Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO • Hacker News Board

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#331

Post by cheriot » Wed, Jun 01, 2022, 9:54 PM UTC

hnthrowaway0328 wrote: post #271

oliwary wrote: post #192

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As far as I can tell from the material Meta has released, they have an incredibly ambitious vision for the metaverse. Essentially, I believe they want to create glasses that you wear, that allow you to see other people in your space, wherever they are. So you could have a conversation with three friends in your living room, as if they were there, while they could be on different continents, making physical location i…

One thing I don't get is why there is a such high regard of visual input. I mean, we can speak to our friends since the telephone age, and we can see them on screen too since maybe the 90s. Is there a huge demand to actually see them IN THE SAME ROOM ? I really don't think so. But maybe future generations have different ideas. I think VR can make a lot of difference in training (e.g. medical training) but it's not co…

Video chats with more than 3 people start to suffer from an inability to have multiple conversations at the same time. Physical distance of a couple feet and visual queues like the direction of a speakers face allow that in 3d space. Maybe someone can overcome this in 2d? I haven't seen it yet.

I was on a casual call with ~10 people recently and the way only one person could speak at a time was so unfortunate. Really killed the experience compared to chatting in person.

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#332

Post by dmead » Wed, Jun 01, 2022, 9:55 PM UTC

samwillis wrote: post #42

I wander what this means for Nick Clegg, and how much of his promotion to be “the same level” as Sheryl and Mark was related to her intention to leave. He obviously isn’t a COO, but then Facebook has an existential legislative risk. So maybe that’s the indication, they need to be co-run by a policy leader, and opps is a solved problem. https://amp.theguardian.com/technology/2022/feb/16/nick-cleg... > “[Mark] added th…

Reading your comment i thought this was going to be a different nick clegg than the one from British politics, but it wasn't!

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#333

Post by swayvil » Wed, Jun 01, 2022, 9:55 PM UTC

mhewett wrote: post #296

dbbk wrote: post #257

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> What people want is an escape from reality. I don't think this is even broadly true. We just locked everyone in their houses for the pandemic and people hated it. They want to get out and do stuff and see the world. Not sit on a couch with a screen strapped to their face.

Not everyone. Everyone I know loved it.

They probably loved it because they didn't have to work.

Which is basically just another kind of sitting with a screen strapped to your face. Except less fun.

Work, for most people, is maybe a little too hellish.

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#334

Post by outside1234 » Wed, Jun 01, 2022, 9:56 PM UTC

oliwary wrote: post #192

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…

As far as I can tell from the material Meta has released, they have an incredibly ambitious vision for the metaverse. Essentially, I believe they want to create glasses that you wear, that allow you to see other people in your space, wherever they are. So you could have a conversation with three friends in your living room, as if they were there, while they could be on different continents, making physical location i…

So FaceTime?

They aren't in the same room, just same screen, but I'm not sure that really has value for me anyway?

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#335

Post by JKCalhoun » Wed, Jun 01, 2022, 9:56 PM UTC

dragonwriter wrote: post #247

shakes_mcjunkie wrote: post #158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

WoW but more boring and with more microtransactions.

Second Life but with hardware requirements with less general-purpose utility.

AOL but with avatar solicitors coming to your virtual door to try and interest you in "security deals from Ali Express".

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#336

Post by narrator » Wed, Jun 01, 2022, 9:57 PM UTC

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…

I think the Metaverse will fail because it's a creepy futurism project. Creepy futurism says the solution to climate change is to replace real experiences with virtual experiences that don't burn any carbon. The pièce de résistance of creepy futurism in the metaverse is intended to be the virtual child experience[1]. You satisfy the instinctual drives to destroy the climate with more children[2], but instead you do it in a sustainable simulated way. Kind of like instead of living forever, which is utterly unsustainable, we upload our brains to the metaverse and have your carbon body used for plant food or whatever and our friends and family get the simulated experience of still having us around! Like most creepy futurism projects, nobody really wants this except the people who spend their days trying to figure out how to save the planet by any means necessary and have come up with all sorts of fake climate friendly substitutes, like the vast array of vegan meat substitutes that nobody eats, but seem to be fully in stock in every grocery store and fast food chain.

Like all creepy futurism projects, there seems to be an unlimited amount of money and associated ESG and "The Current Thing" street credibility behind these projects that see them funded and cheerled in the press to absurd levels even as the public is absolutely luke warm about it all at best.

[1]https://www.sciencetimes.com/articles/37980/20220601/virtual...

[2]https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jul/12/want-to-...

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#337

Post by JKCalhoun » Wed, Jun 01, 2022, 9:58 PM UTC

lovich wrote: post #309

Benjammer wrote: post #269

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've never been convinced that physical immersion will ever be as compelling to the human brain as mental immersion through good story-telling. Having my real-life body and physical attributes thrust directly into a story/game just seems like the most non-immersive thing possible to me unless the game is entirely designed around moving the body, like DDR or Beat Saber or whatever.

I don’t understand this comment. Isn’t having your real life body put into the story/game like a textbook definition of being more immersive than just engaging with sight and sound?

"The last rays of sunlight disappear leaving a cold darkness in the Uncanny Valley before you."

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#338

Post by bingohbangoh » Wed, Jun 01, 2022, 9:58 PM UTC

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…

Facebook dominated in part because people would endlessly scroll during class, at the bus stop, waiting on line, etc.

VR and the Metaverse require a much bigger commitment by comparison. You can't casually use them. Heck, you can't really even eat or drink while a VR headset is strapped to your face.

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#339

Post by deltaonefour » Wed, Jun 01, 2022, 9:59 PM UTC

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…

>Facebook has neglected its core businesses for years and seems to have real trouble shipping hardware with reasonable spending.

I don't think there's deliberate neglect here. Fashion shifts and facebook is no longer as fashionable. It is very very hard to stay at the forefront of fashion unless you're product is one that reinvents itself on an annual basis (see the fashion industry)

The meta pivot seems to be more of a desperate anticipation then a strategic opportunity. Facebook conveniently announced meta just before the earnings call.

Re: Sheryl Sandberg stepping down as Facebook COO

#340

Post by JKCalhoun » Wed, Jun 01, 2022, 9:59 PM UTC

nradov wrote: post #299

elorant wrote: post #254

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The difference is that you play with your whole body, not just your fingers. You can duck for cover, or run, or kick and punch someone, or construct an item with your hands. It’s immersive and it could take gaming to a whole other level. This is what AR and games are all about. Not necessarily what Meta wants to build.

So basically like "Ready Player One" where you need a full motion capture suit, 2-D treadmill, and handheld controls. There's probably a niche market of hardcore gamers like the people who build full cockpits for flight simulators. But this complicated stuff is never going to penetrate the mainstream mass market.

Maybe a giant inflatable ball in your backyard pool that you climb in.