Amanda Crisp

Porcelain Black - This Is What Rock n Roll Looks Like!

Short is very, very relative. My observation over 12 years has been that as male avatars got taller and taller (that social-dominance-through-height thing), females who dance or otherwise Play with them got taller too so they didn’t look look strange dancing with their nose in the males bellybutton.... Meanwhile, when I grabbed a shape from my Original 2005 avie (the one with the Lashed hair and the Cat cannon) I discovered that -my- height is almost the same. Back in 2005 I was a Tall Girl, today people ask me why I am so short..... I just tell them “I’m just being the same old me”. I have a really funny story (the funny parts are not forum friendly) about the male “Russian Mafiya Avatar” who was playing in a RP sim that I helped manage. We had just paid megabucks for a sim refresh to update the look of the place, and he was badgering all the Admins to go back and have *all* the doors and hallways in the sim enlarged just so his “I am taller than anyone” avatar could walk into a room instead of TPing in..... We crunched he budget and said; “Nyet.....consider shrinking” I fully support sims that have an upper height limit for their Roleplay areas. My time dealing with Jolly Green Mafiya Giants is something I will never get back......

On the main grid you might be correct, but the overwhelming majority of Roleplay-devoted sims are privately owned. When I was RPing a lot, LL took only a limited intervention stance on private land and left banning mostly up to the sim owners - so this might play differently there.

This also might be the golden opportunity to give people the names you think they deserve! ”Igor....I’ll call you Igor.......” Its not a bug, it’s a fun-feature :-)

Any discussion about race or gender in SL is destined to go sideways, as (with all things SL) people have different reasons for portraying (or “playing”) avatars that are different things. (A) Some prefer their avatar to closely resemble their RL (B) Some people prefer their avatar to look as they *wish* to be (C) Some people create avatars that look provocative or just “different” because they value uniqueness, have some other agenda (political/social awareness/kewlness). (D) Some people create “special-purpose Alts” for “adult activity” (sexplay) and very often those border on fetishistic; they look and are described in ways that evoke the adult/fetishistic response. Very often, sexplay is politically correct because it...sexual behavior. So all these avatars intermingle, join Sl Groups - and there is really no compulsion for a Typist to state in the avatar’s profile; “In RL I am a Caucasian Woman and home-maker....and this avatar is a powerful, dominant *insert race of choice here* male because I am exploring that part of my sexuality and anything stated in this profile is “in character” and should not be taken as literal or an attack on any person or group” Within the SL Roleplay community, som groups of players used to have specific guidelines about differentiating “in character” and “out of character” play/communications. - and such stuff was not conducted outside the RP setting. However, more and more one sees that sort of “Sexplay”/Fetishistic Avatar out in the wild. This causes confusion and forum threads about the impossibly “off the hook” character profiles people see :-) Another Poster was also correct; there are people playing avatars of different races/genders/statuses who do derive gratification from “Passing” as that other demographic - and if they were to disclose their actual status they would lose their ardor for that “character”. One possible solution would be for LL to add a profile tab where Typists can state “why they are here” (Exploring, Character Experimentation, seeking RL companion, NOT seeking RL companion, etc) and *if* people actually read the profile, butthurt could be avoided. But then, most people who want to “pass” probably would not sell-disclose anyway :-) No great solution there.....and this issue is really unsolvable so long as (a) SL is different things to different people and (b) some Residents try to reconcile other Residents to their RL perspectives. Personally, I think that some things should remain private. *IF* someone’s RL lover likes to be Restrained during Adult Time (safeword in place), thats not something they usually share publicly. If someone has a fetishistic avatar that is going to push-buttons, they might wan to consider keeping their Public Profile vanilla and use the relegate SL Group to connect with likeminded people. But thats just an opinion, SL does not oblige anyone to be discreet....... ...and so the conversation continues :-) ((sorry, long post))

I totally misread this... I thought this was a thread about bare Lindens...

Actually, those names are quite legible in their parent language :-) Wiingding Font or emoji for a name is kind of where I was headed :-)

“Students 4 Cthulhu” My partner has a fun one “Barks at Strangers” One of the more suave patrons of the Blue Note has “Sugar Coated Evil” I’m guilty of “OMG its...”

I’d be happy if the avatar name hover-text was limited to decipherable text-only :-) I do club work and having to greet people by keeping “nearby avatars” pulled up instead of just greeting who I see walk in is kind of a PITA.

Imitation Biker: “Hey Sweetbutt!” I’m pretty sure he saw that one on TV and didn’t realize it has a specific meaning within that community.........

I somewhat agree Bitsy, but my observation is that a walk through the local mall in RL bears a shocking resemblance to the major SL women’s retailers. I have to -look- for less-baring styles or leave the youth-centered mall for shops that specialize in upscale or “over-30” fashions. There is shrinking middle-ground :-(

Another view: My personal experience has been that the RL age of many residents skews towards 30+ (this may just be the venues I work at and the groups I socialise with). Based on that, I think many female residents dress *as they perceive* that 20-something’s would dress. Pop culture has a huge impact in RL and SL, maybe even more in SL because you can instantly conform to what TV and Social Media tells you is attractive. Like how fast Kim K’s butt influenced so many backsides in SL? This may not be an accurate representation of how very young adults dress and act - but it may be the result of how they are perceived by older generations trying to “fit in” in a virtual world where your default age is about 21.... Just a pondering...

I do club work in SL, so part of my in-world wardrobe is mandated by the event theme. Also, as a "Professonal" in RL - I am discouraged from working in my underwear.....I may occasionally do here :-)

I happen to like all of you, I don’t care where you’re from ;-) I’m fond of this little digital tribe.

I take the stance that no one should ever made to be ashamed about a characteristic over which they have no control. That includes nationality, race, gender, ginger-status or whatever....... I *try* to keep reminding myself that its only germane to comment about *decisions* people make regarding things that are under their control. I’m human, I slip-up, but I am determined to keep trying.

Them: “Can I Dominate you?” Me: “You’re having confidence issues aren’t you?” Them: “&*#k You!” Needless to say, no Sexxorz were had that day.....

I’m gonna double down on the “instant gratification culture” comment :-)

Well, theoretically that’s how BDSM works - but the idea is to be more sophisticated about how this is communicated. Those kind of detailed “limits” posts are “instant gratification culture” at work.

Them: “Hello, are you a Submissive?” Me: “Only to Lord Thanos”

You can call me “Panda” friend :-)

Anyone who opens an IM with a modified version of my name. “Mandy” or “Manda” really gets my hackles in an unroar :-) Eapecially as a prelude to “that’s a hawt avatar”.. I have no issues with friends and especially my Partner using nick-names or familiar names for me - but total strangers doing it kinda creeps me out...... Thats probably a generational more ....

I agree that Roleplay venues -should- be supported by the player base, but in reality this is harder than it sounds. Some players seem to work the quid-pro-quo angle whereby they expect Special Handling if they financially support the sim. Other players (who don’t support the aim financially) are sometimes too-eager to see Special Favoritism towards those who do - and it devolves into a mudfest. Add to that the players who regionally look down on tipping or asking people to support something financially - and that gets complicated as well. There are many ways to monetize a RP sim, most have been tried and the result has been fewer and fewer RP sims for a player-base that’s pretty much static. I flirt with the idea of self-funding a RP sim after I retire in RL as sort of an Art Project- with no outside funding at all. Sort of a “for the love of the game” thing - but after I shuffle off this mortal coil.....that would end. Its really hard to keep something viable when so many turn up their noses and say; “it should be free anyway” (and I have attended player town-halls and sim manager meetings where we ran face-first into that one). Some RP sims have found ways to thrive, but that amounts to slim-ish pickings and getting slimmer all the time.

My full sentence was "A subsidy on sim-costs for content creators. People who create things for others to participate in (beautiful sims open to the public for photography, art appreciation or Roleplay) should get a break on tier cost. This would be hard to manage, but would be a step in the right direction towards maintaining some critical elements that make SL special." This specifically identifies content creation that requires sim-space and cannot be dispensed via a vendor and must be visited to be experienced. The creator has to maintain a sim to display the build or maintain a roleplay area. The side effect would be (for roleplayers) that fewer sims might fail financially and the inworld economy would not lose the boost of roleplayers constantly updating their avatars and buying props.....the makers of clothing, props and build material would benefit. When I was actively playing, I was spending about 40-60+ US per month on RP-related stuffs.......I'm probably not the only one :-)

One thing I like: I love the freedom SL gives me not to be hindered by an aging and malfunctioning RL body. Within SL I will always look “normal” (for SL) and not be as penned-in by the artificial boundaries of my chronological age (with no visual cues, the age-cohorts mix freely here - 20-somethings and 50-something’s actually TALK without instinctively filtering based on appearance). One Thing I Would Change: A subsidy on sim-costs for content creators. People who create things for others to participate in (beautiful sims open to the public for photography, art appreciation or Roleplay) should get a break on tier cost. This would be hard to manage, but would be a step in the right direction towards maintaining some critical elements that make SL special.