Good starter info for newcomers

Hello all,

So I've poked my nose into Second Life a few times, as have a few of my co-workers, but it never... sticks... with us. We get that there's a ton of things to do...but honestly its all a bit overwhelming.

Are there any good 'newbie-oriented' fan sites we should be checking out?

One of the first things *I'd* like to accomplish (can't speak for the co-workers) is to get my avatar a bit less...clunky acting. The walk animation, for instance, makes me cringe. In fact, that's been my biggest barrier to SL, and only today did it dawn on me to investigate if it can be changed, and I see that it can.

I realize I'm being really vague. But basically imagine that you were trying to turn a friend on to SL... what would you tell him/her? And once you get an idea of that... can you suggest a site that's already captured this 'starter info'?

thanks in advance for any advice.

There are tons of walk animations available all over SL. Most stores selling poses carry them. If you're female, the "sexy walk" is popular. I don't know what male walks are possible. There's quite a bit of user generated animations, to all sorts of ends, actually.

As for newby oriented fan sites, I dunno about that. www.sluniverse.com has a board, and its run independently of LL. I don't read the boards much, but they might have a forum for newbs.

Not a site, but I recommend you go back to the Welcome Area and find a Second Life Mentor. Mentors are helpful volunteers that can show you around, refer you to other mentors or groups so that you can learn about what you are interested in, customize your avatar, and many other things. Consider them to be trusted advisors since they are not interested in selling you something - they might make recommendations, but they don't sell anything. In fact, they often have lots of freebies, or can show you places to help you get started.

Awesome, thank you both for the suggestions!

Click the Find button, select places, and search for Yadni. It should find a place called Yadni's Junkyard. Hit "Teleport" or Show on Map and then teleport. That has pretty much everything you'll ever need to enjoy yourself here, and it's all free.