So I was thinking of getting back into SL, which I left in 2011, after several things happened in a row that made it as disappointing and troublesome as RL (try job loss and my landlord getting ripped off so I lost my nice island place and my stuff got returned to me in big clumps which I'd have to go to a griefer-infested sandbox to rez and sort and so on long story), and I was also tired of the way users were treated by Linden Labs. One issue at the time was group chat failing; many many complaints and what did we get: a new GUI. Not, fixed group chat.
Anyhoo. I decided to get on the forums and check out what's changed, so I have some hope of catching up, who knows, find something to do that pays, maybe just stick some RL cash into my account, rent a place, see what's new.
Well, mesh is new, is what. To me, not to you all. People, I couldn't even handle sculpties. After a year in, I actually switched back to my original avatar --- just to get back to basics and be able to cross sims without any problem. But just for awhile, as I liked the clothes and had gotten good at designing my own, even having a fashion show at one point, with little 15 and 20- item stores all over. Not selling much, but I had fun making new designs and had gotten into Wedding Attire. Then came Marketplace and I found my designs BURIED under thousands of designers who had entire in-world sims AND were so much beter than me. Looking around the forums and internet lately, I hear that nearly all the in-world shopping is gone now. Which is too bad, as a seller I was at some very nice ones, with a dance floor and club area. I would rent a shop, put my displays up, then admire other people's shops.
But it seems I don't even stand a chance, now. Do you know how many nice clothes I had, and the nicest flexi hair from the best shops and some really pretty designer wigs that I got from treasure hunts and Lucky Chairs. They are worthless now, people will look at me funny and I will apparently make retinas bleed. I don't think I owned any 300 prim-shoes, but the ones I had looked damn good and I looked good too, I got compliments all the time. I finally had a selection of skins, had all my outfits perfectly assembled. My sales weren't exceeding my rent in many places, but in some places they did. And now none of them will sell, ever, again, and I will have to pretty much learn advanced computing skills to have a hope of trying things with mesh.
So thanks Linden Lab for never leaving well enough alone. For making me come back after 6 years to the forum and read about......LAG issues. Even though SL is depopulated compared to when I was there, and mesh is praised for being sooooooo much better than those old scripty blingy items. Also, still griefers, which means that Lindens STILL don't give a sh*t, as I was a formal Greeter at one point and tried to solve the issue then, but got booted from the group for my trouble, instead. They kept introducing new GUI's to relearn, removing things that were nice (wind -- trees used to sway) for no reason at all; some things never got fixed, but you could always count on getting things nobody had asked for, such as yet more changes that required more updates, caused more issues, and broke things that used to work. Nobody wanted voice; anyone who cared to, could Skype, or like the DJ's have their own IP for it. But there it was, voice. Nobody asked for teens to be let in; then they were, and all adult stuff had to move to Zindra, first blow to all malls. Things you would like to be changed (fix the LAG, WOW doesn't have these issues), aren't. And next login, more new things, more updates, you don't like it? Well too bad, if you want to keep playing you HAVE TO upgrade.
Sorry for all the mesh-fans here but I seriously wish someone would fulfill the wish of an earlier poster, and put Second Life back the way it was in say, 2007. Kill Marketplace, stop practically requiring people to take classes in order to build and design in SL. Oh and get based in Nevada for pete's sake, and bring gambling back. I'm not going to bother with it, it's bad enough I can't be at my island place ever again, but to trash all my outfits and accessories, to spend major money so I can learn to have and operate something that is "better" -- nope, ain't going to happen.