Having been around for more than two years around Second Life, I cannot believe that Linden Lab has not answered a basic need if it wants to establish its grid as "the" virtual life grid for the future.
That's cleaning up the mess it has always created with last names.
Currently, there are no clearly established policies to manage creation and closing of names. They suddenly appear and disappear from the menus when people sign up. Worse: when you sign up, you only get a restricted selection of names among the active ones. Someone who reloads the signup page gets a new selection.
When I say this, keep in mind that most people who create their first account do not have a clue of how important their name is. They can wonder why they can never get the first name they like with their favorite last name. Many will turn to the solution of adding numbers to their names. Imagine how cute my name was it if were Alesia6 Schumann...
Obstacles like these force users to create a second account later on... and redo everything from scratch, especially by purchasing a second time the "no transfer" items they already owned! The policy of other grids, which often let people create just any name they want, is more attractive.
What is especially frustrating is that LL seems to care more to sell "vanity" last names such as Armidi and SunMicrosystems because they have established a clear program. Of course, money talks more than long-term thinking here.
Linden Lab shoots itself in the foot by focusing on short-term revenue instead of vision. The technology graveyard is full of companies that established early market dominance but failed because either lack of vision, focus on details or strategic weaknesses. Ask the good folks who managed IBM, Netscape and AOL. They, too, thought they were there for the long haul.
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