Lost money, can't get anything to work, never go the land, etc.

[Freya Mokusei]

This sounds like a connection issue. You don't give any information about your connection, so I will try and guess.

Given that you're new to Second Life, have you checked that your Internet connection will be adequate?

Typically SL requires:-

• A wired Ethernet connection to your router.
• A sturdy interface in your machine.
• At least 5Mbit/s through your line - bearing in mind that some ISPs can rank what they interpret as 'gaming traffic' at much slower speeds than advertised for typical data.
• It may also require exceptions to be made in your software or hardware firewall. Relevant information can be found here.

You could also take a look at Nalates' guidance on troubleshooting your SL connection, as this covers many potential problems. You can respond to this or any other Answer given to you by clicking the Permalink hyperlink below each post.

Best of luck.

[Freya Mokusei]

This sounds like a connection issue. You don't give any information about your connection, so I will try and guess.

Given that you're new to Second Life, have you checked that your Internet connection will be adequate?

Typically SL requires:-

• A wired Ethernet connection to your router.
• A sturdy interface in your machine.
• At least 5Mbit/s through your line - bearing in mind that some ISPs can rank what they interpret as 'gaming traffic' at much slower speeds than advertised for typical data.
• It may also require exceptions to be made in your software or hardware firewall. Relevant information can be found here.

You could also take a look at Nalates' guidance on troubleshooting your SL connection, as this covers many potential problems. You can respond to this or any other Answer given to you by clicking the Permalink hyperlink below each post.

Best of luck.

[Rolig Loon]

I see from your previous post that you are a Premium member and that you never "got" your piece of land.  So, did you ask for a Linden Home?  As a Premium member, you get a waiver for monthly land fees on one 512 sq m plot of land on the mainland.  You may use it in either of two ways:

 

1. You may ask for a Linden Home, which comes on its own 512 sq m parcel.  A Linden Home is designed as a starter home, so you can't add to it or change its style, and you can't specify exactly which house you will get.  However, the house itself doesn't count against the L.I. allowance on the parcel and you can decorate to your liking.
2. You may decide instead to buy a 512 sq m parcel anywhere on the Mainland and erect your own house (one that you buy or that you build by yourself).  That house does count against the L.I. allowance, but you have full control over design. 

Whichever option you choose, the land fees for the parcel are fully covered by your Prmium membership, so the most you have to pay is the purchase price of a house if you choose option #2.  (The land fee waiver is not applicable on Private Estates.) You do have to take the initiative to choose, however.  You don't just "get" land.

 You might want to do a careful review of all of your Premium membership benefits >>> https://community.secondlife.com/t5/English-Knowledge-Base/Premium-membership/ta-p/1054477

[Ariel Vuissent]

Not with as few details as you've given.

How did you lose money? What happened?

What isn't working properly? What is it doing instead?

What land were you expecting?

Have you actually contact customer support?

Second Life has a very steep learning curve. You need to have a lot of patience. Linden Labs doesn't offer much in the way of tutorials except what's at that very first island you wind up in, so you largely have to figure things out by yourself, or see if other residents will help you. Many will.

From your other post, I gather that the land you're talking about is the 512sqm meter plot you get for free as a Premium member? You don't just get it handed to you have; you have to go find it. Look for plots for sale, and buy one. Or you can get a Linden home, which IS completely free, and which you claim on the website.

[Abigail Longmeadow]

In no particular order:

This is a resident forum. The Lindens don't post here. Some residents can give advice, but if you need Linden help you need to send in a support ticket, or if you are a premium member you can use live chat to talk to the Linden support team.

Second Life is complicated. It is a good idea to search the Knowledge Base and talk to experienced residents before you put money in. Know what you are getting.

Premium membership gives you the right to buy mainland and gives you 512m2 of tier credit. It does not actually give you the land. Actually getting the land is a separate step, with a number of different options (apply for a free Linden house, or buy manland at auction, or buy it direct from the current owner). Finding the land is another step - you have to know the location and how to teleport to it using the map or a SLURL. And if you bought mainland, you will need to buy or build a house.

You might like renting a house and land from a resident better that buying it from the lab. Look for themed role play estates.

Jumping from a web page link to an in-world location does not always work, but if you know the location you can almost always teleport there by using the map, after you have logged in.

Clothing has become more complicated since we now have both "classic" and "mesh" avatars. Clothing must be made for the type of avatar that you are using.

You can't rez anything on the ground, unless you are on land that permits you to do so. Generally, that means either a sandbox, or land that you own or rent. You may have to wear a group name tag, if you are renting the land.

You need to download and install a Second Life compatible viewer to your (PC) computer to be able to get in. Unfortuately, this does not work so well on tablets/iPads, although Bright Canopy is working on an alternative for tablets/iPads.

[Bobbie Faulds]

BTW, you can, within certain limits, choose what kind of house you want. You can choose from 4 different themes (modern, oriental, mountainy, and fantasy). From there you can choose one of the styles available in that themed area. Not all styles are always available. Best bet is to look around at the various styles and find one you like if you're going to get one. You can change styles by abandoning the one you got and choosing another, but you can only do that 4 times in a 24 hour period. After that, you have to wait beforeyou can choose again. 

If you are a premium member it's a good deal for a starter so you have someplace you can call "home". After that you can look around and see if you like something better while you get yourself oriented to SL.

Good luck.

[Lindal Kidd]

That sounds like several problems, not just one.

Lost money?  How?  The SL accounting system is one of the parts of Second Life that almost NEVER goes wrong.  If you "lost" money, it's usually either that you have expenses you haven't noticed, like fees assessed to one or more of your groups, or you rezzed a money-stealing object and granted it permission to take money from you.  See my blog post, "Disappearing Dollars."

Can't get anything to work: Have you read the Quick Start Guide, looked at any of the tutorial videos, or visited an in world tutorial like Caledon Oxbridge University?  Any and all of those will help explain how things work in SL.  Or do you mean, you can't get your avatar to rez, you can't move freely, you can't change your outfit?  Those can be an indication of a poor internet connection, or possibly a computer that isn't up to the demands of Second Life.  See these links:  http://blog.nalates.net/2011/10/26/troubleshoot-your-sl-connection/

https://secondlife.com/my/support/system-requirements/?lang=en-US

Never got the land:  You have to request a Linden Home.  If you want land elsewhere, you have to find it, and buy it.  You don't pay tier on the first 512 sq. m. of Mainland you own.  I teach a class on land issues on Fridays at 5 pm SL time, at Caledon Oxbridge University.  It's free to attend.