Upcoming Changes for Adult Content: Definitions

Good point, Bith. This is something that has bothered me a lot ever since SL assisted CSI in opening all those PG sims of murder/morgue/corpse roleplay. The message definitely seemed to be that horror roleplay is only PG when it's some huge corporation backing it.

Mentioned as people who will be ostra....required to move are "Providers of adult content" and "Those wishing to engage in adult activity". The first definition is clear. Businesses that sell adult products or provide adult entertainment. The second one.....people wishing to buy those product or patronize those entertainment venues, OK, but what about 2 residents who wish to do the same thing in their home as 2 patrons at a sex club may do? It's adult activity by definition. Will they be made to move? I know that this has been answered as a no, but if you go by the definition, they should. A couple in a sex club are doing nothing different than a couple in a private residence in theory.

If morality, and sexuality and anything that might be offensive is to turn into Linden Law, what is to keep creativity alive and open to exploration. Censorship is censorship. What one person finds and believes is art can be and will always be interrupted by another individual differently. All this brings back bad memories of burning books and killing people in real life just because someone somewhere said it is not right or good or proper. To me if you are going to police Second Life you might as well tell us what to buy and where. What to do and how to do it.

Segregation in all forms is why so many people can not function as adults or even teach their own children. Have your Second Life but only if it fits in nice neat packages that reflect Real Life. Then why have a Second Life at all. I can find enough turmoil and censorship I want in Real Life. Is it time to turn away from Second Life and go smell a real rose.

Instead of ghettoizing explicit content, and giving the media an easy way to find the stuff to demonize SL (SL will be seen as de-facto approving of all content there by inviting it to move no matter what is said by SL) why not leave a rich and diverse mainland and create a new utopia continent, for those who would like white washed behavior such as you would find working in an especially conservative office? (The govt. public service office I worked at had a sex doll mascot everyone thought was hilarious but I think my country may be more relaxed than some others).

It will be far easier to establish and keep the "tone" at such a place than on current mainland that will remain full of sex beds that a bored executive could cam into at his/her lunchtime in-sl meeting.

If the content on such a new utopia continent was rich, current residents would visit it.

The lindens have spoken of creating a more content managed mainland, rather than applying increased zones to current main land. I had thought this would be ideal for the purpose of making new mainland with aesthetic and behavioral standards that would appeal to people interested in office hour suitable environments. No possibility of camming to find an interactive statue of David in someone’s lobby.

Search already has a "show mature" option, so I don’t see how current search would be problem to anyone who leaves that unchecked? If the current system doesn’t work, why would the same system with another level of adult work?

Rather than have adults on sl (and everyone must be an adult, remember) unable to go where they chose, perhaps some form of verify should once again be required to join SL.
Perhaps some sort of grandfathering of current unverified and unpaid accounts would make it sweeter to take. To sweeten the pot even more and vastly increase paid membership uptake you could give priority logins and two extra groups to paid up avatars.

Perhaps add a checkbox for those who only wish to see general (PG)content, so that they are unable to TP to mature areas without un-checking it, and so wont accidentally find themselves in a night club mall with disgraceful modern radio music from the 70s shouting expletives at them with voices you can hear the spittle in. (disclaimer : I am not dissing the "s*x pistols" punk band, they have huge artistic merit)

There is no safe way to integrate teens or people in a conservative work environment during office hours into a general population adult chat environment. A New Utopia continent could disallow un-vetted radio stations that allow music with vocals that is less than 50 years (60 to be safe) (and I am actually serious) and its likely that people visiting that continent will moderate their speech and manners .The dangers to teenagers would be the same in any general population adult environment no matter how best party manners it is, but creating an almost office safe continent should be possible. I urge LL to consider this as alternative to, or rolled out alongside, a porn continent.

there is more adult stuff you can find on google and you dont need to show your passport number, you dont need SL for that. what is the point of all of this. just give the promt message window before each mature region so people can decide to click ok or leave like around the Internet.

big corporations and educators have empty sims and thats why they are so mad at us normal people because we create popular content in this world and they dont earn money out of this because they never understand SL. I am an adult and I signed up to SL keeping in mind that this is enviroment for adults if I dont like something I click X button on my window.

YAY ATTICA!!!! That is exactly what I am thinking!
Before LL makes a decision wouldn't it be wise to
maybe do a poll. See how many people agree with
a "red light district" or the "Utopia" .

I am sure that the people who would have the Utopia
would enjoy that better, since they wanna feel special
and live by their own rules or force a change.
I mean if they just read a little this all could be avoided

Also for LL this is probaly the most cost efficient way also,
as I am sure there are likely more "Sex, Violence adult
style places.

Just for giggles look at the return when you have the
how mature content box checked then uncheck it and
look again.

u are actually kidding. in what dictionary does mature NOT mean adult. all this seems like window dressing to appease people who do not PLAY sl. i've seen u in world. the l;ast time u had on the same freebie skin as dozens of my former alts. with all due repsect i can NOT take ur opinions seriously when you are a tourist in your own virtual world.
the segregation of sex in second life on some seperate continent (of what size? ) seems like an 'over the top' move by the lab to 'show we are doing something' to educatoirs who build empyt 'hotspots" in sl. i unnastan the motivation. monies. but this hokey let's discuss it and its to help residents enjoy sl is just the sort of tardy spin that makes residents who PLAY sl go bonkers.

This bothers me!! First this just can't happen, you can NOT predict the moves and actions of 70+ thousand users. EVER!!! So unless LL plans on removing every living person and replacing them with bots (which they have a good start at) they should give up now and call it a day.

These rules they are talking about can never be enforced. Just look at gambling (nothing against it, I like it myself) but anyone, any time of day can still find a place to gamble in SL.

Everyone is making this way to hard. WE all know what 'adult content' is. Its porn (rule 34 applies), BDSM activities, and open displays of Gorean activities.
Sex on a beach viewed by anyone other than the participants is porn. Porn is in strip clubs. Porn is in erotic art sometimes but not always.

Is selling genitalia one of these 3? No. Is selling skins with the genitalia revealed one of these 3? No in the ads it isn't. Its not designed to simulate a sexual response. Same with sex beds, sex balls etc.

Now, 'orgy night' that's porn. Dulcett, of which I think is obscene, its porn as well (as well as BDSM). But is a shop that? Not in SL. As a matter of personal fact, I don't believe any shop is. Why? because entering a shop is a choice. Having open sex in a public place removes that choice from me.

And finally while we are screaming, here is the current US legal defination of Obscene: OBSCENE, OBSCENITY - Such indecency as is calculated to promote the violation of the law and the general corruption of morals.

The exhibition of an obscene picture is an indictable offence at common law, although not charged to have been exhibited in public, if it be averred that the picture was exhibited to sundry persons for money.

For something to be "obscene" it must be shown that the average person, applying contemporary community standards and viewing the material as a whole, would find (1) that the work appeals predominantly to "prurient" interest; (2) that it depicts or describes sexual conduct in a patently offensive way; and (3) that it lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.

An appeal to "prurient" interest is an appeal to a morbid, degrading and unhealthy interest in sex, as distinguished from a mere candid interest in sex.

The first test to be applied, therefore, in determining whether given material is obscene, is whether the predominant theme or purpose of the material, when viewed as a whole and not part by part, and when considered in relation to the intended and probable recipients, is an appeal to the prurient interest of the average person of the community as a whole, or the prurient interest of members of a deviant sexual group, as the case might be.

The "predominant theme or purpose of the material, when viewed as a whole," means the main or principal thrust of the material when assessed in its entirety and on the basis of its total effect, and not on the basis of incidental themes or isolated passages or sequences.

Whether the predominant theme or purpose of the material is an appeal to the prurient interest of the "average person of the community as a whole" is a judgment which must be made in the light of contemporary standards as would be applied by the average person with an average and normal attitude toward, and interest in, sex. Contemporary community standards, in turn, are set by what is accepted in the community as a whole; that is to say, by society at large or people in general. So, obscenity is not a matter of individual taste and the question is not how the material impresses an individual juror; rather, as stated before, the test is how the average person of the community as a whole would view the material.

In addition to considering the average or normal person, the prurient appeal requirement may also be assessed in terms of the sexual interest of a clearly defined deviant sexual group if the material was intended to appeal to the prurient interest of such a group as, for example, homosexuals.

The second test to be applied in determining whether given material is obscene is whether it depicts or describes, in a patently offensive way, sexual conduct such as ultimate sexual acts, normal or perverted, actual or simulated; masturbation; excretory functions; or lewd exhibition of the genitals measured against whether the material is patently offensive by contemporary community standards; that is, whether it so exceeds the generally accepted limits of candor as to be clearly offensive.

Contemporary community standards, as stated before, are those established by what is generally accepted in the community as a whole; that is to say, by society at large or people in general, and not by what some groups of persons may believe the community as a whole ought to accept or refuse to accept. It is a matter of common knowledge that customs change and that the community as a whole may from time to time find acceptable that which was formerly unacceptable.

The third test to be applied in determining whether given material is obscene is whether the material, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value. An item may have serious value in one or more of these areas even though it portrays explicit sexual conduct.

All three of these tests must be met before the material in question can be found to be obscene. If any one of them is not met the material would not be obscene within the meaning of the law.

Finally, I think the name of the continent should be Deviant Ghetto because its funny. And Attica, I think we should have a utopia continent too. And then we can have a 'bitchers and moaners continent' and finally the walled garden grid (it will be the teen grid when they leave) it will be closed to everyone but oldbies and will require cc approval and an expectation that anything goes. Only no one but oldbies will be allowed access.

My bad. I was just a bit shocked to see them pull what looked like a complete 180 on something like that..

Also referred to as gratuitous violence. Pls see my previous post.

Since a profile is PUBLIC I am curious as to people that add "adult" content to their picks tab. Who would actually be at fault? The person that made the group/sim or the person that adds this particular content to their profile? There are quite a few strip/escort places that have pretty rank group photos. Your not supposed to have a nude photo of YOURSELF in your profile yet people that start "adult" groups can seem to put whatever picture they want there. It's not just the pictures either. Some of the descriptions OFTEN have ALOT of words that would be considered "adult" content as well. I used to have a store that was called "Bitch Slap Boutique" and had a have a group with the same name. When I had this listed on SLX as the name of my store, all of my items were flagged as "adult" yet there was no nudity in any of the pictures. Yet you look at some of these groups that have the F word and all other terms for the female and male body, the word "bitch" seems mild in comparison! Some consider that word as "adult" or offensive but others don't and it depends on how the word is used. So again my question is... what about groups in a PUBLIC profile that is "adult" content. WHO would be in violation?

my question is why would name your shop that?

What does it matter? It was a name I chose for personal reasons and ironically had NOTHING to do with BDSM, strippers or escorts. I could have used a more cutesy name but the name of my shop was not the question I had for the forums. Just merely and example and comparison to some stuff out there.

Everything, obviously. You chose to use a word that the general public, for whatever reason, has decided to classify as 'Bad' or 'Adult'. I'm going to assume you knew about the flack such words can gain, since you haven't been living under a rock for the past hundred years or two.

You could have gone with a cutesy name, or just something that is less obviously considered offensive.

What LL really needs and what we need to do together with them

Linden Lab needs this zoning and adult verification for CYA purposes. I'm all for it because any resources (i.e. money, time, attention) they spend handling legal issues, complaints regarding content, and having to rework stuff for legal purposes are resources taken away from making the system more stable and from improving the stuff we can do.

If they have their CYA they can concentrate on more important stuff. I'm still waiting for avatars that can have different clothing textures on left and right limbs.

The point here is that while it's really impossible to prove who is a kid or adult and while it's also impossible to define some universal line between offensive and not, all LL needs are:

1. A CYA setup. This means implementation of any legally accepted means of adult verification. It doesn't have to work perfectly it just has to be accepted by society at a legal level.

2. That the dividing line between content types is more or less acceptable. It doesn't need to be universally hailed, it just needs to be definable and useful to some level. They'll never be able to please everyone but there comes some point that "offense taken" drops to some manageable level.

Difficult to age verify these type of card...yet a kid can get a Visa or MC gift card and use them for internet shopping or *gasp* porn

From reading the forum there are a lot of contrasting views on the definition of adult. However I find myself agreeing with both sides, just in different contexts.

There is always a difficult choice where to draw the line. However if I'm using SecondLife in a business or educational context then I need to play safe. I wouldn't want anything on the screen which could be misconstrued as adult by anyone. I may not see photos of skins as sexual in the same way as underwear is openly on sale in high street stores. However someone walking past is going to glance a naked or semi-naked picture. I want to avoid having a 10 minute conversation to explain.

So I would like to propose a test...
Could I take a snapshot and put it in a billboard in a public space?


In my view photos of skins are going to have to remain on Adult land as they aren't appropriate for a business or educational context.

Ehm... so ? So you'd rather have those films only be played in a cinema not in your home town?

What about your choice to NOT GO THERE if you don't like it?

Which suggests that for these purposes you want to remain on PG land, and only see PG content.

I've yet to see or hear any cogent argument why we need a new category of Adult, nor how the definition of Adult differs from that of Mature (the KB article now dismissed as premature created a distinction between Adult and Mature by redefining Mature to mean what we currently refer to as PG!)

Matthew

And the more I read, the more i see a need, not for classifications, not for forced relocation (yes that's what it would be) but the 'G' rated family or business continent that has been suggested over and over again.

Since I first rezzed last September (200, I have yet to encounter a 'G' or even if you must, 'PG' area that has any real activity at all. if the Mature or 'Adult areas are only a small percentage of the SL population, why are they seemingly the most frequently encountered?

I discovered very early on in my SL that i am submissive (strike one) add the fact that I am a lesbian (strike two) and very soon i would find my world movements restricted. My lifestyle in SL and to some extent RL might be frowned on by some, but here I have encountered accepting, open minded(for the most part) people who take me for who I am.

Now my understanding is that SL is an 18+ adult environment and I was under the impression that the users inworld were adults also. I have read sensible suggestions as to handling offensive situations, Teleport out. But like Television, people will whine and complain rather than just switching the station to less offensive fare. Most of the lands I visit now are women only, and I'm sure there are men only sims as well, however, the fact that they are women only doesn't seem to discourage men from trying to get in and harass us. perhaps the Labs could come up with a soloution to that as well as soon as they finish ghettoizing people that aren't 'Squeaky Clean, Upright Moral Citizens".

The places I go, (on leash and off) I behave like an adult and treat everybody else by the Golden Rule, 'Treat others the way you would wish to be treated yourself.'

Please don't try to impose your morals on me, mine work quite well thank you, inworld and out.

Please Linden Labs, Make your Disneyland Main Street USA, but please don't restrict the rest of us...

RL is Real Life...Second Life is special, please keep it that way, after all... we're supposedly adults here.

Artemis Yedmore

An LSL function which can determine whether the base avatar shape is male or female has been requested for a long time, and would have a variety of uses.

Matthew

Once again... the point of my post was to ask a question. The shop name is long gone lmao. I find your post quit interesting considering what is in YOUR profile picks and was the whole point of my question. This is DIRECTLY from YOUR picks in YOUR public profile along with a graphic drawing: "VENOM FUCKNIG ROCKS So there. Bitch. Severed Wings Inc., V you're back!..., DeCheau (86, 213, 146)"

Wouldn't THIS be considered a violation of the CURRANT tos standards? My question ONCE again. Who is in violation? YOU? The person that has THIS in their profile or the PERSON that either started this group or whatever it is?

give up on mes question

-- What about adult activity in private on the mainland? e.g. Is Linden Lab making rules about what I can do in my own house on the Mainland?
Nope. We are talking about public behavior and events, businesses and listings that are meant to drive explicit sexual and violent activity.

If I do not "Allow Public Access" and "Allow Group Access" to a group, which does not allow "Open enrollment" --- will this be considered "activity in private"? That is, people on the parcel will have to be specifically permitted by me.

Would all questionable activities need to take place under a roof and surrounded by windowless walls?