Meeroos Addresses It's Pet Issues

 

Longtime residents will likely remember the Meeroos, even if they never got one. Introduced in 2011, these cute virtual pets known for their wanting to snuggle were very popular then. Almost fifteen years later, they're still around, with a smaller but still active fanbase.  Recently a friend of mine who owned some started telling me about trouble. But after several days, there was finally a response from someone in the company behind them.

Read the story in Design. 

Reader Submitted: Red River Saloon

 

Monday's have always been kind of an off day, that was until I got together with the ROOS RFL Team and they introduced me to the RED RIVER SALOON.. If you like country music, you will enjoy Monday night there, from 5 PM SLT to 6 PM SLT.

On Monday night you are treated to a real, live country singer, Gary Jonstone.. Singing isn't Gary's RL job, but he enjoys it enough to come on SL and perform for our enjoyment. Gary does accept requests and usually will sing it, if he knows it.

The RED RIVER SALOON is owned by Sienna Thor and she has been running it for almost 20 years.  Sienna is also a member of the CURE CHASERS RFL Team.

So if your a fan of country music, dancing, hooping and hollering. Then there is no more fun place on Monday night, than the RED RIVER SALOON.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Lilith/228/209/83

Rita Mariner

 

Commentary: Meanwhile in Real Life News ...

 

 

Taken at Gladstone Cove. It's unusual I report on real-life news that doesn't have anything to do with Second Life. But one of the reasons I didn't have much ready on Monday was I was pondering about the news in real life, notably the situation with Greenland and Denmark. For some reason, the American President has been pressuring Denmark to sell the huge icy island, and the Danes at first responded that since it's an autonomous territory they can't just hand it over, but as the demands have persisted and the pressure has been going up, they've expressed more confusion, irritation, then anger, "Why are you doing this? I thought we were friends?"

 

Denmark and America have been longtime friends and allies, since the end of WW2, and have been part of NATO since it's founding. Other NATO allies have come to Denmark's defense, and the situation continues to get worse. 

 

It's been my goal to not tell people what to think, just present the facts as I see them and let the readers think for themselves. But I've grown up and lived with the idea of my country as the champion and leader of the free world. It is sad and disheartening to see our President acting on the world stage not like a champion, but a bully. 

 

For my comments on "Food on The Table," Click Here.  

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Drama Libre's Time Traveler's Ball

 

On Saturday January 10 was an event organized by Drama Libre, the Time Traveller's ball. Among those attending was Netera Landar. She got to see the creativity displayed by the people attending, and heard a little about what goes into the making of these parties. 

 

Read Netera's article in Events.  

 

Events This Week at the Sunweaver and Montecito Bay Clubs, Furry Fashion, Urban Furry, and Club Scorn

 

Here's what's going on at the Sunweaver, Montecito Bay, Furry Fashion, Urban Furry, and Scorn clubs.

Club Cutlass: Summer Dreams, Telephones? , TBA

Happy Vixen: DJ Charlee, DJ Scratch, DJ Malit, TBA, DJ Khyra

Club Zero Gravity: DJ Rose - Beach Party

 

Bouncing Bunny Beach Club:  DJ Rose - Night Watch (Nocturnal Jobs and/or Creatures)

Xanadu: DJ Jesse 

 

Montecito Bay:  CAYA, After Dark

Club Scorn: Th 8-12, Sat 2-12

 

Furry Fashion: TBA

 

Urban Furry :  DJ Juana, DJ Charlee, DJ Whiskey, DJ Vantox

 

Read the schedules in SL Clubbin'

 

Angels Beach Land Rentals

 

At the Angels Beach Land Rental Agency, you can find a great new home in Second Life. With many sims to choose from, in the Sunweaver Estates, Hidden Valley, and Purrfection, you can choose from a variety of environments.

We offer places with friendly and interesting neighbors. Some places have a tropical island look, others more temperate. Some of the sims have access to enough water to boat around in. And there are plans later on for an open water sim for even more water activities. The sims are home to a number of quality clubs, such as Cutlass, Zero Gravity, Xanadu, the BBBC, and the Happy Vixen Beach Club. In one sim alone there are two quality clubs that work together so there is no lag from them. There are also some small shopping areas available.

The sims range from Mature to Adult, but the purpose of the adult rating is for a relaxed atmosphere in which couples can relax. The places do not allow for harassment, and while there are vendors that cater to mature tastes they are discreet about it. Spaces available range from small plots to a full homestead that will rent out for only $30,000L's per month. Most of the sims break the parcels down into 512 Sqm parcels and and most have a sliding rent scale, so the more you rent the cheaper it gets. Our prices are VERY competitive here in Second Life. 

 

And if you bring a friend to an Angels Beach area, you get more than just a good neighbor. Anyone that refers a renter to us and they rent land, they will receive 10% of the first months rent. And if someone you know needs help renting out land on his/her sim, bring them to us. Renters who bring in a sim owner needing administration, we will give 10% of our first check.

To learn more, please contact Nydia Tungsten, Brandi Streusel, Jasmine Dawn (Jasmine Knickers), or Matoazma Kazyanenko.

"We pride ourselves on on not just renting land but renting our customers the land you want. We listen to what you tell us on what you are looking for." 

 

 

Cartoon of The Day: Hamming it Up

 

 Taken at Montecio Bay. Not sure why the porcine got bonked. But with the burger hat, I could think of one possibility.

 

By Bixyl Shuftan 

 

SL Video: "The Dollmaker"

 

 (click here if the video does not play)

 

From Akiko Kinoshi on October 25 2025, "The Night Theatre presents: THE DOLLMAKER Recorded October 18 2025 at Fallen Gods in Second Life 'At the end of the worlds, at the last refuge of a universe, lives a lone magician and creator of mechanical things. Driven by the wanting of companionship he works, day and night, to find a way to bring life to another like him. Another to work beside him, as time ticks on, to the tune of their mechanical hearts. He has yet to discover the way to empower such a heart with energy that lasts beyond moments. So his searching keeps on, for minutes and moments and lifetimes.' The Dollmaker "Join us for an evening with the magic of Theatre and a special show just for the Anniversary Festival (of Fallen Gods). The Dollmaker is a new performance by "The Night Theater" and will be performed at the Anniversary twice... Hope to see you there ..." Alia Baroque The Night Theatre Dancers: Aelva Fairelander Six Ethereal Stevie Morane Basevi Sam Puren"

The Harmony Hills Community

 

Netera Landar recently dropped by somewhere that wasn't just a place, but a virtual home for a number of residents, the Harmony Hills Community. Founded a year and a half ago by Angeliana Claro, the place has expanded in size in both land and people to five sims and two hundred locals. So what was the place like besides the numbers?

 

Read Netera's article in People.

EOTB: "SL Video Creators Group’s Best of 2025 Nominees"

 

 In the Linden Blog, there's been two updates in the past few days. On Wednesday January 14 was an announcement for video fans. For the rest of January, there will be special showings of highlights from videos nominated for The SL Video Creators Group Best of 2025 Award at the Cinema at the WelcomeHub area. This will be followed by an awards show at the Cinema on February 7.

 

Calling all machinima fans! The SL Video Creators Group is kicking off the new year at the Second Life Cinema with a special showcase celebrating the Best of 2025 Award nominees.

Founded by Jordan Rizzo in 2020, the SL Video Creators Group brings together Second Life filmmakers to share resources, collaborate, and highlight outstanding machinima. Each year, their awards recognize exceptional work across multiple categories, including short form, long form, vlog, music video, and short film.

Throughout January, the Second Life Cinema will feature a nominees reel, giving you the chance to watch highlights from this year’s nominated videos in a shared, inworld theater experience. It is a great way to discover new creators, revisit standout moments from 2025, and start forming your predictions ahead of the awards show. 

 

The awards show at the Cinema will take place February 7 at Noon SL time, and for those who can't make it inworld, it will be streamed live on Youtube.  

 

For the list of nominies, check the SL Creators Group website.  

 

For the blog post in full, Click Here.  

 

SL Video (Science Circle): "Giuseppe Longo Measuring The Universe With Digital Surveys"

 

 (click here if the video does not play)

 

 From the Science Circle on February 2017, "Presentation by Giuseppe Longo for the ScienceCircle - 'Measuring the Universe with digital surveys'."

 

 

Goo-Goo-Googly Eyes

 

 Longtime visitors to Club Cutlass in the Sunweaver community may remember the "drama llama," a lama's head trophy on the wall as a warning to those who create drama, "Drama llamas will be shot and mounted (not necessarily in that order)." Hostess DeniseUnicorn Toonie recently pointed out to me someone had stuck "googly eyes" on it. 

 

Guess "the eyes have it."

 

Bixyl Shuftan

 

Cat Face Gaming

 

A friend told me about a gaming place located on the SL mainland, "Cat Face Gaming." Located near "The Shelter," it offers a large variety of games. Bixyl Shuftan went over to check the place out. 

 

Read more in Places. 

 

2025: Year in Review

 

2026 is here, a new year and the second half of the decade and the start of the second quarter of the century. But before we truly say goodbye to 2025, let's have a look back at what happened, a year full of triumphs and tragedies, of good news and blunders.

 

AI was a subject that got plenty of talk in real-life news, and made Second Life news as well.  Only days before the year started, the Lab had announced then paused an AI character designer. In late February, it was brought back, though just for designing a "personal companion." But in August, it announced it would once again pause development in September and those made couldn't be used any more until further notice. 

 

There would be an AI "Town Hall" in April for the Lab to answer some questions and concerns by the residents, one who would express, "If we let these AI run rampant, they will take our very humanity from us," and another who felt "An AI character can be a useful social outlet." Philip Linden would also answer questions about it at the SL22B, which was shortly after he wrote an essay "Ultraviolet Catastrophe" in which he suggested in the near future AI bots could overwhelm the Internet social media to the point people will drastically change how they use it. Two Lindens would leave the Lab, Runitai Linden, and Signal Linden.

 

There was a minor controversy in which what looked like AI generated commercials for Second Life made it to Facebook. Brad Oberwager, the head of Linden Lab, would respond those were never intended to be actual commercials but were tests that would be replaced with inworld content, "We f***ed up." 

 

A few readers submitted AI-generated fanart to the Newser. The majority of comments were positive, though not everyone was pleased, one calling it "supporting theft." There were also some music videos done in Second Life that were finished with the assistance of AI. There would be an event in Second Life, "AI Land" which displayed AI-generated art. The debate on the Internet about AI art would make it to the Newser in the form of a commentary by Nydia Tungsten. 

 

In February, Linden Lab announced "Membership Mania," in which residents got more perks, everyone getting a higher group limit, and Plus and above getting a few more such as Linden Home options, a higher stored IM limit, and more prim space at Linden Homes. They also had a computer giveaway. In March was "March Mobile Millions," which gave residents logging onto the mobile viewer a chance to spin a money wheel which had prizes up to one million Linden Dollars. April would offer the "Dash for Cash" just for logging into the mobile viewer. For a brief time in April, Linden Lab reduced purchase fees for Linden dollars to one cent. Also in April, Linden Labs would give all residents new and old the Avatar Welcome Pack, and make it a feature for new accounts. In May, Linden Lab would fully reverse the ban on gachas it enacted four years earlier and partially lifted in November 2024. The Lab would also occasionally offer gifts to Premium and Premium Plus residents. 

There was some expansion of Bellisseria in February, April, and September with the continued tradition of many of the sims having funny names. There would be four new types of Linden Homes. In February came the Tiki, underwater, which were perfect for Second Life's merfolk community. April had the Aspen Ridge Linden Home. In September came the Ridgewood Linden Home. While these expansions were taking place, areas with older pre-Belisseria Linden Homes would close down. Bellisseria would celebrate it's sixth anniversary in April, with the B6B event. 

 

Brad Oberwager would announced the number of monthly users had gone up to 620,000 in December.  This was further up from 500,000 last year. In November, the Second Life University videos by Linden Lab would resume after a two year hiatus This year, there were some changes to billing and financial systems for buying and selling Linden dollars. The Lab made progress on it's mobile and webbrowser viewers. Firestorm would also launch a browser-based viewer, but like the Linden one, one needed to pay to use it.  

 

In September, the last member of the Lumiya Viewer staff announced she was trying to restore the platform, which it is believed may be ready sometime in 2026. The creator of one popular third-party viewer, Black Dragon, announced in October that he may have to stop updating it due to real-life, which will eventually render it obsolete.  

 

For owners of breedable pets, the owners of ABC horses got a shock when in January, Awesome Breed Creations, better known as ABC, effectively shut down when three members of it's staff left, saying they hadn't been paid in months, including the scriptor, who turned off the scripts and effectively turned off the breedables. Many horse owners were saddened, some who had invested tens of thousands of Linden dollars into their pets. Amaretto horses responded with a message of sympathy and an offer of a free starter pack. There was no sign of ABC's owner, who is thought to have "taken the money and ran."

 

Another controversy was when the store Bella Epoque was evicted from it's land when the owner Jani La Belle (Janire Coba) was suddenly told by her landlord to leave, her saying she was angrily told to depart because of the "gang of homo" she invited for an event. Unfazed, she made a shirt with the phrase "Gang of Homos," and she and supporters were wearing it as an act of pride in defiance. 

In August came some unwelcome news for the owners of "prim babies." Zooby, which made them, announced it was discontinuing support for them in January after switching production to mesh ones six years earlier. But in November, they announced support would continue.

Tripp Foxtail, announced he would be closing the Travellers Station and his other places in August, but within a few days stated a partial retraction, saying while others were still closing, the Travellers Station would stay. In October, Emerald City Golf Course announced it was facing financial trouble, but after a few weeks announced they had raised enough to continue, at least for now. But not all places in trouble got a reprieve. In late August, it was announced the Rosehaven community estates would be closing. Sadly it would get no break. 

Belisseria would be the subject of the Newser's April Fool joke. Firestorm had some joke warning alerts, "Due to a coding hiccup, all avatar voices have been replaced with chipmunk squeaks. Happy chatting!" Linden Lab got into the act by announcing they were offering upside down Linden Homes. One joke that went better than expected was one avatar maker offering cardboard avatars as a joke, and were surprised when people kept buying them up.  

 

There were many events across Second Life. Among them were Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Education in late March and early April, Mole Day, Hug and Dunk A Linden, the Love Train, Bellisseria's anniversary or B6B, the Bay City anniversary, the Sci-Fi con, Bay City Oktoberfest, Team Diabetes Scare Me Silly, Bellisseria Spooktober, The Multiverse Fair, Luna's Empire Ghost Hunt, The Dickens Project, Bay City Tree Trimming, Raglan Shire events such as Shocktober and Wootstock, Autism Australia, and the monthly Homes For Our Troops Benefits.

 

There were the Valentine, SL Birthday, Halloween, and Christmas Shop and Hops. There were Burn2 events, the winter, spring, and summer spinoff events and the main one in October, the theme being "Tomorrow Today."  One SL Burner got a surprise when her build in Second Life was being replicated at the real-life Burning Man. Bay City Prim Drop and various other New Year's Eve events.  And of course there was the Second Life Twenty Second Birthday, or SL22B, of which the theme was Myths and Legends. 

 

There were the events at the PBC, such as International Women's Day, Juneteenth, Fright Fest, and the "Meet the Author" event for yours truly and the novel I published, "The Corsean Encounter."

 

The Relay for Life would hold many events, not just during it's main fundraising season from February to June but across the year, the RFL Living Expo, the Relaystock (which took place early this year), Fly For Life, Bid the Lindens Bald, the Fantasy Faire, Outshop Cancer, Making Strides, the Christmas Expo, and of course, the Relay Weekend. 

 

Two events would not happen this year. One was the Renaissance Festival in fall to raise money for the American Cancer Society. The other was the Veterans Tribute in November. Late November would see the end of the weekly Science Circle events. 

 

Among other places and groups having anniversaries the International Space Museum would turn twenty. So would the Second Life Coast Guard group.  Team Firestorm would turn fifteen. 

 

Sadly, some residents of Second Life would pass away this year. They included SL musician Reno Jones, artist Solana Python , club owner Jodi Eyre, commentator on SL and other virtual worlds Mal Burns, Crim Mip of Rosthaven and Wooburn, Melanippe of Themiscyra (Melanippe Karas), Tanarian Davies and Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (Klauswulfenbach Outlander) who were the same person behind the computer, builder and writer Luna Lunaria (apelles.luna), dancer Josiane Auster (Josiane Llewellyn), designer and decorator Crito Galtier, and singer Beccca Baxton.

 

For the Sunweaver community where the Newser office makes it's home, it would shine during the Relay season with it's Sunbeamer team, with the Sunbeamers Air Show and weekly Moon Dance. "The little team that could" would pass the one million Linden dollar and make Ruby.  Besides yours truly getting a book event at the Premier Business Center, in February, Nydia Tungsten would announce the third book in her Switched Destinies series, "Acceptance of Fate," was published. A friend of the Sunweavers/Angels would reopen the Urban Furry club. But sadly Club Squeaks would stop having regular events. 

 

There was also some Internet news. There was the continued debate about AI and if it was putting the economy at risk with a "bubble" due to burst soon, as well as debates about data centers and their demand for water. Skype would shut down in May. There was gaming controversy in the summer when it was discovered Steam was unlisting a number of Adult-rated games following pressure by credit card companies. In response, Paypal started blocking Steam in much of the world. October 2025 was a month some computer users dreaded. Microsoft was ending support for Windows 10. Users had the choice of filing for a one year extension, paying for a business version of the operating system, upgrading to Windows 11, or ditching Windows altogether and installing Linux. Most chose upgrading to 11. But there were complaints about bugs and unwanted instillation of AI. 

 

For the Newser, it's been a productive year which was more productive with the return of Netera Landar, as well as the many submissions sent by readers. And we look forward to delivering you the news about the people, places, and events in Second Life in 2026.

 

Bixyl Shuftan

Editor

SL Newser

 

Events This Week at the Sunweaver and Montecito Bay Clubs, Furry Fashion, Urban Furry, and Club Scorn

 

Here's what's going on at the Sunweaver, Montecito Bay, Furry Fashion, Urban Furry, and Scorn clubs.

Club Cutlass: Blue & Purple, Space, Freedom of Flight

Happy Vixen: DJ Charlee, DJ Scratch, TBA, TBA, DJ Khyra

Club Zero Gravity: DJ Rose - Mythologicals

 

Bouncing Bunny Beach Club:  DJ Rose - Spots and Stripes

Xanadu: DJ Jesse 

 

Montecito Bay:  CAYA, After Dark

Club Scorn: Th 8-12, Sat 2-12

 

Furry Fashion: Wings, Hooves & Horns, Horror

 

Urban Furry :  DJ Juana, DJ Charlee, DJ Whiskey, DJ Vantox

 

Read the schedules in SL Clubbin'

Crew Meeting

 

Picture from Gemma Cleanslate

Saturday January 10 was the first Newser crew meeting for the year, taking place in our office at HV Community. Those attending from right to left were Netera Landar, Gemma Cleanslate, Bixyl Shuftan (myself), Nydia Tungsten, and Klaus Bereznyak. We would discuss what we covered in December, and plans on what to write about this month. Falling between the holiday season and Valentines Day & the start of the Relay fundraising season, there's usually more time to cover things that we've put off for a while. 

Netera admitted to being a little overdressed due to a tribute that night. But the rest of us just complemented on her looks. 

 

Stay tuned for more articles of great people, places, and events by the SL Newser team.

 

Bixyl Shuftan

Editor 

The Waterfall Café

 

The Newser has covered many winter places in recent weeks.  For those looking for something different, Newser reporter Netera Landar found a location very interesting and unique in all seasons: The Waterfall Cafe. From Katie Luckstone, with it's picturesque underwater caverns, huge aquariums with swimming fish, chairs made to resemble sea shells, and more, it's very much worth a visit. 

 

Read Netera's article in Places.  

Reader Submitted: Relay For Life of Second Life Holds Ribbon Cutting and First Laps

 

The official Relay for Life fundraising season doesn't start until next month, but on Saturday January 10, a number of Relayers were at the American Cancer Society sim  The reason was a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the sim after it's makeover and the "First Lap" event. Cynthia Farshore was there, and took some notes, and pictures.

Read Cynthia's story in Events.  

 

EOTB: New "Second Life University" Video, "Introduction to .glTF"

 

In November, the Second Live University videos resumed after a two year hiatus. Late last week on January 8, Linden Lab announced it's latest one, "Introduction to .glTF." 

 

 (click here if the video does not play)

Class is back in session! Second Life University returns with a special new episode featuring AxlTruth (Mesh Monster). We are excited to welcome him to the series!

In this episode, Axl walks through one of the most important updates for content creators, .glTF and PBR materials. With .glTF, you can import a full PBR asset, including mesh, textures, materials, and rigs, using a single streamlined workflow.

Axl starts with a quick breakdown of what .glTF is, why it matters, and how it works alongside physically based rendering (PBR). He then demonstrates how to set up materials in Blender, export a .glTF file, and bring it into Second Life. You will also see how to import materials, manage the level of detail and land impact, and apply textures efficiently. The video wraps with the same workflow using Substance Painter, making it easy to bring fully textured assets into Second Life with consistent results.

 * * * * *

 

Topics covered in this video: 00:00 Introduction to .glTF and PBR in Second Life 00:59 What is .glTF? 01:37 Understanding PBR materials 02:06 PBR texture maps explained 02:52 .glTF expanded vs. packed (binary .glb) 03:17 Preparing Blender for .glTF 03:47 Setting up materials in Blender 04:19 Base color and normal maps 04:49 Metallic and roughness maps 05:11 Ambient occlusion and glTF material output 05:33 Emissive materials 06:01 Transparency and alternate material setups 06:27 Using combined ORM maps 07:15 Exporting .glTF from Blender 07:52 Importing .glTF into Second Life 08:09 Setting level of detail and land impact 08:35 Importing .glTF materials 09:10 Exporting from Substance Painter 09:52 Importing Substance Painter assets into Second Life 10:34 To dive deeper into using PBR Materials, watch our other Second Life University Video:    • Second Life University - How to Create PBR...   

 

To read the blog post, Click Here. 

  

Cartoon of The Day: When The Devil Is In The Details

 

 Taken at the Dickens Project. Not sure why someone wanted to look like a demon at an Xmas event, though maybe the spirits with her knew the Ghosts of Christmas.

 

By Bixyl Shuftan 

 

SL Video: "Think I'm In Love With You"

 

 (click here if the music does not play)

 

From Diamond Doll Media on  July 2025

 

Winter Crest Ski Resort and Lodge

 

While the Christmas season is over, Gemma continues her search for scenic winter places. She recently went to Winter Crest Resort and Lodge. As the name suggests, it's a lodge that overtooks a winter area, including a ski slope. But it also had some detailed scenery.

 

Read Gemma's story in Places.  

 

SL Video (Science Circle) : "Rob Knop - Discrepancies in the Measured Expansion Rate of the Universe "

 

 (click here if the video does not play)

 

 From the Science Circle on Feb 2018, "Rob Knop presents 'Discrepancies in the Measured Expansion Rate of the Universe'"

 

 

Cartoon of The Day: Food on Their Mind

 

 Taken at Montecito Bay. Gnoll Wife had her DJing debute, and at one point people started putting on these tall hamburger hats. How it started, I don't know. But I had an idea what it could lead to.

 

By Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Do YOU Have A Story?

 

On occasion, Second Life Newser will print an article or picture submitted to us by one of you, the readers.

Have you seen a particularly well-detailed sim? Went to a great event? Found yourself in a hilarious "only in SL" predicament? We're very interested in what you the readers have to say. Send us a story or funny picture, and if we like it, we'll post it as a Reader Submitted. For pictures, jpg format is preferred.

 

This is where you the readers come in.  On occasion, Second Life Newser will print an article or picture submitted to us by one of you. We're very interested in what you the readers have to say. Send us a story or funny picture, and if we like it, we'll post it as a Reader Submitted. For pictures, jpg format is preferred.

Mail submissions to bixylshuftan(at)gmail.com.

PLEASE include your SL user name and tell us if you wish it to appear with your story.

SL-Newser reserves the right to post in the appropriate section, edit,  and to investigate any names used in submitted stories (please ask permission before using anyone's name or picture that's clearly someone or use an alias for them).

 

 

Nuvolino At Inspire Space Park

 

One place in Second Life that is "must see" would be Inspire Space Park. This "cosmic sci-fi natural outer space galaxy built by talented SL artists," was stunningly beautiful when it first appeared in 2007, and since then has continued to wow and delight visitors. Besides it's scenery, performers sometimes have events there. Netera Landar was recently there to see a performance by a musician named Nuvolino. So what was it like?

 

See Netera's article and pictures in Events. 

 

Homes For Our Troops Benefit Raises Over 100,000 Linden Dollars

 

On Sunday January 4,  a concert was held at Veternas Isle to raise money for Homes For Our Troops, a charity dedicated to improving and building homes for disabled veterans. The event organized by Frets Nirvana would raise a total of over 109,000 Linden dollars.  

 

The event would go from about Noon SL time to 4PM. Besides DJ Morph, there would be live performers, Marqs Desade, Agatha Martin, and Mavenn. 

 

Veterans Isle normally has a fundraiser for the charity about once a month, often on the first weekend of the month (though not always). The next event, baring any last minute change, will be in early February.  

 

To learn more about Homes for Our Troops visit https://www.hfotusa.org  

 

Bixyl Shuftan  

 

Events This Week at the Sunweaver and Montecito Bay Clubs, Furry Fashion, Urban Furry, and Club Scorn

 

Here's what's going on at the Sunweaver, Montecito Bay, Furry Fashion, Urban Furry, and Scorn clubs.

Club Cutlass: Fire & Water, Naughty, Stranger Things

Happy Vixen: TBA, DJ Charlee, DJ Scratch, TBA, TBA, DJ Khyra

Club Zero Gravity: DJ Rose - Gold and Silver

 

Bouncing Bunny Beach Club:  DJ Rose 

Xanadu: DJ Jesse 

 

Montecito Bay:  CAYA, After Dark

Club Scorn: Th 8-12, Sat 2-12

 

Furry Fashion: Cats & Rabbits, Favorite Colors, Cyberpunk

 

Urban Furry :  DJ Juana, DJ Charlee, DJ Whiskey, DJ Vantox

 

Read the schedules in SL Clubbin'

 

New Year's Eve 2025

 

Many people in Second Life, perhaps most, love a good party. And New Years Eve had a number. Some places had a special twist on regularly scheduled happenings, and others were open just for this special night. Yours truly dropped by a few from Wooburn, to Caledon, to Bay City, and his own home community the Sunweavers as they bade 2025 good bye, and hello to 2026. 

 

See the pictures in Events.  

 

Sneak Peek: Panda Jenn's Pad Being Rebuilt

 

 Remember Panda Jenn's Pad? It's being relocated to somewhere in Zeta Valley and is being rebuilt. So what will it look like? It's not finished yet, but here's a teaser picture.

 

There will be an announcement when it does open again. 

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Luminara: A Mystical, Self-Discovery, Silent Reflection Sanctuary

Neteral Landar starts of her writing about places in Second Life with Luminaria. Created by Sedona Starchild, the place is described as "a space created with care, where every detail holds a deeper meaning, if you’re open to it." Netera went to look around, and was not disappointed. 

 

Read Netera's story in Places.  

 

Zooby Prim "Legacy" Babies Get Continued Support

 

In August, Zooby announced it would soon be ending support for Legacy babies, aka "prim babies," and pre-mesh pets. December was supposed to be the last month, with support ending in January. But this will not be happening. Zooby made the decision to continue support.

 

On November 19, Zooby announced news.  

 

We have migrated the ZOOBY LEGACY BABIES!!! This means you can KEEP YOUR LEGACY BABIES FOR AS LONG AS ZOOBY EXISTS! They will remain alive!!! WE DID THIS FOR YOU! 

There is NOTHING YOU HAVE TO DO! We are just letting the community know we did the work on our backend! It just means you can keep you Legacy Babies for as long as Zooby exists! You don't have to do anything!!! WOOHOOO!!!!!

If you need old Legacy supplies they are located here: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Shedao/185/113/34

The Curious Cats, Curious Canines and Trainapets have also been migrated! We just have the Breedable Lemurs left and then we are done!

We HOPE this month the Animesh Cats will be updated and out with new cat breeds and new cat toys!
We love the community and are doing all we can!! 

 

So for those with older Legacy babies, and pre-mesh pets, they now have a new lease on (virtual) life.

 

Hat tip: Kitacelia

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Cartoon of The Day: Penguin Paddles

 

 Taken at the Dickens Project. While at an event, I saw this little penguin waddling around, carrying a couple paddles. Was he or she trying to signal a plane to land, or something else.

 

By Bixyl Shuftan 

 

SL Music Video, "Bunny Dance The SIDH Iridium"

 

 (click here if the music does not play)

 

 From Nydia Tungsten on July 2025, "Bouncing Bunny Beach Club, Perri's XanadU, Club Cutlass, The Happy Vixen." There were a few comments, "I’m so happy your uploading again -^^- Same awesome style. I love the camera work and dance style Great music too!"

 

Netflix Buys Avatar Maker For VRChat, Smaller Worlds

 

There's been a development that will likely make it more difficult for people in VRChat and similar virtual worlds to get new avatars. According to an article in Techcrunch, Netflix has purchased the program "Ready Player Me." For those who haven't heard of it, it's an avatar-creation platform for various virtual worlds and games.

 

Ready Player Me was founded in 2014 in Estonia. Over the past decade it has raised over 70 million US dollars from investors.  It has a staff of twenty, who will all be joining Netflix. It's services, including Player Zero, will be going offline on Saturday January 31st. 

 

The Techcrunch article stated Netflix "plans to use the startup’s development tools and infrastructure to build avatars that will allow Netflix subscribers to carry their personas and fandom across different games." 

 

Scott Hayden in "The Road to VR" called the purchase "a blow to one specific group of people, namely VRChat users." Ryan Schultz felt while this would inconvenience users of the popular next-generation virtual world, at least it had a Marketplace for avatars for people to chose from. From his point of view, it would be the users of smaller virtual worlds that would truly be hurt as those platforms, "which wholly rely on Ready Player Me’s services ... are now going to have to scramble to find and implement a replacement in very little time."

 

Hat tip: Ryan Schultz

 

Sources: Techcrunch

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

From Discord: Too Much New Years Eve Partying?

 

 

From Sheree Honeyflower (ShereeHoneyflower) on the Bay City Discord channel, her "'Annual Wasted at Prim Drop' photo with help from Frankie Lindman." (yes I messaged her first)

The Annual Archive Reset

 

January First is the neatest the archival description on the front page appears. Normally it's a mix of the names of articles this month, plus the previous months in the year. But once the first article of the new year goes up, the last year "compacts." And so the section looks a little neater, just showing the first article, or first few articles, and the previous years. 

 

And we'll be quickly making it look messy again. 

 

Bixyl Shuftan

 

 

 

SL Video (Science Circle) : "Michael J Shaw- Silicon Chemistry And Its Consequences For Silicon Based Life"

 

 (click here if the video does not play)

 

 From The Science Circle in October 2016, "Michael J Shaw PhD - Lecture about silicon chemistry and its consequences for silicon based life."

 

(Almost) Forgotten Story: Linden Lab Accused of Using AI For Ads In Early 2025

 

Well, this news story could be called "better late than never."  

 

 In late February 2025, it was revealed on the SL forums that Linden Lab was using AI to make an ad. The reaction from the poster, "It looks like a bad ad for an AI chatbot app. SL has fantastic creators and content, why use AI generated video?" What followed were posts by upset and confused people, "Why would the Lab do this?  This isn't representative of SL AT ALL.  New users gonna log in with a default Ruth & duck walk & log right back out cause that video is bait & switch."especially since Linden Lab could, and was, doing proposed ads done entirely within Second Life. 

 

 Hamlet Au ended up talking to Linden Lab head Brad Oberwager. Oberwager responded that the intention was to use AI only for testing ads, and expressed surprised that they'd somehow leaked out and were seen by the residents. Hamlet would guess the Lab never asked residents for help thinking it would take too long to get permissions. 

 

Some people in the forums reacted with skepticism, "Good grief. Tell me you don't know how A/B testing works without telling me you don't know how A/B testing works, especially with FB ads." "They have no idea what the coffee they make tastes like. They will fail to find the magic bullet because they refuse to really taste the coffee." "As a marketer in RL I am sitting here shaking my head." But others were more hopeful, "Going by the article of Hamlet, it seems they did understand the mistake they made and hopefully will be correcting it." Later comments were a discussion about what kind of advertising might work. But there didn't seem to be any general agreement. 

 

Oberwager would admit of the controversy, "I f**ked this one up," and say to any residents reading, "Send me videos. Look at these bad ads [we made], and make them better."

 

* * * * *

 

On a personal note, sorry for missing this story. Thankfully it doesn't happen often. 

 

Bixyl Shuftan

Cartoon of The Day: The Reindeer After Christmas

 

 Taken at Club Zero Gravity. It makes sense that after their trip with Santa, and a little time to rest, the reindeer would celebrate another job well done with a party. But then what? Thinking about it, probably a little happy they have it easy compared to us working stiffs in North America.

 

By Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Press Release: Homes For Our Troops 2026 Kickoff Benefit

 

Frets Nirvana, longtime supporter and contact for Homes For Our Troops in Second Life in conjunction with the US Military Veterans Group, announces the 2026 kickoff benefit  for Homes for Our Troops benefit in Second Life.   The benefit will be held on January 4, 2026 from 12PM - 4 PM SLT at Veteran’s Isle.    http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Veterans%20Isle/176/58/3501.

Frets Nirvana states:  “HFOT is a privately funded 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization building specially adapted, mortgage-free homes nationwide for the most severely injured Veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan. Most of these Veterans are multiple amputees, paraplegic, quadriplegic or have suffered severe traumatic brain injury (TBI).  Since its inception in 2004, nearly 90 cents of every dollar spent by Homes for Our Troop has gone to directly support Veterans. DURING THAT TIME HFOT HAS BUILT 428 SPECIALLY ADAPTED HOMES NATIONWIDE FOR EXTREMELY INJURED VETERANS.  This will now be the 12th year that we have been supporting HFOT in Second Life.” 


This HFOT benefit concert will feature the following DJ’s and artists from 12 PM- 4 PM on January 4, 2026:

DJ Morph 12 PM
Marqs Desade 1 PM
Agatha Knowles 2 PM
Mavenn 3 PM

Sponsored by Frets Nirvana and the U.S. Military Veteran’s Group of Second Life.  To learn more about Homes for Our Troops visit https://www.hfotusa.org