Almadi Masala
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Posts posted by Almadi Masala
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I apologize for the delay in responding. I have been traveling for the last few weeks, without access to a computer.
Amethyst, in the most recent case I am talking about, there was no way for a visitor to tell that the public venue did not take up all of the sim. The venue had been advertised as a place for the public to visit, there were no visible boundaries marking the limits of the public area, and no information provided about the existence of private areas on the sim. Under those circumstances, I don't think it was unreasonable to assume that it was OK to explore the landscaped outdoor areas of the sim. There were even paths leading from the public entry point to other areas of the sim, with no signs indicating that one shouldn't follow the paths beyond a certain point. I was walking on one of those paths when I got booted.
Making parcel boundaries visible in the viewer might not always work, because security orbs do not necessarily go by parcel boundaries.
I appreciate that there are different views on this. I agree that property owners have the right to use whatever means they choose to protect private areas. If you don't care whether visitors have a good experience on your sim and don't care whether they return, then go ahead and use harshly worded security orbs with invisible tripwires and short fuses. But then why would you invite people there in the first place?
Respectfully,
Alamadi
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The last time this kind of thing happened to me the sim owner was on-site, and I did IM her to point out the problem. She reacted somewhat disdainfully, saying that she was not about to change anything on her sim just because one person didn't like it. When it became clear that she was not open to feedback or suggestions, I said a polite goodbye and left.
I don't know what effect ban lines have on property value. If a for-sale parcel has ban lines around it, it does tend to make the parcel less attractive to me. But on the other hand, I have long-time neighbors who put up ban lines a while back, and I'm not much bothered by it. I know they are reasonable folks, so I assume they must have had a problem with griefers. If they were using security orbs, maybe it would be more of a problem.
But I want to be clear: My problem is not with the use of security orbs per se; but with the failure to inform visitors of where private areas are located, which results in visitors being rudely accosted and ejected when they unwittingly stray across an invisible boundary. That is not a good way to make people feel welcome on your sim!
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As owner of almost half a mainland sim, I agree completely that landowners should have full control over who can enter their land. I'm just pointing out that it is very aggravating for a visitor to be suddenly yelled at and ejected by a security orb without even having been told that certain areas are off limits. If you are inviting people to visit your sim and are hoping that they will enjoy themselves there, you might want to take that into account. Putting up a nice border may cost some prims, but if your goal is to provide your visitors with a positive experience, maybe it's worth it.
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The annoying experiences I have had with security orbs have all been at ground level. I would actually prefer that the sim owner use ban lines at ground level. I can make them invisible in my viewer, and if I bump up against the banned parcel, it will just tell me I can't enter. That is a gentler approach than waiting until someone has unintentionally entered the private area and then yelling at them and kicking them out.
I don't think 10 seconds is long enough, at least not at ground level. It takes a couple of seconds just to notice that the warning has appeared and to realize what is happening. If the boundary of the private zone is not visible you may not know what direction you need to go in to get out quickly. Lag can shave some more seconds off your response time. The last time this happened to me, the orb said I had 30 seconds to leave. I immediately tried to go back the way I came, but I still got booted before I could get out of the protected zone.
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This has happened to me a number of times:
I teleport to a sim whose description clearly invites the public to come explore and enjoy. While exploring the sim, I suddenly receive a harsh warning that I have intruded into a private area and will be ejected in a few seconds. There is no visible indication of where the boundaries of the private area are. I try to backtrack, but cannot tell at what exact point I entered the private area. Before I can get away on my own, I am forcibly ejected to some other spot on the sim.
This is, to put it mildly, very annoying.
Now, I have no problem at all with the sim owner setting aside part of the sim as private, but won't you PLEASE put up some kind of visible indication of where the boundaries of the private area are, so that your visitors do not unknowingly stray into that area? A fence or hedge surrounding the area, with discrete signs indicating "Private area, please do not enter" would suffice. Another option would be to have an auto-greeter message at the sim's tp entry point that clearly describes the locations of private areas.
I respect your privacy and will never knowingly enter a private area, but I have to have some way of knowing that it is private. Setting out invisible trip-wires and ambushing innocent visitors with angry security warnings and ejections when they cross those unseen lines creates a very unwelcoming environment in your sim. When it happens to me now, I immediately tp home and never return to that sim, no matter how nice a place it might be otherwise.
Clearly marking or describing the areas of your sim that are protected by security orbs seems like common courtesy toward your visitors, and will make them more likely to want to return.
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Thanks for all of your responses.
I decided to put a security orb in the middle of the area they've been using -- not set to eject but just to monitor their activity. While I was setting it up, all 8 of the ones who were there started to disappear one by one. A little while later, 2 of them reappeared over a neighboring parcel that I also own. They would not communicate with me, so I ejected them both. One of them tried several times to return, but I kept ejecting him. Then he showed up again at ground level. I IMed him asking for an explanation, but he flew away without responding. I haven't seen them since.
My security system will continue monitoring, so I will know if any of them return to the same area where they were. Hopefully they will have decided to move on to someplace else to do whatever it is they are up to.
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For sometime now there has been a group of avatars hovering at about 1000 m above my land. They come and go, but there are usually about 6 of them there at any one time. They are usually in pairs, facing each other, hovering motionlessly. I have tried chatting and IMing them but they do not respond. Their profiles are empty and their ages range from a couple of months to over two years. Over the last several weeks they have increased the traffic count on that parcel from less than 10 to almost 7000.
Any ideas why they would be doing this? Would it be reasonable for me to eject them from my airspace? They are not causing any trouble that I can detect, but it makes me nervous to see them always there.
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How about simply notifying adjacent landowners when an abandoned parcel is up for sale? That couldn't be too hard to do.
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Security orb users: PLEASE mark your boundaries!
in General Discussion
Posted
Thank you, Pussycat. I wish everyone hosting visitors on their land were as careful in their use of security orbs as you are. You are right, that a properly configured security orb need have no impact on a visitor who is not deliberately intruding in a private area. Your orb would pose no problem to me at all, since I would never try to enter a building that has locked doors or that appears to be private.