New Welcome Area in Watershed: DO NOT SELL PLOTS!

I have just heard that the beautiful new welcome area - with wonderful instructions and a beautiful telehub - has PLOTS THAT WILL BE AUCTIONED in the same sim as the welcome area!

Please do not sell plots in Waterhead, or the east portion of Borrowdale!

I think this is about the WORST idea I've ever heard. This will lead to a frenzy of a bidding war, and most likely a really ugly club and mall right next to it. One of the great things about Ahern / Dore / Morris is that they provide plenty of space for the new user to become acclimated, AWAY from the rest of the user created content. People enjoy clubs, people enjoy malls, people enjoy all kinds of things in this world. That is great. But new users should be able to DECIDE what they want to do in this world, without having it crammed down their throat from day one.

Just my two cents.

-Flip

seconded! definately... people should have at least a sim of acclimation before they hit SL proper... ontop of that crowding those sims with builds is going to cause alot of client side loading and server side lag... probably not the best thing to show new players right off

Which sim(s) will contain the new Welcome Area?

Amen Flip!

The words of 'Big Yellow Taxi' come to mind:

'They paved paradise and put up a parking lot'

UU

Muwahahahahaahha!

agreed, fwiw (not a lot, I imagine)

I agree completely. Maybe LL is trying to give people a jumpstart on exploring since most of the welcome areas are in BFE. But gah that would be overwhelming to have a big laggy club RIGHT there.... :/

Agreed, this is a horrible idea. The new welcome area is beautiful - why go to all that effort and create such a beautiful environment, and then ruin it?

Perhaps it's so newborns can learn how to crawl in lag before they walk?

Would be a great place to sell guns, explosive devices, cabin-style hats and pretty (not to mention huge) particle systems.

if this is the case then i advise the welcome (orientation island) sim to be exspanded for newcommers, that way you can think of the current welcome area as welcome to hell

OTOH, it's not necessarily a bad thing for users to be easily able to tap in to what SecondLife has to offer?

It's a little like dropping someone in Piccadilly Circus / Time Square, rather than at oh I dont know, Wales / Staten Island.

Azelda

heh prolly lil more like hells kitchen if a big club starts up there within draw distance... what the heck? 2 fps? SL SUCKS MAN etc etc bleh

where did you hear this? i'll third and fourth it. you can bet your bottom linden that the place will end up being a mall.

well now back up a minute. it does support the virtual economy doesn't it. people come here to shop and sell. that's what it's all about. does anybody that reads the forum not buy and sell stuff?

having a huge laggy mall at the welcome center is a valid acclimation to second life. that's what they'll encounter just about everywhere else they go. and it gives them an example of what they're supposed to spend their time emulating.

i still third and fourth it.

Yeah. They'll be a member of Club LagBox VIP's before they know how to change from female to male. They'll own a gun before they know how to walk, and be suspended before they leave the welcome area.

Welcome to Second Life!

How about a Linden sponsored education area for these plots? Linden owned, however, users create the educational content for the locations. Notecard help sections, tutorials, and so forth. Submissions could be given to a Linden, and approved, and then included.

Regards,

-Flip

Strongly thirded, from a technical (lag) aspect alone, let alone the social implications.

-Adam

If it wasn't ass-tastic, I'd agree Azelda, but...free-for-all always ends up in the same crap, the same laggy, horribly-textured stands of commercial desperation clogging each telehub.

Why welcome...why?

I mean, there are more creative ways to shoot your public image in the foot than *that* Linden Lab. It seems awfully short-sighted to me. You've seen what is out there, right Linden Lab staffers? You really have paid attention to the telehub chokes and the malls-o-lag spread like locusts o'er the land?

Have you?

*shakes head*

This has the potential to have a horrible outcome.

I'm shocked that LL will be selling first impressions to the highest bidder.

As a welcome area regular, this has me quite depressed.

Don't make Kex angry! You wouldn't like Kex when she's angry!

Any Lindens around to comment on these? Please, oh please, oh please reconsider of Second Life may become No Life... or ever worse... Second Commerce.

Regards,

-Flip

Form a 'Waterhead Preservation" group and buy out the entirety of Waterhead, and don't do anything to it. If it wasn't for the tier costs for such an endeavour in order to get land that won't have anything done to it (Well, mebbe a small trail system and park benches, would be nice), I'd be all for this.

Maybe they could make it for newbie apartments until the newbies get on their feet?
I don't agree with selling it..the price war would be ridiculas and unfair...but maybe that is known and they know it will bring a pretty penny..hehe.

I also agree- if selling plots for commercial/retail use near shin-welcome is being planned or considered, please reconsider the matter.

Holy Cow Flip!! That would be horrible!! I agree, down with selling plots in Watershed!! The poor newbies. And poor helpers who would have to try and explain why no one can move.

OMG please don't put that area up for bid..it's the most lovely place i seen, and if you put them up for sale the asshat (and we all know who i am talking about)will ruin that area

that's a great Idea.. i like that