Nuhai Ling

What you are describing here is defined as good customer service and the reality of the matter is that most sim / business owners know very little about it, at least to start. Those of us that care take the time to train our staff on how to respond politely, fairly, and most importantly consistently. The next time something like this happens to you, send a short message to the owner describing what happened and then decide if the grievance was bad enough never to return again. The owner may have lost your business but until he knows something is going wrong they won't be able to correct the situation (if they want to). Also realize that one of the golden rules of SL - that there is a real person behind the avatar - is being overlooked more and more as the grid's population declines and fewer older residents remain to teach the new ones. I have seen this "syndrome" destroy many places including a once-popular sim I helped manage for years. When it was sold, the new owner and his very questionable staff ran off all the former employees and collapsed visitation down to nearly nothing. Only lately has it started to recover by enticing new residents with paltry activities that the former owners would have considered obscene. His inability to understand that residents are not game-produced bots continues to plague his attempts to entice more traffic and usually just makes him sound like an a**. Don't be discouraged, just look for the places that have well trained staff and good customer service. Remember too one other SL golden rule - have fun! You get enough drama in RL without having to deal with it in your virtual life! :matte-motes-big-grin:

I am just tossing my name into the ring; the places I manage and track daily have not seen a traffic change since February 1. That must be one heck of a bug OR Linden Lab staff stuck their collective head out of their cubicles, saw their shadow, and decided not to work for another 8 weeks! :matte-motes-big-grin:

Thank you everyone for the advice and input. I knew most of the ideas to "bump" the servers and had my customer try those but a few others were new so I passed those along. Still no word about his "condition" getting any better but I only posted this less then 24 hours ago! Seeing six pages of good discussion surprised me, then made me sad. Generally I have a good experience with Linden Lab but it sounds like my premium status gives me "privileges" all the free account residents don's have. That definitely will make a difference now when I talk about Second Life to other people who I think might enjoy it. Please feel free to keep the topic going, I just wanted to toss in a fast thank you before it got to page 10! Have fun!!!

I usually don't rant but I had an experience today that made me embarrassed to have an SL premium account. A good customer of mine is a free account holder and active in SL for a few years. Last Friday he could not rez even after trying all the normal tricks to bump the servers. After 6 hours of waiting for his "shape and cloths to load" he gave up and tried to submit a help ticket. The problem is that ticket support for free accounts is very limited... there are 4 options and none have to do with in-world issues. I did not believe it until he let me sign into secondlife.com for him to see. Sure enough, free accounts have almost no options to get assistance. So we filed a ticket for him under "new account issues" and started playing the waiting game. Today was day four for him to try and rez. Still no luck and no reply from Linden Lab. Being the good person I am, I called live support. To paraphrase, they could not do anything through me (ok, fair enough) but that he should get a premium membership to request help! WTF?!! The other option was to put in more tickets - under random categories I guess - and wait in line.... a very long line I guess since this is day four! You can imagine what my friend thought when he read the conversation! So does this mean Second Life has de-evolved to a "pay-to-play" place? Anyone else have experiences like this? If this is what free account holders have to deal with, I am pretty embarrassed now to recommend SL to anyone else I know. :matte-motes-sour: Sorry about the sour mood, its just another frustrating moment in SL that overshadows an otherwise good day.

Here is a problem that has been getting worse over the last couple of months for me. I log into secondlife.com to see my account. Then I go into the forums like this, read, and decided to respond or post something. When I press reply I am sent back to log in. Then I am sent back to the main forum page and have to come all the way back to the thread. Lately though it has been extending to everything in secondlife.com. If I want to see my ticket history I have to log in again (and its not loading at all now for some reason). If I want to manage my lindens I need to relog. It just keeps going from there... The only thing that comes to mind is what I thought was a stupid comment made by a Linden over a year ago. They suggested I download Firefox or Google Chrome as my browser since they "don't program their site to work with every browser like Internet Explorer." Is there any truth to this? Anyone having the same problems lately? Give me thy wisdom oh knowledgeable forums! :matte-motes-big-grin:

I empathize with you about friends going "nuts" if your RL suddenly is a priority. I visit SL almost daily but every so often I take a day or two off. No matter what the reason - vacation, illness, just wanting to touch a human again - I should have the freedom to be out of SL for a while but sometimes I feel that is not how my friends see it. Two in particular are very close but even they have sent notes after not seeing me for 24 hours that make me want to smack them! What I immediately do when I come back is remind them SL is not RL and never will be. I explain that, although I don't intentionally make friends and family worried about me, it is not acceptable to go nuts just because they have not seen me in SL for a day. It is also not acceptable to rant about me not being around before they simply ask if I am ok. Thankfully my friends usually apologize for jumping off the sanity wagon and things go back to normal. If they don't, its their problem and they were not that good of a friend to start. So my advice is to tell them nicely how it is and to deal with it. Those that understand are your friends. Those that don't can go find someone else to pester. :matte-motes-bashful-cute-2:

This was always a wonderful and inspiring project that I have often recommended to others grieving a loss. I understand the financial burden though and wish you all the best beyond Second Life. Go in peace and know your time spent here made a difference.

Thank you, that answered my question. I knew about the cost but never came up against the minimum parcel size before. Any idea where that is officially posted by LL? I spent days looking for it!

Here is an odd question I have never had until now. I am trying to set a 48 m/2 parcel of mainland to show up in search. The check box is greyed out. I have been able to set the other larger parcels in the region without a problem. Is there a minimum size I need the parcel to be in order to list it? Any other ideas?

I am glad someone appreciates the few of us that still build with prims! I do it mostly because I am familiar with the tricks to make them look good and everyone can see them. I never have an avatar complain about an odd shaped psychedelic bauble in my builds! Sure it is old-fashioned now but its cheaper to load into SL, causes less lag, and is interchangeable with things I built years ago. To me SL will always be prim-based. If (when?) I go to a new virtual world I will likely build with flexi because that will be their base. So long live the prim! You can pry it from my avatar's cold dead pixel hand when SL shuts down... next week! :matte-motes-big-grin:

Porky, I just got an earful of the Dio worship from my dad and him questioning why I was asking about it... I suddenly feel like a good girl asking about porn! Why don't you old men go back to the garage and relive the 80's metal music out there? I don't think the rest of society is ready for this kind of thing to come out of the closet... {{hugs}} Love both you and my dad... just please... keep it in the garage!

This is another one of those Linden Lab things that makes me have several one-line thoughts I can't express any other way... Linden Lab gave up on the whole "we want to be like Facebook" thing a few years ago but evidently decided they wanted to be a new Zynga? They definitely want that leech-like attachment. Anyone notice the app accesses all your Facebook personal info and pics if you sign in that way? Why do they want to do that? Isn't Dio copyrighted by some band from the 80's? I asked my dad and he remembers it being very popular. Ho-hum.... after signing in and seeing a few places its pretty boring and hard to understand what is suppose to happen. Go left? Ok... another picture page. Go up? Ok... another picture page. I guess flipping through a photo album forward and backward was not enough? This I don't understand but my dad said old people would: our parents used to write if/then programs like this back in the 80's on school computers for fun. He said it worked really well for Dungeons & Dragons games... huh? I regret asking him the Dio copyright question above now! :matte-motes-sick: If kids in the 80's (and my dad) could program this, what does that say about the technical level of Linden Lab's employees now? That would explain a lot... I don't get it... I wonder if this is what newbies falling into SL feel like today. I am sad if it is...

I have to agree and say I am surprised about Linden Lab allowing this or any other sim considered "adult" to be advertised on their main log-in page. In my book, they are violating their own TOS by doing so. I also agree with a lot of previous comments though about what is allowed in SL no matter how deviant. I abhor violence in general and especially against other women but to not allow its virtual representation does beg the question on who draws the moral line. We all know that Linden Lab has drawn one - squiggly and very unclear as it is - but mostly due to legal threats. That is why gambling and underage play are definitely restricted; US federal lawmakers beat the war drums loud enough that LL banned both before criminal investigations started. On the other hand, having sex with furries and other animal depictions for example are not banned because those moral laws are mostly at the state level, and no one has yet to take LL to court for it. The same goes for international law; no one is willing to pay the legal fees yet to start an international court battle on internet law. For good or bad, that leaves virtual reality wide open to all forms of deviant behavior where the only moderators are the companies that provide the services. Since my moral compass is different from any other person's, I practice tolerance (not to be confused with acceptance). I personally stay away from places that offend me but don't judge others on their own lines in the sand. In return, I expect the same treatment by others when they see me pixel bumping or dancing for tips. In that way I am ok with allowing violence-themed sims. What I am not ok with though is the hypocrisy Linden Lab runs SL by as I mentioned right off. In my book, the only thing worse than someone passing judgment on me is someone who does not follow the values they try to impose on others. That should be the real topic of this discussion.

I don't know, I kinda like the Christmas **bleep** signaling she is: A. Choking on the small candy cane B. Indicating the small candy cane is not even close to filling her mouth as much as the large one in her other hand C. Signaling she wants to shoot herself. D. All the above! This was the dumbest splash image for a company that desperately wants to make people think Second Life is not just pixel porn these days! My bet is that Valentine's Day - which is usually next - won't be any better. Maybe they can jazz it up with a slogan like, "Visit Zindra; its like Linden Realms but with better entertainment!" :matte-motes-evil-invert:

I vaguely remember another post or article about this same topic and the answer was incredibly simple. Avatars are identified by their UUID number first, so name changes are possible without loosing inventory, etc. In fact, in rare instances LL has done this for certain residents if their name breached a copyright law, etc. The reason they won't make the change is because its labor-intensive. Every resident would have to submit a ticket with their choices of names and some Linden in a cube would have to manually change it, making sure it was not duplicated or breaching TOS. Learning from their massive expense to relocated adult business to Zindra - reportedly several time more than expected - the rumor is Linden Lab simply does not want to pay for changing names. The other option is to go back to the first & last name format but Linden Lab likely realizes what a fiasco that would be if the massive Resident family flocked to create replacement avatars. That leaves the last option which is do nothing... which is what Linden Lab does best. So if I were you and taking bets on last names coming back, put your money on Linden Labs track record and double-down on "No!" :matte-motes-big-grin:

Having gone through the loss of a much-loved project of my own last year, I empathize with you, the Lost World creators, and all its other fans. It does not seem logical that we should morn the end of virtual places but when they become part of our daily routine they become part of our life as a whole. Take the time to grieve as you would the loss of a friend and then make the memory books. In that way, Lost World will live for a long time yet, at least partially. Its creators and fans will still tell stories of being there, emulate its beauty in other projects, and pass on the best parts to people who have never even seen it. Revel in those little moments, remember it fondly, and bear witness to the fact you were there too. Bless you and the Lost World's creators... Thank you for being a part of Second Life and providing a bit of happiness to so many others!

12% drop in private regions last year... enough said!:smileyfrustrated:

The replies above are correct; the good skin artists have been making "cleavage enhancing" layers for a while. In almost all cases they are sold separately though, so look for them with other enhancements made by the same creators (mixing one brand's skin with another's enhancements usually does not work well). Also get a full pack - tattoo, undershirt, shirt, and jacket - so you can combine them with other clothing that might be less diverse. As a girl in both worlds, I was very happy when they started making enhancements two years ago. I am not busty in real life and felt odd watching a more well-endowed "me" running around Second Life. The condition was exasperated when viewers starting providing "bounce" to our tops. Thankfully I can now adjust my look and buoyancy so fears of self-inflicting black eye injuries is solved! :matte-motes-big-grin:

This promotional give-away would be much more popular if you included L$1000 with each package. Ask Linden Lab how to post it to Amazon.com for easier distribution... :matte-motes-big-grin-squint:

This has been a fun discussion to watch! I did not expect it to develop into a debate on who messed up first but such well-articulated comments really make it interesting to read! Here is the Linden Lab response from the link above: Peter Gray, spokesperson for Linden Lab, tells us why the offer was pulled. “This offer was terminated early due to repeated attempts to circumvent the one-per-customer limit, but we saw great demand for the deal and hope to be able to offer similar special promotions in the future...” After reading that, I had to laugh... for a long time! Of course Linden Lab would not say they messed up their own Amazon.com sale but the quote makes them sound like they are equating the "great demand" for their product to the vehicles and not the L$1000! I hope they make similar offers again too if they are not aware of what part everyone wanted! In fact, if they ask for my advice, I say take out the middle man and just credit all of us L$1000! That would prevent the embarrassment of looking like a Linden newbie (no offense to new residents) and make everyone happy! Waiting for the next "sale" now with anticipation... :matte-motes-big-grin:

People, people, people... you put too much thought into this! The simple answer is that the law only applies to those who follow it! :matte-motes-big-grin: I am kidding about that generally speaking but in reality there isn't much "law" in Second Life. You can do just about anything until a Linden tells you not too but otherwise very very few lawyers in very very few countries would ever take a Second Life case let alone go to court. Among all the jurisdiction questions, need to discover & disclose an avatar's true owner, and the debate of virtual items as "real" property is the ever-present condition established by Second Life's TOS that the linden has absolutely no monetary value. Basically it all ads up to one big fact; you can't steal something that does not exist or have value according to real-world law. FYI, this was not the original case in Second Life. When it first began, Linden Lab's TOS attempted to protect creator rights and legitimize the linden as valuable. Court cases such as those brought by SexGen and responses to threats made by politicians over matters like in-world gambling caused Linden Lab to re-write its TOS which literally canceled out any type of legitimacy to in-world products, business, or the linden. For those old enough to remember, the first major exodus happened shortly after the re-write when all the real-life businesses shut down their sims for the reasons mentioned above. Hope this helps. I feel old knowing all this... someone should send me some lingerie or a sexy dress so I can feel young and perky again! Just kidding... kinda! :matte-motes-bashful-cute-2:

It is no secret that the Marketplace has effectively moved shopping out of Second Life for at least the last two years and will continue to do so. It is only one move Linden Lab has made over the last few years which has hobbled the in-world economy and caused a steady closure of private regions and abandonment of mainland. Last year the total number of private sims declined by 12% with no indications of slowing down. Sadly, the situation will remain the same unless there is a fundamental change at Linden Lab and how they operate Second Life's economy. Here is my 2013 advice to anyone thinking about Second Life as a business venture: don't do it! Anyone can make a ton more working the same hours at minimum wage than could be made virtually. If you are dead-set on a venture though, make products and sell them on the Marketplace. Pay for as little land as possible, find a popular theme spot to tag as "Home," and choose a good public sandbox for building things. If you need a place for some "private time" there is a good selection of hotels with security that rent by the hour. Second Life is still a fun place to be but it has changed from an economic powerhouse to a social "game" of sorts. Save money-making for real life and have fun in-world; your life will be all the more enriched for it!

I am not sure if what I saw today is funny or sad but likely is a bit of both... On Linden Lab's forum this weekend they posted a short announcement about how they now sell memberships and “value packages” on Amazon with the Starter Vehicle Pack being “free” as a promotion through this weekend. Here were my thoughts as they came to me... “Why are they selling packages on Amazon? Doesn’t that defeat the purpose of their membership portal and marketplace?” “Maybe they are finally giving those who don’t trust handing over credit card information to Linden Lab a secure way to become premium members. That might be good… should have done that years ago.” “Duh, its free advertising! Is Linden Lab finally starting to advertise?” At this point, I was curious enough to go look at Amazon.com. There I found four packages, two for memberships and two for products. When I clicked on the “Free” Starter Vehicle Pack, it said that it was currently not available (and according to some comments was not for the entire weekend). Then out of curiosity I read the reviews and found a lot more commentary about Second Life and Linden Lab than the products! Here go my thoughts again… “Well this totally devalues the premium perks we have gotten lately! Look, more dune buggies!” “Not available… hmm… that’s quite a promotional deal!” “OMG, Linden Lab can’t even sell their products on Amazon without messing up!” “Wow, some of these reviews really slam Linden Lab as a company! It’s like a whole new forum to air their dirty laundry. I bet the Lab loves that kind of attention!” “If I was Linden Lab’s CEO I would be mad as h*** about this! Talk about embarrassing!” So what did everyone else think?

Hmm, I have to say I am interested in reading this and will do so very soon. My immediate thoughts though revolve around three important differences between Real Life and Virtual Life and their impacts or considerations in this study: 1. Did they confirm the Real Life gender of all the Virtual Life avatars they observed and their respective ages? 2. How can they make Real Life deductions from Virtual Life behaviors if things like body image, personal grooming, perfect weather, face lights, etc. are all instantaneous, consistent, and available in one social setting and not the other? 3. Did they consider personal self-image as the only factor for wearing less or did they somehow incorporate other Real Life factors such as social expectations, personal safety, etc.? All of these things came to mind because I see the point of the synopsis but at the same time can't see how they might make Real Life claims. For instance, as a Real Life woman in my mid-20s, I wear cloths that fit the occasion, location, and personal intent. For example, I would not wear a business suit to the beach or my bikini in some city slum. On the other hand, my avi is much more liberal in dressing because I can TP, use my ignore button, or ban people from my house if I feel uncomfortable in the setting or threatened by someone else. Sooo.... those are my immediate thoughts before reading it. I could be missing the whole point of the study too but it was fun to think about it in this way too. I will keep my fingers crossed for a good read!

Porky Gorky wrote: i got the joy of watching my kids open a grands worth of presents and then listened to them moan because they didn't get what they wanted, So just a normal crimbo really. :matte-motes-big-grin: Awww Porky, that is so sad... maybe... but I guess we should ask how many kids you you have and a grand of what first, right? I mean you could be like the Duggar family with 19 children and spent L$1000 on the whole group! On the other hand, you could have 2 children and spent a thousand English pounds too... in which case I can see your point. If its the latter, I am willing to be your surrogate child and promise I will be very appreciative of anything your send me! >snuggles up to your side and gives you big kitty eyes< :matte-motes-smitten: