People, not profits

I know I said I was splitting my blogs back up and this could be my blog for Second Life. However, I think the gulf oil spill has slipped off the agenda for the media in the UK, and this film is so important, I want to spread the world about it.

Kindra Arnesen speaks passionately about the need for evacuation in her area of Louisiana. It seems astonishing to me that it hasn't got more views. Her reference to Ponies and Balloons, her description of the explanations from BP for the illnesses causes by the spill, and the call for the area to be evacuated to protect the people in her parish, needs to be seen and disseminated.

Linden Lab entropy

I was so exhausted after a demonstration to a client yesterday that I simply swallowed some food and collapsed for the night, sleeping about 10 hours straight. I woke up to email talking about the loss of 30% of the Lindens.

I've been in SL for over six years, and I love it. I make most of my money in working in SL nowadays, and so it is important to me financially and personally. I've seen things go up and I've seen things dip down.

The blog post indicates that Linden Lab is planning to develop a browser-based version of SL... which people are interpreting generally as a move towards a more Google-Lively version of SL. I think that isn't it, they're planning an addition to, not a replacement for SL. The rumour mill is doing overtime.

Many names of well-loved Lindens are apparently on the list for the axe. People who have given more than their time and expertise, who seemed to be dedicated and visionary are on the list. I mourn for the loss of so much enthusiasm and spirit.

I presume that this may be the precursor for some takeover or buyout, which is the presumption when a company suddenly slims itself down.

I wish... I wish that Linden Lab would make it a prerequisite for every member of staff and management... and board of directors... to spend at least 5 hours a week in world. Perhaps they should be filling the boots of the departed Lindens. I wish that they would talk to and listen to the people who have been in world for years, who have invested time and money and effort and vision on it. I wish they'd get better at communicating.

Somehow, the vision of what SL could be, and what it is, has been lost. I fervently hope it survives, but I see this as a precursor to an outflux of oldbies to the alternative worlds like Opensim.

It amazes me that I spend a lot of my time explaining to clients what SL is good for. Perhaps someone should take Linden Lab to one side and explain the same thing to them. Maybe if they were engaging with what SL is good for, and how to use it for that, they'd understand better what retains people, and what they need to do to ensure that Second Life expands and gets stronger.