Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

cnbc.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

211–220 of 619 posts

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#211

Post by haunter »

unity1001 wrote: post #205
haunter wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>What people want is an escape from reality. I still don't understand what's the difference between MMOs and Metaverse. Like it's on mobile? That's all? Peak WoW _was_ a social network something Zuck is dreaming about (and that's while you also have to pay a monthly sub). I've read around and some people say that the difference people can _create content_ in Metaverse but... sandbox MMOs are also a thing for a long t…

> I still don't understand what's the difference between MMOs and Metaverse Lack of mundane grinding for exp, rep and mats?

>Lack of mundane grinding

Auto/afk [anything] is a staple in lot of mobile MMOs. Like auto-battle, auto-questing etc. Yeah I don't know why would you even "play" at that point but then again those games are insanely popular. Kinda like "gamifying a game" if that make sense.

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#212

Post by ethbr0 »

ynx wrote: post #180
frisco wrote: post #25

I increasingly believe that Facebook’s pivot to Meta will end up going down as one of the biggest misses in the history of business. The metaverse is a real idea yes - but strapping a phone to your face and walking through your coffee table isn’t it. Especially not with a mediocre centralized FB owned “virtual world” where they inflict heavy taxes and content moderation. Facebook has neglected its core businesses for…

My money is on this comment aging poorly. Not because there shouldn't be legitimate concerns about VR, but because it's pointing to Facebook execution fail as the only thing that matters to the success of the metaverse, and it's expecting that the timeline should have been further along by now. Facebook has always built mediocre products. Its strength is in acquiring or copying good ones, and then jacking the interna…

I'd also point out that a huge number of disruptive technologies that succeeded where other had failed did so because of... content.

It's effectively impossible to buy sufficient content to meet AAA platform expectations these days. Because you're competing against incredibly competent, experienced, and well-stocked legacy alternatives.

Consequently, either (a) "upgrading" an existing deep pool of legacy content (Google search, iPhone/web) or (b) turning every user into a content producer (Facebook, TikTok) have very good chances of success.

And finally, to call out a fundamental blind spot: if Facebook doesn't lose, they win.

Everyone pretends Facebook needs to win the VR market. They don't. They just need to keep enough of an eye on it that they aren't blindsided by a competitor, and then scale up their engineering once a seed appears successful. Their size, revenue, and ubiquity will win by default.

If FB has 100 engineers working on VR for 20 years with nothing to show for it, but that allows them to ramp up when something magic finally happens (right hardware breakthrough, etc), then that's FB money well spent.

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#214

Post by bawolff »

echelon wrote: post #119
hervature wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I feel compelled to say that your second sentence is probably the funniest thing I've ever read on HN. It resonates very strongly with my belief that VR/Metaverse will continue to under deliver. What people want is an escape from reality. "Just like" Ready Player One or anything from a wide choice of science fiction novels. The problem is that these systems require a fundamental disconnect from reality. Not only do w…

You need to check out "Metaverse Twitter". You're missing out on a lot of fascinating developments. The field is in its "90's internet phase" right now. The tech is still immature, but is rapidly growing in capability and ambition. Just like most people in the 90's had no idea how "internet" would be used, I think our ability to conceive of VR/AR/XR/metaverse is similarly myopic. I would give it a 10-15 year timeline…

If this is the 90's internet phase, what was VRML?

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#215

Post by bawolff »

ethbr0 wrote: post #196
jeffwask wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I 100% believe in VR/XR/AR just not one driven by Meta. Edit: To be clear, IMO most disruptive technologies are not driven by established mega-corporations.

Gmail? iPhone? Facebook Mobile? (And earlier, Bell/IBM/Oracle)

Not really sure those were that disruptive. They are more prefecting an existing thing, which is not really what people mean by disruptive.

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#216

Post by hutzlibu »

Karawebnetwork wrote: post #154
hervature wrote: post #144

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean, yea, earplugs and a blindfold work too, but how do I feel like I'm walking through a pasture with wet dirt between my toes if you cannot simulate the sensory system? That's what people imagine. A home-bound person wants to feel what it is like to skydive, not watch a POV video.

What if the future generations never gets to experience those feelings? They would not know what they are missing.

I have met kids, who have never seen a forest in real live and who tried to swipe away real life objects, so yeah, we might get there.

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#217

Post by chaostheory »

PheonixPharts wrote: post #185
chaostheory wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I feel that you need to actually try out the Quest 2 before you pan it.

The first week I had the Quest I thought it was the most game changing device of my entire life. Especially during the pandemic it was incredible to transport to another world. I was long a nay-sayer on VR but then completely changed my mind, I couldn't shut up to all my friends about how incredible an experience it was... That wore off less than a month later. Even in a house it takes up too much space to use. Using…

> The first week I had the Quest I thought it was the most game changing device of my entire life.

Did you own a Quest or Quest 2? Quest 2 is noticeably better.

> That wore off less than a month later.

A major use case for me is cardio exercise. Imo the Quest 2 is better than a Peleton for the variety of workouts. Many games are low key fitness apps. This is what keeps me coming back. I’ve lost 20 lbs so far with the Quest 2

> Using it too much still gives me a headache.

This might be related to Quest 2’s inflexible IPD adjustment. It probably isn’t an issue on higher end XR headsets like the upcoming Apple headset as well as PSVR2

> Plus being teleported to another world, while amazing at first, does feel isolating after too much use.

The trick is to only play multiplayer apps or games.

> The most damning thing though is how little interest there is in VR by the broader gaming community.

There are two major reasons for this:

1. Meta is still a toxic brand. Slightly less toxic than FB, but it still prevents a lot of early adopters from even trying it

2. Other alternatives are drastically more expensive AND complicated. While Quest 2 starts at $299, other VR systems start at $499 - $999, and they need a VR capable PC starting at $1599.

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#218

Post by cmrdporcupine »

jrochkind1 wrote: post #66
atourgates wrote: post #21

"Sitting by Mark’s side for these 14 years has been the honor and privilege of a lifetime. [...] In the critical moments of my life, in the highest highs and in the depths of true lows, I have never had to turn to Mark, because he was already there." If this is an accurate reflection of her experience, I don't expect it's a side of Mark Zuckerberg most of us imagine exists.

When you saw only one set of tracking cookies, it was then that Mark Zuckerberg was carrying you.

You win today's Internet(tm).

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#219

Post by clpm4j »

closedloop129 wrote: post #186
hervature wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I feel compelled to say that your second sentence is probably the funniest thing I've ever read on HN. It resonates very strongly with my belief that VR/Metaverse will continue to under deliver. What people want is an escape from reality. "Just like" Ready Player One or anything from a wide choice of science fiction novels. The problem is that these systems require a fundamental disconnect from reality. Not only do w…

VR only underdelivers when compared to full emergence. You don't need a television when you have a VR headset. I think that Meta's headsets will be the the consoles for the next generation because TV sets are not a given anymore. So a console becomes more expensive because you have to also buy a television.

I have to say, that based on my family and friends who I occasionally watch TV shows and movies with, I'm the only person who is able to focus on the TV screen without my phone in sight. Everyone else I know is constantly half-listening, half-watching, while simultaneously browsing IG, Zillow, YT, TikTok, etc. I think our very real phone addictions are going to play an adverse role in VR adoption until the VR app space fully replaces everything in the mobile app space (plus the time it will take for people to break their phone habits and replace them with VR habits)... seems like a uphill slog for Meta.

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#220

Post by madrox »

haunter wrote: post #118
hervature wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I feel compelled to say that your second sentence is probably the funniest thing I've ever read on HN. It resonates very strongly with my belief that VR/Metaverse will continue to under deliver. What people want is an escape from reality. "Just like" Ready Player One or anything from a wide choice of science fiction novels. The problem is that these systems require a fundamental disconnect from reality. Not only do w…

>What people want is an escape from reality. I still don't understand what's the difference between MMOs and Metaverse. Like it's on mobile? That's all? Peak WoW _was_ a social network something Zuck is dreaming about (and that's while you also have to pay a monthly sub). I've read around and some people say that the difference people can _create content_ in Metaverse but... sandbox MMOs are also a thing for a long t…

Silicon Valley is great at rebranding things that already exist. Everyone talking a big game about the metaverse never played an MMO.
Post reply on HN