Monday, April 5, 2010

Linden Lab Forgets the Obvious....Go Figure

Today our Friends at Linden Lab are patting themselves on the Back for a job well done by bringing us all Shared Media (and forcing everyone into the new viewer if they want to use it).

While I agree that Shared Media is a good thing to have, once again Linden Lab has overlooked one obvious use of this new feature; no longer do you have to go to any Adult Parcel to watch your favorite episode of "Debbie Does Dallas".

It took Linden Lab a good year to work out the Adult Continent and just who would have to use it, and yet, in one release of a new Viewer, all that was destroyed. It's a shame that our Friends at Linden Lab worked so hard on the Adult Continent and then chose to put in a Viewer that all but defeats the purpose of the Adult Continent.

The real shame is that Linden Lab once again missed the Obvious. Just like with the OpenSpace SIMs, Linden Lab didn't think things through and found people using OpenSpace SIMs not like Linden Lab had thought they should be and here again in Second Life. It looks as though Linden Lab didn't learn from that mistake.

It's too bad that Linden Lab doesn't think about how these Features might be used, otherwise they would have been able to see that certain deviants would no longer have to be ensconced on the Adult Continent to view his/her favorite PORN.

I suppose after Linden Lab figures out that what I'm saying is True, they will turn around and blame the Customers, just like in the OpenSpace SIMs fiasco. Well, I have given Linden Lab fair warning as to how some WILL use this new Shared Media, any bets on if Linden Lab does anything about this?

6 comments:

Peter Stindberg said...

Uhm... none of the Adult policies implement any TECHNICAL barrier. There is no filter than scans texture uploads (or texture rezzing) for boobies and prohibits if ont PG land. What the policy does is tell youw hat you can do on certain land and what you cant do. Adhering to it is your duty. If you chose NOT to adhere to it, you might suffer consequences if someone reports you.

I don't really see where shared media makes a difference there? If I display "Debbie does Dallas" on a PG parcel, or if I used parcel media for the same, or if I put up textures of blowjobs - in each case it is ME who violates the policy.

The real problem with shared media is elsewhere.

I agree with you however, that one of the major uses for it will certainly be porn :-)

Bob Bunderfeld said...

Actually Peter it seems that you have proven my point, however poorly I did in trying to make with my recent posting.

Yes, the Customer is the one that is responsible for what he/she/it uploads, but, this is due in part that technology doesn't yet exist to actively monitor uploads on such a broad spectrum of use as in Second Life.

But, one need only have a small amount of knowledge about Web Pages and how they work to know that the Web Pages are not being served by the customer and then shown on a PRIM internal to Second Life. Second Life itself is pulling up the page that the Customer has put into the URL Address. Since these pages are going through Linden Lab outbound pipes, there are TOOLS that can be used to not just Monitor, but Block the most common of the PORN sites.

Since this feature is being implemented by Linden Lab, and since Linden Lab has rules that strictly say what content goes were, Linden Lab should be utilizing one of the many tools available to block certain URL addresses, since these are their rules. Yes, I should, and I do adhere to them, but I'm one of Thousands, and there are those that will use this new Feature for their own sick purpose, and can do it without fear of Linden Lab, if Linden Lab continues saying that something is against the Rules, but offers no mean of enforcing such rules.

I suppose the Title of my recent post should read, "Linden Lab FAILS to enforce their own Rules". Then again, they are Linden Lab, and they would rather blame their own Customers for all that is ill in the world of Second Life.

Peter Stindberg said...

The pages put on a shared media prim never go through any LL server. They get fetcched from your viewer directly, bypassing any LL infrastructure. All the LL servers know is the URL, not a single piece of data from the website. And spoofing/shortening URL's is one of the easiest tasks.

Unfortunately, I might say, since with the LL servers acting as a proxy the whole bunch of security issues I mentioned in my linked post could be handled.

Bob Bunderfeld said...

So, what you are saying is once again Linden Lab puts in a Feature that they have no way of controlling and therefore they expect us, the Customers, to act as their snitches.

IF they can see, as you say the URL going outbound, then they should be able to filter against that to take away the most widely known sites, but again, Linden Lab chooses to do whatever is easy for them, and then when they find out people are showing PORN in other Continents they Blame the Customer for the breaking of the rules.

This is a Feature that Linden Lab has installed, they should be actively enforcing and monitoring for what they deem inappropriate.

Again, what is a law if there is no enforcement? Is it a law, or is it merely a bunch of words thrown together. I think the Courts might agree with anyone that gets banned, that Linden Lab never did anything Active to stop or curb the issue, and that means the rules don't exist.

Funaria Moose said...

The new viewer is a disaster. Have you tried to attach a notecard to a group notice? You have to unlink the inventory first!

And happy rezday btw to you, Bob!

Bob Bunderfeld said...

Funaria makes a very interesting Point concerning the new Viewer. Certainly Linden Lab has once again rush something out the door before it's time. Why Linden Lab consistently chooses this business practice is beyond me, most of the time, it's the Customer that has to pay for this foolishness; remember when voice was released, on top of all the Beta Users screaming it wasn't ready, and then everyone lost 48 hours because Linden Lab had to take the servers down and figure out just how to make it work correctly.

There is one other point that Linden Lab has failed miserably on with this new Viewer, and that is, this Viewer is suppose to make the New Resident experience a better one. It seems to this Old Timer that if those of us who have been here for YEARS are having issues with the Viewer, the New Residents will have even MORE trouble with it.

Another Grade of F for Linden Lab.