Layoffs at Linden Lab

Easy.
The remaining ones will go into permanent crunch and will be exploited…

Not at all surprised by the wall of that graveyard.

When work for a company you should never assume that your job is secure, because the goal of the company is making money, not provide jobs.  There is no secure job (with the exception of government union jobs, it is always easy to spend when it is other people’s money).
What I really want to see is examples like Bernard Marcus,  who after got fired at 50 or so went off and started, HomeDepot.  Of course in the businesses world, 90% fails, and few people have the guts to risk their own money.
I remember when I first started working, I was very happy that I can make money off what I love, and yet still had a sense of danger that my boss can’t support all of us programmers with our sells.  Later on I meet restruant owners who quit their job as software engineers so it suit them better, and the boss of a carpet company was previously a construction engineer.
The best security is your own business (government jobs are the best but they are very hard to get in), the job as software engineers are just not safe, you could easily got laid off when your product is done or been replaced by cheaper out sourcing.  All of us should be looking for alternatives and keep writing software as a hobby.  For example, when my AC broke, I found out repair guy will cost at least $150 and fixed it myself.  But not everyone has the knowledge of how ac works or have the guts to be around 220 volts, so AC repair is a good alternative(and good luck outsource that).
Even better will be to let other people work for you.  As Rockerfeller said, he rather live on 1% of 100 people than 100% of his own.   Check out Paul Graham’s essays.

It let’s you refill those positions with people who have the appropriate knowledge and experience for the new project.
Or, sorry, was the exercise not supposed to start yet?

@wowpanda That is so 1990′s. The fact is – these guys put their heart and soul into their jobs, and the second Linden doesn’t need them anymore they dump them.
My worst experience was at Adobe – I had a job offer from another company – which I turned down at my managers pleading. A month later they laid off about 300 of us world wide.

@Angelworks  I often debate with myself about that too.  Been back stubbed does not feel good at all. But the fact is the decision is human based, not company based (company is a group of people).  You had a bad manager, I feel for you.  But it is unfair that just because someone is big the fault is all on them.  I know people quit their jobs and get on higher paying jobs all the time, but that will never get any media notice.

Maybe because I worked for tiny/small companies all my life so I am biased, but when I saw my wife’s boss has to dip into savings to pay for contractor’s salary, I feel her pain as well.  We the developers sometimes take things for granted (stable pay, medical insurance), the business owners (especially the smaller ones) has to worry about salaries to pay, client to please and they have to pay their own insurances without discounts.

Imp: As per usual geldon chimes in with his usual stereotypical nonsense on a topic he has no real knowledge of… Then again if he only comments on subjects he has knoledge of, he would have nothing to say.

knowledge too, dammed ironic typos

>Oh, shit, an expert showed up. Wait, you are an authority on this, right? At the very least, tell me your grasp if Second Life is better than your grasp of punctuation and grammar.

Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown.

@Joe still better than what Angelworks got. At least the only one who can fire you is yourself.Mr Honda tried and failed may times (his plant got burned down by US bombers and wiped all his savings) and look at Honda now.  The US is still business friendly enough that it encourages young people to start new companies and provide jobs for the masses.  I would strongly encourage people to read Paul Graham’s essays.

geldonyetich: ………At the very least, tell me your grasp if Second Life is better than your grasp of punctuation and grammar.

You might want to proof read your own post prior to mocking my content errors. Otherwise you might end up looking like a tool.

Imp: You might want to proof read your own post prior to mocking my content errors. Otherwise you might end up looking like a tool.

Yes, I did notice I hit the key immediately left of the o instead of the o. My grasp of the English language is still better than yours. Also, technically, it’s Max Payne and not Max Paine, and I imagine that analogy would go way over your head.

geldonyetich: Yes, we have been over that, and it seems your memory is as selective as your interpretation of messages. Yes, you’re a Second Life content creator, in an engine built to make content creation so easy that every player is invited to do it. You’re still not good enough of an authority to shut down another person’s opinion “just because I said so.” If anything, your position makes you biased.

Anyone that’s been on Scott’s site anytime at all knows that provoking you will result in nothing less than an inane (to anyone not you) wall-O-text.
Nothing short of banning (no, I’m not suggesting you should be banned) would shut you down lol.
Am I to assume your proclivity to label SL as nothing more then porn and stolen porn isn’t bias?

geldonyetich: Nothing I was said here was wrong. Just because you’re an original content creator doesn’t mean I can’t trip over plenty of ripped off content in Second Life. Just because you don’t make adult content doesn’t mean I can’t run across a lot of adult content being sold (even outside of the red light districts). Second Life has been sued in the past for copyright infringement, and probably would be sued more often if those holding those copyrights knew their content was on there.

Yes SL has a lot of porn, Yes SL has a lot of stolen content.
Yes IRC has a lot of porn, Yes IRC has a lot of stolen content.
Yes the Interwebz has a lot of porn, yes the Interwebz has a lot of stolen content….
See where I’m going with this? Pointing out the obvious and trying to act like it is “THE” content, instead of just “content”, paints you as regurgitating media stereotypes.
Are you a Fox News fan by chance?

geldonyetich: At most, my position is one of academic difference, not cluelessness. Your insistence to the contrary indicates your sense of entitlement is off its leash. If this were the end of Chinatown, I’d go fucking Max Paine on you, and don’t you forget it.

Wtf? entitlement off its leash?? where the hell did that come from?
You have so much as implied your experience with SL is both dated and short. So now it’s an informed opinion (ie: not clueless)?

geldonyetich: Yes, I did notice I hit the key immediately left of the o instead of the o. My grasp of the English language is still better than yours. Also, technically, it’s Max Payne and not Max Paine, and I imagine that analogy would go way over your head.

Grammar and spelling are my albatross, not vocabulary.
Prok has reasonably decent grammar & spelling, that doesn’t mean she can form a rational opinion.

geldonyetich: “If this were the end of Chinatown, I’d go fucking Max [Payne] on you, and don’t you forget it.”
Actually, I did want to clarify what I meant by this so you don’t think I’m a psycho. I was just saying I’m not the type to stand idly by and ignore what I perceive as incorrect for the sake of conformity. It was a response to A Man In Black’s use of the quote, “Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown.” Which I researched. Because I have too much time on my hands. Which is probably a contributing factor as to why.

Really??? You can’t honestly expect me to take you seriously after that.
Why not just say “Ima gunna pWn you biotch”, or something equally meaningful.
Is your chest sore after all that thumping?

What you said, that i take issue with, was

geldonyetich: Seconded about the irony of the commonplace oversexed nature of the game leading to that graveyard decor.
Frankly, I’m amazed that Second Life hasn’t been eaten alive by copyright violation lawsuits, considering how much of their content is reposted multimedia (mostly porn) people found on the Internet.

That is the gist of what you say about pretty much every SL story Scott posts. That SL is mostly porn and stolen porn.
How is that not a Fox News style “fair & balanced” portrayal? You seem obsessed with SL pr0n, and insistent on inferring it is the primary content…. Much like most media outlets that spend all of 5 minutes researching SL. Or traditional gamers, that don’t, and don’t care to, play SL. [read as: talking out ass]
The internet is rampant with porn (and stolen porn I’d imagine). I’ll have to defer to your expertise on that, but you would be viewed (by me anyway) much like most here view Jack Thompson if you tried to paint the entire internet with the same brush you use paint SL, it is just as irrational imo.
Mind you, I’m not overly critical of one talking out ones ass, it is a common place practice that I’ve partaken of myself on occasion.
I’m critical of someone insisting its an informed/unbiased opinion while doing so, which you can be consistently counted on to do.

geldonyetich: While I can attest to the effectiveness of physically preventing another person from speaking in getting them to shut up, there is is one other way short of banning to stop me from producing walls of text. That’s to demonstrate that you’re so very poor at presenting your points

Your ability to follow isn’t necessarily indicative of my ability to convey my point
At least you seem to be implying you are unable to follow…

geldonyetich:Thanks to your dogged reliance on relying on ad-hominem

Brought to you by the Department of Redundancy Dept. – You make this too easy.
Ad hominem isn’t inappropriate in an exchange when your usual uninformed bias is relevant.

But you are half right, I do usually assume you’re wrong, I just don’t assume it makes me right.

Imp: You seem obsessed with SL pr0n, and insistent on inferring it is the primary content…. Much like most media outlets that spend all of 5 minutes researching SL.

Tell you what, provide some credible research to the contrary from a credible source. Because when even reasonably credible media outlets (e.g. Wired Magazine) are telling us that Second Life’s primary source of entertainment is sex, you’re sort of left in the lurch to establish otherwise. No, your vouching based off of casual observation does not count.
FYI, I have actually logged into the game before. I’m prefectly aware that, as far as overall game space is concerned, there’s less sleazy content than the alternative. However: which content gets the most use? The old, abandoned portions of second life aren’t the ones that can reasonably be focused on.

Elovia: OMG … someone on the internet is wrong!Quick, someone call in Derek Smart to set this issue right! Take it to tells you two drama queens.

Anyone else find this kind of mass-hysteria even worse than my tireless rebuttals? At least what I was saying was on-topic.

geldonyetich: Tell you what, provide some credible research to the contrary from a credible source.Because when even reasonably credible media outlets (e.g. Wired Magazine) are telling us that Second Life’s primary source of entertainment is sex, you’re sort of left in the lurch to establish otherwise. No, your vouching based off of casual observation does not count. FYI, I have actually logged into the game before.I’m prefectly aware that, as far as overall game space is concerned, there’s less sleazy content than the alternative.However: which content gets the most use?The old, abandoned portions of second life aren’t the ones that can reasonably be focused on.

A wired (read mainstream media) article from 2006 is a reputable source? Give me a break.
Here is another hard hitting wired article. OMG side boob!
http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2007/09/mass-effect-con/
After all SL hasn’t made any updates in the last 4 years to improve the user experience, and Wired would never sensationalize sex to improve readership…
Typing sex in their search box only results in 4930 articles.
Here is more hard hitting journalism from Wired Magazine!

Sex in Space, Why NASA Isn’t Talking
Is Sex With a Robot Hooker Cheating?
Silicone Sex Lube Heats Things Up!
Should Sex Changes Be Tax-Deductible?

As for my bonafides? I have been a non-sex merchant in SL for the last 4 years, in game nearly daily, deeply entrenched in its commerce.
I have been to thousands of virtual malls in search of vendor space that isn’t garbage, I actually SEE on a regular basis the amount of adult content available, and this is before Zindra, the adult continent, prior to its segregation.
My real life girl friend has been the manager of one of the most popular (a constant population of about 30-50 non camper users 24/7) non-sex clubs in SL for nearly as long.
She interviews in the neighborhood 0f 50 people per month seeking positions at the club. A common theme among applicants is the failure to make money at sex clubs. Believe it or not, the common misconception that you can easily make money with sex in SL is bogus. (But it does drive a lot of clueless newbs to the SL Welcome Areas)

Yes you can make money with sex, but nowhere near as easily as newbs believe.

Want to know one common thread about most successful adult content merchants? They were early adopters. They established themselves early before real competition.
SL users don’t rampantly toss money at sex as compared to other content.

People attempting to make money at sex come and go constantly, at least 90% fail (a low estimate I’m sure).

But I couldn’t possibly be more knowledgeable then you or some Wired reporter that spent a hour or two in SL 4 years ago.
My years of 1st hand experience mean nothing, because I like SL. [Insert eye rolling animation here]

But don’t take my word for it, make an avatar and try to make money in the rampant sex trade in SL. I bet after 8 hours you won’t have more than a $1.50 in your pocket.

Is SL chock Full-O-Sex? Certainly, but no more so then the interwebz or IRC or any sandbox social network that doesn’t outright ban & purge sexual content.
What I take exception to is that it is somehow remarkable or exceptional in this capacity. It is simply become better in its ability to facilitate one handed typing.

I believe per capita, nearly as many people “cyber” in wow, msn or IRC, you just don’t get visual aids of others engaging in the activity.
It’s speculation, but its reasonable speculation based on many many years of SL & traditional game experience.
(Scott and I share the same age demographic, and a last name as well lol)

Have you heard of a virtual world called the “Red Light District”? I checked it out to see if it was a viable platform to sell my clothing, since it also allows “merchants”.
It is exclusively catered to sex and has free entry.
It has a minimal user base.
Apparently an actual sex focused environment doesn’t have quite the draw you would think. (despite is wide spread advertising campaign)

The best you come up to support your opinion is a 4 year old Wired article and a few hours 1st hand experience as a lost newb. I guess in your mind that trumps my experience.

And you have the audacity to call my reading comprehension into question?  Good grief.
Your right, your not worth talking to.
Feel free to continue posting insipid walls of text with impunity I’ve wasted too much of my time on you already.  You and I both know you can’t resist getting in the last word.

You two can’t leave your e-peens lying around like that. Someone could trip over one, bang their head on a GWoT, and then sue Scott. That wouldn’t be good.

Boanerges: Gentlemen, There is an easy way to prove who is right. Both of you log into Second Life and create the largest phallus. Scott will judge who won based on who has the biggest virtual peen. I suggest you get started now.

LOL
Not a fair contest there either, I have megaprims.
ePeens at ten paces!

Damnit, now I have the mental image stuck in my head…. Griefer!

How’s this for a ground rule to determine how sexualized Second Life is:
1. Visit the top 25 currently populated places (measured in players online, during prime time PST hours) in Second Life, insofar as you are able to determine via their interface.
2. At each location, if you encounter either pornographic content or someone attempting to sell pornographic content (e.g. an escort service) you cross that location off your list.
3. At the end of the experiment, how many of the 25 locations were not crossed off the list?

If not that, it’s because you’re assisting the Guardian in his conquest of Brittania.

This angry back-and-forth between two people is tedious.  Why don’t you exchange contact information and have your argument in private? 

Geldonyetich,

Shouldn’t you be updating your own blog with you’re words of wisdom?

http://geldonsgaming.blogspot.com/2010/06/burden-of-truth.html

This *isn’t* geldonyetich’s blog?
:0

Elovia:
OMG … someone on the internet is wrong! Quick, someone call in [edited] to set this issue right!
Take it to tells you two drama queens.

SHHH! Don’t mention THAT name! Do you want to REALLY bring in the walls-o-text?