Teaching SL

When all else fails you can recite the whole TOS to them then set a multiple choice quiz.

i too think this is a great opportunity for in-world newbie 'training' and advertisement for SL. Although someone ought to take this one stage further in RL and offer help in getting these newbies on-line in the first place. Even with the 'correct' puter specs, at least half of all potential residents fail to gain access to SL due to technical problems, which with the best advice and help are not always solved by helpful residents in here. Granted some are, but for the majority its just frustrating not knowing how to get on-line in the first place, due to graphics, drivers or other pc spec related issues. I think if someone or a business grasped this opportunity, then they would be employed forever and they could probably write their own cheques.

Still not solved all my issues and I run the best spec for SL there is.

dog

That's sorta the point, Dog. I've been doing a lot of poking about and, with places like Caledon's orientation, there is no need to teach people how to put on shoes and open boxes. People need far more concrete support to launch their SL comfortably.

I went through the most generic newbie process yesterday (by not picking a start area but just landing on Help Island) and, if I were actually new, would have turned around and left again. There were free office chairs and a sandbox, along with a TP to Ahern but, among all the new arrival activity and a mentor spamming gestures, it was a confusing time even for me! Took about 10 minutes for some guy to get naked and suggest a little noob romance.

The way my project seems to be shaking out is to get a group together in RL, in a computer lab (our AutoCAD labs can handle SL). Go over hardware requirements and, using slides, discuss some of the most pertinent noob concerns such as the interface, communication, inventory, and the technical issues they may encounter.

Then we'd bring them inworld (this is the tricky part - takes a long while to find a really good name, even) and transport them to a more useful orientation spot. There we'll hand them a huge box of goodies, make them landmark that spot and leave them to their own devices to walk through the orientation where they'll learn all about boxes and how to put on shoes. Thinking we can do all that in three hours.

As part of the package we then schedule a few inworld catch-up sessions where the group can get together to discuss more complex concepts or have questions answered.

Part of my report to the bosses was a request for some Lindens so we can tip any volunteers - hopefully that'll happen

It all looks good on paper but we all know that any activity with more than five people is like herding cats

B.

I would also definitely cover how to handle griefers in that initial slide presentation, Brann. A newbie's first griefing can be bewildering, and the automatic response is often the worst thing to do: react, respond verbally, try to move, etc. Just telling them to set a safe place as Home and know how to immediately TP out using the Home shortcut (or to log out and re-set start location as home if it's currently last known location) would go a long way to alleviating any confusion and bewilderment they might have if/when they get griefed.

Brann: Instead of bringing them into any official Orientation Center, where the distractions of random new residents may make teaching tough, why not use Direct Slurl to bring them into a nice, calm place of your own (or Honey's!) initially? You can then welcome them yourself and give them their freebie box in peace. Once they've got the fundamentals down, you can take them on a quick tour of inworld sites like Oxbridge and the Tower of Prims or NCI for more self-teaching.

http://blog.secondlife.com/2008/09/18/getting-a-second-life-just-got-easier-with-direct-slurl/
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Utterly brilliant, Nika. Totally forgot about this. This is the missing piece I've been looking for.
If I had gold stars, I'd give you one.

B.

Reading this thread with great interest...so excited for you Brann (although I know it's a LOT of work and co-ordination) and looking forward to how it works out.