Does SL make anyone else sick?

I joined SL a few days ago and am having a problem. The interface makes me feel sick after a while. It is so bad and seems to be getting worse that I don't know if I can be in SL for long. I have a problem with motion intolerance IRL, but I haven't had a problem with virtual landscapes such as in a MMOG before. I wonder if other people have the same difficulty or suggestions. I got some good ideas from someone who has been in SL for a few years (maximize the chat screen, zoom out). Any other ideas?

Thanks!

A little, if I don't play for a while, but it usually goes away. WoW is worse for me...I can only play in relatively short bursts.

The new Dazzle interface is difficult for me to look at, but probably not to the point of being ill. But I can see what you are saying. It is annoying to me, I'm glad I don't have to use it.

If the OP is using dazzle, have they come out with the new skins for it yet?

I know a vew people who get something akin to vertigo playing 3D games. A couple of them say that motion sickness pills actually help somewhat. Hey, I only know what I'm told.

You didn't mention if you use glasses or not. It helped me to get a weaker pair than my prescription glasses. With the weak glasses, I see the screen with much less strain, and tilt of the head.
Also, have you tested your reaction using different monitors? My laptop screen requires careful placement of the eyes, where the PC desktop gives a lot more angle of view, making it less stressful.

/Wow--- my number of posts has DOUBLED since yesterday! Who else can truthfully say that?

I have a friend who becomes motion sick even from playing XBox, Playstation, etc... kinda games...I'm sure your experiencing the same??

Also be sure to sit straight up and down. I know that in SL, sometimes I have a tendency to lean forward to peer at something on the screen, and I end up sitting hunched over, with my eyes about a foot from the screen. You should be sitting an arm's length away from your screen (fingertips extended), with the screen at eye-level or just slightly below it. Taking breaks to refocus on something across the room every few minutes should help as well.

This happens to me. Simply put, try to get your framerate higher through better hardware or through lower graphics settings.

I've heard of this happening in first person shooters as well - lot;s of fast, jerky movement and a high amount of immersion and it can fool your brain into feeling the motion, at which point your brain is seeing something that your body isn't feeling and things go wonky.

Try to take more breaks, or just look around the room every once in a while. Dramamine ought to work, but you might not want to have to take medication just to play on SL.

Just curious - what sort of framerate are you getting and how fast is your monitor?

I don't wear glasses. I haven't tried SL with a different monitor. I doubt my laptop could play it. I am thinking of getting a new monitor anyway. Maybe that would help. Thanks.

I've played games on Xbox and Wii without problems. I've played MMOGs without problem. But I do have problems with motion, either me moving such as riding in a car or looking at video of motion like a clip from a rollercoaster.

Are you using mouselook?
Try scrolling the camera out as far away from your avatar as possible. That helps me when I'm feeling queasy.

Good suggestion. I know I can't watch tv up close if there is a lot of motion. I'm sure I'm sitting too close to my monitor, but I hadn't thought about it. Thanks!

I've not had the OPs problem, but I do get claustrophobic in some builds!
My main house is friggen huge, like store open space rms and I also live in the sky on a plat!

I've played some very fast FPSs such as UT and BF2 without a problem. I don't know if I want to play while taking draminine - I can barely figure out what I'm doing now without drugs.

I don't know about frame rates or monitor speeds. Is there any easy way to check? I do know that I have a very old graphics card. My monitor is about 6 years old or older as well.

I hadn't been using mouselook much. I'll use it more and zoom out. Thanks for the suggestion, and I'm glad to know other people have had this problem.

UT is about the most frenetic game out there. If that one doesn't make you motion sick, then that isn't the problem.

I can't remember how to check framerate in SL, but I remember it was pretty easy. I'm sure someone else will chime in. By monitor speed, I meant the monitor refresh rate. It should be expressed in terms of m/s, and it should be in the general range of 2-6 m/s. It's the speed at which your monitor refresshes itself, and while I've never seen a noticeable difference from one monitor to another, I've heard that some people are affected by slower monitors.

Thanks for the information. I'll check the monitor speed when I'm at that computer.

Yes, I was surprised that SL is giving this problem when UT and BF2 don't even though they are played at very fast speeds and I'm always moving quickly in both. But the graphics are very different. Maybe as some replies suggest it has to do with the different interface? After a few minutes, even sitting in SL is not good unless I enlarge the chat box to cover almost all the screen.

If Dazzle is the interface, is there a way to change it to an older/different version? I don't know anything about this (including what Dazzle really is), but it seems like I'm having a big problem with the interface. I use that computer all the time without problem in other applications, including games.

Arilynn,

I didn't see anyone ask if you are running at high graphics settings and/or high draw distance?

I don't have any problem until I turn the draw distance up high (like when I want to take a nice photo of a whole sim at once) and induce a laggy condition. I often forget to turn it back down, and I immediately start to feel ill if I move around. There's something about the choppiness and lag that literally makes me sick. When I turn the draw distance back down and the lag subsides, I'm fine!

I've wondered if it is related to the lag and choppiness I've experienced. I seem to feel more sick when there is more lag. I didn't think to turn down my graphics setting. Thanks for suggesting that!

I'm not sure how to adjust the draw distance - I don't know anything about this. Is this separate from the graphics setting?

I'm glad to know other people had this problem and solved it. I was ready to quit.

Okay doing this from memory, but: edit, preferences, graphics. Then you have to select "custom" in order to see all your graphics choices. You'll see a slider bar there that adjusts draw distance from like 60 to 512. Depending on the already-lagginess of the sim I'm in, I can't handle much above maybe 140. Let us know if that gets you there! --Avion

My family watches me on SL often and wonders how I can get away with being online for so long without getting dizzy. Then they watch me work on a Solid Works project and leave the room in a split second. Everyone's makeup is a bit different. (=_=)y

I'll give it a try. Thanks very much!

Here's a thing to try that changes the way SL looks a bit.

Scroll you camera back all the way.

Then press Control-0 till it suits you.

I think this reduces the bowed out appearance of things.