Life
isn't a matter of milestones, but of moments.
Rose
Kennedy
OK, I made it!
I’m at my 200th
entry in this blog!
To be honest there were
times when I wondered if I’d make it.
Blogging once a week seems easy but to try and have a good story ready
each and every time takes some effort and planning. Not to mention juggling Real Life (RL) to
make it all happen. (My thanks to
Significant Other for allowing the time away to work on this little project of
mine.)
When I look back on my time
in Second Life (SL) since I blogged about reaching the 100
story mark, I wonder where the time has gone. A lot happening in RL (Don’t worry, all
good!) has probably contributed to its quick passage.
People whom I meet inworld
always ask me why I blog. Why not just
wander about and enjoy myself?
I have a few reasons.
The first and most important
to me is the variety of places inworld, the people in them, and the experiences
offered are something which should be shared.
If I don’t share these stories there are fewer and fewer forums talking
about SL. I don’t think they should be
forgotten.
Next, I enjoy writing. (Significant Other rolls eyes at this
point.) I’ll never be published in RL
and the types of travel and experiences I once had are no longer available to
me. (No regrets here, mutual decision
with Significant Other.) Blogging about
SL lets me have some fun, and hopefully for both of my readers, as I wander
across the Grid and bring back my tales of wonder and misadventure. (Significant Other’s eyes are in danger of
rolling out of head now.)
Finally, people (OK, a few.)
are following me and they tell me they enjoy my writing and look forward to
it. I feel obligated to do a good job
and write regularly in order not to disappoint them. (Not to lay a guilt trip on anyone!)
The next question I’m asked
a lot is, what have I learned from my travels inworld?
Oddly, the answer is a lot.
The primary thing I’ve
learned about SL is that there is a strong sense of community inworld. People are here for a variety of reasons but
being together with folks of similar minds is the big one. There are tight bonds of friendship and
sometimes even love among the residents.
I’ve made several very good friends in SL and when I came in I wasn’t
expecting that. (Significant Other
suggests I ask them if they consider me as good a friend.)
The other thing I’ve learned
about SL is the incredible amount of creativity that exists here. Some of the work created by residents beggar
description and many times I feel I don’t do them justice with my scribblings. (Significant Other admits that I have realistic
expectations about my own work and can discern the truly great works of
others. Hey, that’s something, isn’t
it?)
But, one thing I’m learning
is that storm clouds may be threatening our world. This I’ve learned only recently and will be a
downer in what I’d hoped would be a more upbeat piece on my time in SL.
As I was preparing this story
I came across another one of those timely posts by Frau
Jo Yardley that she is famous for.
In her blog,
she informs us of a new virtual being developed by Linden Lab (LL) which won’t
be backward compatible with the current SL.
(Being the cynic that I am,
I found it more than a little coincidental that after I blogged
about the lack of activity in SL since the arrival of the new CEO all of a
sudden this news breaks. Did I ever
mention that I don’t believe in coincidence?)
Another piece of bad news is
that the new world won’t be open source.
Sounds like LL doesn’t want to lose control like it did early on with
SL.
While Frau Jo subsequently
posted an official announcement
from LL on this subject there are still more questions than answers right
now. I’ve learned from bitter experience
how to read Corporate America’s press releases.
What’s left unsaid is more important than what’s said. Anyone who doubts me should just follow how
General Motors handled its ignition
key problem for years until finally admitting what was
going on.
Here’s my concern. (And, it’s only a concern for now.) For well over ten years, residents inworld
have made a big sweat equity investment to create some of the most beautiful
virtual worlds ever seen by humankind.
In addition, many of these made significant RL financial investments as
well.
What happens to these?
What happens to the
communities built around them?
Will everyone just be tossed
off and told to re-up in the next Brave New World established by LL?
A lot could be lost forever
here.
What type of fee structure
will be used?
In a brief moment, I believe
Ebbe
Altberg has wiped away all the good will he received when he
came aboard earlier this year. I don’t want to rush to judgment here. Maybe there’s a grand plan which will be fair
and balanced.
My advice to the corporate
luminaries at LL is that if they do have a grand plan then they’d better start
communicating it in detail to the SL community before they lose us forever.
Sorry to end what I’d
planned originally to be an upbeat piece on my milestone. But, this latest news saddens me a little
because the future of SL is in doubt. I’ll
write more about this as I learn more and its implications become apparent.
Will SL be around long
enough for me to write another 100 stories?
Below, I’ve included links
to pictures that represent a few of the highlights of my last 100 stories. Some have already joined #lostsims but others
are still with us and I encourage you to go see them while you still can!
Thanks to all who read and
follow me!
As always, I’m grateful to
all inworld for their kindness and time in stopping to talk with a stranger who
was passing through their lives.
I welcome feedback from
readers, please either comment on my blog or
e-mail me at webspelunker@gmail.com
.
If you would like to read about my other adventures in Second Life please click here.
If you would like to read about my other adventures in Second Life please click here.
2 comments:
I culdn't agree more with your concern, I felt a great deal of sadness when I read the announcement earlier today. I may not have created anything beautiful in SL, nor have I spent a significant sum of money, but I have six and a half years invested in second life and I would be extremely reluctant to lose it now, quite apart from the vast inventory I have built up. I can understand why Linden may wish to develop new technology, particularly with the Occulus Rift thing, but if we loose what is familiar in SL, including our personna, by moving to the new platform, I for one will not be moving. My second life would come to an end without any virtual afterlife! I guess we have to keep an open mind for now, but feel sure some sort of campaign might be called for in future in terms of "Hands off our Second Life!"
Whitburn,
Thank for reading and your comment!
I realize it's still early innings with this recent Linden Lab (LL) announcement.
I just wish that LL would be more sensitive to people's feelings and concerns.
You may neither have created many objects nor spent a lot of money inworld, but by your being there the Second Life (SL) community is a better place.
If LL casually casts off residents property and their identities then they will have a very difficult time building up whatever it is that they create to what SL is today.
Markets have memories!
TC
web
Post a Comment