Linden Lab

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Enchantée" , photo by La Bouchère. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

You're probably always logged in, so you may not have seen the sparkling new images provided by some of you for the new Spring-themed login pages. Here is a glimpse at what those looks like.

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Beneath the City" , photo by Jon Vetinari. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Pizza." , photo by - Jaywen -. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Feline" , photo by Angels Milena. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Millions of people have registered for Second Life -- so chances are pretty good that there’s a community that shares your interest or hobby inworld. Connecting with people who share your interests is easier when you know how to efficiently explore the thousands of Groups and Destinations inside Second Life. To learn more about how to find friends and connect to conversations that share your interests, watch the QuickTips tutorial video at: .NIocN3YAaME Find even more tips on joining Groups and connecting with communities in Second Life in our KnowledgeBase. Did you miss our previous QuickTips videos? Check ‘em out!

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "I kinda like it ..." , photo by ßɛℓℓѕ // .evolve. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

We hope you’re all having a lovely Valentine’s Day in Second Life! If you logged in during the period to be eligible for the special gift from Linden Lab, today you’ll find an extra L$10 from us in your account by midnight (PT) tonight - it’s just a little something that we hope will brighten your day. Looking for a last-minute gift for someone special inworld? There are lots of options for less than L$10 in the Valentine’s Day category on the Marketplace - you can see them all here. And, of course there are thousands of items in the entire Valentine’s Day category, which you can browse here. If you don’t yet have any plans for Valentine’s Day inworld, we’ve got you covered! The Destination Guide team has been sifting through the many and varied recent submissions to highlight a few things you might want to check out today: The Stupid Cupid Hunt That Cupid, he's so stupid! Flying around, shooting arrows everywhere, making everyone dizzy, trailing little hearts wherever he goes... He's trying to make love matches all across SecondLife! It's time to stop Cupid before he gets any more stupid! Find the arrows at stores across SL to lead you to Cupid's love nest and fall in love with over 20 sponsor prizes! Running from February 1st to the 15th, don't miss it. Visit in Second Life Deesha World of Romance This is a unique and romantic world is actually two breathtaking areas separated by the thinnest of veils. Bring that special someone to this alien wonderland! Visit in Second Life Aoxomoxoa Aoxomoxoa is a romantic place and club, and a wonderful place to meet new people, make friends and just have fun. Come for the romance, stay for the location. Visit in Second Life Notre Dame Cathedral One of the largest Gothic cathedrals in Second Life, this sim provides ample gardens for reflection, contemplation and meditation. Based on the famous Notre Dame cathedral, this is a peaceful reflective place to step back from the busy clutter of the virtual world. Best viewed with maximum graphics, turn urn up that draw distance! Visit in Second Life One Billion Rising On February 14, for 24 hours starting at midnight (Pacific), Second Life residents will join with activists around the world in a spectacular 24-hour dance event for ONE BILLION RISING. This will be the largest day of action in the history of V-Day, the global activist movement to end violence against women and girls. More info including a full schedule of events at onebillionrisingsl.wordpress.com. Visit in Second Life You can also peruse the romance category in the Destination Guide for many more, and as always, please submit your ownspace or event if you’d like it to be featured. Happy Valentine’s Day!

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Rainy Day" , photo by Caotica_Mai (MaY Coba) ♡♡♡. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Valentine’s Day is big in Second Life - whether you’re planning on buying something special for your sweetheart on the Marketplace, finding a romantic place to explore together, or just celebrating with friends inworld, Second Life is a great place to enjoy the holiday. To help you have even more fun in Second Life this Valentine’s Day, we have a surprise gift for you! You must log in by 7:30pm PT today to be eligible, so don’t wait! What is it? Well, it wouldn’t be any fun if we spoiled the surprise here - you’ll just have to log in before 7:30pm PT today to find out. We hope you enjoy this special gift and wish you all a very happy Valentine’s Day! UPDATE: We've received a number of inquiries regarding an email that was sent to Second Life users to announce this promotion. Due to some technical issues, the formatting and foreign language content of the email may have caused some confusion and concern, for which we apologize. As you can see from this blog, this promotion is indeed a Linden Lab sponsored effort. Remember, this is a time-sensitive promotion. The gift described in the email and blog post will be delivered by 11:59pm Pacific time on Valentine's Day (February 14th) 2013, and to be eligible to receive it, you need to login to Second Life by 7:30pm PT on February 13.

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Carnival" , photo by Tweeze_Tyne. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "in my room." , photo by ellekirshner. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Sorrow" , photo by Akasha Vanistok. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve introduced several to help teach our newest residents the basics of Second Life. This week, we examine how to use the official unit of trade in Second Life, known as the Linden Dollar (or L$). You can use Linden Dollars to buy almost anything inside Second Life or on the Marketplace -- a new outfit, a new home or even a completely new avatar. Watch the video to learn more at: NtY3qU3IueM To learn even more about the basics of getting and spending Linden Dollars, visit our Knowledgebase. Did you miss our previous QuickTips videos? Check ‘em out!

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Untitled" , photo by Lady Fandango. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Arcachon Atlantique" , photo by axiom.atic. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Where's Dim Sum?" , photo by Opal Lei Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Lode Hat" , photo by Chirzaka. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "And hocus pocus try to focus" , photo by Sophia Harlow. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Last week, we introduced the first video in a new Second Life tutorial series called QuickTips. Each of these tutorials aims to help newer users by introducing them to basic features, functions or activities in Second Life. Our focused on the simple process of changing your avatar in less than 60 seconds using the free avatars built into the Second Life Viewer. That’s a great skill to have as a newcomer -- but many users want to stand out in style or perhaps just look a bit more unique. Why look like everyone else when there are thousands of fashions and avatar accessories to choose from? This week’s QuickTips video introduces new users to the fundamentals of how to shop like a pro in Second Life. Watch this clip to learn the basics on discovering places to shop, as well as transaction tips and even unpacking your items. Soon you’ll be shopping up a storm as you stroll through the many virtual shopping hot spots in SL or browse for items via the web on the Marketplace. QEwLBuC9h1c Stay tuned for even more QuickTips. Forthcoming videos will help teach the basics of socializing, connecting with communities, finding interesting places and more. To learn more about shopping in Second Life, visit our Knowledgebase.

Each week, the Destination Guide editorial team reviews dozens upon dozens of new locations and events - last time we blogged, we recommended a few interesting destinations we thought you’d enjoy. Once again, we’d like to highlight a few of the more interesting new submissions that stood out to our editorial team. Recently, we’ve had a glut of great installation art. These evocative installations carry a variety of themes: from desolation and mortality to innocence in the face of a giant fish. Rounding things out are a night club hiding in a library, and a charity for at-risk youth. If you're looking for new places to explore in Second Life, you may want to check out some of these regions, or join the fun and submit your own. The Arrival The Arrival: In this art installation from Rose Borchovski, you'll venture to an emotional and immersive art-landscape about The Arrival of the Fish, the next chapter of The Susa Bubbles adventures. In this installation, the Susa Bubbles caught a fish, while they admire how big it is, the fish dies. They wonder if they are to blame. Or search for your own explanation... Visit in Second Life Citysphere Welcome to Citysphère, a new vision of Second Life. A city with 132 buildings distributed on a floating sphere, this mind-bending experience features three times the surface area of most sims and must be seen. For more information, and important Citysphere advice, go to bit.ly/RNdSf1. The exhibition runs throughout the month. Visit in Second Life Imogen and the Pigeons Imogen and the Pigeons is an immersive narrative created by award winning artist Bryn Oh. A strikingly desolate sim with interesting puzzles and striking visuals, this is something you can't miss. Visit in Second Life Shhh!! Nightclub A sexy, naughty dance club set in a library, of all places. Chock full of events every Sunday from 6-8pm, they also do specialty theme built events (car wash, trailer park, disco, saloon, beach party and more). And if that's not enough, DJ Vixie Durant plays all the hottest club hits! Visit in Second Life ARTC's Art House Art House is a major collaboration with 20 of SL's best artists and creators donating art and decor to a house for ARTC. ARTC (Achieving Recovery Through Creativity) is a real life program that helps kids with drug and alcohol problems use art, creativity and virtual world counseling to recover and stay sober. It's an incredible body of work for a good cause. Visit in Second Life

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Untitled" , photo by Donna Arun. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

When our developers first saw the Leap Motion controller they couldn’t wait to get their hands on one. Thankfully, we were able to get a pre-production development kit and built demos to explore its capabilities in Second Life. The demos included tests of flight controls, object manipulation, and avatar gestures. -8WkyBBwYTI This work was strictly experimental, but it showed the power of Second Life as a platform for exploring gesture-based interactions with controllers like the Leap Motion, and we’re happy to be able to share the code with you as a starting point for your own explorations. If you have a Leap Motion controller and would like to experiment with the Second Life Viewer, you can find the source code for these experiments at http://bitbucket.org/simon_linden/viewer-rabbit. The indra/newview/llleapmotioncontroller.cpp file contains most new functionality. The Viewer is built to work in several different modes. These modes can be used to control the avatar while flying, send data into Second Life for scripts to intercept, detect hand motions that trigger avatar gestures, or control the camera and avatar movement. To switch between these modes use the "LeapMotionTestMode" value in the Debug Settings, accessible from the Advanced menu. To give our experiments a shot you will need get the source mentioned above and contact www.leapmotion.com to join their developer program and obtain the SDK. Currently only Windows Viewers are supported, but other platforms could be added by linking in the appropriate Leap Motion SDK.

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Glossy in Black" , photo by Anna Sapphire. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!

Check out the Second Life Pic of the Day, "Nostros Deer - Lookout" , photo by Chairo Jonson. Don't forget to check out Second Life on Tumblr, Facebook and Google Plus!