do you think that alts should be disabled?

They're already having that discussion, not to mention frequently fighting over clothes. It's getting costly because Honey pouted until she got the same boots her sister has and they were not cheap! Now she wants the same $400 shirt!!

Sheesh, maybe I need a male alt. When he starts complaining about having no clothes, I can just explain that people don't design for men and he'll shut up.

I don't like this idea at all.

If you are military and get shipped overseas to somewhere that doesn't have reliable internet access (or perhaps heavily restricts your access) then you are kind of SOL unless you upgrade to premium.

Plus, you could still get hit with a catastrophic event that makes it difficult for you to be able to (or want to) play for an extended period of time.

I'd rather see everyone have to verify either payment or identification before they were allowed to access the grid at all.

50 + bots on one pc…OMG!
I was just thinking how not being able to run multiple clients would eliminate one of my primary sources of entertainment.
And who would I test … errm…things on?

This is one discussion where the self-selecting nature of the forums really shows up. I think it is incredibly unlikely that the opinions expressed so far in this thread represent more than a tiny percentage of residents.

Not that decision-making on account policy is democratic anyway.

It's LL's game, and it seems to me that they want the platform stress-tested - they want to constantly drive to the limit of what their grid can do, so that the team as a whole is forced to grow it in scalability.

So imho, they won't be getting rid of unpaid, unverified, or any other sort of "un" account anytime soon. Liability avoidance (gambling, sex, etc.) has already made them take a big enough hit. Stress testing is more valuable to them than any pittance they get from premium membership fees (much less than 10% of current revenue).

Think of the tools they'd have to develop, the test staff they'd have to have, the blindingly diverse set of test cases they'd have to create and document, to test this platform without us!

Well then being the only ones able to hold alts would be a nice addition for us elitists!
Then how do we know you’re not an alt?
*ducks*

Nothing is going to completely stop the griefers but it would halt a lot of them. If all alts are linked to a premium account (or at least one with payment info on file) then any griefer attack could result in the alt and any other avs (including the base one) linked with that credit card being banned as well. It would eliminate much of the problem.

Alts are very handy for me. When building furniture I need them for cuddling etc for placing my poses. I also have one that I use when I want to be in world but just need some time to myself. So, I'd hate to see them go away, but I would like tighter control.

Mine slows to a pitiful crawl when I have three logged in.

bots, as in not running the typical SL client but still using the SL resources

not sure what program they use, but have heard of something where all they do is just be there, nothing more

I say sow little symbols on our jackets and sleeves and make us wear baldies! Then you could easily identify us for the menace that we are!!

It has to be one or the other....

Stop Traffic from driving the search engine.

or

Stop Alts for more honest traffic numbers.

I have an alt simply to test my scripts, not for griefing and not for faking traffic.

"G"

we usually CAN identify you...lol

KIDDING.

Seriously, the problem does need to be resolved, but I really don't have an answer for it. As was stated earlier, I don't think LL is ever going to do anything about the situation anyway. Kind of a moot point.

Could someone please control their alt?!

I'm probably the only one who doesn't have an alt. There are legitimate reasons for alts, and if free accounts are allowed, free alts should still be allowed. I do think they all should be linked to a main account. I do think a reasonable number should be permitted, and some way to clean up all inactive accounts should be implemented.

We're all alts to our alts. Hehe

I have a different opinion on that, the way I see it is that people use alts to greif so that they don't get banned on their main accounts, which is why I think SL should go one account per person.

This would be the best option. One account with a different log in name and pass word. Then a number of slots for alts linked to the main account.

I did pay for my ALT for the simple reason she is very handy to have when I am testing out products I made and next owner permissions etc. I find it handy to just use my alt instead of having to ask one of my friends to check it out.

I do agree though that maybe after a certain time has passed that they be deleted or disabled. I know that with most email accounts if they are not used frequently they are disabled and you have to contact the service provider to get them re-enabled.

didn't read through the whole thread.

but hell no, i use my alt to test item delivery and to see if products work amongst other things.

now a payment system like they used to have would be a good idea, 10 or even 5 bucks US would deter alot of people from grifing and zombie bots.

but look we have all had this convo befor, there is no way LL will do that because at the moment there people in-world numbers just look to dam good.

-Crunch

I don't think alts should be eliminated entirely. I have one and I use her to test permissions and vendors, but the main reason was to form a "for sure" type of group, to take advantage of the 10% land bonus for group owned land. Having said that, both my main and my alt are premium accounts, because currently it's less expensive for me that way, with the amount of land I own. If I chose to tier up at all, it would be cheaper to downgrade my alt to basic. However, I do agree that alts should be linked to one main account, be it basic or premium. I am one of the people who do not think it would be crime for LL to charge everyone at least some sort of monthly fee, even if after a free limited time trial period, of, say, 30 days. Please don't flame me for that, it's just my view. If alts were linked to one main account, it would not only make griefers easier to manage and ban, but would also make it easier for the residents. All of your avatars should be listed under identities for your account, maybe not publicly, but at least for LL, and yourself, to be able to see and access.

I wouldn't want to see a monthly fee, but I would have paid a one time start fee for my basic account. And I think paying a fee for an alt is not a bad idea either. My complaint made earlier wasn't really directed at the alt question but at a general them vs. us (premium vs basic) that I hear a lot. So yeah...it probably didn't belong in this thread. It DOES make me think that some premium members might look down on the rest of us "riff raff". So knee jerk.. My bad. Sorry.

Linking alts to an account is a good idea, like WoW does. You have one account and then you can create lots of characters. You can have another account if you want. Linking alts to an account increases responsibility.

However I need my alt for my group to own land. I don't need to login with my alt for that, but my alt needs to exist.

However as I'm getting increasingly frustrated at the 25 group limit, my alt will probably have to become more active.

1) I have never had a domain or ISP mail and have no idea how to get one
2) I stupidly got my alts before they changed it to free except for the one that I rarely use now (I rarely use any but one now, so free or for-pay isn't the issue)
3) I still have no idea how to run multiple SL clients a the same time.

Having alts has really helped me stay active and inside SL. Really helped me expand and grow as a person. I know that sounds stupid, but it did.

The question is kinda pointless.

We might talk about our 'alts', but what we usually mean is our 'other accounts'.
I have an alt from the time when we were requested to declare the avatar to be such, and had to pay a one-off US$9-ish. An alt is essential for testing things.

I made an alt recently purely to check out the OI/HI experience. There was absolutely no control. I could have made 1000's of alts, with no apparent connection between them.


If there is a limit on alts, then it can only apply to people who declare accounts as alt accounts.
A limit on alts would do absolutely nothing to limit dishonest people.

That's exactly the same nonsense as an IDV/Age_Verification that verifies neither age or identity.


Until such time as all avatars are tied into an accountable RL identifier like payment info, forget about limiting anything.

Make the alts responsible for their actions. If an alts career choice is griefer, then the Linden police should be able to track down an owner and dispense justice. If someone is using 50 alts to pad their traffic score, pfffft so what? They dont get the cash reward for high traffic like we used to. It just puts them higher on the search chart. Once you go to their property, you figure out real quick that its a campbot zone and leave. I dont support camptowns with my buying dollar, in fact, Im more inclined to visit a shop lower down on the chart just to see something different. Ive paid for alts in the past, I have no problem with a one time fee for the privalage of doing so.

Now how am I supposed to game my picks if I can't have a hundred alts??

Just kidding. Five, tops. Maybe. This whole bit about people having 50 or more and sticking them in a skybox is a bit much.

Actually, I started life as an alt. I was much more low maintenance back then.