Don’t Feel Bad Second Life, No One Likes Facebook or Twitter Either
This past weekend, Reed Steamroller wrote a guest blog about cloud computing and server side rendering in regards to Second Life and it stirred up a whirlwind of debate (and personal attacks) on an array of topics from content theft, to privacy issues, to complaining, and back. Award-winning machinimagrapher Draxtor Despres brought up an interesting point when he commented and posted the following video:
The video is a good reminder that Second Lifers aren’t the only community that feels the need to complain and become angry at the parent company every time a change is made. It’s also a good reminder of how silly it is. While it’s reassuring that it doesn’t just happen in regards to Second Life, it’s also a little scary.
Why do so many people complain every time a platform makes a change?
Some examples of this are when:
- (As seen above) Facebook made some slight changes to it’s home page layout, and 1.7 million people complained.
- Twitter changed it’s retweet function in response to users complaining about retweets and then they complained about the changes.
- Linden Lab added requested features such as sculpted prims, voice, Second Life viewer 2.0, and users complained.
The problem is not so much that these thousands to millions of people complained, it’s how they complained. Practically none of the complainers commented with any kind of clear, concise, constructive, or detailed feedback. In addition, their complaints barely seem valid especially since almost all of them continue using the same platform they complain about for many more years and often move from complaint topic to complaint topic, forgetting all about the previous topic.
Where were these complainers prior to the changes taking effect? In the case of Linden Lab, all of the features mentioned went through months of presentations, betas, and open forums before being released. Where were the complainers then? When Tom Hale, Chief Product Officer of Linden Lab, was asked about several bugs during his August 2009 SLCC keynote, he asked in return if anyone had attended any of the multiple weekly bug triages held in SL and was met with silence.
Do we just like to complain? Are we simply afraid of change?
I’d like to be able to say I know the answer, but unfortunately I don’t. I can’t begin to understand it. What do these complainers feel they are accomplishing? Facebook kept their new layout, Twitter kept their new retweet, and Linden Lab keeps moving along with new features and fixes.
Is it because Facebook, Twitter, and Linden Lab don’t care?
No. Without any constructive feedback they have no choice except to go with their best instincts and keep moving forward. It’s also my firm belief that if they listened to the complainers and changed features or fixed every little requested issue, the platforms would never really move forward and ultimately fail. The complainers will always find something new to complain about.
Wait a minute, isn’t this just a complaint about complainers?
Well sort of. I intend to flip it around and do something the complainers didn’t do… offer a suggestion.
According to a survey from the Office of Fair Trading, a third of all people surveyed would use the internet (i.e. social media) to make their feelings known, rather than complaining directly to the company. Many people argue this is a negative consequence of social media.. that we have become a culture of complainers. Others argue, that is exactly why social media is so popular, we have a chance to voice our complaints in a way that we have never been able to before. I think we just need to take both sides into consideration. Social media gives us the chance to be heard like never before, but constantly negatively complaining without any suggestions or constructive feedback is a waste of our new found voices.
Here are some tips to help..
- Understand Exactly What Your Complaint Is
If you don’t understand your complaint, how can anyone else. Make sure you have conviction in your complaint and that you really feel strongly about whatever it is that you are complaining about. This way you can make sure you are truly dedicated to your complaint, because if you’re complaint is not valid, you will lose other’s attention/interest and therefore get no tangible results. - Examine The Complaint
Underneath every complaint is an idea, feeling, or belief. What about your complaint is conflicting with you? You obviously care or why would you be upset? What expectation is not being met? Why? - Take Personal Responsibility
Take some time and figure out what you are or are not doing to get the change you want. Identify to what degree you have some control in the situation and what you’re doing with it. You should be able to recognizing that in almost every situation, we all have some role in why our complaint is not being recognized. - Problem Solve
Instead of simply just complaining, focus your energy on how the problem can be solved. What is a good resolution? What exactly is the result you would like to see? If you can’t understand what it is exactly that you want, how can you expect to get any results? - Take Action
Instead of just complaining put your solution into action. For example, in Second Life, actively be involved in the changes, become a tester, attend bug triages and office hours, etc. If you still have a valid complaint, then tone it down and be direct. There seems to be some belief that the angrier you are and the more aggressive you are, the better. I’ve never seen any positive resolution come from this. Now that you have a full understanding of your complaint, and some constructive piece of feedback or suggested resolution.. think before you speak. The way you say something will often determine the response you get. It’s best to be logical, factual, real, and direct about what you think and how you feel!
And now I open it up to you…
Have we become a culture of complainers? Why do we complain about (even practically bash) the platforms we love the most? Why is there so much outrage whenever there is the slightest change? Are YOU just going to complain about the way things are or are you going to do something about it?
Great piece! I never thought about it like this. It never occurred to me that this phenomenon we experience within the Second Life community, also exist in these other social communities as well. How loony we all look!
I think you gave great advice and I hope people take it! As they say, you catch more flies with honey..
Only one thing to say.. RIGHT ON!
I just have one complaint…. hehe just kidding! Great post! I LOVE the challenge at the end!
I agree whole-heartedly with what you’ve said here. Although, I am a firm believer in Anonymity + Large Audience = Douche, it is time people stopped being SO destructive en masse. How about some CONSTRUCTIVE criticism on as large a scale!?!?!?!?!?!?
fantastic piece!!! finally someone tackling this issue in a coherent way. really: CAN’t COMPLAIN!!!
Valid, rational complaints regarding Viewer 2.0 are registered daily by Second Life residents that actively participate in the activities you recommend here and they are quite constructive in their criticism, detailing exactly why and how the interface hinders or impairs usability.
To suggest that the majority of the complaints may be invalid because many residents do not attend or participate in the activities and events you mention is drawing a conclusion without verifiable evidence. This would be akin to taking notice of a new resident and making assumptions about their ability and knowledge without knowing anything about their background, education or proficiencies. It is also a bit leaning to suggest that the complaints are simply a matter of aversion to change rather than lack of usability.
Office Hours, Special Meetings and Invitations to Test are rarely given any prominence. Although, I think we can agree that having residents attend and participate in such activities is important. An occasional mass e-mail alerting residents that their input is wanted, needed and greatly appreciated could be sent just as easily as e-mails about shopping and places to visit.
The Viewer 2.0 code is a good, solid improvement. It deserves high praise. The SL Viewer 2.0 interface leaves a great deal to be desired and requires a great deal of work, suggestions, input and revision by all residents. I agree that more residents should become more involved and I think Linden Lab should make it known when, where and how residents can participate in a way that the message actually reaches the residents by sending a detailed mass e-mail or placing a banner on their dashboards right next to their Linden Dollar Balance.
Hi Dirk! Thanks for your comments and suggestions.
In the case of Second Life, I do agree that there are groups and communities of residents that actively participate and provide essential feedback and constructive criticism. Most of the people who participate in these ways rarely complain. That doesn’t mean that they are always happy or pose only positive views of everything. They just express their thoughts in a constructive way that moves whatever feature forward. Grace McDunnough wrote one of the best critique’s of the new viewer and was very critical of the new search/event listings (as she should be). I’m referring more to posts and comments like OMG the New SL Viewer Sucks Balls!!! While this user might raise a few valid points, they are hardly constructive and mixed in a sea of counterproductive, hollow rants, curses, and attacks.
I wasn’t suggesting that complaints are invalid simply because users didn’t attend or participate in certain activities. I was however suggesting that often many complaints are extreme and exaggerated. Every time Linden Lab introduces a new and often requested feature some residents act like the sky is falling. Surely you remember the colossal train wreck and the chaos that ensued when the Lab announced voice and sculpted prims. If you had listened to many bloggers/commenters at that time, you might have believed that the virtual sky was falling and that those features would lead to the end of Second Life. They argued there would be no more anonymity, or builders because of these features. While Second Life may have lost a few builders who refused to learn new technologies, I think we have mostly all adjusted to virtual life with voice and sculpted prims. You can hear many of these same complaints if you look at the conversations surrounding current topics like mesh support.
So, I was implying that since the virtual sky never fell, and virtual live went on, many of these complaints were invalid. You are right to argue that saying those complaints were invalid was drawing too large a conclusion and I would have to agree that it was probably not the best choice of words. I should have opted for exaggerated. Nonetheless, these types of complaints were still (in my opinion) more an aversion to or fear of coming changes, rather than usability.
I agree with most of your thoughts on Viewer 2.0 and that the Lab needs to take a more active role in making sure all residents know how to participate.
Thanks again for the thoughts and suggestions!
Oh, I agree that there are many rants that are overboard, no doubt about that. I don’t think that the issues raised during those rants are null and void because of the rant, but they could certainly be addressed more coherently so we can get to the root of the matter.
There is quite a bit of the interface still broken or misplaced and those things just have to be worked out. You can’t really embrace the changes when the changes aren’t logical. The addition of one or two more steps to complete certain tasks can’t really be seen as anything but a step backwards as far as usability. It is very clear that few residents find the communication tools intuitive or helpful. The inability to view multiple profiles, the increased possibility of missing a message or an item passed to you or the fact that paid classifieds are buried in the resident’s profile rather than having a tab of their own so residents get more value out of the money they pay for classifieds are all quite legitimate complaints, to name just a few. It is important to call those issues out lest we have a weaker tool on our hands rather than a more powerful one.
Agreed.
Although I haven’t got any specific complaints with the new 2.0 viewer, I have to say that I was more than satisfied with the old one. I’m sure that the impetus is different than Adobe’s recent release of a CS-Ad-Infinitum, it seems that every time I get used to a system and it gets stable the new one is imminent.
I loaded 2.0, it caused me a few problems, but it’s still on my computer. I like some of the features but don’t see any great advantage to others. It appears that it will open some new artistic possibilities, but I’m still enjoying stretching the current viewer’s capabilities.
Bottom line is that I won’t switch over to 2.0 full time until either they make me or I get bored with the old one.
Reed’s comment above (“Anonymity + Large Audience…”) is spot on. Most of the whining that I hear is inane and doesn’t deserve much mention. It’s to be expected when people don’t have to back their words up with their face.
Unfortunately that adage is not my own
… I borrowed it from somewhere, but can’t remember from what.
I hate the new Facebook layout, and I hate the new SL 2.0 user interface – even though I love most of its new functionality. Being a highly visual person – my aversion to the layout of the new SL user interface made my choice gravitate towards the old viewer within few minutes of using the 2.0 . That’s that.
I consider myself somewhat of a below-average Facebook user and an above-average Second Life user with constant relapses into it due to the creative potential of it.
From my sparse ability to express myself in an organized manner, I would say that the way users complain about changes is closely connected to the general education of the majority of humans today. Not to say that both platforms are used by ‘uneducated people’, however, a culture of critical thinking and verbal discourse is not something humanity has been pushing forward as disciplines for a good century if not longer (if we don’t count self taught passionate readers of such literature and/or people with experience in Debate – notice I capitalized ‘debate’.) Modern human wants shit his/her way, and by its own beliefs of self-importance it demands it – generally using aggression (in these cases verbal in many other cases of just about any change – using physical aggression)….but anyway -
As far as Facebook is concerned – after the initial annoyance I figured I couldn’t care less. I use Fb less than 20 minutes a week. Second Life, on the other hand I use daily and upon loading 2.0 I nearly had a heart attack because of the unnecessary design where everything is stuck to the right hand side (Imagine how annoying can this be to a left handed person – I can since I am ambidexterous with predominant left- meaning- I like left oriented layouts, from the dinner table to websites, smoking with my left etc…). Icons for buttons instead of text to make it more ‘user friendly’….sorry to tell you but if a person anywhere in the world managed to get to Second Life in the first place I would only hope they’ve already learned words like “map”, “friends” and stuff like that….so the argument of making this user friendly is silly, if you ask me. Also, if I want to use any of the features I like in the viewer – i have to stare at the huge black right hand side BLOB that I cannot move anywhere…and that disgustingly reminds me of IMVU.
I suppose the biggest issue I have with it is that it seems like the Lab is preemptively knitting viewer cozies for some ‘promised customers’ of the prosperous future when the creators of SL are its CURRENT users without whom LL would have nothing but code and server space.
To both platforms – Some times you are right on the money – sometimes you are not…but man……when you are NOT – you really are NOT! haha
Let the stuff EVOLVE by popular votes- work on things people NEED first..(25 groups limit, multiple partnerships, flexi sculpties….WHEN????) ..and put a new black dress on AFTERWARDS. I could care less about being able to hand a website to a friend on a prim – for example – if i want to do that – i copy a link to them in chat.
And so on…..
*passes out*
Hi Eshi! Thanks so much for commenting!
You have some really interesting insight into why people complain.
I think this is probably right on target (at least for some people).
Although there are a lot of things I like about the new viewer, I completely understand your frustration with the right panel. As a left handed person myself, it took me quite some time to get used to, but I’m getting there!
Wonderful read, and great suggestions at the end Gianna!
[...] Culture of complainers? [...]
Viewer 2 in Second Life is a little bit off the mark here because, whilst it was in closed beta and under NDA, people complained about features and were ignored before it went Open beta, at which point, more people complained about those same issues. Viewer 2 was also odd with regards to it coming out of open beta twice!
Dirk makes a good point about informing users about Linden meetings, I was at a meeting last night with six or seven fellow residents and three Lindens, the theme of the meeting was advertising!
[...] Culture of complainers? [...]