Wili Clip

I am a programmer myself and I can say that it is not like that. It would not have taken them more work. If they took it out completely they would make even more damage than good. Lowering its significance for example to 50% or if they did it even lower while adding more other metrics for tracking activity is ok... but if they lowered significance they should still keep tweaking it to find the optimal balance. The problem of bots gaming the traffic will never go away. It needs to be dealt with systematically. Again can you imagine what would happen with Google company (search engine division) if they just said because people are "somehow" inflating the fake visitors amount on their websites we are now going to take the visitors/traffic out of our search algorithm and make it irrelevant for search how popular the websites actually are.

Traffic is not worthless. They may have lowered its significance and with that possibly made search engine even less efficient but it is still one of the important factors. My opinion is that in order to increase search efficiency they should increase land traffic relevance more but at the same time work actively against bot traffic manipulation. Empty lands don't work. Second Life is about communities & SL search should reflect that if it is to be efficient at its purpose. I still get more clients for my business when I get more traffic on my land. I've been measuring it. Can you imagine what would happen with Google company (search engine division) if they just said because people are "somehow" inflating the fake visitors amount on their websites we are now going to take the visitors/traffic out of our search algorithm and make it irrelevant for search how popular the websites actually are.

The question is not if it does affect or it doesn't affect it or in what % in their new algorithm. Fact is that traffic is one of the most important metrics and even if you lower its influence in the search ranking algorithm this is not necessary going to improve search functionality it can even make it less useful. Search algorithm keep needs to be tweaked but in a way that solves the problem of people finding empty lands on top search results as that is the worst thing. The traffic is still relevant and completely taking traffic out of the equation or making it irrelevant would not solve and improve anything. The problem with bots traffic gaming needs to be actively dealt with (its never going to go away) and taking traffic metric out of search ranking algorithms would not be a viable solution. In business that is called to dumbsize. To reduce the number of employees in a business without regard to organizational efficiency, such that its operations become unprofitable or inefficient. In the case of taking land traffic out of search engine or making it less relevant that leads towards lower efficiency of the search functionality. I deal with systems where people make money with it and they are always trying to game it (cheat). If I for example lowered the amount of money they could earn with it just to have less people trying to cheat that would lead towards less people using it. There needs to be set of rules and active policing.

Do you think that Google search algorithm doesn't treat website visitors as an useful metric? Its one of the most useful metrics possible. It is implemented by tik tok trending algorithms (views & likes & comments) as well. A good search system is based on pointing system and traffic/visitors/visit length and many others are very important components the pointing or scoring system can be based on.

If its has been recently. Do you have a link maybe or know where? Thank you \O.. O/

I would also like to point out that because some people are successfully gaming the traffic stats with bots that forces other people who would otherwise not do it into doing it too. So if you don't fight the problem the problem persists and just keeps growing bigger and creates market wide dysfunctions.

Last time I was using SL viewer search to try to find some sims with vibrant communities and when I TP-ed to lands appeared as the top search results I found lands with no people on them or just bots. I always look to tp to lands that on search listing appear on top and with highest traffic number in hope to find people to meet and to talk to. I believe its same case for everyone else. We're in SL mostly to interact with other people while sharing same 3D space/environment. 3D worlds that are empty (SANSAR) fail. In my opinion SL search is highly dysfunctional and it is not really serving its purpose. I also think general SL community and everyone who cares for Second Life should keep putting this topic in focus. Let me give a simple example how its indirectly hurting Second Life's growth potential. A new SL Resident uses SL search to try to find a land with community of interest to him. He gets search results clicks and teleports to a few lands and finds all lands empty and no people to interact with. Closes the SL viewer and never uses it again. I think it is very bad for Second Life that its very hard to find lands through SL search who have genuine real human traffic and communities. It hurts SL. Bots traffic manipulation is the biggest reason why SL search doesn't really work and can not serve its main function of connecting individual with communities based on keywords of interest. I think if LL appointed at least 1 employee or just even 1 - 2 work hours a day for someone to be checking if there are bots (bot traffic gaming) going on in the TOP 10 listed lands on search it would considerably improve the SL search user experience (no matter what kind of algorithm is employed as long as its based on trying to showcase genuine foot traffic - where most people hang out). (If the problem is money - it can be solved by organizing willing and caring participants from SL community to do that in similar fashion as SL moles are organized). I always liked to take perspective of Second Life as sort of 3D internet and SL lands/sims as websites. In Second Life you want to be able to find communities that you would like to take part in. It needs to be easy, fast and convenient. If new people coming to SL can fast find communities that they can get integrated in that also contributes helping to solve the player/user retention rate (a problem LL management should in my opinion always keep highest on list of priorities). Just imagine if Google search was listing websites who artificially inflate their visitors numbers with bots. How fast do you think Google would loose their search engine market share against others who focus on preventing that? In early days Google managed to become the most successful search engine company because Larry Page and Sergey Bring managed to come up with a website ranking algorithm (I think its also based on points / score) that helps highest value information providing websites be ranked higher per keyword. Google and other search engines improved what most people understand under "internet" and search engines became synonym with internet while internet as TCP/IP and many other protocols is much more than that. So to improve Second Life in the perspective that it can be seen as sort of 3D web where the main goal is to connect people with various interests with communities of their interest. There are so many communities in Second Life - it is amazing. The sad thing is that many of those communities are not represented. Many communities could be bigger and stronger if Linden Lab can improve tech for people find them more easily. Second Life is not all about the community. Second Life is all about communities. There are many! Top SL destinations and special editor picks in my opinion are also unfair and any system that depends on being featured land on landowners own submission (but that is a topic for a whole new topic and discussion). Hope my topic that I am opening can lead towards a positive, healthy and productive discussion. Linden Lab is an OK company and the people working in this company and even the owners are constantly changing. But there is 1 thing that is always staying and that is us the users. As users we shouldn't vilify the company just because it isn't doing something that we think or consider should be done or did mistakes in past. Lets try as a community to gently push them in the right direction. Be positive always. I always say positivity is a constructive force while negativity is destructive force. SL is full of dreamers and builders. If we want to build and grow we need to be positive. \O.. O/

I had similar thing happened to me when the last stock exchange game in SL went down due to its owner going to jail and there were 2 or 3 individuals who tried to extort me for money they sent me email that if I don't pay them off they will spread lies about me and destroy my reputation. So they started posting on online forums that had high google search ranks making claims that I stole a lot of money from a lot of people and that I am a scammer. It was up there google indexed for years and I am not sure if it still isn't. Those blackmailers even contacted police in my country. I went to police station to explain about it. Such an activity is a cyber crime I just didn't decide to press charges at that time because I prefer to spend my energy more productively and the main perpetrator was from Australia it would be a long process. But I will definitely do it in the future if ever anyone does something like that to me. Will prosecute them to full extent. Yes that is a very valid reason why someone would want to keep their online identity anonymous.

I can see why ^-^ you people like to get in conflicts and confrontations. I guess its to make spending time in here more interesting. Thank you too for the experience. All the best to you all \O.. O/ (this is not passive aggressiveness - I really mean it)

I am sorry if you don't like my way of communicating with people and that you falsely believe or want to portray that I am being passive aggressive or gaslightning anyone... Everyone is different and everyone communicates differently. I usually don't hang out around forums so this is just my style of communication. You really have some extreme ways of soothing yourself watching scratching forks against the plate sounds. 😁

Rowan, do you mind if I take your other people's assumptions that you use SL for nefarious reasons? That's my only reason for being in here. Thanks in advance! There is no need to defend anything. No one is taking or talking about taking any ones rights whatsoever. \O.. O/

Hi Bitterthorn \O.. O/ I am sorry if you view it as a drama. I am not looking for "love" or approval on a public forum like is probably the case with some. My other thread is a very serious one and my intentions are real and points I made valid if anyone cares to read them instead of reactions. I don't understand what is your point you wanted to make. If you don't interact with me in person in RL does that mean that you can afford yourself to treat me different than you would if we were for example working in the same office? So you are going to view someone how the public perceives them instead of how that someone really is? When you read yellow press you base your opinions about someone on what you read in there just because wider public believes it or because that is the perception? In my previous thread I talk about things that are unimaginable to some people. When electricity was introduced for the 1st time the people were adverse to it. It is normal. I accept the world the way it is. My self perception and value is not hurt if people are adverse to me or my ideas. I base my self value and self respect on measurable achievements not on what people on forum think about me.

No Silent Mistwalker \O.. O/ I even wrote: If you're not hiding behind your avatar and don't feel a need is fine - you can even post a comment about it how you're not hiding but at least be respectful an mindful of other people around you. I only ask for some politeness, courteousy and mutual respect. Some minimal standards of discussion. But I accept the reality if that is not possible to have with some people because its after all a public forum. I can only control my own behavior and how I treat other people which I always do with respect and in a friendly manner even if we have different views or opinions on things. \O.. O/

Thank you for describing how and what for you use SL. I agree with you Lewis that no one should assume those things. I don't think nor assume you or anyone that doesn't share more of their RL in SL are hiding something. I already explained in my clarification that those people who I was addressing with why are we hiding behind our avatar are not going to post comments but they still read the topic and many can find it useful. Some people's natural inclination is to be negative or confrontational so they are trying to change my topic into an argument that needs to be argued. I am sorry topic has been taken that way. It is out of my hand how people perceive it or portray it to others. I believe I did clarify in an understandable way what my intention of the topic was for those that read the 1st page of comments \O.. O/ *Hi5* Lewis

Go back and re-read your original post. While I only quoted that one line, the entire post is making assumptions about how others use SL. You truly did project your experiences onto the rest of the Residents in SL. Lets try to be realistic. Millions of people have used Second Life. All the people are very different and they experience world through their own personal circumstances and based on expectations from their past experiences. If I start a topic with title: Why are we hiding behind our avatars... This does not imply that I am making a claim that everyone is hiding behind their avatar. Reality is that 2 different people can read the same text and derive different meaning from it. You are pushing your own narrative and you're trying to force it against the original author of the message. Only original author really knows what message he wanted to send out or what he was writing about and what the intention of it was. I have even further clarified what my intention of the post was. I don't understand. Is it going to hurt your ego if your narrative is not accepted? And lets say that the most people reading the forum follow your narrative. Is it going to make you feel good and boost your ego? Maybe pick a different bone or why pick a bone with me all? I am not confrontational with you. I don't have anything against you or have any negative feelings towards you. I don't even know you. If you can not believe my word for what my intention of a forum post that I made was then that is your problem. I wish you all well and thank you for experience to learn about some things.

You are welcome to comment and post. It is a public forum but didn't you say you're out of the topic?

You seem to be obsessed with dissecting and criticizing and putting a lot of energy in trying to shape the public opinion your own way. You're really trying to push a narrative like as if I said and complained about why is everyone hiding behind their avatar. I am always saying why are we (addressing a specific segment of people).

You're taking this 1 last sentence/question out of the context and wrapping it into your own narrative. You have to put it in perspective of the whole post and especially the title.

Don't let the door hit you in your back on your way out \🙂/ In realty the people who the topic is not addressing them specifically shouldn't even post comments. There are a lot of people in SL that hide behind their avi for various reasons. From that specific segment of SL users I am interested to hear why and what their reasons are. If you're not hiding behind your avatar and don't feel a need is fine - you can even post a comment about it how you're not hiding but at least be respectful an mindful of other people around you.

I don't understand why some people always have to make everything about themselves. If you're not one of the people who hide or feel like they need to hide behind their avi then this topic was not addressing you. But you make it appear through your words that its addressing you and that someone wants you to change how you use your SL.

I am really only trying to address the people who have a feeling that they spent too much of their life in Second Life and in real life they didn't manage to progress so much. I am not trying to impose my belief system on anyone. I don't know why some people are trying to make it appear like I am wanting to do that. My own belief system is very flexible as I am constantly learning about the world through interaction with other people, communities and experience of the world and environments. If I was really trying to impose my own belief system onto others the name of the topic would be (Why is everyone hiding behind AVATAR). And it is not. It is (Why are we hiding behind our AVATARS). I am addressing a segment of people not everyone. Hope this clarifies some things. \O.. O/

Isn't this the same reason why we love real life? It just takes more effort to do whatever you want and to be/become whatever you want. I have a little son whose imaginary world is very vivid and in his circumstances he can be whatever he wants and do whatever he wants (with limitations of parental guidance ofcourse). Currently he is a super hero 😁. Playing with him reminded me and even taught me that when we are older we can still in RL do whatever we want and become whatever we want. The only difference is that we as we get older learned to limit ourselves because we molded ourselves in fixed roles. We adopted certain belief system of what we are capable of or not capable of and what our limits are. The worst thing is when you let yourself get trapped in belief system of others or let yourself be influenced by others and especially if those people are negative or have negative view of the world. What I am learning from my little 5 years son is that if I want to progress in life I need to learn to unlearn things about myself. For that I always try to find ways to push myself out of comfort zone. Its easier for little kids to do that through playing because the neuroplasticity of their brain is higher. But I am learning from neuroscience that as we get older we can still change, we just need to deliberately focus on things that we want to change about ourselves and create new behavior patterns. Therefore I'd like as many people as possible to know that if they are currently in a bad situation that they can start making steps to start again progressing in their life and take up on challenges.

Pretty much the answer to any questions you have for anyone here So why did you even ask? The way our brain works and when we're immersed in life and daily stresses it is easy to forget why are we alive, what do we want in our lives and what for are we even living... I have to keep remind myself on a daily basis to not live for the future and not live in the past but to live in the now. For example I have to keep remind myself that one day I will die and this motivates me to try to do something out of my life.

I bring my RL personality into SL but keep my SL out of my RL. Pretty simple. So you bring a piece of your RL in form of your personality because that is what you're comfortable with to limit yourself at that. Thank you. I think many use SL in similar way as do.

I've given my reasons why I no longer feel a need to keep my RL separate. I am interested what are the reasons of other people and I am also addressing those people who my reasons can help them to do the same (if they don't have reasons to hide) and be able to connect better and on a higher quality level with other people.