New person questions

Hi All I am very new to SL and to date this game has just blown me away with what can be done. I have been in game less then a week and was wondering if you guys might be able to kinda help me with how you started out, I am intrested in building and then even learning the SL scripting. If I might ask how did you start out the progession that you used or maybe and General Tips that you might want to offer would be most welcome.I would like to be able to enjoy the game as I learn more so again any tips would be most welcome . Thank you in advance and see you in SL

Dracc Czukor

Welcome to SL Dracc!

If you're interested in building, you should definately practice, practice, practice. Cordova, the sandbox sim, is a great place to practice and meet other builders who can show you a trick or two.

Also, be sure to check out the Ivory Tower of Primitives in Noyo. It's an excellent resource that details the many ways to torture a prim!

Have fun and welcome!

Probably the best advice anyone could give a new resident in SL involves a combination of some or all of the following.

1. Explore. This gives you some idea of what others see as being possible in terms of builds, designs and even clothing (as you will undoubtedly run into other people while you explore). Stop and look at the builds - from various angles, various zoom levels, in various lighting conditions. Get a visual feel for the possibilities others have found/seen in SL.

2. Take a class.. whether building or scripting. Of course, you need to be able to stick any script you write into a prim, so you need to be able to build one. Basic building classes are routinely held by SL Instructors, by TLC and by individuals. Check the events listing. I think the longest I have seen without a basic building class was five or six days... but impromptu "classes" were being held in the sandboxes during that period.

3. Speaking of sandboxes, this is a great place to experiment, to sit and watch others whip out in seconds a shape you have had trouble even approaching despite hours of frustration. Morris, Cordova, the Ivory Tower of Primitives and the TLC sandboxes are the biggest. But people have occasionally turned their own property into temporary sandboxes while waiting to sell that land.

4. The Ivory Tower of Primitives is probably the single best building reference I have come across in SL. It offers a step by step tutorial that is at least as good as any building instructor's class with respect to the material included in its displays. Check it out. I routinely return and use this reference just as I do reference books on my real life desktop. (And you meet nice people there also).

5. Occasionally contact a person who has actually made a build you admire. Ask if they have time for a short discussion about the build. They will often provide short cuts or "secrets" that they have developed and/or found useful - sometimes not even used in the particular build you are discussing. SL builders love to share their knowledge for the most part - so it seems to me.

6. Finally, don't forget to go to show and tells. These events spurred me to try things well outside my normal comfort range in terms of artistry, design concepts and routine work.

I am not the greatest builder... many are far better than I. But I am better today than I was yesterday and this was the plan/process I used to go from the "What is a prim" stage to being occasionally complimented on a few of my builds.

Good luck, have fun, and see you in a sandbox soon I am sure.

Hi Dracc:


Welcome to Second Life!

Attend the free Mentor and Instructor Events, they are very helpful and are listed both here and on the Events Calendar inWorld.

Hang at the Welcome Center and meet people and ask tons of questions.

Join groups of like minded people - ours, the Awakening Avatars Group has a bunch of new member note cards in a folder that you can read at at your leisure - more info at the link below.

For building visit the Ivory Tower Library of Prims located in Noyo 207, 189.

And last but not least, have tons of fun!

"Oh that a man's reach should exceed his grasp, or what's a Heaven for?"

I've found the best way to learn is to start a project that I don't yet have the skills for. Along the way to getting it done, I figure out and learn what I need to know. I find learning with an end in mind is much more fun and it also gives me a direction, rather than just aimless learning of random things. So pick a project, get confused, and get going...

The other thing that rocks for learning how to build is to play Primtionary or attend build contests. It's valuable to watch how experienced builders go about it. That's how I learned a lot of my basic techniques. I've only been in SL under 2 months, and I'm already getting a lot of compliments on my builds.

By the way, since no one has mentioned it yet... go to http://badgeometry.com/ for a really good online reference to SL scripting.

Dracc,

I'm conducting an SL Basics at Dore Stage 4 (247, 7) today (Sunday) at Noon game time (PST).

Be awesome if you could stop by. You sound like a great addition to the community.

If you're not able to make it, just let me know another time/day that would be convenient for you, and I'll schedule one then.

I'm by no means the end all of info on SL. In fact, at my Basics I tend to not really offer up too much information, but rather, respond to questions from the audience. I think a lot of the other mentors are like this, so you might consider going to a few Basics classes, as each audience ends up generating a different experience and things to learn.

Feel free to contact me tomorrow, im beat tonight.

I can show you through the basics of whatever ya need.

Good advice, Korg.
If it's ok with you, can I copy all this (name included) to a notecard to hand out to new folks seeking advice?

Thanks (or thanks anyway) in advance

Everyone always seems to leave out the University of Second Life...

1. Visit the University of Second Life Library on the 5th floor of the USL MegaTower in BonnyDoon. Lots of free script examples, informational notecards, textures, sounds, objects, and more! One of the largest library resources in SL!
2. Visit the low prim building exhibit at the USL Library.
3. The University of Second Life hosts classes by the various USL Instructors on all subjects.
4. The University Campus in Phobos is a very large, high frame per second simulator that rivals other sandboxes in speed and space. It is rarely used, so it is the perfect place for people to build or script in peace and quiet.