EOTB: Linden Lab to Introduce "Onboarding Experiences Built by Second Life Creators"

 

One problem Second Life has had to contend with over it's history is retaining newcomers, only a small fraction of those who log in for the first time keep coming back after the first few visits, many not even after the first. This virtual world has a steep learning curve, as well as it can be a challenge to find out where to go and what to do, and newcomers unless they have friends to guide them or extremely persistent, grow frustrated and lose interest in sticking around. 

 

Linden Lab has been trying various things over the years to try to keep new residents coming back, and encouraging other residents to help out.  On Monday March 30, Linden Lab announced on their blog "new onboarding experiences ... built by talented community creators." 

 

As part of our ongoing experimentation with improving the new user experience, we’ve recently launched a new set of onboarding destinations in Second Life designed to make Residents’ first moments more social, interactive, and fun.

Each experience has been independently built by a group of talented community creators and are currently among the first locations newly-registered community members will experience for a limited time as we continue to assess what types of experiences and locations retain and engage our newcomers.  

 

The blog entry would go on to say the work, "was part of a pilot New User Experience Working Group (NUXWG)," and it had finished up a week earlier, calling it, "an outgrowth of our ongoing Creator Partnership Program, where we work directly with the community for select partnerships across a variety of initiatives." The Lab stated the same group was behind "several new mobile-specific landing locations" in 2025. 

 

Over the next few weeks, we will be testing these and other starter locations as we continue our ongoing efforts to experiment, learn, and evolve the new user experience - with ongoing consideration for our Community Gateway partners and other collaborations. 

We invite the community to check these locations out for yourself and support these creators who put lots of love and labor into this project.  

 

Currently, there are six of these Onboarding Experiences:  

 

Madpea Scardey Cats,  in which the player rescues kittens from a playfully spooky funhouse.

 

Driving Dirty , described as "where you can play different games, grab free prizes, meet new people, and hang out with others."  

 

Rush Week, which looks like a college-themed dating area.

 

Brazil Tour, a place in the theme of the country Brazil where one can play a few games or interact with others, some of whom may be from the country.

 

Club Midnight Pulse, a newbie-oriented nightclub where besides dancing to the music, you can play a few quests and meet others.

 

The Learning Center,  a space-stationed theme place described as "an interactive destination designed to teach the basics through gameplay. Explore obstacle courses, collect hidden stars, and learn core skills while progressing through challenges."

 

To read the blogpost in full, Click Here.  

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

Nineteen Years Ago ...

 

 It was nineteen years ago yesterday, December 17, 2006, in which I went to a place online one of my Internet friends had been bragging about. For some time, she had been talking about the fun she had on Second Life, showing some pictures of her appearance there. So when I finally got high-speed Internet, I would check out two places online, World of Warcraft and Second Life. 

 

These days, I hardly ever go about Warcraft. But after nineteen years I still get on almost every day. Much has changed. It's owner Linden Lab has gone through a number of CEOs and being bought up. It's gone through a number of developments such as mesh and PBR. It's long past what's considered it's golden age when it was shiny and new. A whole generation has passed, people leaving from losing interest or dying, and new people getting on. But Second Life is still here and continuing to thrive. 

 

It's become my main audience as a writer. But I still continue enjoying the places I see, the events I come across, and of course there's the people I meet.  There really isn't a reason to stop. 

 

So baring some unforseen disaster, I'll still be coming on, and writing about, this wacky but wonderful virtual world.  

To read more about my first days, check out my 2021 article.

Bixyl Shuftan.  

Eighteen Years ago ...

 

My avatar would be considered old enough to vote, and legally a mature man in real life.

 

It was eighteen years ago today, in which yours truly first came to this virtual world, December 17, 2006. I had only recently gotten high-speed Internet, finally getting off the old "dial-up" telephone modem. So I was free to check out two places online my friends were talking about: World of Warcraft and Second Life. 

Today, World of Warcraft has become more or less a happy memory to me, still around but no longer the king of MMOs that it used to be. But Second Life is still very much around and I'm still very much going. As any parent can tell you, a LOT can happen in eighteen years, and it has. A year later, I had a number of friends and found my purpose here: online journalism. And over time, my path has taken me to a few communities, many friends, and a couple years ago a loving SL wife. Second Life has also changed much, going through a number of CEOs and being bought up, going from prim building to mesh and then other forms of mesh, the Lindens went from involved with the residents to hardly involved to somewhat involved again. Corporations and celebrities would take an interest early on, but then began to leave. Over time, the residents would change as well, new ones coming in constantly, and older ones leaving due to real life or dying. 

So what does the future hold? Baring a catastrophe of some kind, Second Life will be around for years to come. And me, baring an accident or some other medical emergency, I'll continue to be around for a few years more. But retirement is several years away, and once that happens I'll have my physical and financial health to think about. But that's in the future. In the meantime, I'll still be coming on to support my friends and SL family, and write about this virtual world.

 

To read more about my first days, check out my 2021 article.

Bixyl Shuftan.  

Seventeen Years Ago ...

 

On the evening of December 17, 2006, yours truly first came to this virtual world. I had just gotten a cable modem, and was finally able to leave the slow "dial-up" behind, So I went to check out two places my online friends were talking about, "World of Warcraft" and "Second Life."

 

Seventeen years later, I've long left Warcraft behind. But I'm still going around Second Life just about every day. A lot has changed over time. The prim avatars have changed to mesh, as well as the way people go about getting one. CEOs have come and gone. There's Bellisseria. There's Linden Lab getting a new owner, and more. But after my first year, a few things have remained the same. I'm still writing away about this virtual world, and I still have a circle of friends that keep me going back in. 

To read more about my first days, check out my 2021 article.

Bixyl Shuftan. 

EOTB: New Senra Starter Avatars Now Availabler

 

When Patch Linden spoke at the SL20B a little more than a month ago, he stated that the first of the new starter avatars that were announced last year were almost ready. On Tuesday August 1, Linden Lab announced that two were ready for use by both newcomers and existing residents, the Senra avatars. 

We're excited to announce the launch of our new Starter Avatars! These avatars, called Senra, are a fresh mesh take on the classic Second Life avatar, with a customizable modern and stylish look. These avatars will give new residents the opportunity to get started with a mesh body and personalize their own unique look the very first time they log in to Second Life and get a taste for the endless possibilities of avatar customization available to SL Residents.

The Senra avatars come with a variety of body shapes, skins, and hair styles. We've also created a whole new wardrobe of clothes that are specifically designed for these avatars. There are more than a billion possible combinations, so you're sure to find the perfect look.  The Senra avatars and clothing have been designed so that any avatar looks great with any clothing. Mix and match to your heart’s content!

We're also pleased to announce that we'll be providing dev kits for creators to make their own clothes for the Senra avatars. That way new and established residents alike will have plenty of ways to express themselves and create amazing new looks for the Senra avatars. 

 

For newcomers, the avatars are now available at the start, as demonstrated by this SL University Youtube video. For existing residents, the avatars are already in inventories (those who have left their avatars inworld for a few days may need to relog), "Search for 'Senra' and you will find the full variety of clothing and bodies." 

 

The Lab invited content creators to make clothing and other items for the avatars on a Fashion thread in the official forums, Patch Linden saying, those interested needed to read a license agreement, technical information, and fill out an application process. But the reaction in the forum thread was mixed. Some were having issues with some details in the license agreement, "This is pretty much (dead on arrival)," and there were opinions that some questions raised about the avatars at the SL20B such as the polygon count were not listened to. Others went to the Lab's defense, "The Senra system seems to be intentionally unlike the current system, which new users find to be extremely confusing and difficult to learn to use. And if they don't have strict rules about it, it will become just another body option, and very unapproachable just like the rest."

How well will the new starter avatars do? Will they get more use by residents, or be just that to most, a start that will soon be replaced after a few days? Time will tell.

Bixyl Shuftan

 

Sixteen Years Ago

 

 

It was December 17, 2006 when yours truly first came to this virtual world. I had just gotten a cable modem, finally leaving the slow "dial-up" behind, and I went to check out two places my online friends were talking about, "World of Warcraft" and "Second Life."

Sixteen years later, yours truly has left Warcraft behind. But still going around Second Life practically every day. Much has changed over time from Lab CEOs to mesh to Bellisseria to the Lab's getting a new owner. But after my first year, a few things have remained the same. I'm still writing away about this virtual world, and I still have a circle of friends that keep me going back in. 

To read more about my first days, check out my 2021 article.

Bixyl Shuftan.

NUX Avatars Demonstrated At "Meet The Moles"

 
The Lindens revealed some things at the Second Life Birthday discussions last week. The one that got the most attention was the "Premium Plus" option for accounts. But there were others. At "Meet the Moles" on Friday June 24, it was revealed the Lindens and Moles were working on a new line of starter avatars, called the NUX avatars.

Patch would say NUX was short for New User eXperience, and reminded that the current line of starter avatars was "probably going on five to six years old." Unlike the existing line which are "a blend of system body with some mesh attatchments," the NUX will be fully mesh with Bento skeletons and "modernized using all the latest and greatest in avatar building technology, including bakes-on-mesh."

Jester Mole had on one of these new avatars, and hopped on a rotating platform to show it off. Patch stated they would have, "they'll have a whole array of initial outfits available to choose from when they go to sign up and create their avatar, including hairstyles and full ranges of various bodies and types." The avatars are also modifyable, "It's fully slider-rigged, so yeah, you can change the sliders around, change the body shape ..."

Patch stated others will be able to create clothes and other items for these avatars, "We will put out development kits and such that people will be able to design and make clothing and such for it." He did admit they wouldn't be as "robost and fully capable" as some resident-created avatars.

He would go on to say he felt the avatars would be a big help in encouraging new residents to stay and invest more time in the virtual world, saying they "I think will be a really big huge thing and have a tremendous impact on the new user experience and getting people in Second Life, because one of my key interests and goals is I want to grow Second Life. I want to get more people in. And that's very important to me. So, being able to give people a good foundation to start with, and then be able to move on to the larger creator ecoshpere and ecology of products that are available today is another huge consideration for us and how we're approaching this and designing it."

Of when the avatars would be available, Patch wouldn't give a date, "In the future, because I'm not saying soon anymore." There are still some bugs and things to work out.

The video in full can be seen here, with the disussion about the avatars starting after 11:15, and ending at around 22:00.

Pictures from Youtube recording

Bixyl Shuftan
 

Fifteen Years Later

 

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step," goes an ancient proverb. Every one of us in Second Life, no matter how experienced, had their own beginning. It was about fifteen years ago, on December 17, 2006, in which yours truly first came to this virtual world. So what were these first few days, with no money and uncertainty about lay ahead, like?

Read more in Extra.
 

New Welcome Island For Starting Residents

 
For some newcomers to Second Life, their first steps will be at a new place inworld. There's a new entry place for those starting out: Welcome Island.

Hearing that new accounts were already entering Second Life through the new place, I created a new alt to take a look. The new sign-up process doesn't offer a choice of appearances. Every male logs in as the same brown-haired human with facial hair, jeans, an open shirt, and carrying a radio. Women were logging in wearing red dresses with white blouses and carrying pocketbooks. A "Welcome Island Guidebook" opened up, providing instructions on how to move around (on the Linden Viewer that new accounts are asked to use, one can walk about using the WASD keys).

There were a few areas to be used as one went through the Guidebook, for practicing sitting, introducing newcomers to the ability to change appearances with the various starter avatars (aside from a couple fierce-looking werewolves, the only alternatives to human were a few vampires and elven avatars), and getting attachments and wearing and detaching them. Overall, it looked like a park area, with plenty of greenery and plenty of places to sit, with some water.

Not everyone there is a newcomer. I was messaged by someone almost right away welcoming me and asking if I needed help. So it looks like volunteers are there at times to help out those who are new. I was also invited to a group, "The Newbie Mafia," then cautioned about accepting any more invites.

Near the end, the Guidebook brought up the Destinations Guide and the Events page, encouraging people to explore the wider virtual world, with a nod to the Guide's "Newcomer Friendly" section. It also invited people to check out blogs about Second Life. My new alt's first journey ended at New Citizens Incorporated, though someone could have easily checked out London City if they didn't mind the crowd there.

Not everyone appears on the New Welcome Island. I ended up creating two alts as the first I made appeared on the same Learning Island I did four years earlier. So the Lab hasn't replaced the previous newcomer places, at least not yet.

Comparing Welcome Island to the two-sim Learning and Social Islands, the new experience is faster and quicker. There's nothing on how to jump or fly, no introduction to building, no instructional videos, none of Social Island's games that made learning a little more entertaining. At least there wouldn't be if it wasn't for the helpers who were at Welcome Island. 

This new area seems more dependent on volunteers, and perhaps people at newcomer-friendly areas the new residents would see, to answer questions. But there's no comparison to Destination Island of 2012 that offered very little instructions and newcomers could very well end up in a place that threw them out for being too young, and the new resident experience introduced in 2013 that was apparently so bad the Lindens discarded it in a few months. The Learning and Social Islands came about in September 2013, and have been around for almost a decade with one change in 2017.

While Welcome Island is closed to all but brand new accounts and volunteers, there is a Welcome Back Island anyone can visit to check out what the place is like.

Hat Tip: Daniel Voyager

Source: Uccie Poultry

Bixyl Shuftan
 

"The Shelter" Closing After 16 Years

Some sad news for longtime residents. It was announced that the longtime newcomer hangout "The Shelter" was closing. The place has been up since August 1, 2004. The news was posted in the Second Life forums.

While there was reportedly a group announcement, apparently it's now closed to new entries, so as of now, what the announcement was word by word is unknown. Word has it the location will be preserved by Linden Lab. But it's days as an active newcomer hangout to receive help from any volunteer staff around are over. The last event is a formal dance Sunday August 30 at 7PM.

Xymbers Slade would write about the Shelter in 2011.  The place is at Isabel (25/207/59), though due to glitches teleports may occasionally not go through. So one may need to manually teleport to a nearby location and walk over. The main area of the brick building hasn't changed a great deal over the years, with a dance floor in one corner and a sitting area in the other. There are a few places one can pick up a copy of the rules, which are basically to behave oneself, and get a few helpful hints. There are a few free items, notably a car in the corner. At this time, social events had been scheduled every day of the week. Outside the main area is a mall area with a number of small stores.

There are a few tunnels and rampways. One ramp led to the top of the building, which had a memorial garden area for a few residents whom had passed away. One winding tunnel went to an outdoor area with a balloon rezzer four tours. There were a few empty side rooms. Curiously, one place next to the Shelter was a banned parcel.

While there are other newcomer areas and groups, notably Caledon Oxbridge University, The Shelter was perhaps the best known. While the reasons for it's closing can only be speculated on, that it will not be around is a sad event.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Isabel/25/207/59

"Thank you for 16 years of memories and fun."

Hat Tip: Sandy Loxingly

Bixyl Shuftan

New Starter Avatars by Linden Lab

On Wednesday January 30, Linden Lab announced on their blog that they had released some new starter avatars. While made for newcomers, these are accessible to everyone. Half males and half females, the avatars have a variety of appearances, such as age, skin tone, clothes, and accessories.

Some Residents have noticed that we’ve added a new group of classic, system  “starter avatars” to the mix this week - a more mature couple in formal apparel, a groovy guy and gal, a pair of grunged-out music lovers, and some well accessorized, fashion-forward folks (because there is no better addition to any outfit than a pet!). While the last few batches of new starters have focused on Fantasy themes, this round we wanted to add some updated humanoid styles for new Residents to select from. Each avatar has been created utilizing some of the latest features in Second Life such as Bento - and have also been created with a focus on optimization to keep the avatar complexity below 30,000 (with most coming in around 10,000- 20,000).

Most things about the avatars are no-modify, although the shapes are. Inara Pey reports that they also lack an AO, which gives them the "duck walk" some residents dislike. 

There's also a forum thread for commenting about the avatars, which a number of people have done already.

Source: Linden Lab, Modem World 

InWorldz' Sucessor Islandz Comes Online

On July 27, the virtual world on Inworldz shut down. Beth Reischl (Elenia Llewellyn) had promised that a new grid would arise. After almost four months, it arrived. The Islandz virtual grid was open to the former residents of the virtual world on November 14 at 3PM. Elenia had a message for the former residents of the closed virtual world whom had anxiously awaited the new one.

Well, it's taken a while, but we've finally managed to get to the point where we can open our doors to show our residents that we are indeed alive and well! 

First, let me thank everyone for their hard work, their patience and their determination to help us see this through. Without you, we would never have gotten this far! I've watched our community be absolutely amazing, stunning, graceful, patient and so helpful to the myriad of questions from so many.

To begin with, former Inworldz residents should not start new accounts, but login with their old account names and passwords at https://app.islandzvw.com/account. Once they successfully log in on the website, then they can try logging in the virtual world via the viewer, which can be downloaded at https://islandzvw.com/download.php.

For those expecting to appear as what they looked like in Inworldz, they will be in for a disappointment as they appear in the Welcome Area. With inventories completely empty, they won't have so much as a "Ruth" avatar, appearing as a cloud. There are some freebie avatars, clothes, and accessories nearby, so you can at least have a newbie look. But the OARS, or the items residents left at sandboxes to save, are not around yet. There's also only a few sims accessible for most residents.

And so, the success to Inworldz is finally online. How well it does at making the residents of it's predecessor happy, and how successful it is as a virtual world, will take many weeks, probably months, to figure out.

Bixyl Shuftan

Themed Learning Islands in Development by Linden Lab

First impressions, while not everything, can mean a lot. And for Second Life, the first impression new users get is Learning Island. Having been around since 2013, they're part of a two-step process in which new arrivals first arrive in a place only they can be, and after some basic instructions head on to Social Island to continue their orientation, though possibly with the guidance with established residents. In 2017, they were remodeled with a new look. In a recent article in Modem World, Inara Pey stated over the past few months there's been something new in development by Linden Lab: themed Learning Islands.

The idea is that Linden Lab will run various Internet advertisements with a certain theme, such as the science-fiction one pictured in Inara's article. Clicking on the ad brings up a page in the theme of the ad, and those signing up through it will be taken to a Learning Island that is in the style of the theme of the ad and page. These are not yet complete, still in the testing stage as Brett Linden told her.

Linden Lab is still in the early weeks of testing the concept of Themed Learning Islands. The initiative began quietly a month or so ago with a Romance-themed island test that is not currently active. Next up is a Sci-Fi-themed learning island that we’ll begin testing very soon. We’re also looking at several other themes for future tests, [and] it is also possible that we’ll revise the Romance and Sci-Fi themes as we gather more data on them.

Besides the themed ad campaign and sign-up process, the Lab will be looking into just how well it is working. It will also be looking at smaller elements as to what works and what doesn't, such as offering the new user a lot of information or having them find out more on their own. Patch Linden would state the new Learning Islands would not usually be open to established residents during testing.

We actually want to discourage public access to the islands while in testing so that our statistics, measuring and data-gathering don’t get influenced by having the islands inundated with established users coming into them and possibly preventing new users from naturally proceeding through the anticipated test flow. That way, we can gather as accurate information as possible on what’s happening in terms of acquisition and retention against everything else.

Talking to Brett, Patch, and Leira Linden, Inara came to the conclusion that the Lab was making a more intensive effort at user retention than before, "One thing that struck me ... is just what is going into user acquisition and attempts to improve user retention, when it is perhaps a little to easy to assume the Lab is just “tinkering without understanding”. Considerable thought is being put into trying to increase new user engagement and retention, and it does involve a lot of number crunching, analysis, and trying to build on what is shown to work, as well as trying entirely new approaches. ...it’s clear from talking to Brett, Keira and Patch that the Lab is pouring a lot of effort into this approach, as well as looking at other avenues of user acquisition and retention."

The earliest effort at the newbie experience, Orientation Island, was estimated to have only a ten percent retention rate. Destination Island, which was around from 2012 to 2013, was a bare-bones experience that was much more confusing and frustrating to new users and most likely had a much lower retention rate. Why a fair experience was replaced with a bad one back then, one can only speculate at the reasons why. But it's clear several years later, Linden Lab is making a much more serious effort to not just bring new people into Second Life, but to make a good first impression in the first hour or two that can make all the difference in which a new user decides whether or not to keep coming back.

Source: Modem World

Bixyl Shuftan

Newcomer Hangout "The Shelter" Turns Fourteen

Most new residents to Second Life need a helping hand. And one place they've gone to for help and guidance is "The Shelter." It was on August 20, 2004, Travis Lambert and Lars Bismark established the place. While it didn't start out as a newcomer helping place, with people bringing in newbies to the location, it eventually focused on helping them. For most of it's history, it has been in it's current location in the Isabel sim.

The Shelter is doing a couple things to celebrate it's birthday. At 1PM today, they will be having a music event with DJ Spug Shinn. They are also giving out copies of a vehicle.

To read the Newser's article on The Shelter from March 2011, Click Here.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Isabel/25/207/59

Hat Tip: Daniel Voyager.

Bixyl Shuftan

SLife and Times: Banned For Looking Odd

If you've been in Second Life for a while, you've seen avatars of all kinds. Some make an effort to stand out from the crowd. Others try to fit in. And then, there are those odd-looking avatars that look like the person didn't know how to design a look well. They're often newbies, though some are older. While often, these avatars are simply new, it's also the look favored by some griefers and trolls. When one such avatar found himself banned from a club before he took a few steps inside, he blogged about it. The result was a debate on just how should such avatars be treated.

Read more in People.

Second Life's Entry Areas: Learning And Social Islands

When yours truly decided to check out Linden Lab's new starting avatars for Second Life, the method done was to do so with a new alt, and as a result discovering the starting locations for newcomers, Learning Island and Social Island, had changed. So what are this new areas like, and how do they compare to previous first areas for newbies? This reporter took a large number of pictures to give you the readers a good look.

Read the article in Places.

Reader Submitted: "A Peculiar Morning in Second Life"

I logged into SL with my admin avatar this morning as I usually do, when I need to get something done.

I landed on the Welcome Island, sat down on a comfy bench and proceeded to make some payments, when a newbie approached me and asked for help.

"How do I change my clothes?" He asked...

To make a long story short, I ended up giving him a two hour crash course on SL.

My admin avi is a female because it was made by Sikiu Torres (Shinya Tandino) and my new friend commented what a beautiful girl I was...

He then told me he was from the Middle East and told me not to worry because he was an atheist...

Lastly, he made it clear that it was ok for me to talk dirty to him.

I logged off.

Frolic Mills (Juan Delago)

Second Life From a Newcomer's Perspective

While longtime residents of Second Life usually can remember details about their earliest days, time and experience have a way of dulling memories. Plus things change over time, and newcomers have to deal with things the earlier residents haven't, such as mesh and Bento. On the other hand, they have access to things like the Destination Guide, and of course the Newser, that those here years ago didn't have. So sometimes we need a newcomer's perspective.

Mangrovejane. a self-described "artist ... A creator of Fantastical Things. An explorer of virtualities and a philosopher on the nature of realities,"had only recently heard about Second Life after reading articles about the art there. So she decided to sign up and see what was there herself, documenting the first five days of her journey. Her preconception was that making an avatar and moving about would be easy enough, thinking of "The Sims" and "World of Warcraft." But that wasn't exactly the case. She had been a little worried about perverts trying to trick her, but instead found people willing to help her out. On day three, she found some examples of the virtual art she was searching for. On day four, she came across the IvoryTower of Prims and the Builders Brewery and took a crack at building.

After five days, she felt she had accomplished much, and had found some preconceptions didn't match what she experienced. She had some advice for other newcomers.

After Learning Island, residents are basically on their own. Fortunately, there are places such as Caledon University where newcomers can keep coming back to learn.

Have a goal or goals and a purpose, "Without a goal, you will feel lost and will quickly become bored and despondent."

Not everyone is out to grief or harass you, "Don’t assume everyone in world is creepy and out to get you and grief you. You will not meet one person who treats you badly or even annoys you in this first week. There will be no drama and no griefing. People will be genuinely friendly and are often happy to give you advice, especially if they know you are new."

Don't believe the hype and bad press, "Go in and make your experience about what YOU want. Think about what you like to do, what you might want to do, who you want to be and live that life. Stay away from the 'adult' areas (unless that is where you actually want to be)."

Don't let those who do try to bother you push you around, "if someone is annoying you…just teleport away. Mute them, block them and go somewhere else and do something else…don’t let someone else’s bad attitude ruin YOUR experience."

If your only experience with interacting with others on computers is from games like "World of Warcraft," always remember, "it took me a little while to fully comprehend it…You CANNOT die in world!!!!!!"

You’re gonna be ok. You are going to get frustrated and the learning curve is going to be steep. You will accidentally get naked in public and not know how to get dressed and be so mortified you mention it over and over again. You are going to run into walls and people while you are learning to move around in the world. You will not know where to go or what to do. You are going to freak out the first time you fall from great heights while flying. You are going to doubt your ability to translate your first life art into second life art and you are going to have a hard time talking to people because that’s just you. When it all gets a bit much, just stand up and walk away from the computer. Go outside. Breathe fresh real air and live your first life. Your second life isn’t going anywhere without you.

And lastly, adventurer….Explore, Explore, Explore.
Mangrovejane is still going about Second Life. You can contact her by IM, or send her a message on Facebook.

Hat Tip: AlmostThere Inventor

Bixyl Shuftan

Linden Lab introduces New "Fantasy" Starting Avatars

Last week on the official Second Life blog, Linden Lab announced there was a new set of starter avatars available for newcomer residents to choose from when first signing up.

We're proud to introduce the all-new "Fantasy" starter avatars, covering a diverse range of "genre" styles including steampunk, vampires, sci-fi, post-apocalyptic… and beyond! There are 10 fresh starter avatars available right now, and you can use them as a basis for further customization — explore the Second Life Marketplace and personalize to your liking. These new avatars have normal "system" bodies with mesh wearables, which makes it easy to change their hair, clothes, accessories, and more!

The ten avatars are in five categories, one male and female each: magic, post-apocalyptic, sci-fi, steampunk, and vampire. Each of the avatars also comes with a pet, drones in the case of the sci-fi avatars, and mechanical pets with the steampunk. With it's owl pet, and distinctive black robe and crooked wand, the male magic avatar is clearly meant to appeal to "Harry Potter" fans. Inara Pey commented on her blog that the female post-apocalyptic "Petrol Sue" was worn by Grumpity Linden in Third-Party Viewer Development meetings. Linden Lab also included a video to help promote the new avatars. It's notable that the announcer says to the male magician, "Where did you study? No wait, don't tell me. Ha-ha! I'd be lawsuited ..."



(Click here if the video fails to play)

Earlier in Second Life's history, there was a choice of ten avatars, five different ones with a choice of male or female, which included a "Furry" or a starter ringtail made by Luskwood and contributed to Linden Lab. But some time around 2008 or 2009, the Furry avatar was dropped and the selection became all human. In 2011, the choice of starting avatars was revamped to include thirty-six nonhuman avatars, twelve vehicle avatars, twelve robots, and twelve "animals." The "animal" series was created by Damien Fate, whom had earlier made a brand of Tiny avatars called "Loco Poco." In 2014, Linden Lab changed the starter avatars once again to a choice of twenty-four mesh avatars, twelve "People" human avatars and twelve "Vampire," the latter a collection of vampires, other monsters, and a monster hunter, and twelve "Classic" non-mesh avatars, all human. But there were complaints that the mesh avatars were static and unchangeable. So a year later, Linden Lab replaced them with more "efficient" versions.

Linden Lab's moving away (although not completely giving up) from nonhunan avatars, vampires aside, as starter ones has raised a few questions among some residents. But it could be argued with the sheer diversity of avatars available, tinies, micros, pixies, mers, taurs, ferals, furries, elves, ponies, and more, Linden Lab may simply have decided making a fair selection of nonhuman beginner avatars was just too difficult. Two opposing points of view made a year ago are just as relevant today. Hamlet Au saying, "These avatars feel less like Second Life, and more like, well, 'The Sims Online.' Which might be a good move, market-wise, but it does distinctly change new users' perception of what Second Life could (and frankly should) be." and Fuzzball Ortega, "I did think 'The Sims' when I saw the picture of the avatars, but nothing wrong with that. They start out with those avatars, then, once in world and after a bit of exploring, they create themselves. Buying different clothing, different skins, etc."

To read the blog post in full: (click here).

Source: Modem World

Bixyl Shuftan

Nine Years Later

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step," goes an ancient proverb. Every one of us in Second Life, no matter how experienced, had their own beginning. It was about nine years ago, on December 17, 2006, in which yours truly first came to this virtual world. So what were these first few days, with no money and uncertainty about lay ahead, like?

Read more in People.