Mei Avril

First off, no, you cannot use two shapes. You are also not "forced" to use either shape. Build your own! It does take some time, but it is fun and expresses your individuality I would pick your favorite one of the two and start the work from there (assuming they are mod of course). You could also be content with "correcting" the distortions of the first shape, but this might take some time finding the right sliders too. As for mesh head, they are not necessary, but I am so happy with mine! It's a world of difference really. I would at least try demos for the heads, see if you can't find one up to your tastes. You will see at least as much difference as you did switching bodies, plus, generally, bento heads are animated, which makes your avatar look a little more lifelike. Also, a mesh head lessens the occurence of distortion as they probably have over 2000 times the amount of polygons, which makes them much more malleable (?) before arriving at a critical point where they look distorted. Make sure it is a bento head though, as older heads will not adjust to your shape sliders. Also, as you try most heads, you will go "Ewwwww this looks so weird!" but take the time to adjust the shape, wear it for some time (an hour or so) so your eye gets used to it, give it time to sink in. I remember trying a head lately, a few weeks ago, my first thought was "omg I look like a hamster with it." but after adjusting the shape and taking the time to let it sink in, I found it quite pleasing and a friend I was with was charmed. I didn't buy it though, but it's just an example. The problem with Omega is that (most of the time) your skin won't be developed for the body you have. It's just ported over by the omega system. This means that sometimes, some body parts may slightly be off, nipples are a prime example. I've seen a developer of rigged nipple jewelry for Maitreya, and many people in the reviews are like "it doesn't fit right, don't buy". I buy the jewelry in question, which fits just fine. It's just the matter of the skin not properly developed for the body and the nipple jewelry being centered on the shape's nipple, not the skin's nipple. Rigs apply to the shape of the body, not its skin. So if the skin is not correct with the shape, things like this happen. Buying a skin specifically developed for your body eliminates the chances of small errors like the nipple being off the shape. About skins, as was mentioned, the default Maitreya skins use Glam Affair skins, I'm sure you can find a matching system skin at the Glam Affair shop for your non-mesh head. Of course if you decide to buy a mesh head, you need to buy the matching skin for the designated mesh head. You can also buy a skin from a third party developer. You probably won't need Omega for that, just make sure your skin is both compatible with Maitreya and offers a system skin if you decide to go for system head. Otherwise, if you're indeed considering a mesh head, make sure they are both compatible with Maitreya and your mesh head. The easiest route for this then is to just buy the applier for your head at Glam Affair to match with the default skin Maitreya offers. I have been using it for a while and it looks perfect! A thing to consider: If you decide to stay with your system head, and buy skins for it, and later decide to buy a mesh head, you will very likely need to buy a new skin at that moment.

That is not true (at least for bento heads). Bento heads are customizable with shape sliders, so while I do have one of the most popular female bento heads, I have my own unique look. Of course, there's going to be similar characteristics (my head, the catwa catya, is slightly ducklipped) but well, comparing to RL, how many women are slightly ducklipped ? Does that make them any less unique ? x) I would highly suggest taking time to customize your own shape. Shape makers tend to overprice their shape, and some of them have no idea about proportions and such. Just start with the default shape that came with your body and adjust it to your liking ^^ This will be an ongoing process (I still touch-up mine even after almost 8 years) but it is worth it.

Strange, all my Maitreya mesh clothes (19/20) fit perfectly, wether I move, stand still, jump, bend over, kneel, run... You get the idea Also, well, you have to use the alpha hud. Most newly made clothes auto-alpha (At least on Maitreya) but older clothes don't. You have to be careful with some developer that will tell you they support a mesh body, but don't use the development kit. Usually they tell you so in the description, or you can look at the reviews. Another thing to consider, sometimes developers of mesh bodies change their rig, and that means older clothes will not fit anymore. It happened with slink, and it annoyed me so much that I switched to Maitreya.

It has already been done.

These are still just assumptions. If I refer to one of my earlier posts, I did say I don't have a credit card myself, I have other means to put money into SL. Hell, I don't even have access to credit myself. This is not an assumption, this is factual truth and cannot be interpreted Thusly, no, I don't assume everyone has a credit card or can get one You're wrong. I never borrowed money (at least under my own name, someone signed for me to take the legal responsibility of the loan, so HE got the credit boost), so under your assumption, I don't have credit, which is also untrue, there are many ways to enhance or crash (most likely crash) your credit without borrowing and/or having a credit card. Granted, borrowing money is the most "efficient" way, but I am not an expert on the matter, just did a small google research. And no, I haven't said he should go to Wal-Mart and buy a prepaid. Second Life does not accept prepaid cards as you have said anyways. I have tried actually. Please don't make me say things I haven't said. I haven't verified my paypal through CC, which is another assumption you're making. I haven't assumed he gambles or drink, nor if he bought a mercedes benz lately, just assuming he might have some ways to gather his money and just cited examples. Granted, those were a poor choice of examples, but it still gets the point across: For some, these spendings are necessary (I deal with addicts to gambling on a regular basis, who will come buy 300$ of lottery at the start of the month when their check comes in, and ask to borrow me money for bread at the end of the month. Then again, I haven't said it is the case with him!), perhaps a meal at the restaurant is too, or coffee at a coffee shop every morning. That doesn't defy his first statement, which is three words: broker than broke. It could be for any number of reasons (I can't even begin to quantify it). I also said that if it's not the case, it's fine, he can disregard my comment. And yes, I have been ill myself for 4 years, unable to work, my time was still precious, and if I could save a few hours of SL working to get a shiny new thing I really wanted, then yes, I found some wiggle room sacrificing some things that had value for me, but didn't mean much in the grand scheme of things Those don't exclude one or the other. I did say he might have a job, which doesn't mean I completely exclude the fact he might not in which case the argument is invalidated, I grant you that. Also, that corset maker, if it's the one I think about, very likely makes twice the amount of money I make in a year off of her corset sales, but technically, she does work for it, conclusion: she has a job, even if it's not official. She works for her money (probably much less than I do though xD) Actually, at some point, I did make more money when I was sick than now that I am healthy and working, and that is also fine. About the current market of freebies on SL, well I might be oblivious to it, because I haven't looked into it for many years, I do agree with that. Although, given the example posted earlier, my avi is much, much higher quality than this one, thus yes, in my experience, you do sacrifice quality if you go that route. I would love you if you did prove me wrong. And if you do have time to invest, that is very fine! Do it, by all means. I never said my solution was the best, it just was one of the proposed ones. And it's irrelevant if my apology sounds sincere to you, as it is not even directed at you. so·cial jus·tice war·ri·or noun informalderogatory a person who expresses or promotes socially progressive views. "these social justice warriors want to apply their politically correct standards and rules to others' speech" Read the example bit and think a bit on it. Don't you think it's a little wrong ? Don't you think it's kinda what you are doing here ? It's all a matter of perception and interpretation I think. You are working hard to find flaws in my logic and discredit it, for no reason whatsoever, and to make me apply your views to the problem. You're not helping anyone, only promoting unilateral thinking according to your views and values. Can you imagine a world where everyone thinks like you ? Wouldn't be a very nice world. Not saying your views aren't valid, though. They just differ from mine. These kind of behaviors on a massive scale are very detrimental to human life and advancement, and have been seen to cause wars. Imposing your views to someone else never works, if you really think your point is more valid than mine and that mine is detrimental, you should instead philosophically argue your point in a respectful manner, which you haven't done from the go. There's a great basic philosophical course on youtube (channel is CrashCourse) and it includes argumentation, how to construct a decent argument and how to debunk people's arguments respectfully.

How is it arrogant ? You filter information every day, take in what according to your values and situation applies to you and leaving the rest. I'm just putting it into words. Like I said, OP doesn't need you or any other social justice warrior to ignore or take in my opinion ^^ Also, he got plenty of other replies about free stuff, why not offer an alternative ? There's many reasons to invest into content ^^ I am no stranger to poverty myself but I know the value of investing into things instead of hoping getting them for free (You are still "paying" in a way, because you are very likely sacrificing quality if you're going for the totally free route, or time if you are going the work on SL route). If he really can't, that's perfectly fine too If I came off as pompous or arrogant to the OP, I do apologize sincerely, it wasn't the goal, but I doubt social justice warriors are needed here, I'm sure your time would be better spent elsewhere. Consider another thing: He might have a job (statistics want him to have a job, in my region at least, there's only 4% of people able to work that don't have one) the time he's going to invest for this 20$ into his job is much less than the time he would work in SL or spend trying to find freebies, and he will end up with higher quality stuff. Which is not bad all things considered. Another thing to consider: We don't know what broker than broke means to him, you're making an assumption about his financial status based on what very little you know, it might be just as valid as mine, for all we know. You don't know why he is broke either: Perhaps he gambles, perhaps he drinks beer, which could both be sacrificed for a few days in favor of quality stuff on SL ^^ So perhaps the advice does apply to him. Again, as I've said, I've only offered perspective, he doesn't have to do it, there are plenty of other ways mentioned in the post. Also, I am not the only one who suggested CC, Paypal and such, I've merely expanded on it, concretely showing that just by sacrificing a little in his RL, he could potentially get a lot in SL, assuming he can do so.

You said it yourself, sometimes. What I proposed is my opinion on the matter, not like an absolute truth ? I don't know if those are the right words ^^ A tendency I've seen is that people will say they are broke because they don't want to invest into SL which is totally fine too. He can just ignore my comment if he is really broke, or doesn't want to invest into SL. Though the argument might sway him when presented with some perspective if he falls into the second category. Remember, it's the internet, anyone can say anything about themselves and you don't know (Hell I could be Stephen Hawkings, but what are the chances? In the same vein, considering he has internet, what are the actual statistical chances that he is actually so broke that he can't afford 20$ for a quality product that will most likely meet his criterias much better than free stuff ? The comparison is a bit extreme, but then again it gives some perspective ^^) I repeat, what I offered is an opinion and perspective, he is free to do what he wills with it.

Of course, I cannot deny that I've stated a generalized opinion which will apply to most people. If his situation doesn't allow it, he can simply disregard my comment. ^^

I don't even live in America, I don't have a credit card, and I work not much hours a week at minimum salary. If someone can afford internet, he can probably afford 20$ to look fantastic ^^ As far as I know, I am allowed to express my opinion too. That person can obviously take it or leave it too. And probably doesn't need you to step in to do that. Just putting things into perspective for him/her. And perhaps that if someone always sways that argument, like you're saying, maybe it's because it has a sliver of truth to it. Your post borders on offensive, frankly.

One thing anyone forgot to mention is third party support of the body. This is why most people use Maitreya. Maitreya is the most supported body by third party creators, which easily makes it one of the best choices. There's a wide array of clothes and accessories specifically designed for Maitreya. Freya is widely supported too, but the other bodies I've seen mentioned, not so much Maitreya also comes with a set of bento mesh hands and mesh feet, which have three different height adjustment (tip toe for high heels, flat feet, and there's an option in between). Then again, most third party creators support Maitreya feet. Also, I've tested myself this theory that Maitreya has deformed breasts under 40 and above 55, this is not true. With the 4.1 body, it looks fine anywhere from 30 to 100, and I commonly use 60, and people keep telling me my body looks great! You also don't need the omega relay, Maitreya has a wide range of skins made by Glam Affair by default, which look absolutely great. There are also lots of skins made straight for Maitreya that won't need the omega relay. Generally speaking, I've only needed it for -some- niche tatoos, like custom made tats and such. Buying a shape is generally not a very good idea, as you can attain better individuality by adjusting it yourself, not to mention shape makers tend to overprice their shape and very few are actually proportionate and look good (You can see this just by browsing their posted images. Most have oversized lips, undersized shoulders, and oversized hips) ^^ I would recommend buying a bento mesh head along with your body, as I find mesh bodies without a mesh head look a little weird, there are many issues that arise with the system head due to its low polygon count, and bento heads (most of them) are animated, which makes them look more lifelike. Of course, a bento head is a big investment but it is highly worth it in my opinion on the long run For the head, I personally use Catwa's Catya, but some people find it ducklipped when looking from the side, which might not appeal to you. I might get flamed for saying this, but in my experience SL is a superficial world, the better you look, the better your experience becomes. People are more attracted to you and it's easier to start conversations. ^^ One important parenthesis: Some mesh bodies and heads are only available in-world, so I would suggest looking there also. On a final note, it's all about trying demos, especially for the head. The body is a no brainer in my opinion, but the head, not so much

This probably won't help, but with the price of an RL restaurant meal (let's assume 20$) you can get a decent mesh body, mesh hair and a couple of sets of clothes. 20$ spread on a month (30 days) is 66 cents a day, which is about 5 minutes of RL work a day at a low salary (5 minutes at 10$/hour is 83 cents, which is not even the minimum salary where I live). Considering the time you will invest in actually looking for decent freebies, it might be worth investing into SL instead with your CC or Paypal, which will net you a much better avi from the amount of work you will have put into it. 20 dollars is -at most- 2 hours of RL work, which is... not a lot Having a decent avi will get you much farther in SL (It will ease meeting up people, people are generally not attracted to freebie avi, and frankly, except if you're a content creator, there's not much point to SL besides meeting people) I personally (I might be considered a little shallow) tend to ignore people who don't have a decent avi, since it's SO easy to make one, and people that don't have a decent avi have generally shown me they don't care for SL, which means they also probably do not care about me

Definitely recommend at least getting a catwa head and a maitreya mesh body, which will cost you a little under 8000L - these are the best options in terms of performance, ease of use, and availability of side products like clothes, skins and such in my opinion ^^ I've achieved a very decent neko look with the Catya head, although I do use human skin to add shine, which makes me look more alive I think. Then the shape is really up to you I can probably help you make one even! I have made my own and I think it is pretty good. Mind you, if you can't maintain higher graphical options on like advanced lighting and shadows, and cannot maintain a decent LOD, you won't get good results with mesh, at least not up to the dollar you have to invest for those. Catwa head Catya with FateEyes, the ears are from Cherry Fluffle and the whiskers, from Anara. The bento piercing, from code 5. You could easily make the eyes wider and rise the corners of the mouth for a bigger smile ^^ Also you can customize the FateEyes to have a more feline pupil, and you can surely find a furry skin if you so desire (Both Catwa and Maitreya are compatible Omega with a cheap relay as far as I know). The lips are actually animated and switch between different state, you can obviously close them if you so wish, I just think it makes me look more alive that they are animated a bit ^^ Though I wouldn't expect to pay less than 10k L if you want to make the full transition to mesh. It is well worth it in my opinion! Having the measurements of your shape won't help you though, as the rig is much different from head to head and even more so for the system head! It all boils down to demoing everything you can find, and choose the appropriate head and body for you - One complaint I hear about the Catya head is that it's a little ducklipped if you look from the side, which might not appeal to you. GA EG also have good, cheaper, quality options for mesh head Good luck!

Make sure you are logged in too - happens often to me that I get logged off when restarting my computer or closing my browser, and then I try to browse adult listings and I can't see any

Hmmm integrated chips are never recommended for prolonged used of graphics intensive programs, such as SL, wether the chip is new or not

You might find this link very useful about it: http://community.secondlife.com/t5/English-Knowledge-Base/Buying-Private-Regions/ta-p/700045 Otherwise, simply put, most people will never need to rent land directly from LL. "Buying" land in the RL sense of the term is not possible because there is server costs for LL associated with hosting your sim. If you just want a land to build yourself a household or a club, you should contact an estate manager and rent from an that person instead. If you run a business, or want to be an estate manager and rent land, well then you have to rent directly from linden labs. I don't hang out on the mainland myself, I know I have heard of LL owned parcels if you're premium, but I'm not sure about that Someone else might be able to answer that more appropriately. (A parcel is a piece of a sim that the estate manager divided to rent to other people. What you're renting right now is moooooost likely a parcel.)