Experiment on Orientation Island

Beginning today, (August 15), we'll be changing the Orientation Island pathway to allow newcomers to choose from one of 4 different options for entering Second Life. Two of those options will be Linden land (Welcome Area or Sandbox) and two will be resident created (Abbotts Aerodrome or The Edge). These four options will be available for 7 days, and we'll be tracking the percentage of newcomers who choose each option, and whether they decide to stay.

This experiment is one of several we're doing, including the Greeter Program and resident-created orientation experiences, as we explore how we'll scale bringing new people into Second Life. We know that it won't be possible over the long run to funnel everyone through the Welcome Area. Rather, we'd like to find different ways to bring people in all over Second Life, depending on their interests, who they might already know from RL, or if they have a specific objective such as to play a game. And, since we know that their first experience can impact someone's decision to stay, we want to make sure we offer a variety of choices that best reflect all the wonderful opportunities in Second Life.

Depending on how this experiment works, we'll be looking for more places to bring newcomers into Second Life. These places will be evaluated based on how many people choose them. If you'd like your build to be considered as an orientation path, please email me at [email]robin@lindenlab.com[/email] with the subject "Orientation Experience" or else drop me a notecard in-world. We'll add your place to the queue to be part of a future rotation.