Ren Toxx

Barb wire.

If you don’t know yet how to create animation sets in Firestorm’s AO, here is how (beginning by importing from a normal AO, but you’ll see how to create your own set from scratch). That done, it’s just a question of duplicating some—or all—of the dancing animations you’d use as “Stand”, putting them in the “Ground sit” section as well; then all you have to do is to use that particular set, sit on the ground as describe above in this thread, and it’ll be literally impossible to move you one inch from where you’re apparently dancing (but actually ground-sitting).

I bathe in them. Rasputin was my mentor.

Actually engaging in conversation with people—usually noobs—who’d rather “engage” in another, um, less verbal fashion. While at times there’s a bit of a tense back-and-forth (that’d be the “guilty” part I guess, if anything because at times I do become anything but nice, and don’t necessarily cut it short by just muting), I can say that just as often it becomes a bit of a healthy pleasure if I can manage to talk them into realizing they’re dealing with an actual person just like them, who’d rather not be treated like a disposable object.

LOL [runs, half-expecting Love Zhaoying to pop in any minute now doing the same but with a much nicer, lion meme pic ]

I’ll let the natives handle the semantics... anyhow, even if it’s “petty”—i.e. silly, unjustified or whatever ye wanna call it—, I reckon it’s sort of OK to rant about it here, it’s pretty much the thread’s purpose, and doesn’t necessarily mean that in-world we’ll go all murderous on them 😅

Well, I’m not a native speaker so maybe I’m missing the subtleties of the term “pet peeve” but, isn’t that like something that annoys you when it rationally shouldn’t? (Or maybe I’m confusing “pet” with “petty”?).

Can’t think of anything about avatar appearance that bothers me, not even the crudest things; I might appreciate a well-clothed, handsome one, but even that’s a vague, emotionally disconnected aesthetic observation—met too many idiots sharply dressed, and very agreeable people on noob or otherwise goofy avatars. I’m not even bothered by those with nuclear facelights, blingy or over-particled, since I have those things off. The only thing a bit ‘meh’ for me is the too fancy-lettered display names… mine mightn’t be plain text either, but I’ve yet to find anyone who can’t easily read it as “Ren”. I just end up avoiding those I honestly can’t decipher myself. But for peeves, with me it’s always about behavior, and if we’re talking ‘pet’ ones, I guess two of mine have to do with people who seem to have some grave phobia to silence: either those who come to a public place and immediately start bitching if there’s no ongoing conversation at the moment… or those who, maybe to prevent that, launch into what often ends up being a long monologue, never mind if anyone’s actually paying attention, let alone caring. I like chatting as much as the next one—when there’s something to chat about—. But I honestly don’t understand why so many people can’t admit that sometimes you simply have nothing to say, and babbling compulsively to pretend otherwise is just silly.

Oh, I know it was mostly about technical advice... but many new players are roughly as unaware of these social issues too—and perhaps more vulnerable to them precisely because, being the human side of it, they think they’re already prepared for them. Experience tells me most aren’t, though.

“It’s just a dance” = it’ll be way more than that “I’m unpartnered” = in this alt “Do you like fun?” = he’d rather not pay for it “Of course you can tell me in full confidence” = it’ll be in SLWhisperer blog 15 minutes later “Would you be interested in amazing prospects of professional advancement?” = he needs more unpaid pole dancers for his crappy new club “Interesting profile...” = bored and ready to troll

2. Those profile texts are usually meant for the partner or family in question, a “look how commited I am to you!” thing. Doesn’t make it much less silly, but I guess words are cheaper than deeds. 3. Looks are inevitably the first thing that can make an impression, but it doesn’t mean they will, that’s up to each one. Personally, I have more of an issue with those who pretend looks don’t matter to them, because then you have someone who is shallow and disingenuous. As for recurrent things that irk me, there’s so many... guess my top ones are the two extremes of SL savvy: the rowdy, bull-in-a-china-shop noobs (which I know is inevitable to some extent, but still, I honestly don’t recall being such a doofus myself) and the arrogant veterans who wouldn’t touch even the nicest, most thoughtful noobs with a ten foot pole—because, ew!, their noobishness and lack of pretty mesh might be contagious!

Places with things I want.

It’s curious, my experience hasn’t technically been any better than those described here, but it feels better to me. Maybe I just try seeing it objectively. IMs? Yes, and I’ve opened them as well (and have no reason to believe I’ll be any less boring or inconvenient to others). Bad conversationalists? Big deal, so am I. Long silences in public? Yeah, same as many others who arrive at the place and say nothing for a while, if at all (perhaps because they too are busy in IMs, AFK, or simply waiting for others to start); only difference may be, I don’t complain about others doing what I myself have done just as frequently, nor am I the arrogant, self-entitled type who believes everyone else in SL exists solely for the purpose of entertaining me. And by the way, I’m not talking about newbies. Frequently with these, I’ve talked to them, pointing out for example how they themselves may have gone idle for a while (which you can see from their LookAts), and once they realize this, they easily understand and agree that it’s not necessarily a questionable thing. Veterans, not so often—by the hissy fits some throw, you’d be hard-pressed not to think they actually lack the capacity to understand anything that doesn’t suit them. Same goes for IMs that’ll go pervy. From newbies, you can often see they were just misinformed of the nature and purpose of SL, and somewhat often in fact you can wrangle an intelligent conversation out of them, once they realize you can be more than pixel bonking for them. With veterans? Not so much luck. They already know SL is a lot more. They just don’t care—and because they’re veterans, they think they’re above the need to learn anything else, so you rarely if ever can reason with them. So yeah... all in all, and IM or not, I’d take any day those who just haven’t learned to conduct themselves better yet... than those who clearly never will.

I know the topic’s half done but, if I’m allowed a late addition, the best pickup line as far as I’m concerned kinda goes in the spirit of that quote from the 1983’s “WarGames” movie: “the only winning move is not to play”.

It might be a good idea if there’s no other ongoing chat, as it kinda invites it to become a group conversation—in what, too often in such places, otherwise people complain of silence and that “everyone must be in private IMs”. However, and from experience, be prepared for it to be almost invariably a wasted effort: if the “hi” was the prelude to nastiness, there’s simply no way you’ll convince him to take it to local, and even if it was to be innocent but otherwise asinine, local chat in and on itself doesn’t make anyone a better conversationalist.

I’ve seen many not explicitly declaring friendship unless absolutely necessary—and even then, couched in overt displays of “only cos it’s more practical that way, not that I care if you say ‘no’, I’m cool either way, dude, ya know...” . Reckon it’s a male thing, insofar as those cliches still stand... [shrugs]

Sometimes, they end up preferring me quiet 😜

They’re the ones who get bored—if not downright exasperated—while I give ’em the roundabout. Me, I’m usually chuckling.

I ask them exactly what the place is, what are its specific advantages over where I am at the moment, etc., and repeat the questions obdurately until they answer—sometimes they don’t, not at first, but apparently they’re not prepared for someone who repeats the question over and over, often in excess of 10 times—. By then many, out of desperation, try cockiness: “it's better here because I’m here”, so I go on to ask them exactly what are the advantages of him over the people I’m with at the moment... and so on and so forth. I call it the “Dumb Spock act” and, because many don’t want to sound inarticulate (or dumb themselves), it has the curious effect of making them sweat while still feeling like a bucket of ice down their...

It is typical in populated but unmoderated areas like the social islands; elsewhere, owners or local staff would intervene to warn and eventually ban the griefer, as well as possibly instruct the victim how to defend himself from such attacks. Therefore the griefers tend to gravitate towards places where they’ll be able to attack people unmolested.

Alas, I’ve gotten more mileage of the few who opened saying they hated my profile or what it conveys about me, than the tons who either didn’t read it or didn’t care what it says, and just went with my looks (and the hope to get, um, better ones). At least with the former you get the feeling that it’s brains interacting, and not lower body parts. I do understand your argument, though, and always made a point not to prejudge and become evasive–or downright inaccessible–until I see clear hints that that’s what the other is angling for. Heck, half of the times the conversation goes on even after that, for as long as they won’t lose patience with my trying to steer it elsewhere. Usually it’s new players whom I assume just got the wrong impression of what SL is dedicated to, and give them an honest chance to realize it’s so much more than that.

They really hate when I tell them.

Igual que en la vida real: ve a sitios transitados, observa pacientemente lo que hacen y dicen hasta sentir que puedes participar de ello (pregunta lo que necesites; siempre habrá alguien dispuesto a explicártelo); poco a poco encontrarás con quienes te entiendes más y os gusta más hablar entre vosotros. Ésos serán tus amigos. Lo que más debes evitar es “forzar” la amistad, o siquiera proponerla. La amistad no es algo a ofrecer como si fuese una transacción: “yo te agrego, tú me agregas, y con eso ya existe una auténtica amistad”; incluso sin agregaros, sólo llamar al otro “amigo” y pedirle que te llame así, no serviría de nada. “Amigo” es sólo una palabra, no un hecho; podrías coger una patata, pegarle una etiqueta que dijese “amigo de toda la vida”, y seguiría siendo sólo una patata. Te digo esto porque muchos nuevos residentes, sintiéndose aislados en un mundo extraño, tienden a apresurarse a establecer “amistades” (sólo de palabra o de agregarse) para sentir que ya lo han conseguido; y aunque a menudo encontrarás voluntarios entre quienes están como tú (y quizá por eso sintáis que “ya hay algo que os une”), con el tiempo verás que estas “amistades fáciles” no suelen conducir a nada: a muchos ni les volverás a ver (no entrarán de nuevo en SL, o no sabrán encontrarte, o no querrán), con otros descubrirás que no había en realidad nada importante que os uniese... y con más de uno tendrás escenas desagradables cuando propongan cosas que tú no quieres y te espeten, “¿¿pero no éramos amigos??”. Sólo entonces comprendrás que declaraste una amistad con quien nunca habría funcionado. Hacerlo así, aunque parezca lo fácil y rápido, en realidad sólo te desviará de encontrar amistades reales y duraderas, que supongo que es lo que quieres.

No.

I don’t–if anything, I put the brakes on anyone trying to hasten to process. By and large, all my friends are those who pushed the least for it. As for the odd silence at public hangouts, not only I’m not the least bothered by it, I actually find it encouraging. And if the typical one arrives, sees it, after a few minutes says “is everyone dead?”, and no one takes the bait–not because they can’t, but because they won’t–, then I’m downright impressed.