tough balancing act, but I do think that LL is doing a pretty good job.

I agree with that 100%. We were told not too long ago that there was going to be monthly town halls. I have seen maybe 2 since that time. More communication is key. Even a blog post by Philip would be very welcomed.

I agree with you, Dnate.

I believe the richness and freedom of our world is directly due to the passion LL has for the project. This is a huge, ambitious undertaking and it seems early days yet to me. As an artist, I am not attracted to living inside a passionless business. Things will shape up in time. I'm sure LL is well aware of the bugs and inconsistencies.

Ordinarily, I'd be all for a balance of features and bug fixes. But when the thing just doesn't work for so many, and works poorly for many others, then the balance is already out of whack and needs to go back the other way.

As for things shaping up in time, I can't help but look at the trend. Which is for things to always get worse over time, and has been that way for what, over a year now?

It is true that more people can log on now, but that's the main "improvement" I've seen. And I put "improvement" in quotes because it is becoming more and more common that too many people are on and things aren't working right.

I often think about how all my various SL concerns (and all of ours) are almost all moot when you think of this. I mean, if it doesn't work, then what do you have? Why worry about anything else?

coco

I agree that fixing the bugs should be given higher priority than adding new features, but at the same time, new features are a vital part of the platform.

New features are essential to keep the in-world market turning over and creating new innovations. Without them the most popular products at a given moment would entrench forever. But a new feature coming in gives new competitors (who move fast enough) a chance to use the new feature to tip the balance.

Fix bugs, fine. Add new features, fine. Just stop breaking things that already work.

If that was the case the worth would be 250 yen or $2.00 worth



Problem here is LLABS should stop adding features, focus of issues that is causing the game problems. THEN add new ones.



If LLABS did care more then MAYBE JUST MAYBE people should not be so upset. makes sence no?




If your sticking up for LLABS here maybe you should think WHY did LLABS even openup the gates of hell to let those bad ones in? They could have limited the account at first instead of letting all the nuts, jerks, losers and under 18 year old at that time. But what happened 2 weeks later at 6/6/2006 ( why didnt LLABS ADD a REPLY the sign page to your email to make sure the account had a working address? I tell you why LLABS DID NOT CARE................ They changed the limited to one person signup per e-mail account ( from what i remebers back then and someone post on the forum people signed up unlimited avies on ONE E-MAIL!) ......I am sorry But LLABS is not even close t being what your making them out to be in this post you made. Blame is a harsh word...........LLABS is NOW a ad driven company the relies of SOME large company ad money to drive this game.

Sometimes to fix something you have to break it.

I also don't think I ever called LL perfect, some things could have been done differently, but then hindsight is always 20/20.

I think I have said all that I can on this topic, I know I will never convince some of you of the way I see things and I really don't want to try. I am just saying the way I see things and nothing more. Take it for what you will, but I please don't do personal attacks. All those really do is weaken your points.

Why is it that some people play both sides of a issue? "I am not saying that SL is the best thing ever and bug free. Far from it." then saying It is a tough balancing act, but I do think that LL is doing a pretty good job. Fence sitting is a fav past time for some that can`t really see the big picture as they say.



Here you have a point town halls were a great thing and had some impact on how the game was. Philip Linden was then a akey point in the game. But now far from it. I wish they bring it back again.

Hahahhaha well hun maybe the times your living is present. Sooner or later you feel it, but kissing up is some fav past time.

I live in May 1st 2007 not May 1st 2003. so mayby that why don`t see the sence of your remarks.

that would require you to call it Linden Lab rather than Linden Labs, and to quit referring to it as a game.

Oh thats right its not a game its large company business now......

Usagi, you and I don't see eye to eye. So be it. I only call them as I see them. I can point out mistakes that I feel that LL has made in the past. There has also been things I thought were a mistake at the time that turned out not to be.

As for the remarks, just because it isn't bug free doesn't mean that LL is going at it the wrong way. Do I wish SL worked perfectly? Of course I do. Do I think that everything else should grind to a halt until it is? Nope.

Dnate, I look at this way. Yes LLABS ia done a LITTLE decent coding in the past year. And yes LLABS should not be blamed for all the nightmarish issues. But then remeber the mess in the front office with person leaving only 7 days? This shows you how organized these people are.If LLabs would stop adding features and stop promotoing this game as a way to make BIG money. Then MAYBE some would stop bitching about llabs. look at this current client "Second Life 1.15.0 (2)" You call this even half good? People that beta tested first look warned steve and friends that it was not ready for prime time. But what did they do? The released it anyways.why? because we are the live testers and nothing is better for testing purpose then real time action. My idea is this.....LLABS tell us you were wrong in releasing first look too fast and inthe future you will care about QUILITY then Datelines of release..........

Usagi