Reply to comment

Skip Oceanlane dropped me a note about the WSE taking a month, as of today, for upgrades - so I went over to take a look. I was immediately greeted:

[8:44] Auto Greeter: Hello. Nobody Fugazi Welcome to the WSE. As you all know we are upgrading as part of our launch for the WSE 4.0 platform. This is a huge undertaking and we have now entered a phase of development that requires the WSE to close all trading and transactions for "up to" 30 days. As responsible managers and to ensure stability, security and improved services it is important the WSE fix all existing bugs in the website as part of the upgrade. CEO's will continue normal reporting and announcements during this period. WSE 4.0 includes a new ATM, improved security and functionality along with a new conditional trading system. All WSE Account Holders will earn a bonus 25% p.a. interest during this process. We ask for your patience and apologise for any inconvenience. Kind Regards, LukeConnell Vandeverre

It does seem rather odd that this would happen on the tail of Linden Lab's post, 'Use Caution in Dealing with Third Party L$ Sites', especially with some less than... popular... practices at the WSE. Still, this could be a coincidence.

A visit to the WSE site nets 'IMPORTANT - MARKET CLOSED FOR WSE 4.0 UPGRADE'. Within it, there is some information - and I've condensed the claims into a list:

• The upgrade is claimed to be for 'fixing all bugs' and also a new ATM, improved security and functionality along with a new conditional trading system.
• CEO's will continue normal reporting and announcements during this period.
• All WSE Account Holders will earn a bonus 25% p.a. interest during this process.
• It is supposed to take up to 30 days, but later in the post there is this:
  

  We have also been extremely busy developing the very latest version of the WSE Platform - called WSE 4.0 -, which is progressing well and we expect the new website design, layout, functionality and services should be completed within 45 days.

Basically, any investments in the WSE, for up to the next 45 days, appear to be a loan at 25% per annum loan to WSE. WSE investors are very kind, it seems.

Nobody Note

With so little actual facts coming out of the WSE, and with this unannounced 30-45 day closure the day after Linden Lab posted about 3rd party exchanges, as well as the track record of WSE when it comes to many practices that some consider less than reputable (understatement), this is at the least a poorly timed upgrade.

As someone with experience in updating real time systems, I do not see how the upgrades were not done in a development environment first and then ported to the production system - something that certainly would not take 30 days once the work is done and would be less than inconvenient.

Sometimes the best one can do is identify something by the shadow it casts. This unannounced closure seems to be deep shadow, indeed, because of timing and the manner in which it is being handled. Other exchanges will certainly do better than the WSE over the next 30 days as well, and while WSE has effectively tied up funds of users during this 'upgrade' that comes complete with its own decimal point (so 1990s..), I imagine other stock exchanges in Second Life will be leveraging the WSE's actions against it. As well they should.

As more news of note develops, I'll cover it - but I fully expect it to become even more cloak and dagger over the next 30 days. And for inexperienced software developers - this should highlight the need for a development environment.