Oh. Wow.
Really? Accusing your userbase--which is already unhappy with your product (not you)--of being out to get you. We're not "out to get you." We're not hating for the sake of hating. We're dissatisifed with what you, and the rest of your team, are producing. When you cite, very clearly, something the users have a problem with, and lend your support to it, they're going to be annoyed. When you make a post trying to justify this point, it's not going to convince anyone. When you make another post calling everyone a bunch of big meanie heads, well...
In regards to wanting us to listen to you, and not be condescending... We are listening to you, and we don't like what you're saying. Our fate's much more directly in your hands, despite the fact that your paychecks come (indirectly) from all of us. Your initial tone wasn't inviting a "nuanced, open discussion." You were taking the high ground and adopting a defensive tone, which is just asking for it. You've all been treating us like low-class peasants who shouldn't know better. How dare we revolt? It's the very definition of condecension.
An "open" discussion would imply that you might listen to all points of view. I'm sorry the points of view seem to be, almost universally, in opposition to you, but this may indicate how out-of-touch you and the rest of the Lindens are at this point.
We're listening, and we're engaging. Are you?
On another note. You said one option would be to...
Make an interface that covers all use cases. This is the hardest of all, requiring real understanding and design, but is usually the right answer.
It's hard. This means it probably won't happen.
Real understanding already seems to be out the window, as indicated by, well, this entire blog post and the response I'm replying to.
Design? Yeah. Everything to do with LL currently looks like the wet dreams of a bunch of DeVry students and café culture fetishists, but I don't think most of the users sit around with a Starbucks cup in one hand and a Macbook perfectly balanced on one knee while they use Second Life. And if they do, they're probably happy with Viewer 2. They don't want functionality, just flash and "Dazzle." Yes, we remember the Dazzle project (the one thing LL reversed after we yelled enough), and it seems this viewer has been its revenge.