Disclaimer

Andromeda 3D is a blog for many things, but most of all it is an ongoing mental exercise into the art of playing Devil's Advocate.

As the author of this blog, I am not necessarily interested in writing about your point of view and sometimes not even my own. Instead, I write for the premise of exploring and expanding our collective view on various situations in and out of the virtual environment industry. It is a raw stream of consciousness, and I rarely polish the final output like you would see on "professional" blogging sites.

I've always believed that in order to really understand a situation, we have to be willing to leave our collective comfort zones and explore the things we'd rather not acknowledge. We must be willing to look at the other side of the coin, and play Devil's advocate in order that we can lay to rest situations and scenarios that may be unfavorable in the bigger picture. When we are most comfortable assuming something is impossible, I'm usually the one asking how it would be possible.

Because of this underlying approach, keep in mind that not everything I write on this blog is actually my personal view on things, and often I am writing as an exercise of being a Devil's Advocate. This sort of approach is likely to aggravate you, it is likely to rub you the wrong way, and it is likely to make a lot of people angry sometimes with my audacity, and I make no apology for this. This blog is often a public exploration into the topics you don't want to acknowledge, because often I'll come to the conclusion that we're all collectively idiots for following mob mentality.

To me, nothing is off the table for discussion or consideration until it can be solidly proven to be off that table. This will likely create a very uncomfortable read sometimes, as I explore some points that are not popular, or intentionally write things that I know will cause a lot of drama or debate. Other times, you'll find interesting or insightful articles about technologies or approaches which (even by my thinking) could be reaching into the complete realm of insanity.

I like to explore those outer boundaries a lot because it comes with the territory of looking at the future and all the possibilities that may come of it.

Overall, I tend to actually be neutral.

Even if what I'm writing is critical of companies, other people, or even if I am celebrating them, keep in mind that I'm pointing those things out to satisfy the underlying premise of this blog. I'm not necessarily for or against Second Life, Linden Lab, or any other company, person or technology. On the same note, I'm not aggressively an ass-kisser either.

When there is widespread praise in the community, you'll find me acting as the opposing balance and finding reasons to criticize and pick it apart. When the community is criticizing to no end, you'll find me writing about all the reasons it's not as bad and maybe even brilliant. It's far too easy to join the crowd thinking mentality because that path does not require you to actually think, but instead just go with the flow. As for myself, I like to champion the underdog whenever possible - unless the underdog is rabid and foaming at the mouth...

For proof of this, simply look at my posts about Viewer 2 and how awesome it is, while being critical of the community for whining about it. On the same note, we see the opposite when so many are praising Rodvik Humble and Linden Lab.

This blog is simply the glimpse into a parallel reality, a look into the near future. It's all just a matter of probability, and I explore those probabilities frequently.

1. This blog is Creative Commons - Attribution. There's a link at the bottom with more information. Pretty much, that means you are free to share, repost, and include the material in part or in whole anywhere you would like, just as long as you give proper credit. It also means you cannot charge for access to that content. I don't mind the free exchange of knowledge and ideas, as long as you aren't making a buck off of me.

2. Comments are Moderated. I love discussion, and I completely encourage you to engage in the comments intelligently. Keep it respectful and mature. The purpose of the discussion is to explore all facets of a situation in an intelligent manner. If you keep it civilized and at least make an attempt to use your brain before commenting, you'll likely get your comments posted. If you insist on making an ass out of yourself in public, however, I just might publish your comment anyway for the sole purpose of humiliation. I'm easily amused sometimes.

2b. "Unknown" comments are completely at my mercy. Tread lightly. Have the kahones to back what you're saying instead of hiding. If you can't stand by your words publicly, you deserve no respect from me. Especially when you're making an ass out of yourself. If you're being intelligent and respectful, I just might let the "Unknown" comment through. That being said, comments from people who are at least willing to stand behind their words are far more likely to be published on this blog.

3. I'm Intelligent. Seriously intelligent. This isn't a declaration of ego, it's a reminder that what I'm writing isn't geared toward the short little sound-bite you're used to. I don't write for attention deficit disorder - period. What I'm writing is the sort of deep discussion material that warrants an hour of your time and a few cups of coffee. I'm also a hardcore INTJ personality type, which really should be all the explanation you need. On the same note:

4. Don't take my writing as gospel. I spend a lot of time intentionally writing things that are simply based on probability. That doesn't mean I'm writing from the standpoint of being set in stone. I also write things for the pure point of sociological impact - as in: the community reaction is the point I'm making, not the actual article. If you're suddenly feeling the urge to burn me at the stake and tell me what an evil person I am, chances are this was the point. I'm pissing you off on purpose to hopefully get you back to a balanced view.

5. Unorthodox Thinking - If you aren't the sort of person that enjoys mental exercise and deep thinking, even fringe thinking, you're probably not in the right place. You need a fashion blog or icanhazcheeseburger.com for the attention span you're looking for. I enjoy being the champion of things most people assume are impossible, and I like to ask the obvious "Let us assume it's not. How would we go about making this happen theoretically?"

6. My mind is unpredictable - Please understand that you really have no idea what I'm thinking or why I'm writing what I am writing in this blog. Sometimes it's face value, other times it is relational to other topics, and other times I'm dragging out a worst case scenario in order to fully understand the best case scenario or find the middle ground. I may also just be exploring a far fetched possibility that escapes an answer, or I could simply be mimicking the community (you) with my attitudes in order to hold a mirror up and show you how brilliant or absurd you are being. This blog carries (quite often) a heavy dose of sarcasm and poker-face wit. I merely assume that you are capable of discerning what is going on here for yourself.

7. Digerati - I base my respect for people on whether they actually have earned it and deserve it. It's not a privilege to hang out with you or be your friend. You either earn the respect or you don't, but I'm not the one to give it to you on a silver platter unearned. If I happen to hang out with some of the cool kids, so be it - they've earned my respect. Likewise, I don't believe it's a privilege to hang out with me or chat. I'm usually wide open for chatting in Skype or in-world Second Life.

8. I'm down to Earth - Despite the academic and research stuff I deal with, and despite the really awesome people I get to hang out with, I'm still pretty down to Earth. I choose to be approachable whenever possible, despite being a "Digerati".

9. Zero Tolerance - I can hold my own, and you don't want to see me when I stop trying to be nice. Don't come looking for a fight.

9b. Wikipedia is not a reference. Regurgitating Wikipedia articles does not make you an expert in anything. The reason High School and College look down upon students that cite Wikipedia as a source is because those students weren't intelligent enough to look at the sources that Wikipedia cited (at the bottom) and cite the same sources - you know, the actual academic sources that matter. Likewise, pretending to be an authority on a topic because you've read the Wikipedia article about it almost guarantees you won't have your comment posted here. 


9c. Be Civilized: The moment you start slinging disrespectful comments, personal attacks, or generally acting in a manner specifically meant to antagonize others, you're out. This is a blog for intelligent adults to discuss important things, if you're looking for drama and low-brow conversation, that's why Prok has a blog. Go hang out in the kiddie pool until you grow up.


9d. The first question is Why: Any claim you make in a comment, automatically follows with me asking "Why?". Assume this at all times and preemptively answer that question in your comment when making statements. If you make statements, back them up with something tangible because I am interested in knowing "Why" something is as you state it is.

9e. Logical Fallacies: Do not use logical fallacies when posting a statement or making an argument. For your benefit, read more here: Thou Shalt Not commit Logical Fallacies

10. When in doubt - Ask. If you believe I'm angry, pissed off, or you aren't certain how to take a particular comment of mine, then it is in your best interest to ask me for clarification instead of making assumptions. Most of the time I'm neutral and just making an intellectual debate as Devil's Advocate. This is why I've given you fair warning about me being an INTJ personality type in advance.

Finally: Regardless of anything above, the final decision for anything concerning this blog is mine alone. Never assume I owe you anything - you're in my space, and I welcome you until I decide it's time for you to go home. 

It's that simple.