questions about secondlife From a newbie

[Dnkiwi]

Hi Guys im thinking about shift here from imvu  and im wondering if theres a way in which i can share a house with my partner to aviod having 2 seprate houses. also how secure is this in terms of haveing 100% privacy and what are the general dos and don'ts .before now imvu is all we have ever used

[Dyzo]

u can rent land and have 100 people share it. you set the limits on your land. having 100% privacy is pretty easy if you just set land permissions to only your group. a neighbor could camera into your house maybe but u will know they are online on the map. you can also rent places where neighbors are rarely online

[Dnkiwi]

ok thanks. is it safer to buy land instead of renting it

[Knowl Paine]

Welcome,

There are land settings that can be adjusted which allow Residents to share abilities on a plot, or lot, of land.

If you join as premium, you could get a Linden Home, and share that.

Security is very good, but this the internet. Most people expose themselves, and many people have nothing to expose, lol. I mean that in the sense that they already have a Public presence at other online sites like FB, You Tube, or Twitter, and they don't mind sharing info. 

You have to decide how much information you wish to share.

Never share your password, or email linked to your Account.

Read the terms of service.

One hundred percent privacy, in a virtual world, interestingly enough, cost money, just like outside of SL. 100% is your own private Region, and that cost a lot of money.

You can rent 98-99% privacy, from one of the many Private Regions owners.

The Mainlands, and the Linden Homes Regions, are about 50-50 on privacy, because it's public. sorta. The Linden Homes where created with the idea that it's your house, it's not public.

Explore the Inworld map, or the Map link at the top of this page, to get an overview of the Grid. Watch some tutorial videos on You Tube, for fast paced learning. Have fun, don't take things too seriously.

 

[Dnkiwi]

ok thanks  i think if im understanding you right the linden homes are like a private room that is not shown to public please correct me if im wrong . also is it possibl to own land in the private regions to avoind any need for rental but still staying cheap and affordable and is there a like a Marriage package availble as if possible we would similar features to what we currently have on imvu . which is a dedicated private shared room and tags to show status

[Dana Hickman]

Not exactly... There's really no "rooms", or "chats" as some call them, no super private instances of a simple background "room" that basically doesn't even exist to the rest of the residents. Much of second life land is like your real life neighborhood, in that you can buy a piece of land and put a house on it and live inside it, but you'll still have neighbors. Same is true of the Linden Homes, only the houses are prebuilt and the land they're on comes with more restrictions then regular mainland. The other option is estate land, which is privately owned by another resident. You can rent a parcel or whole region from them, but since they pay LL for it then they're the boss of it and make all the rules on it. The only real guarantee of privacy is to purchase a whole private region from LL and that is NOT cheap. Most people seem to make due by renting a reasonable estate parcel from a respectable landlord, or by getting a premium membership and purchasing their own piece of mainland.

[Dnkiwi]

so with the main land u can buy a parcel of land alot cheaper

[Amethyst Jetaime]

There is no total privacy in SL unless you own or rent your own private region surrounded by water void and limit access to only those you want there.  People can still see if someone is there by seeing green dots on the map, but not who it is.

You can buy or rent smaller lots of land and if allowed by the estate owner or landlord use ban lines to keep everyone out or a security system. If you buy mainland you can set your own rules. Note that most places don't allow you to use security unless you give a warning, which means that people can still enter the property anywhere but are ejected after a specified time of generally from 15-30 seconds, depending on the rules.  You can further set your land so no one outside of the parcel can see the avatars inside it.  You can restrict voice to your parcel and talk only in IM.  However anyone in the region with radar or who looks on a mini map can tell if you are there and who is with you.

You need to decide how much privacy you want and can afford.  Then look for a place that provides it.  Before paying anything though be sure to read the covenant and/or lease.

 

[Dnkiwi]

we would just be looking at something private where we can be together  but at same time we need minimal costs as both of us not able to afford the expensive stuff

[Knowl Paine]

Selecting a premium membership for 1-3 months, and choosing a Linden Home, offers the best options.

Only one person needs to be premium, doing so will also help to verify that Account, and to allow you to easily perform various Linden dollar transactions (L$) inworld, and at Market Place.

The land the Linden Home sits on, can be set to a Group, that you can create. That will allow you, and your partner, to share in the ability to use the land's features. Building objects, rezzing object, changing the land settings, music, and many other features.

If you choose to leave the Linden Home, you simply click on the About Land, and select Abandon Land from the selections. You are dealing directly with Linden Lab.

Renting land, is something you transition into, after you have learned all the things needed, in order to find "good" land.

Your Computer's performance, will be a factor in the type of Region where you want your house. Linden Homes can be laggy for some Residents.

Renting in a Private Region, may offer a larger land parcel, the ability to add extra objects, and fewer neighbors. You are dealing directly with Residents.  Most of those Residents are honest land dealers, some are not. Avoiding problems is solved by simply never paying too far in advance. If you are unhappy, you will have little invested, and will learn at a low cost.

 

An entirely free SL is possible, it just takes longer to discover, and acquire things you like. There are thousands of free objects, but many of them are free for a reason, choose wisely. You will never need 10,000 brick textures, a crazy person made that folder.

[Dana Hickman]

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Dnkiwi wrote:

we would just be looking at something private where we can be together  but at same time we need minimal costs as both of us not able to afford the expensive stuff

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Living on the cheap with *reasonable* expectations of privacy isn't that difficult. As Kwowl said, a good choice for those who are new to SL is having one of you sign up for a premium account and then getting a linden home ( using the free 512meter allowance that comes with premium ). They are small with not a lot of prims available, but the investment is also very small and it's a good way to learn for yourself how land, privacy, neighbors, etc.. all work.

[Dnkiwi]

would that cover the adult stuff as well or is that something different . sorry about all the question im just trying to make sense of it all

[Sephina Frostbite]

Depending on what size you want there are a lot of places that rent for super cheap. I rent a decent size house for only 60 linden a week. Its private and nice. If you want I can IM you about it.

[Dnkiwi]

ok that would be great

 

[Czari Zenovka]

From what I understand IMVU is a lot different in many ways than SL.  As I was reading the responses, which are all excellent advice/info, I was thinking about when I first began SL and how the whole land issue was such a mystery to me.  At the time I was living on a role play sim and renting a small apartment there so looking for a place to live wasn't an issue at the time.

Months later when I moved out to live with my SL partner, I recall having discussions with him about land in SL and the difference between "Estate" land and "Mainland" seemed confusing, even after having been actively participating in SL for months.  (Linden Homes didn't exist back then.)  Looking at the responses through a lens of someone who hasn't even been in SL yet (assuming you have not or at least have just spent a little time) I can see how some of the responses might sound confusing but really start "sinking in" once you're more familiar with SL.  As someone else said, if you think of SL as the "real world" with everything you would find there, including neighborhoods, it will likely make more sense, especially re: how privacy issues work in SL.

My suggestion would be to spend some time exploring in SL before you buy or rent any land, even before deciding if you want to purchase a Premium account which allows the choice between a Linden home or using the 512 sqm of tier-free land (tier is another whole discussion) to purchase a bit of mainland property.  Explore various regions of SL, go to NCI (New Citizens Inc.),  talk to people there and get a "feel" for SL first...then decide if you like it enough to stay and *then* what type of home you would like and if you like mainland or prefer Estate (privately owned land you rent from someone else).  I know you want a home right away but it is possible to have fun in SL without a home (my alt manages quite well).  I do really enjoy having my own place on my main account, my suggestion is just since SL is so new to you for you to experience it first before making a decision on land/home when you likely don't really grasp it all yet.  On the other hand, unless you buy mainland, if you rent you can just pay the rent on a weekly basis at most places so you won't have lost much if you don't like it and move out.

Above all, have fun! 

[Dnkiwi]

Czari Zenovka       i m starting to make sense of things up untill u mentioned  tiers         

[Dnkiwi]

 Sephina Frostbite could you please IM me about the land

[Czari Zenovka]

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Dnkiwi wrote:

Czari Zenovka

       i m starting to make sense of things up untill u mentioned  tiers         

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Which is one reason I recommended actually spending time in SL,  talking to people at one of the new resident-friendly centers such as NCI (New Citizens Inc.), and getting a feel for what SL is like before looking for land/home.  There is one school that regularly holds classes on the subject of land as well, which might be very helpful for you. (I believe it is by NCI, but not sure.) These classes can be found by looking on your SL website "dashboard" (the page you see when you go to www.secondlife.com - and log in with your name/passworrd); look at the bottom of this page under Events and use the drop-down menu to choose Education.

Ok, back to tier...on this same dashboard page at the top left under your name you will see Land Manager.  Click that and choose Land Use Fees.  At the bottom will be a chart that shows how much money in USD it costs to own various amounts of land.  This is my chart:

For me, the zero amount is indicated because I live on mainland but I rent my parcel - a variant on "own mainland" vs "rent estate land."

This chart is ONLY about owning what is called mainland parcels - land that you purchase directly from Linden Lab.  To purchase mainlaind you need to have a premium account.  This is another reason I recommend first spending some time in SL to see 1. if you like it and 2. if you would prefer to live in a Linden home, live on the mainland, or rent private estate land first because if you like the mainland route and want to purchase some mainland (or live in a Linden home) it is less expensive to purchase a premium account quarterly or yearly rather than monthly; although, of course if you want to give it a try, going monthly doesn't lock you into an entire year.  See why I said there is a bit more to consider than just a flat answer?

For someone who chooses to purchase a premium account then purchase a mainland parcel, this chart shows how much money  per month in USD (called "tier") you would pay for that land to Linden Lab.  Think of tier as property taxes. 

With a premium account, you get 512 sqm of land included *without* paying any tier.  This can be in the form of living in one of the Linden homes located in specific neighborhoods or buying 512 sqm of land anywhere on the mainland (Linden owned) continents.  Right now, most land (if it does not have a specific feature like being ocean-front land, snow land, on a Linden highway, etc.) is dirt cheap - you can find a LOT of land priced at 1L per sqm or 512L for this size parcel.  However, if you own any land over the 512 sqm, it bumps you into the next tier category at $8.00 mo. at which point you can own up to 1,024 sqm of land.  If you go over 1,024 sqm of land it then bumps you into the next tier category at $15.00/mo. and so on.

To help calculate how much tier you would pay on a given parcel size, there is an interactive Land Use Fee calculator directly above the tier chart.  As mentioned, I am currently renting a 1888 sqm. parcel on mainland but if I owned it, I would pay $15.00/mo. in tier:

 

Again, all of this only applies to purchasing mainland.  If you choose to rent land from someone who owns a private estate, none of this applies and you would then pay rent to the estate owner, the amount being whatever the owner sets.

Not sure if this has been mentioned yet, but how many prims you have available to rez furniture, etc. on your land is very important and figures into how much tier or rent you pay.  Generally speaking, there are 117 prims per 512 sqm. of land so 234 prims for 1,024 sqm of land, etc.  With the introduction of mesh, sometimes you will see Land Impact or Li listed as well.

Hopefully this helps a bit.  The best advice I ever got when I began SL was from someone I met who had been in SL for several years; he said, "Give yourself 8 weeks to really feel comfortable in SL - comfortable with the viewer interface, how to smoothly move around, get dressed, rez items, etc."  I am really glad he advised that.  I had friends who joined SL about the same time I did, became frustrated on their first or second time in world and never returned.  After heeding the advice of the person I met, I have now been in SL over 6 years, enjoy it, and still learn something new regularly.

ETA:  There have been some responses on houses/apartments that rent for very little lindens.  Those are great, depending on what you are looking for.  When checking on rentals see what is included (furnishings, any amenties like a group beach you can use, etc.) AND how many prims are included for your own use.  This is a personal decision.  Some people enjoy fully furnished apartments/houses with 10 prims for you to rez your own items.  On the other hand, some people want unfurnished places so they can choose what furnishings they wish to rez.  Still others want a LOT of prims available and prefer to just own land and purchase a house to place on it.

What you mentioned in your OP was privacy.  There are some rentals that are individual skyboxes that do provide a good amount of privacy, others that are more "neighborhood oriented" where you can easily cam into your neighbor's home, and vice versa although, as has been mentiond, there are viewer settings that prevent people from seeing your avatar when you are on your home parcel, although you will still show up on radar and you will be represented as a "green dot" on the viewer world or mini-maps. 

It really comes down to what is most important to you and then look for housing arrangements that fit your wants. 

 

 

 

 

[Blue Voix]

I don't know but I find linden homes, tiny and crammed together and you are not allowed to live up in the air, so I think now you can set it so people cant render your avatars on your land by camming in but if you don't do that there is zero privacy in linden homes.

[Czari Zenovka]

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Blue Voix wrote:

I don't know but I find linden homes, tiny and crammed together and you are not allowed to live up in the air, so I think now you can set it so people cant render your avatars on your land by camming in but if you don't do that there is zero privacy in linden homes.

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Agreed - and especially since the OP is looking for a lot of privacy, I personally wouldn't recommend Linden homes; just wanted to cover what was available if one decided to go the premium route. 

[Pussycat Catnap]

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Dnkiwi wrote:

would that cover the adult stuff as well or is that something different . sorry about all the question im just trying to make sense of it all

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Linden homes are a very bad choice for the 'adult' stuff. Your 'adult activities' would be all up in your neighbors business as the lots are packed super close together and building in the sky is not allowed.

For 'adult stuff' you are better off buying a small plot on mainland 'A' rated land, or on an estate. You can also buy on 'M' land but then need to hide your actions better (sexual activity is allowed on M land only if kept absolutely private / hidden away - though nudity is allowed in public on M. By contrast in 'A' land you can 'get it on' right on a public street if you so choose).

For a new resident the choice between renting on an estate or buying on mainland depends on your desire for:

- control: mainland

- isolation: mainland

- predictable rules: mainland

 

- community: estate rental

- service: estate rental

- help in setting up / maintaining: estate rental

 

[Dnkiwi]

ok thanks at this we are hopeing to get premium membership nex week and then start looking at cheap houses that we could rent that will give us some private space

 

 

[Abigail Longmeadow]

You don't need premium membership to rent a house and land from a private landlord. You may still want premium anyway for access to premium only sandboxes, wilderness, gifts, and for access to Linden chat help.

You must have a premium account if you want:

   A Linden home.

   To own mainland. 

If you do sign up for premium, the quarterly or annual payment plan is cheaper than the monthly premium payment plan.

[Dnkiwi]

ok thanks we have been exploreing a little and love here so we are in the process of getting our parnter thing and credits to help us get setup . im starting to see how much more is on on offer her and the detail is amazing . also is there a way to preview a home before making the final choice  

[Aislin Ceawlin]

I can't remember if anyone mentioned it, but you might look into renting a skybox or skydome if you want more privacy, and they are generally cheaper than renting an actual parcel (sometimes.)