Inventory/clothes missing after not logging in for very long time

[Zna Pye]

Preface: I have not logged into SL in some 10 years.  I am not playing with any of the previous installed data, as I did not (and still do not) make a habit of backing up my gaming computer.

All of the previous inventory is gone, what little there was.

When I log in, the viewer says "Your clothing is still downloading.  You can use Second Life normally and other people will see you correctly."  I click "Close".

After closing that box, a second one appears saying "Could not put on outfit.  The outfit folder contains no clothing, body parts, or attachments."  I click "Close".

I am thus left a gaseous entity, ill defined.

Given I have not even touched this site let alone any viewers between then and now, is there any possibility of retrieving my old items?  Or have they vanished into the abyss?  Lost to the inevitable entropic dissolution of the universe?

[ChinRey]

You can file a support case about it but Linden Lab is very clear that they can not guarantee inventory items to be kept for that long so I'm afraid there's not much hope your old items can be retrieved.

The cloud avatar is easy to fix though. If you use the standard viewer, look for "Choose you Avatar" in the "Me" menu. Click on one of the avatars there and you got a body in SL! It may not be the ideal one but some of them are quite good and it's a start at least. Once you have an avatar, you can start refilling your inventory with tons of overpriced garb lovely avatar components and other precious wonders of Virtual Space.

Welcome back!

Edit: three comments to Klytyna's very good answer:

Do not got to the library folder for the new starter avatars. The library links to them are broken and won't work. You can get them from the menu I mentioned though and you can get the old starter avatars either place.

As for freebies, the first two places to go are The Free Dove and GNC (German Newbie Center). Both have lots of good quality content at a single easy to find place. You can find them both with the inworld search function.

Personally I would have loved to log on my 10+ year old original account complete with her old avatar. That would have been an avi that would stand out in a crowd! Unfortunately I've forgotten the username and the email account it was linekd to is long gone.

[Klytyna]

Honestly... If you havn't been on in 10 years... what inventory you had in terms of skin hair, clothing etc., probably wasnt worth keeping anyway. The Dark Gods of the Grid have done you a massive favour, you have no excuse to look like "The Return of the Noob-Mummy From 20,000 Leagues Behind The Times".

 

Go to the library section of your inv, and pick one of the new starter avatars, then search for "SecondLife Free & Offers", in groups, and join. they have something mad like 100k members, searching for group gifts, freebies, lucky chairs, midnight manias etc., and a lot of the stuff is good quality.

 

Great place to find decent skins hair and clothing for your new avatar cheap or free.

[Zna Pye]

There was one avatar of sentimental value, regardless of how primitive it was. Literally in the case of SL, given this was long before even sculpies were a thing. I figured that would be the answer, but thought it couldn't hurt to ask. Thanks!