Michael Linden, Long-Lasting Employee Now Leaving Linden Lab, Had the Best Idea for a New Linden Lab Office EVER (Updated)

Michael Blum, known for a well over a decade by Second Life users by his avatar name "Michael Linden", left Linden Lab last week. Word of this is starting to matriculate to the shocked and saddened SL community, because Michael has been a customer-facing employee for nearly 14 years - starting in tech support and going on to become manager of the Linden Department of Public Works -- busy creators of virtual civic spaces, whose avatars (like his own) often looked like moles. (SL blogger Daniel Voyager has a good career summary here.)

Reasons for his departure haven't been disclosed, but Michael tells me he plans to remain a member of the Second Life community: "Oh, I'll be busier in SL on my alt account," as he put it. "Be nice to the Moles!"

Michael joined Linden Lab shortly after I started my 3 year stint as official embedded journalist in 2003 -- a sweet, gentle giant of a man with a basso profundo voice that would boom through the office just about any time he talked, with a habit of coming to work dressed in 19th century, steampunk-inflected finery. (As Yoz Linden's photo here will attest.)

Among fellow Linden Lab alumni, Michael is particularly famous for his incredible proposal a new office for the company, when the startup was looking for a larger space. SLers who know Michael for his public works projects will love this:

A ferry boat. Yes: In 2005 or so, he stood up in front of the entire company with diagrams and maps and laid out plans for moving the entire Linden Lab operation onto a discontinued ferry boat, which would be docked somewhere in a Bay Area harbor. This wasn't just some vague, fanciful idea -- no, Michael had even found a specific ferry boat or two which could be purchased (I believe from a Seattle-based ferry operation), and had also thought through the logistics of connecting our servers and computers from the ship to the land.

"And then when we want to have company parties," he added, "we can undock, and have it in the Bay!"

Everyone at Linden Lab, of course, fricking loved the idea. Not sure why it didn't happen, but I guess the office they ultimately chose was pretty cool. No doubt Michael will have equally grand dreams wherever he goes next.

Update, 2:45pm: Michael just gave me more backstory on The Ferry Pitch:

"Philip Rosedale had mused a few months before about his dream of having an office on a boat; 'but of course that's impossible' (or words to that effect). The ferry pitch was to prove that it was possible, and cheaper in the short term than owning an office in SF. However, insurance, drydocking, etc. would make it pretty expensive as time went by. The ferry was on the east coast of Canada, but we found rates for towing, etc."

Mole avatar pic courtesy Michael 

Comments

[sirhc deSantis]

Radio North Sea International Radio Caroline and yep was listening when the Mi Amigo went... love it :)

You know the tech has moved on so maybe;)

[Blue]

Michael was the Tao of Linden personified.

[FlipperPA]

Best of luck to Michael in his future endeavors. He was always a nice, friendly, patient fellow, with a sly sense of humor as well.

[Pathfinder]

I remember the ferry plan. I even saved the details ;)

-----------------------------

(SL-14786) The Ship Option: Floating Office Space for Linden Lab

FERRY BOAT OFFICE SPACE

Vessel Type RO-RO passenger vehicle ferry, MV "Northern Princess"
Date Built 1966 (Re-built in 1990)
Builders Canadian Vickers Shipyards Ltd.
Flag Canadian
Classification Beureau Veritas 13/3 E+
Roll on Roll Off
Passenger Ferry Coastal Waters
Ice Class 1A
Length Overall 68.6m (225')
Length Between Perpendiculars 62.5m (205')
Breadth Extreme 13.41m (46',2.5")
Depth Moulded 4.95m (16'3")
Frame Spacing 0.61m (2')
Gross Tonnage 2558 Tonnes
Service Speed 13 Knots
Passenger Capactiy 300 Persons
Vehicle Capacity 55 Car Units
Draft 4m (13.2')

LAST DRY DOCKING -- JANUARY 2000

MACHINERY

Propulsion Machinery 1 Turbocharged diesel 9 cylinder

British Polar MN19S developing 2475 BHP at 335 RPM turning a fixed pitch
propellor
Auxiliary Generators 2 x 125 KW generators driven by a D342 caterpillar

1 x 125 KW generator driven by a 3306 caterpillar (installed new in 1999)

1 x 125 KW emergency generator driven by a D342 caterpillar
Bowthruster 1 Tunnel bowthruster driven Cummins KT 1150-H, 365HP (installed
in 1984)
Stern Thruster 1 Omnithruster capable of thrusting ahead, astern, and
laterally (port and starboard) driven by a Cummins KTA 19M 450HP (installed
1989)
------------------------
VEHICLE DECK PARTICULARS

Head Clearance
High End Center - 15'1"
Side - 14'8"
Low End Throughout - 11'3"
Length 200'
[about 15000 sq ft]
---------------------
PASSENGER DECK PARTICULARS

Forward Lounge Seats -120
Mens and ladies washroom
Wheelchair accessible washroom
Chair lift installed in forward staircase
After Lounge Seats - 86
Mens and Ladies washrooms
Elevator - 627kg lift
Midships Restaurant with seating for 29 persons

[Aft office space, 2025 sq ft; mid office/dining space, 2700 sq ft; forward office space, 1800 sq ft = 6525 sq ft]

------------------------
TANK CAPACITIES

Fuel Oil 61.5 Long tons
Fresh Water 25 Long tons
Water Ballast 221.62 Long tons
Lube Oil 3.38 Long tons

PRICE: now down to as low as $385,000

Dockage fees for long-term docking are negotiated on an individual basis; but the short-term rate would come out to $6843.75 per month. The Port of San Francisco fee sheet at http://pctb.com/posf.pdf would seem to indicate we could expect at least a 50% reduction in "rent" compared to short-term dockage, so say $3400 per month. "Pipe Line Charges" are $157.50 per month for each group of 3 pipes going aboard the vessel. Water, sewage, garbage, and electrical hook-up costs would probably be in line with regular "land" costs. Ship is located on the east coast of Canada.

The "owners" web page is http://www.ferryforsale.ca/

The best-deal broker is at http://shipexpo.com/sales/vessel_detail.asp?FileNo=1599

NEW LOW PRICE!

"Asking price was $2 million reduced to $850,000.......ALL OFFERS CONSIDERED
Try offers @ $385,000 to test."

[Michael Blum]

I think the ferry was eventually sold for service in the West Indies. The Lab missed a great bargain!

[Ginger Henderson]

Michael has done many great content all around SL and will be missed. Wish him the best in all he does.

[Avi Arrow]

There is simply too much to say. Among a zillion other things, Michael, thank you for Blumfield/West Haven, the pinnacle of all the Linden developments, and the best place for piling into Torley's Mini Moke with neighbors and friends and going for a drive. Thanks for the memories!

[Cynianne Hellershanks]

Michael Linden was a terrible initiation to LL. He was hired as and axe man, and he did that. He transferred the work from home concierge to a phone room. the phone room people knew nothing, we had to educate them. Additionally, he put a lot of stay at home moms and disabled people out of work. Plus, he created the teen world. The teens had always been there, just using their big brother's id. It was needed to take care of our estate user platform that we could control the age of user on adult regions, but that had always been. He fired experienced people working from home who needed a job and turned it into a phone room who didn't know diddly. We built him a grave in our graveyard with a permanent thunderstorm over it.