Just wonderin

[Doombot14]

Hey all,

 

I guess it's curiosity my concerns, but things have really changed in sl. When I started second life two years ago, it was a really different place for me. It was this bustling busy place, and it was easy to make friends. Over the years I have begun to see the people have really changed. I don't log in as much because I have a busy real life, but I try to as much as I can. I recently have been logging in to visit different places, and it seems like a ghost town. A few locations there were seas of silent avatars that don't say a word.

I used to frequent breedable, and shops however they are all gone. Am I visiting the wrog areas? Is there places I should check out to see active talking people? It's really sad to see how closed off people are nowadays. Thanks community

[ChinRey]

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Doombot14 wrote:

I used to frequent breedable, and shops however they are all gone. Am I visiting the wrog areas?

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Maybe, maybe not. Running any kind of public place in Second Life requires a lot of time and effort and costs quite a bit of money too. Very few people can afford to keep one for two whole years. But there are always new people who want to give it a try so yes, there are still places to hang out and meet people.

Not anything like it was two years ago though. Everything in Second Life has deteriorated drastically since then and the social aspect perhaps most of all.

Then again, the situation isn't nearly as bad as it was half a year ago - today you can actually find signs of life in SL if you try hard enough.

[Markham Weatherwax]

One of the problems is that the grid is now too big. Before, everyone was on the mainland. Then they made more mainland. Then they started selling private estates/sims. Creating those sims spread out the diminishing number of users farther and farther apart. If you zoom out the world map you can see loads of avatars here and there, clustering together, or by themselves in a sim all to themselves.

Many are older SLers who are tired of new people and don't want to do anything. Some, like me, are still interested. Then you have the new users who don't have to stay on Orientation Island long enough to really begin to understand SL. These new user come in to mainland first, usually. But the mainland is not always a great start because there is so much abandoned land and empty places - mostly due to the advent of private regions.

The same people you used to know are still here, they are just much harder to find in the massive sweep of the grid. You have to keep looking until you find them again and find your SL again.

 

 

[Theresa Tennyson]

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Doombot14 wrote:

Hey all,

 

I guess it's curiosity my concerns, but things have really changed in sl. When I started second life two years ago, it was a really different place for me. It was this bustling busy place, and it was easy to make friends. Over the years I have begun to see the people have really changed. I don't log in as much because I have a busy real life, but I try to as much as I can. I recently have been logging in to visit different places, and it seems like a ghost town. A few locations there were seas of silent avatars that don't say a word.

I used to frequent breedable, and shops however they are all gone. Am I visiting the wrog areas? Is there places I should check out to see active talking people? It's really sad to see how closed off people are nowadays. Thanks community

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Two years ago people were saying exactly the same thing, and what you're seeing is a common dynamic in SL. Unless you have a specific activity to keep you here it becomes less compelling over time. I've been here for five years and most of my friends are ones I've made in the first few months I was here.

Breedables tend to be a "bubble" interest, especially for each individual breedable as the market saturates. There are probably small remnants in each breed if one of them was really enjoyable for you. Right now the big buzz is around mesh bodies and clothing.

As far as meeting people, try getting involved with areas for new people like NCI or The Shelter. You'll literally meet "new" people who could use your experience.

[ChinRey]

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Theresa Tennyson wrote:

Two years ago people were saying exactly the same thing

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That makes sense. According to the statistics at Second Life Grid Survey, the decline started four years ago so  the 2013 scene must have looked just as empty and desolate to people used to SL 2011, as it looks today to those of us used to 2013.

 

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Theresa Tennyson wrote:

and what you're seeing is a common dynamic in SL.

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It is but it's more to it than that. One of the major Linden Roads runs right across my main SL property so I've been able to see how the traffic there has dwindled over time. Recently it has actually increased slightly - not sure if it's a good sign or just seasonal fluctuations.'

And look at London Soho. That mall used to be a major meeting point for all kinds of people and it was always bustling with life. Yes, lots and lots of traffic bots there but plenty of genuine people too. Last time I visited, it was down to three sims and there wasn't much bustling life to be seen. That would only have been a problem for the sim owner if there had been a new location to take its place but as far as I know there isn't.

Since you mentioned NCI and the Shelter. I don't know about the Shelter but yes, NCI is still going strong. Not nearly as strong as it used to though.

 

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Theresa Tennyson wrote:

Right now the big buzz is around mesh bodies and clothing.

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It is. That's not a problem in itself but it may be a factor that masks how bad the problem really is.

The avatar centered crowd (and yes, I'm definitely part time member of that crowd myself ) don't need a virtual world and they don't need to socialize. They just need a skybox where they can show off their outfits to themselves and their partner (if they have one) and where they can take pictures for their blog (if they have one).

Despite all the words about virtual worlds and communities, I think Second Life has always first and foremost been a forum for solipsism. And it's becoming more and more so. The result is that although the total number of users only declines slowly, the number of people who come here to explore or socialize is dropping fast.

[Syo Emerald]

Also, in adition to what has been said by others, places change extremely fast in Second Life. Shops, venues and people who you saw as absolutly establish might vanish quickly. For SL a year is an extremely long period. But people became not more closed off than they had always been. Expect to build up everything you had (social and hangout-wise) from zero.

[Doombot14]

Thank you everyone for the responses,

 

I spent a bit of time rereading all of them, and Yes I use to spend a considerable amount of time in the shelter. I used to spend time in a place I volunteered at called Noobia, where there was always people who needed help. It is a rewarding feeling when you can make somebodies sl experience better. You're all right, I remember how quickly clubs used to open and close. I did notice The elven forest is still acitve since I visit. It is really nice to see old places still sustaining the test of time. Here is to enjoying old favorites

 

Thanks again everyone for the responses, Doom

[ElvenLady]

we're still here doom.... just fyi... but yes lots has slowed down in lots of spots... interests've changed... rl intruded for some people

[Anya Ristow]

FWIW I just went to the Blarney Stone to make sure it was still there, and there was actually conversation happening. I'm working, so I couldn't stay, but there ya go. One place that will always get mentioned without anyone actually checking to see if anyone goes there anymore is the Blarney Stone in Dublin...and it appears people do still go there.