You WILL accept display names! DX

So, what really is in a name in SL?  Mine?  It's a sentence.  Some people have real sounding or culturally specific names.  Others have AOLish atrocities.  Then there's the people who try to get a 'message' across with their account name... Like... xxx69lickyoudry Felicity. (O.o)

Of course, now we're going to be getting DISPLAY names.  Our account name will be locked to whatever we signed up with, but, with a 7 day minimum we can have any bloody name at all... Well... Unless it's a curse word, on the ban list, or "Linden". (=_=)

But, why Linden?  Eventually that gets dug up at the end of the meeting. (=_=)

[2010/10/07 11:57]  Jack Linden: Drongle, Linden is a real world company with real world brand and protections of that brand. So yes, we will protect that inworld

But, what does that mean? (O.o)

Here's how the crowd understood it. (^_^)

[2010/10/07 11:58]  Ciaran Laval: Linden is also a real name Jack
[2010/10/07 11:58]  Master Kane: Oh and we qare just pissants jack?
[2010/10/07 11:58]  Zoha Boa: ZoHA Islands is a RL company paying +400 K US$ in tier to LL. Why can't you protect us ?
[2010/10/07 11:58]  Cummere Mayo: jack, many of the designers here are real world companies with bradings too
[2010/10/07 11:58]  Cummere Mayo: *brandings
[2010/10/07 11:58]  Imnotgoing Sideways: So, what about Linden St. San Francisco? (^_^)
[2010/10/07 11:58]  Marianne McCann: Hmn. I suspect Voyager might be a company's name out there, maybe others...
[2010/10/07 11:58]  Drongle McMahon: SA are hundreds of other names.
[2010/10/07 11:58]  Aargle Zymurgy: and I'm legally incorporated as well.
[2010/10/07 11:59]  Rigrunner Rang: so again i repeat a person can take no action until they see someone using their TM? There's no protective measures in place for anyone except Linden?

So, yeah, something is inconsistent... I mean...

[2010/10/07 12:00]  Imnotgoing Sideways: But, we get to use our RL names, right... What about when a Frank Linden signs up to SL... It's now everyone but him. (^_^)
[2010/10/07 12:00]  Imnotgoing Sideways: If there's nothing to be afraid of.... There's nothing to be afraid of. (^_^)
[2010/10/07 12:00]  Lamorna Proctor: yeah, you can have any name you like, as long as it's not Linden. What's sauce for the goose should be sauce for the gander

So far, the way I'm reading this is that anyone can have anyone else's name at any time, we can use our real life names, we can make up character names, but our display name can NOT contain "Linden". (=_=)

Stepping back in time...

[2010/10/07 11:38]  Imnotgoing Sideways: Linden Lab was only called Linden Lab because the initial office was on Linden St. in San Francisco. Surely, the name has a history that predates SL. (^_^)
[2010/10/07 11:38]  Lamorna Proctor: Unter den Linde was a street in Berlin years before :)
[2010/10/07 11:38]  Lamorna Proctor: *Linden

So, Linden Research Inc. (Remember when they made that change?) feels the need to protect the "Linden" name.  Why?  It wasn't theirs to begin with.  There are people, places, and streets that use Linden as a name.  Surely, there may theoretically be a genuine reason for someone to name their avatar "Linden" at some point in time.  But, that's blocked? (=_=)

To say they're protecting a trademark means... what? (O.o)

[2010/10/07 11:52]  Cummere Mayo: i asked what procedure you have for takedown notices of trademakred or copyrighted names?
[2010/10/07 11:53]  Cummere Mayo: saying talk to us isnt a procedure

Oh, true that.  Residents have trademarked their names due to business interests and such.  But, its not just that.  We'll be stepping into this with zero knowledge of the grief that will come from mistaken identity, fraud, misdirected Abuse Reports, among many other potential issues.  But, the Lindens aren't choosing to protect their resi... CUSTOMERS!  Paying customers, at that. (=_=)

Personally, I can say that I don't completely mind display names, but, I despise the current method being used to implement it.  Add to that, Linden Lab keeps telling us that there won't be a need for protections over our names.  But... They protect their own?  So, if there's no need, why do THEY need it?  That's the whole sticky point for me. (=_=)

I think I have a solution... Opt out. =^-^=

[2010/10/07 11:17]  Imnotgoing Sideways: I'd still love to have an option in my profile that says "Add my account name to the display name blacklist". It can be a tickbox right next to "Hide me In search". (^_^)

People like the idea.  But, will it be implemented.  Heck, it's not even getting acknowledged. (=_=)

I dunno.  I'm seeing a lot of frustrated people who are currently putting a lot of money into SL.  Linden Lab seems to strictly target who they can get far more than who they can keep.  It just smells.  (>_<)

The question is...

[2010/10/07 11:20]  Molly Montale: If being fooled is not a real concern then why will the sur name Linden not be available?

Anyone got an answer?  Anyone?  Bueller?  =^-^=

Land ownership, fairness, and you. (^_^)y

I'm just reflecting on what I've been reading and responding to on the SL Blogorum lately. (^_^)y

All land in SL is privately owned. That is to say, the servers are property of Linden Research, Inc. and are occupied by land holders who have funded the establishment, use, and support of the resources the virtual land takes advantage of on the servers. None of which is public domain or a matter of funding beyond the 'owner', tier payer, or premium account holder. (^_^)

That said, it's simple; My place, my rules. =^-^=

I'm seeing post, upon post, upon post from people crying foul over being parcel, sim, and estate banned. More than half aren't even asking for a solution. They're just spouting off at the mouth about how "unfair" or "unjust" their ban is... To the point of sounding like they have some sort of "right" to be somewhere and as if they deserve the privilege by default. (=_=)

Well... Sorry to break it to y'all. But, you ain't entitled to go everywhere. Deal with it. (=_=)

Land owners spill a bunch of money, work, and effort into the land they own. So, they're the ones who deserve the break when it comes to the spending of the resource they've earned. Each and every sim you visit is just that... A place you're visiting. You're the guest. With or without a gracious host, you're subject to being a welcome guest or shown the virtual door. Anything you say, do, appear to do, be, or appear to be; can and will be used against you. (^_^)

There is no "justice". Just like there is no "justice" for someone poorer than me deciding to take up camp in my garden shed. The same rule is extended to our little digital parcels placed here before us. (^_^)

At the same time... Don't drag the Lindens into your little pissing matches. The TOS/CS states quite clearly that Lindens won't get involved in resident disputes. If you're at a loss over what that means, think of it this way; Did the OTHER person violate the TOS/CS? If not, you're on your own. =^-^=

There are thousands of regions to see in SL. If you cant get to a dozen or so, who bloody cares? There's always somewhere else. And, if there's nowhere else, buy your own land and ban the world back. (^_^)y

"Fun" Show&Tell event last night...

I've been substituting for the Sunday night Show&Tell events for a few weeks now. For the host, it's a very active event. While you're seeing an avatar just standing there, what's going on in the background is someone working in Excel, Photoshop, SL IMs, group chats, and trying to time manage each presenter to prevent the event itself from becoming an endless wait for the next question. (>_<)

Then, you get what I got last night. A one, McLickingAlot Ying, decided it would be fun to particle, sound, and chat spam the event. He was orbiting guests and presenters and pretty much simply causing a ruckus. In any other NCI location, he could have been easily dealt with via Banlink or a classroom security orb. But, none of those resources were available. I was basically left requesting an estate ban on the guy in the Land Holdings group. I pretty much got it about half way through the event. (^_^)

None the less, the event went on all the way to the end and we saw some impressive items. =^-^=

Still, I can see that I've developed no fan club due to recent events. One person in particular (maybe two) decided that the event should be turned into a Q&A session over why the event was like the "Good old, more innocent times" and how the event and crowd were 'influenced' by Woodbury. Even taking a snipe at my promotion of the NCI mall by asking how many items for sale were from "Real people and not WU goons". (=_=)

Well... The event was hosted entirely by me, and each presenter was selected simply on the basis that they IMed me and were more than 90 days inworld. In addition, the mall has been managed entirely by me and each seller was selected simply on the basis that tney IMed me and were under 120 days inworld. Spewing such conspiracy theories otherwise turns out to be a grand way to erode your perceived integrity. (=_=)

So, in spite of spammings, orbitings, detractors, and the general madness of what it is to be griefed in SL... It was a pretty darned good show. (^_^)y

Who is the real liar? (=_=)

In regards to:

http://secondthoughts.typepad.com/second_thoughts/2009/08/refuting-intlibber-brautigans-big-lies.html

I won’t comment there, my stuff gets deleted. Frankly, any factual dissention pretty much gets deleted. (=_=)

I can pretty much second the quoted statements Intlibber made as quoted by Prok. I have quite a few documented events of harassment by W-hat goons. I was targeted by the group for a number of weeks as can be seen on their web site picture collection, up to the point where I got suspended by a false AR for (Sexual) ageplay. (>_<)

I remember being in an NCI Blitz Build event that was flooded by the group’s goons as a ‘cheerleading’ crowd for Orty. Much of the event was littered with huge amounts of lag due to their attachments and was persistently interrupted by their animations and gestures. Many of the statements were targeted at me, usually along the lines of “4chan GET OUT!” and such. (=_=)

WU, like 4chan, is a very open group... The only reason the group itself isn’t free to join is because of what we see here in the past week. There are people that want the group to not only appear bad, but even criminal. It is true, currently any member of WU can send a group invitation. With over 400 members, that’s 400 opportunities for just about anyone to join. And that’s still conservative by *chan standards. (^_^)

The *chan boards are completely wide open. You don’t have a user name. You don’t have a password. If you choose not to identify yourself, your name automatically becomes Anonymous. As a result, Anonymous is everybody. At the same time, Anonymous is nobody. Anonymous has been posting for years and Anonymous just posted this morning for the first time ever. Anonymous doesn’t have to take the blame for what Anonymous does, yet Anonymous is the only one capable of taking the blame. Such is the beast. (^_^)

... Which is why W-hat has a problem. W-hat is a group made of SomethingAwful forum members. Their membership rules require that someone be on the SA forums and that they didn’t join the SA forums simply for the sake of being in W-hat. It’s a controlled environment of relatively like-minded people. As I see them, it’s also a collection of elitists who not only follow the mantra “The internet makes you stupid” but also consider themselves to be above the petty meme dropping adolescent humor that shows up in the *chan boards. (=_=)

So, when Intlibber says Woodbury University faces hostility from W-hat, I believe it. I believe it because I see it. It exists in SL and on the respective web sites. (=_=)

Now, I have never actually met Intlibber. I’ve been in the same sim as him. But, he seemed to be having too much fun cussing at Tizzers for me to even consider approaching him. That and I continue to be an overanxious recluse, even online. (>_<)

Prokofy... You’re telling lies again. I know because I’ve seen you apply them to me. (>_<)

In response to...

Duplicate post to my response in: http://secondthoughts.typepad.com/second_thoughts/2009/08/ban-woodbury/comments/page/2/#comments

In saying "In griefing group" are you saying my avatar was a member of a crowd of avatars causing trouble? That never happened. Each time I received a ban, I arrived on my own. What "group" I may have been in is simply a name on my groups list. In fact, you have provided proof that I was alone. In the chat log of your July 11th post about Anonymous avatars, there is a single avatar eject:

[18:37] Avatar ejected.

http://secondthoughts.typepad.com/second_thoughts/2009/07/anonymous-avatars-and-the-art-of-second-life.html

This coincides perfectly with my own personal chat log:

[2009/07/10 18:37] Prokofy Neva ejected and banned you from this land.

So, whatever "posse" you're describing simply doesn't exist.

At the same time, I'm not actually aware of any technical means of getting around or evading bans. Are you referring to Linden Lab account suspension and/or termination? I don't evade those, I simply don't violate the TOS/CS. That's all.

Also, what grief build and where is Ravenglass? I don't really pay attention to sim names so I don't know if I've ever been there.

You give me too much credit. My attentions are typically elsewhere and normally all I ever want to do is say "hi" and have a conversation... Even if it is a twisted meme-off with a /b/tard. But, everything has its place for me. In NCI, I help. In events, I participate (or even host). In meetings, I contribute. That's who I am. That's what I do.

I am in the groups I'm in because they have something that benefits me. Frankly, I think my association with SL Mentors is more detrimental to my experience than WU. But, that's just my opinion.

I don't want to trouble you. I see that you reserve the privilege to ban me based on any opinion you have about me or what group I socialize in. But, I won't allow you to make up stories and lie about me.

The link that Desmond is referring to is here:

http://imnotgoingsideways.blogspot.com/2009/08/my-3-bans.html

And, I will duplicate this post in my own blog:

http://imnotgoingsideways.blogspot.com/