Why can't I make things?

[Shorahmin Femto]

When I try to use the create tool it says I'm not allowed.

[Biancaluce Robbiani]

To create things you have to be in an area where "creating" or "building" is allowed.

 

You can easily check if the area you are in is a building enabled one, by looking at the bottom bar.

If the building button is lighted up, the landowner has choosen to permit residents to create objects on his land.

 

If you can't find a building area near you, just open the map and type "sandbox". Click search button and choose a place from the list. Click teleport and reach that place.

 

Sandboxes are special areas where landowners allow residents creations and object building.

 

Note that in some of those areas, landowners give a limited time for objects to stay.

After that time, all things you have created will be returned in your "lost and found" inventory folder automatically.

You can read how much time is set by going in the about land window -> objects tab.

This is to prevent to fill those areas with items and it is polite to clean them of your items after finishing your work.

[Tid Kidd]

All the Help Islands (Help Island Public, Help Island Public2, the first Help Island where you arrive) have a Sandbox where you can practice building. They also have display boards with good tutorials to help you learn.

[Charlotte Bailey]

In case someone else is seeking a different answer for this question:

 

I was asked this very question today. A girl was trying to create a box, but she got no error message. Nothing happened.

 

Her problem was, that she had accidently checked the "Copy Selection" box. In this case, when you click your wand on the ground, you try to copy something that isn't there - and you rez nothing...

 

uncheck it, and you can rez again :-)

[Osprey Therian]

One the top bar of the user interface there are little icons that inform you about the land you're standing on.  Some places are build-enabled, some are not - but other common icons indicate scripts enabled/disabled, "push" (that is the ability of someone or something to move your avatar, such as a trampoline or a weapon) enabled/disabled.  A heart means damage is enabled (for combat role play, or similar uses) and loss of 100 damage points will send you in a teleport back home.

 

If a private parcel is build enabled you can bet there will be autoreturn on to keep it tidy.  Clicking the top bar on the parcel name opens up the land pane, and the Objects tab has the autoreturn time (zero is off).  If you create a cube, then five minutes later it disappears, you probably have encountered autoreturn - your cube was sent to your Lost and Found folder in your Inventory.

 

"Making things" is not only building from scratch - for instance rezzing a boat or a spaceship to ride in also require build-enabled land.  Once seated you can move onto non-build-enabled land, though.