Random first impressions from a SL newbie

But they can be scratched and stop working... in no way are your CDs guaranteed to not get lost or damaged.

EDIT:: ANd until they destroy the servers it all still exists

And some even after that.. unless they like.. melt it down...

SL and everything in it does exist........but only as long as you are connected to the platform via your computer and the internet. Once you shut it down, it ceases to exist for you. Just as your music from your CD ceases to exist once you turn your player off. As everything in life........it's relative. Controlled entirely by your own personal human senses. Make it as real or unreal as you like..........entirely the individuals choice. You want it to exist again........turn it back on.

What if the power goes out? =P I'm kidding lol... thats impossible.. at least I hope so.. that would suck... XD

I don't think of the economy or economic classes in those terms. There is very little you can't do in SL for free (aside from owning land--which you really don't need). I spend most of my money in SL tipping live performers--but many people attend the same performance without spending a dime.

Jobs are not a necessity in SL. Most of us, I think, would prefer no job at all. SL is a place to hang out and have fun--not wait tables 4 hours a night. LOL. I make plenty of money just building houses and landscaping in just a few hours per month. I wouldn't do anything more than that. People who are working like mad are people trying to make this a RL business. But that is an EXTREMELY small percentage of the population within SL.

And getting back to separation of classes... I just don't see it. You can get clothes, hair, even skins for free. No one would know if you never made/spent money. You are welcome to all the same events and groups as those with money (except investment groups, I guess.)

Welcome to the forums, Strauss.

A week is a pretty short space of time to get a real impression of SL, but you gave us a very thoughtful, if not entirely thought-out range of impressions.

As others have pointed out, a lot of us are not here for the money. I, for one, make a very good living in RL and feel no need to work another 20 hrs or more a week to make more here. It's simply how I spend a few hours a week enetertaining myself and chatting to friends.

I do love building and I'm getting into texturing, but I give all my 'creations' away for free, usually to friends or newbies. It's fun. I also love exploring and seeing what other people have done.

I don't give a hoot about the SL economy, outside of the music industry. I spend most of my money tipping musicians or venues. Or buying wonderful little oddities form young builders and designers.

I really like coming here too sometimes, because I've 'met' one of the weirdest, funniest and nicest bunch of people ever.


Where's Sandy - the ungrateful bastard - when you need him, eh?

There is another type of business owner not mentioned and one which does not show up on the Linden list of Linden's earned, which IMO will be the eventual bigger players in SL---businesses using SL, like web pages, to sell real life products.

Chas-I had no idea we are so alike!!!

OMG we even have the same Birthday!

Strauss,

Firstly, I’ll say welcome to you—you’re not even a body-length down the rabbit hole yet, so I guess it all depends on what pill you want to take, and how far you’re willing to go.



You’ve made some great points, obviously coming from previous experience, and a savvy with online communities. Second Life has many parallels to general ‘online community’, but you’ll also find—as you have stated previously—that certain aspects of Second Life cross even further into the concept of ‘metaverse.’

RE: Opportunities for ‘newbies’ to make $L – I think there are far too many newbies streaming into Second Life to hand out jobs. Putting an ‘Second Life Employment Office’ together may sound like a great idea (specs and figures…GO!), but it wouldn’t be able to withstand the overwhelming mass of new accounts and newbies. And there are only so many ‘tasks’ and ‘jobs’ that would be available or fitting for these circumstances.

I think Second Life is pretty darn expansive—although it is nice to have a community of all types, each one making their own money—being the cult metaverse that it is, most users that make money are expected or understood to have particular talents and savvy in the many different arenas Second Life encompasses. Second Life is a pretty decent (albeit skewed) version of the real world…and just like in the real world, one is expected to have a trade, a desire to learn, or a knack for entrepreneurship. I think the class system which is in place now works fine (well, it's not a true 'class system'). If one had a desire to ‘take care of business’, or a true passion for the metaverse, then it is up to them to create their own destiny. Many of us that profit spent years in real life learning our craft—we’ve paid our dues (literally), and are now reaping the benefits in Second Life. There is nothing wrong with that...some of the more beautiful builds and products in Second Life are created by those that have studied and practiced for years in real life. I think a competitive market is good for Second Life. It’s good for the economy, and it makes things that much more ‘important’ and interesting--a real sense of investment.

It’s amazing how many ‘jobs’ there are in Second Life—they are there for the taking, many of which have yet to be created. It’s up to the individual to take the bull by the horns and make that happen.

Anyhow…that’s all I gotta’ say about that.

Since this post is already too long, I’ll hold off on my other thoughts.

Welcome to Second Life!

wow... so much to reply too! LOL

I'd love to respond to each of your posts but it just does not seem feasible (time wise) sadly, so allow me just to reply the main comments here in a single post.

First and foremost thank you all for the VERY kind welcomes they are appreciated!

As for my (lack of) comments about the 'class' of users who simply just buy the L currency. I didn't overlook you as much as I didn't think that group of people was relivent to my point/overall discussion. I was looking at the situation on self contained macroeconomics level.

I was trying to explore/discuss how one can, without outside influence (rl cash) can make a living in SL to buy goods. I am sorry if I wasn't clear on that, I should have been more specific, my bad. I do see the points about paying a 'working class' might not be a overall positive influence. I am not convinced SOME kind of system to that degree is a bad idea but certainly some of you made valid points and got me pondering.

However some of the feedback got me thinking, especially the 'craft fair' comment and it does make sense, certainly none of my opinions are 'set in stone' as I said there are just first impressions (subject to change)

I hope no one took offense at my 'class' description, thats was not my intent, it just seemed the easiest way to describe my observations. Again I wasn't trying to judge anyone (if dancing is fun and you make L all the power to you in my book).

As for the land situation, I went to the link provided and while yes it states how much a fee it is for so much land, I does not say HOW to buy land from LL... perhaps my ignorance getting the better of me.

I will go into more details later, I just wanted to address the most pressing responses.

Thanks again for all the great feedback

Strauss

Welcome Strauss

It is always fascinating to see peoples first impressions.

If an Avatar , manages to hang on longer than a week, then I normally recommend waitng a month before drawing too many conclusions about SL.

You will find as many varying views on the economy here as you would in RL.
I think the nature of Sl rewards those with a flexible mindset, everything is so mutable here.........even identity.

For instance.......SL veterans know that ALL dancer/escorts are 250lb truck drivers from Ohio in RL.

That's what your last girlfriend said to me.

Was that the 250lb trucker from Ohio, or the 400lb Hell's Angel from Nebraska?

We probably shouldn't meet then

Hi Strauss, welcome to SL and the forums.

To buy smaller land parcels from other residents (to own outright, not rent):
Open the search window, go to the land sales tab. In the upper left, choose to search for mainland only. Enter a max L$ amount or a minimum size if desired. Run the search. You can sort results by L$/sq.m. by clicking at the top of that column. Highlight results in the search to see more info in the right-side window. Teleport to ones that look good, if you want one and have the necessary L$, buy it.

Admittedly that's a very quick rundown. For more detailed information, ask here or in Raymond Figtree's land answers group (which I'm sure someone will come along and tell you about soon ).

- Ava

ETA: Be sure to turn on View Parcel Borders (in the view menu) when shopping for land, so you can see exactly what you are getting. If there are buildings on it that might be hiding "cutouts" (holes in the parcel that will not be sold to you), you can hide the objects using the Client menu (I think control-alt-D turns that on, then it's under Rendering).

I was just pointing out the costs - see Ava's response just above this one for how to actually find some land..

Also, in addition to her response, try switching on Land Owners in the View menu as you look around the mainland. Any land that's for sale will show up as yellow.

I _think_ you might mean "Property lines"

I did find your observations interesting Strauss, but it also show that there is more to SL than you can learn in a week. There indeed several things you have missed in your first week.

Socially there is a divide, those that view SL merely as a game and those like myself that view it as a social platform, this can make social interaction tricky at times. I have found very good, supporting friends (Those willing to share their own personal RL experiences to help me with my own.), virtual pals (Those that keep conversation strictly SL.), and even developed an SL relationship which neither of us sought or expect but just came to be (Like my friends we share our RL experiences and genuinely feel for each other, when one is upset it upsets the other.).

Economically not every endever is meant to profit in SL or RL, some are simply for fun and others enjoyment and run at a loss, by donation, or supported by other endevers. I personally "Work" as a DJ, the L$ are not a big issue, I do it mainly because I find it fun. I have met content creators that work for free, sometime doing huge builds for people and not charging a single linden. Some friends simply buy their L$, even my girlfriend simply camps for extra lindens though some friends act like it's embarrassing for her and that she would thusly keep it a secret. LOL

As for owning land there is indeed another option you have not explored which is purchasing mainland. There are still very nice mainland areas you can buy in, and no landlord to throw you out. Your first 512 has no monthly fee at all, for each additional bracket above your initial 512 you are charged a tier fee by LL, but ultimately as long as you credit card is still good it is yours to do with as you like. I am sure there are not many private estates where you can have a modern house with a VTAL port on the roof, a radar tower and a Chocobo pen, then have your neighbor have a lovely garden for everyone to enjoy as your "View".

There is a lot out there, and a fair learning curve. It is not something you can come in for a week and think you will have it all figured out.

Awww, I'm sure everyone is touched, Chas.

No I think the poster meant click on view land for sale on the MAP--not through any menu.

There are downsides of course, but there always are.

203 and counting....

Nope - I definitely meant Land Owners. Property Lines just draw a thin outline around parcles and Land Owners highlights the entire parcel itself.

While he can certainly use either, I think Property Lines is a lot harder to see when you're wandering around - Land Owners makes it a lot easier to see what's what.

IIRC, yellow is land for-sale, purple is land at auction, red is not-for-sale, light green is land you personally own and dark green is land owned by a group you're in.


Ack!! No!! View menu!! Land Owners!!!!

Yes, but if you have 'property lines' turned on in your viewer you can see all the boundaries around you, too ... when you click on 'About land'.

See, I learn something new every day! Apologies for my nonsense.

You seem to have a different set of options to me. I've never seen a 'Land Owners' option.
How odd.

You'll find that most of the people that do make an income off of SL comparable to a RL income didn't set out to do it. They played around and created what they love, and by chance found that they could sell some of what they make. Over time they were able to get more and more sales, until they have reached such a level. This is what sets the grid-class content creators apart from those just looking for money; there is passion in their work, and it shows.

Also, take a look at some of the political aspects of SL, as they are very interesting. Surely from having so much experience in online communities you know about trolls. Of course they are in SL as well, along with griefers. However, in my view the word "grief" has become the equivalent of the RL buzzword "terror." I've seen people called griefers for having opinions another doesn't like. Some communities have a "war on grief," and there are various "anti-griefer" organizations that themselves are shady. Then you have drama about new LL policies and features, with people involved trying to influence LL to act in some way.

After being in SL for almost a year I've discovered how the social scene develops. New users will start at a welcome areas, and will wander around the old mainland, perhaps using sandboxes. Slowly they will meet people and emigrate away from the "main" area of SL into somewhat small but personal communities. Now, these communities are very loose, and there will be a lot of bleed-over between communities that may even be seemingly unrelated. After a while SL doesn't feel "empty" because there is always something going on in a community you know of.