Beth Macbain

Ah, but just because they see it as a step forward doesn't mean that I do. To keep it to the real world bar analogy, a guy might come up to my table and say hello, and I might have a conversation with him, and he might think he's about to score, but I know he isn't. I have, up until Bellisseria, almost exclusively stayed strictly to A rated regions because I was in SL for those adult reasons, so, yeah, pretty much every IM was someone trying to get busy with me. I also made some really good friends from IMs that started off like that, but ended up just being buddies, and now that my SL world-view has gone through significant changes, the IMs I receive really are mostly just people saying hello. I'd be curious to hear other opinions on this just because I've never thought of an IM as anything other than a way to have a direct conversation with someone. I might be naively in the minority there!

Just because you think a region looks ready doesn't mean it's actually ready.

It's interesting that you look at a private conversation as a relationship stage. I've never thought about it that way. To me, the IM is just a way to cut through the noise in the hypothetical bar to have a conversation. I can tell you what I do hate about this type of thing, though. Having a lovely conversation with someone, and getting the awkward out-of-the-blue friend request. I've grown accustomed to explaining why I refuse them, and most take it well, but it's still not necessary. Don't hit me with a friend request. One conversation does not a friend make.

I wonder if it isn't less about being appealing to certain age demographics and more about it being appealing to certain personality trait based demographics. 20-24 year-olds are a lot different to 25-29 year-olds as well, and that entire group is still trying to figure out who they are. Would I have been interested in SL in my 20s? Not in the early part, certainly, maybe in the later part. As we old fogies are aging and getting even older, you also have to remember that everyone else is aging, too. Right now SL is full of Gen-Xers and Baby Boomers. What's wrong with that? As we get older, the Millenials and Gen Z kids are going to be hitting the same ages we were when we got interested in SL. They'll replace us, but... for realsies, few people that are residents of SL today are dying from old age. Unless something awful happens to us, we've got a good 10 or 20 more years left in us to use the platform. Why does SL need to appeal to younger demographics?

If it's in a club or someplace where there is an actual social event going on, I think it's up to the host or hostess to keep local chat alive. Throw out a topic, and if it's something interesting, I'll join in. I won't go into a silent club and be the one to try and drum up the chat, though. I've also discovered in a few places, much to my chagrin, that everyone was speaking in local - on voice. I hate wearing a headset and despise local voice for the most part because... really, it's usually just an awful mess of people breathing too hard, or snorting, or someone's dog barking, or they're slurping a drink. If someone specifically wants to talk to me, though, I much prefer it in an IM. As a matter of fact, I rarely will even acknowledge someone I don't know trying to talk to me in local. I don't want anyone hearing my conversations. In RL, even in the most crowded and noisy bars, the conversations are between the individuals conversing and though some may hear the chatter, they actual words aren't meant for every Tom, Dick, and Harry to hear.

Once upon a time we had a thread full of fun suggestions for alternate Squishy Pickle names so we could avoid the confusion of having plethora of pickles but it was sadly ignored. We all wanted a Filthy Mushroom but I guess it wasn't to be... I'm looking at you, @Patch Linden... but not in the creepy, peeking-through-your-windows kinda way.

1. Yes, I do. 2. They have. They're all over Bellisseria. 3. Yes, to most of those things, but no to anything that requires any sort of RP. Also, yes, to these things AFTER the Lindens and Moles have created enough living spaces to calm everyone down. 4. I don't feel any sort of "us vs. them mentality" and at pretty much every Bellisseria event I've gone to (the ones at the fairgrounds) there have been both Lindens and Moles in attendance. 5. In theory, this sounds like a great idea. In reality, though... have you ever been to a homeowner's association meeting? 6. No. That would absolutely foster an "us vs. them mentality" in regards to Bellisseria residents and every other resident on the grid. One thing you're forgetting in all of this, I think. Bellisseria isn't meant to be an all-inclusive, self-contained environment. LL depends on people spending money, and that's not going to happen if Bellisseria residents never leave Bellisseria. I do feel as if the events that were happening in the beginning have died down, and I know some of the reasons, but not all. There were regularly scheduled Pickle parties for a while, events at the fairgrounds on the weekends, and a pretty decent calendar. I think things quickly became very clique-ish and off-putting, though, and I know there has already been all sorts of drama. LL isn't going to touch any of that. They are going to stay very far away from any sort of power-grabs and cliques. When all is said and done, Bellisseria is going to be huge. We've already seen the power dynamics in play when it comes to the larger groups. I think when Bellisseria is finished, it's going to thrive or die not as one large community, but as smaller groups of residents with similar interests and ideas come together to use the areas provided.

I'm all for more Meet the Linden type meetings, or more user groups with the Lindens and Moles, but I think an inworld embassy or office location constantly staffed is just asking for a super-dooper huge big ton of trouble and harassment and griefing because some people are just horrible. Regularly scheduled, more frequent, more varied, hour long open discussions, though? Absolutely. And at different times so people from all around the globe can make it to at least some of them. I completely understand why the current ones are all held during SLT office hour time, but it would be great to see them spread out. I can't make it to any of them because they're also during my regular office hours, and I would love, love, love to be able to sit in on some of the governance meetings. But, yeah... having a spot where anyone can go scream at a Linden about anything 24/7 is just asking for trouble.

I've really got to give this GTFO thingie a try. It sounds fun! I think that one of the side effects Bellisseria is having on SL is a renewed interest in mainland. I know I've never once considered purchasing my own land for a variety of reasons, but now I'm on the hunt for my ideal mainland parcel. I'll be keeping my two Bellisseria parcels because they're so much fun, but I also have ideas of what I'd like to build on my own little plot of land. Years ago, I did some exploring on the mainland, and pretty much hated everything I saw. It felt very abandoned. Lately, I've been exploring again and the feeling has completely changed. It feels lived in and well taken care of for the most part, and there are people around. The atmosphere on today's mainland makes me want to be a part of it.

I was speaking to a friend about this last night and he offered up what I think is a grand idea. Since this is all entirely subjective, if you want to hang something on your wall that you aren't quite sure about, open a support ticket, give them your location, and let a friendly Linden or Mole stop by your place. They will let you know if it passes muster or not. I also think we need to be careful about how much concern we put into worrying about what others are going to think about what is on our parcel. It runs the risk of turning Bellisseria into a very well-manicured Stepford-type village and stifles creativity. What I find offensive is not going to be offensive to most other people. What most other people find offensive is not offensive to me. If my neighbor has all sorts of religious imagery around, or a shrine to Donald Trump, or even a gun hanging on their wall, I'm going to be horrified, but I don't expect them to remove the things that are important to them just to please me. It's up to me to derender them, or move if I find them that distasteful. Being a good neighbor can be defined in many ways. MYOB should be right at the top.

I shop. A lot. Too much, really. Inworld and MP on a regular basis. I know I'm far from alone in my shopping habits. I see new shops popping up in events all the time. I get new creators following me on Flickr, which in turn makes me take a look at their page. I shop the MP and sort by "new" and go through until I start seeing the things I've already seen. Yes, there are some big creators who've been around forever and have kept up with the latest and greatest trends. There are also a ton of new creators that are carving out their own spots in the world of SL commerce. I will never understand why people who seem to despise SL and LL continue to use the platform.

Depends on the time of day. If it's morning, it's coffee. Afternoon, tea or water. Evening, water. I don't tend to eat often while I'm online. I'll wait until I finish whatever I'm doing, then log off and take a break for a while.

Sure of what? Edit: I'm not going to argue this with you here. Everything that needed to be said was said in the original thread and I stand by it. If you wish to discuss it further, feel free to contact me inworld.

Realistek is now making an animesh horse as well, and I love mine! Henry and I have all sorts of fun out exploring. IMO, he's just as good as the TeeglePet and the Water Horse, if not better.

Oh... hiya, @Dakota Linden! How's you? Having a really fabulous Tuesday, I hope! Sure wouldn't want anyone to come along and cause any problems on the forums or anything like that on such a beautiful day!

Oh, Leora! I'm so glad you brought this up! I wanted to, but my better angel ( @Sylvia Tamalyn ) convinced me not to! But since you asked, well, it would be tacky of me to not answer. I'd love to revisit the Great Teddy Bear Scandal of 2019! I'm about to go into a meeting, but rest assured, as soon as I'm done, I'll respond. This is going to be such a fun day! Thank you!

Aside from that adorable grumpy mole, that menu looks delish!

If people don't want to see your nude art, then they shouldn't be camming inside your place. Photography is art. Nudity is not inherently sexual. Just don't have sex without turning your parcel privacy on.

Nudity is fine. Nude art is fine. Pornography is not fine.

I saw it on the day the lodge was opened to residents, but then I'm a filthy perv and see, er... thingies and bits... everywhere. 😋

Second Life is not dying. Neither is its user base (and I'm talking about literal death). In this thread I've read that the number of residents is both stagnant, and decreasing because us old folks are dying off. Of course some users are dying. Attrition is real in any sort of user base. Of all the residents that I've known that have passed on, though, not a single one of them was from old age. You've still got the Boomers and us Gen Xers to get through before you start seeing people aging out of the game of life and affecting SL. I really don't think we've ever had enough residents from the Greatest Generation to figure into the numbers in any meaningful way. I will admit that I think LL marketing has been desperately behind and, well, just wrong in many cases on how SL is marketed. The acquisition and retention rates probably haven't quite kept up with the rate of attrition, but it clearly hasn't slowed down enough to make a huge difference. I think a lot is going to change over the next few years. We have a champion in charge now. Not to put too much pressure on @Patch Linden, but he understands what it's like to be a resident of SL, and the amazing possibilities of the platform, and he truly believes in it and loves it. He's going to fight for SL, and I think he's going to (hopefully) start thinking of ways to work with marketing to make some big changes. I genuinely feel confident that SL is going to be around for many, many years and that we are going to see the user base start to make some significant growth again.

Er... Pardon me, but that's Quartz Lake. 😝

Yes, you've got the idea! I'm not saying it was intentional... but I have a hard time believing it wasn't!

Campwich Lodge Rorschach... What do you see?