Financially Broke n00b Seeking L$

Greetings!

I'll get right to the point... I am relatively new to Second Life, and am still learning quite a bit about it all. One thing I've noticed however is that it pretty much thrives on surviving off Linden Dollars.

Unfortunately, I am a desperately broke American whose employer is cutting work hours back due to all the variously constant economic woes of our once proud Republic, now turned Democracy... and I find myself in a position where I am quite literally strapped for cash and losing more then I am making! With difficulties making certain bills, and having to cut back on various other expenses as a result, one of which being the cancellation of all my various Credit Cards, which in turn has had the intriguing result of Pay Pal suddenly deciding that I can not longer orchestrate transactions though them without a "valid Credit Card" on my account, and despite the fact that its also still tied to my Bank... they argue that I do not have "sufficient Funding Sources".

As a result of that, they deny all my attempts at various online transactions, including my attempts to purchases Linden Dollars!

Therefore I am interested in finding any possible ways this poor, hapless n00b could possibly earn any decent share of Lindens... and yes though donations would be happily accepted because I know there are some whom would consider doing such just out of the kindness of their hearts, I would however, much rather find a more constructive way of earning a little extra on the side, and the less scrupulous in nature the better.

Feel free to reply in any manner you deem fit, and thank you for your time!

Try moving some money from your bank account into your PayPal account so that you have a positive balance. It'll take a few day for the transfer to be creditted.

I had a similar problem when my only credit card was stolen. Even though I had my back account tied to PayPal, they wouldn't let any transactions occur because transfers from a bank to PayPal aren't instantaneous. So PayPal had no money to transfer to LL.

Kitsy ^.^

I would certainly do that, if I had the appropriate funds available within said bank, to make such a transfer. However, with various bills bouncing and landlords whining... I must therefore reevaluate certain priorities where which expenses go, least I end up with nothing left!

Hence my desire to make attempts at earning a little extra on the side, by perhaps doing some sort of work on the side.

Depends on what you mean by "decent".

I think an active noob can make L$1,000 per day by entering and winning various contests.

Pole dancers, strippers, and escorts can make more. Real sex workers (web cam and voice for example) can make actual real life money. You probably find that idea pretty hideous.

Tropical Delights is currently looking for dancers. Nothing skeezy.. just a fun and laid back place. IM me if you want more info. I can also send you an application. Talk to Tammy John or Glen Bellic (the owners) if you have any questions.

If you are in RL financial crisis and can't afford to pay to play, then you need to learn to create and sell, attend some free classes, use your imagination to create something unique and go for it.

You don't need money to play Secondlifem other users don't have to support you, you won't get other players to pay your monthly fee for World Of Warcraft either.

There are a few programs out there on the web that allow you to transfer your earnings into Linden dollars.

I have a couple listed on my blog...http://free-linden-dollars.blogspot.com/
I've made over L$3000 since the beginning of the month through them.

I sympathize and all but if you're in an RL financial crisis, you need to sort out your RL financial crisis before worrying about whether or not and how you can buy pretend things in a video game, and I say this as a maker of pretend things.

I agree with that, you need to sort out your RL cash flow first before diving in. But there are ways to make free cash, easily actually, not reliably, but easily.

There are a few sites like On-rez and SLX, that will host a virtual shop, for you, for free.
http://www.xstreetsl.com/index.php is one of them, on-rez can be found easily.

All you need is space for one prim to host your server, and I think SLX even gives out space to the less fortunate, for free SLX server hosting somewhere, not a clue where, but that is what I hear anyway.

So hypothetically, if you went to a sandbox and built stuff all day, boxed it up, threw it onto the exchange, then yes, you would have a source of income. Don't ecpect this to be a simple process, but all us merchants have done just this. Most of us started small and on free or cheap plots as well.

I'm writing a guide on this for my blog, but kind of the catch-22 about SL is that a lot of jobs require you to have a good skin/shape/hair/clothes and some equipment to get started. But without a job you can't get the cash to buy that stuff.

The other thing is that a lot of places won't hire you unless you're 30 days old.

So, I'm doing an experiment to see if it's possible for a newbie to raise L$4500 (the cost for all the stuff I figured I'd need) through camping, picks camping, surveys, etc. within that 30-day time frame before he/she becomes "hireable".

The verdict is still out but in 5 days I've made about L$800, so I think I'm on pace to meet that goal.

So, anyway, basically what I'm saying is to use your first 30 days trying to scrape up as much cash as possible, any way, any how and use it to get yourself looking good.

Heres a idea, if your having such a hard paying your real life bills, stop playing on the computer and get a second job. You have to work a million times harder on here to make the same amount of money to just show up for work at a real job.

Anyone who has any interest in building as a noob should check out New Citizens Inc. They offer free classes on building, have wonderful volunteer members there around teh clock (usually), a free sandbox with a 2-hr auto-return, and regular building contests at which you can win Ls for your work. They also have freebie item boards that include clothes, textures, and more. It is a 100% member supported sim and organization, so be kind to those who help you and do what you can for them when you can. There is SL karma!

Thanks for the replies all... good posts!

I am aware of several of those suggested seminars and programs within Second Life for teaching building skills, etc... may start looking into some during what spare time I have...

As to those complaining that I need to get a second job to get my RL problems sorted out first...

That would actually work.

If companies out there were actually hiring people; instead of telling potential new hires that...

"Oh uhm, sorry, we're not interested in hiring in your city/state at this time, there just isn't enough business to warrant us hiring anyone there."

Yea; great idea... go try and find a job at a time when the entire Nation is facing its worst Job Loss crises in decades. Seriously though, that is something I've been trying... sending resumes out on a daily basis nearly. Most places just don't even bother responding and when I contact them, they laugh at me like I'm crazy for wanting a job in this economic crisis we're in...

I even contacted a local College and asked about getting involved in their program for CDL training, maybe job placement with a large Truck Driving company... and I was told, they weren't taking students for the program until next Spring, because none of the companies they used to place students with, are willing to hire new Drivers, and I was told several of them just closed up and went out of business, due to a lack of business.

So yea...

Forgive me, for taking my stress, and frustration, out on a computer generated world, during my late evening hours; rather then driving my car through the nearest Randstad Office, at full speed...

Spunky!

I got your In-world message; via email... thank you for the suggestion regarding New Citizens and their building seminars. I may look into them sometime over this coming weekend if I have time between my constant, and ever so futile efforts, at seeking a weekend job in an economy where most employers are rather preferring to fire people, as opposed to hiring new ones... even over the holidays.

I attempted my first building a couple weeks ago while in a public sandbox and a couple others there came over and were absolutely appalled at the fact that I, a mere n00b, was building something so well... oh gee, oh gosh, how dare I, a mere n00b, encroach upon a skill that they felt that n00b's... should not know how to do.

It was quite encouraging actually, told me that there were in fact quite impressed with what I was working on but just refused to admit that a mere n00b would be capable of such.

Felt even better, telling them quite plainly about how it doesn't take an idiot to figure out SL's building tools that are so straight forward. Is just, simple, common sense.

First things first, I agree with the others - get your real life financial troubles sorted out before you buy things you don't need on Second Life. If you're trying to get a modeling job or something where you'll be working a lot with other people directly, you probably will need to invest in some clothes, but if you can't afford to keep a credit card right now, I wouldn't go that route - most of the people I've met who plan on using Second Life as an income never make it to that point, and they often end up spending a lot more than they ever make. I have seen people put together some pretty nice avatars made entirely from freebies.

If you're seriously considering Second Life as a second job, the first step is to consider what skills you have. There are a lot of relatively unskilled jobs, dancing and modeling and scouting out camping spots, things that don't require that you do much more than just show up, but they don't usually pay very well either. In general, it's enough to buy some things in world, but in real life currency, it's hardly worth the trouble of transferring to an account. The exception is, talented escorts can do quite well, but then there's both talent and some investment involved. If you actually want to make money, you need to become skilled at something that most people can't do.

You seem to have an interest in building. I would strongly advise you to not get overly confident - good for you if some guy in a sandbox thought you knew what you were doing, but if you haven't even been around for a month, I doubt you've ever seen a truly impressive build. Most builders, even if they're doing better than a dancer, aren't making much money at all. The exceptions aren't relying as much on Second Life's default building tool, which as you mentioned, is pretty simplistic, but import their structures, or components, at least, from a professional modeling tool such as 3D Studio Max or Maya. IM me in world some time and I'll send you a few landmarks to the stores of a few builders who are producing some truly beautiful works of art. Anyway, my point is, if you're planning on going down that road, do yourself a favor and refrain from assuming that building is easy for you - there is always more to learn, and if you want to do it, get started now and devote yourself to it.

Another option, and potentially a good place to get started since you probably don't have much for your avatar to wear, is clothing design. Look around for some tutorials and start learning how to design clothing and skins. Work on your avatar's shape as well, taking plenty of time to make small adjustments, because it's amazing how much of a difference that can make. If you can build your entire avatar from scratch, then you'll end up with a look you can be proud of without spending anything more than the upload fees, and you can easily camp or enter little contests to cover that. Once you're finished, you'll have had lots of practice, and you'll have a product to sell. Open up a little store on SLX, put your clothing, shape and skins up for sale, and start over again, gradually building a product base. If you're good, you can probably make some money. If you're not, you'll fade into obscurity like most clothing designers.

Finally, one of the best ways to make money is probably scripting - I personally get from 3-5k per hour for custom work with full permissions, and some other scripters charge twice that or more. Unfortunately, it's not the easiest field to get into, and unless you have plenty of prior experience, it's probably going to be at least a couple of months before you can charge much of anything for your work. The reason scripters can ask what we do is, it really is a professional skill, and the most expensive scripters in Second Life would probably still make more from a real life company, and in fact, most of them are.

The point I'm trying to make overall is, don't be the newbie who expects to log on to Second Life and open up a successful business within a few weeks. The Second Life economy is no different from any other - the laws of supply and demand are still good here, and considering that there aren't that many active users, the demand for anything is less than a lot of people seem to expect. On top of that, the standards are increasing fast, so whatever you're doing, you'd better be good. If you want to do well, pick a skill and spend all of your free time for the next couple of weeks practicing it. Don't take anything for granted, and don't get caught up in how naturally talented you are, because believe me, you're not the only one.

Drop me an IM if you need any help.

Best of luck,
Ezra

I am not sure if it will work for you but Mechanical Turk at amazon.com requires no bank account or paypal even to make some money, catch is if you have no bank you end up with having to transfer it to a gift card and only able to spend the cash on Amazon.com, but that may help you in some way, or other readers. If you have a bank you can get it transferred to that account! maybe 1USD an hour-3 an hour lol. But when you have nothing an hour it may be a help.

For L$ in world, I am not sure what to tell you other than Enel Park (used to, may still) has driving for 2L per lap. You canwin money at races, some require buying a car and others you can turn up and win. I am not sure but RaceSl events used to be free to enter, but financial issues may have changed that. There are even companies who sponsor. BT, ou ned a good GPU and faster CPU wht a decent connection and be savvy in your line holding and passing! Sometimes they have n00b events with no purchase or cheaper cars at the stock car racing. Check out the tracks and groups, som are not easy to find and you need to ask around.

You really will make more with less time and have more fun creating a wanted/needed product though. I can give you a list of free software to learn....I really need to make a blog post or site of this list*sigh* but...her it goes!


Software for FREE:

Gimp -Textures, signage and maybe a photographer even. Plugins and brushes are available for this that help a bit sometimes. PLUS, you can open a lot of .psd templates. REMEBER: Ther are textures online, inworld and such for sale. Sometimes it is way way faster to buy for a build.

Inkscape -Vector graphics, lines and shapes to make pictures so no spray paint brushes etc. Just lines, good for some art work for signage and making newish look shine for HUD/device/gadget buttons or something, depends.

Art Rage -simulated painting program, may help you and has a real paint type style you may be able to use for some textures or signs etc. Even artsy clothes or whatever.

Pixia -another art program, but not so good. Gimp is really the best, Gimp with some plugins and a knowledge of layers and the effects from those is even better. BUT, we all have different ways of working and this may fit you art style or way of working! It is heavily leaning to being god for Anime, but art is art and a brush is a brush.

MetaBolt -a "bot" ish type program, can hep you camp while you surf the web in another window and will only eat a little bit of bandwidth.

Blender -3D "sculpties" Large lerning curve(maybe 3-4 days and a week or so to get started making anything useful at any speed) and you just use scripts found in the building forum here, vids in those posts for installation.

Sculpty Paint -3D "sculpties" maker. Bit easier and SL specific, but limited in what it can do.

Wings3D -Another program that can do sculpts with a plugin, easier but still a bit of a learning curve.

Audactiy -Sound editing, you may have some way of capturing sounds with a decent mic or doing voice samples people like. This is good for editing sound, easy and pretty powerful enough if you learn it.

Wavasour(sp?) -Another sound editing software, snappy fast loading and loops sound easily. Also will use VST plugins, sound stuff may be your love or interest and you may like to learn more, if not forget I ever said VST lol.

ScultpySpace - a preview software, just to view sculpted prim maps in the way they will look in SL. it is a bit more accurate, but beta grid is always best.

Qavimator -The easiest and fastest way to make SL poses etc. You can find classes on this and youtube vids for all of these softwares, I bet.

DAZ -this can be better for anims, but is more confusing but exports SL style .bvh movement files. Takes a bit of learning, but can make some complex anims when you get the work flow worked out. Slow prog though, Qavimator is lighter and faster.

lslEdit -a program to help with scripting. Learned any coding? Like java or BASIC? well, even if you haven't you may take to "scripting" and do ok. This is like the cheapest to get into, zero upload costs! Just use this to bug fix and code faster, then copy & paste the code into a blank script in a object or inventory!! BUT, this takes more time to learn for many and textures maybe next slowest.

Free but obvious, sometimes overlooked:

SL's Beta Grid. -You may not be able to log on as a n00b, but when you can this place will hep you a lot as you can log in and not pay upload fees to test uploaded items. BUT, non of the uploads are available on the regular "Grid", meaning you need to upload the keepers to the grid just like normal. You can usually get on here after they do a snap shot of the sims again, they copy sims from regular grid here and then you can log int this special server network("grid" to test stuff out with the new server code they are running OR save a bit testing texture, anim, sound uploads. 5000L, refreshed, for uploads for nothing. On this grid only though! not transferable!

SL's built in tools -Yeah, not terribly exciting like making sculpts, but you can make some decent items and many biz's where build on regular Prims and textures in Gimp or some such item.



Ok, looking on the forums you find templates for clothes, shading for av stuff etc. You can also search for "Free CG" and find textures. I will post a few here, these can give you a fast source of textures BUT read the permissions! They may not allow commercial usage.
http://cgtextures.com/ -texture SOURCE photo's mostly. So yu have ot make these seamless sometimes, or add parts together. Not so hard, look for the seamless "map" plugin in Gimp
http://www.sharecg.com/index.php -lots of stuff here! Textures are useful, models not so but nice to look at! Clothes are the same deal, not SL compat. Some skin items may be useful as they have full perms and you can use some face details to make skins maybe?
http://www.cg-files.com/index.html -some free doors, walls etc.
http://www.cg-links.com/category/Textures/Free_Textures
http://qbrushes.com/plants/floral-brushes/ -Free brushes, usable in GImp to help make textures.
http://sezmra.com/?page_id=7 -Good inspiration for skins, maybe a base to work from.
http://www.vintfalken.com/new-second-life-skin-psd-files-from-eloh-eliot/ -well, shush I didn't tell you this one, just read this blog and find out. Layers, this is the key to making better and complex images that are modular and work much faster to make changes and variations. Variations = more products. Might be good to have a lot, But I sell only a few in one product line.

http://www.cg-links.com/category/Blueprints/Free_Blueprints -Blueprints can help with building, gives you an outline to follow. Great for suclpties mostly and also can help with textures. Textures are a way to hugely increase the look of a build and make it unique and better all around.
http://www.the-blueprints.com/ -blueprints again. Better organized, I use this to get inspiration on what to build. Built the SPort 7 with a few glances at these lol.

oh, quick one for sounds. read rights, these are all ok for profit, I think... http://www.soundsnap.com/
Neffertiti Neferious(SP?) has server rental, maybe. it is 50L a month! That is cheap compared to many that charge that per month. Then you can put a server form xstreet.com there, or maybe OnRez.com. OnRez seems to be useless for me and many other though, but you may have a different experience! BUT, if all you got is one prim, I would go with xsteret unless you have clothes and are using OnRez Vendors in world, they have a nice vendor tied to the pages.

blah blah blah, that is a lot of typing and it may save you a bit of time wasted on finding things out though.

I make a few hundred L$ every week or so, only have 2 main products and have a a few reseller vendors One sells and the other does not really sell at all lol. Each experience is wildly different though!

Enel = 2L sure money. Store = money out for rent with a ? on profit. Server for xstreet.com = 50L or so a month, easy to manage without logging into SL.

If you are looking to get into trucking check out this site <if ur in the states>

http://www.schneider.com/drivers/index.htm

While some spend alot of money here.. others don't. There are ALOT of FREEBIES offered on SL and it can be as expensive or inexpensive as you let it. There are safe sims in SL for noobies that offer a place to change clothes with no one to bug you. There are lots of job offers on SL as well however alot require you to be at least 3 months old, with good skin and the ever popular Xcite items. Anyone that is new to SL and has made it past the first 2 weeks is probably addicted haha.... just be patient... look around you really don't HAVE to spend that much money unless you want too!