Is Philip Rosedale Making a "Love Machine" iPhone App?

On a hill of P Squared Island, the virtual office of Philip Rosedale's new company, is a Google Doc asking visitors to help his start-up fulfill numerous tasks. First spotted by the eagle eye of Dusan Writer, it offers tantalizing hints on the project Philip is now building. Among the requests are "a cool-looking analog voltmeter for a great lovemachine project", and a "sample iPhone app that has a couple buttons and hits a website... We need this app as a framework for a secret project."

At minimum, this strongly suggests Philip Rosedale is making an iPhone app. Putting the two requests together, my guess is it's a Love Machine app.

The original Love Machine, as longtime NWN readers know, is an internal Linden company system for bestowing and receiving praise among team members, which is not only a fun thumbs-up, but also has the managerial benefit of aggregating and tracking employee performance. It's a non-hierarchical organizing system that Philip was passionate about, and as Linden CEO Mark Kingdon told me, it's still in use today.

"Think about it," Kingdon said last year. "Most companies are focused on negative reinforcement, not positive reinforcement, and this is a company that focuses on positive reinforcement, and you can see it in the culture... I think you get a lot more innovation when you create a safe environment where people aren't afraid to think and push the envelope."

So imagine an iPhone app which can take the Love Machine idea out of Linden and into the world at large, enabling you to give positive feedback to your friends, or even people you randomly met. It's easy for me to see this as the project that Philip left Linden Lab to make, something as he says "depends on Second Life existing to get started, and that I have been thinking about almost as long as I've been thinking about Second Life."

Of course, the requests on P Squared island may include some misdirection. (I sent Philip an email asking after my hypothesis, but up to now have received no reply.) See for yourself, and come up with your own theories: SLurl teleport at this link.

Curiously, another P Squared request is a cool San Francisco bar, where Philip's nascent company can meet. I'd suggest Medjool in the Mission district, since it has a lot of space, a great rooftop bar, and close proximity to numerous taquerias, which will help fulfill another request: get Ryan Downe a steak burrito. (Ryan's one of Lindens' very first employees, apparently working with Philip on this new mission, and as the Google Doc says, "Man likes his burritos.")

Comments

[Liz Dorland (Chimera Cosmos)]

Maybe, but it seriously needs new name. Seriously. :-)

Chimera Cosmos

[Arcadia Codesmith]

Ummmm... I hate to admit it, but when somebody mentions "analog voltmeter" in the same sentence as "love machine", social networking is not where my mind goes, unless we're talking about a very... exclusive type of network.

[Lalo Telling]

*chuckles at Arcadia*

Yeah, me too... followed quickly by a segment of Woody Allen's Sleeper.

But, maybe Philip has been listening to James Brown, and feels an urgency to "get on the scene..."

[Dale Innis]

Hahaha. Just as likely that that placard is misdirection or a practical joke. The whole region seems like some tongue-in-cheek in-joke. I mean, Philip with a completely PIRL house containing nothing remotely interesting, and a job board containing assignments that could be easily handled with a little googling and a CC number? Can't be real. What's "p squared" stand for, anyway? "Pseudo-Phil"? "Philip Parody"? :)

[Anon]

I am with DALE on this one. Nearly borke the edit wand at Rosedale's sim looking at every prim in the place, hoping to find anything worthy. Nothing. I never saw a new build so completely void of any talent.

In fact, to achieve this effect, across the board, seems intentional rather than a lack of taste. How can the founder of SL ignore the quality content in his own world? Sickening to see it. I'd suggest avoiding any trips over there.

Phillip's new venture falls into the category of "who cares?" Evidentally Hamlet does, but after I saw that "office", I sure don't. I am deeply offended, and feel weirdly betrayed.

[Dazz Anvil]

Hard to believe such an unassuming place as this - open studs, old wooden desk, no paint on the walls - such humble beginnings spawned a revolution in the retail industry and grew to be the largest retail chain the world has ever seen...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bigpru/207673914/

[Adeon Writer]

@anon "Nearly borke the edit wand at Rosedale's sim looking at every prim in the place, hoping to find anything worthy. Nothing. I never saw a new build so completely void of any talent."

Well, you have seen Philip's own avatar, right? It should serve as a statement in itself. :) You can't call the guy uncreative.