First Dollars and Second Life

The economy of Second Life is based on Linden Dollars. This was constructed into the world by its creators to avoid the off-world economy that has developed with so many other online, and multi-user games. Of course Linden Labs would also have more control of the economy and another way other than just membership to make money. The beauty and attraction of the Linden dollar is that they are convertible via money exchanges into real US dollars. And what is more common is US dollars via PayPal or a credit card can be converted to Linden dollars for spending in-world.

One of the first questions a newbie, or newcomer to the world asks is how to make money. Unfortunately, the options are somewhat narrow and don’t pay well. When I first went in-world I used to dance for dollars. This netted about one linden every ten minutes…not much. But in a world with so many freebies, and a lot of items available for one linden, one can actually go on a shopping spree with ten lindens. Other options are money trees where you have to hunt for scarce lindens in a tree. These are mostly picked clean by the time you find one. Another option is camping where you set you avatar down in a chair for hours on end to earn about a linden every ten minutes or such.

Eventually you want to buy some quality items, make your avatar look better, or own some land. My advice to new people is to put in about $20 US, buy skin and hair, and new clothes, and you’ll have plenty of money left for fun.

There are many professions and jobs available, some paying relatively well, most not. They all require and investment in time, which if you enjoy time in-world and the money making activity you’ve chosen, is not a bad thing.

There is somewhat open-ended potential for making money once you become involved in a service or business of your own. As in the real world, you have to create useful, quality products to sell, charge a price residents are willing to pay, and be willing to put in a considerable amount of time to create and market your product or service.

In the year that I have been in-world I have danced for dollars, put cash in, sold items I’ve built in a rental store, then one I built and put on land I purchased. I also created a Photo Gallery and sold some photos. None of these activities paid for my time in-world, or my tier for the land I had purchased, but it was quite a thrill to sell a fireplace and have 200 Lindens show up in my account. I enjoyed the creative aspects of building the items, then enjoyed having others appreciate it by purchasing it. Now, while I didn’t experience great success, I do know people who have. I know one person who creates furniture and sells it in her own store. She regularly makes US $3,000 per month with this enterprise. She has bought a car, and made a trip to Europe on her SL earnings. Another friend designs and sells clothing in her own stores and does quite well with this.

When I started, Linden Labs had a First Land program in place. It has been discontinued, with interesting consequences, but more on that in a minute. First Land meant you could purchase your first 512 square meter plot of land for 512 Lindens. I bought my first land, and turned it around for 5,000 Linden. I was hooked! I enjoy real estate in real life, but haven’t had funds to pursue it. In SL, with very little investment in US dollars, I’ve been able to flip land quite successfully. I bought low and sold high. Often I would live on the land until it sold. In the process of my real estate dealings I got to know one of the better known real estate speculators, C.H. Fassbinder. He gave me information that proved most helpful, and led me to some good deals. One of those suggestions was that he would buy a nice piece of land to live on, put it up for sale right away at a very high price. This is the land that tended to sell the quickest. That led to my owning some very nice land to live on and to make some nice profit. But where these big speculators really make their money is by purchasing large tracts of land, or sometimes islands, often at cheap auction prices, then dividing them into smaller lots, and make a lot of profit on the proceeds. Now, back to the ending of the First Land program: 512 lots had gone for a high of about 10-11,000 Lindens. When the program ended, new people had difficulty purchasing their first property. So the Lindens addressed the issue by creating new continents with a lot of new land to buy. This glut of land brought land prices way down. Currently it’s still possible to buy a 512 Lot for 3,000 Lindens. This was very bad for speculators though, and people like myself got out of the market. Only the very large speculators could survive in that kind of market. Recently, it was announced that the Lindens would stop producing new land. Almost immediately, I have seen land prices start to rise. And yes, I’ve bought a couple of more plots of land at these nice low prices….

This is just one example I am aware of that illustrates how the economy of even a virtual world can be controlled by small but powerful groups, and how one event can precipitate a cascade of consequences that can hurt or help the economy.  But the fact that the economy of Second Life is so varied and rich, has guaranteed the long term survival even with the recent depression of the real estate market.

If I Won a Million Lindens….

What would I do? I’d buy property to play on. My creativity would run rampant. I’d fill my large continent with all my favorite people; just give them land and let them live and play. I would immerse myself in discreet and thorough environments, be it a desert pueblo, or a hut deep in a fantasy forest. I would create Utopian communities for living and enjoying and for experimenting as a social architect.

Not to be completely self-absorbed by my money, I would develop a system to help new residents obtain their first land. Perhaps I would create a competition, and award free land to the winners. I would commit random acts of kindness, by giving away lindens, and by buying things for people on a whim.

Of course, I could just cash out, and take my money into real life which would provide enough US dollars to buy an outstanding computer set-up so I can enjoy my Second Life Experience. I would still have enough money left to buy land and live large in-world.

Unlike real life, in-world, I would probably ultimately use the money to ensure future prosperity by investing and creating businesses in-world that would sustain my existence there.

Who Uses Second Life?

I have been a Second Life resident for just over a year now. I often wonder about the people who become involved in and continue to return to the world of SL. I don’t think we see a good demographic cross-section there. For one, someone has to be computer literate; it helps to be creative; it is a larger experience if you are socially adept, and it is a better play if you spend some money in-world. So I think the residents are somewhat skewed in the direction of intelligent, creative and probably more middle-class, since one needs a good computer and high-speed internet connection to function effectively.

Research does seem to indicate that the typical user is not the game-playing youth as one might expect, but tends to be more late twenties, income earning adults. Women are about as well represented as men.

So what kind of person chooses to spend time in-world, and why would they want to? Unlike other games, Second Life is really a social platform for communication. Now some people would say they are in to be alone and do their own thing, but choosing to be a “loner” in world is choosing not to interact, which is, in itself, a social decision. For the most part people tend to share experiences, travel and be involved in entertaining activity with other people. It is a form of role-play in that one can do unusual things such as fly and teleport to other locations. So for that to become acceptable, the people involved have to agree to a suspension of disbelief while in-world. By doing so they open themselves to an unlimited world of possibilities. Interestingly, I have found most people to live rather ordinary extraordinary lives. There are houses which are not needed, and even cars and streets. The world looks like a reflection of the world people are trying to escape from. But are they really escaping? It may be more likely that what people are seeking is a more idealized version of the real world. With all the proper “anchors” of home and clothing, etc., they are now free to explore social and creative endeavors. They live in a world that they have created into what they want. I have a friend in-world who is a finance director for a major hotel chain. She always wanted to be a DJ, and work in clubs, but took the “sensible” route in life, which has provided a good career for her. So in SL she is now learning how to become a DJ and is going to build a club of her own. This second chance is part of the appeal of virtual worlds. She will probably not quit her job to become a DJ in real life, but can live out her desired, fantasy existence in SL.

Since early on in my explorations in SL, I found that women have taken a strong foothold there. They are not held back in any way in-world, and there is not glass-ceiling to be concerned about. The first in-world actual millionaire, Anshe Chung is a woman who made her fortune in real estate development. My own experiences with learning my way around and learning to build were all facilitated by women who learned their skills in great detail and were happy to pass it on. Perhaps this is a glimpse of what the world would be like with female leaders. There might be more sharing and cooperation among residents, much like in SL…but i digress.

I find there is an incredible variation and manifestation of creativity in SL. Artists of all types, and even people who never considered themselves artists are inhabiting the world, and creating that which fills the metaverse. Having built many items myself, I can attest to the hours joyfully spent creating objects, some just utilitarian, and some just decorative.

Not to neglect the primary function of SL, and what seems its original purpose, I have to touch on the presence of the entrepreneur in SL. Since the beginning people have been creating and selling objects for the other residents and shoppers. They have sometimes provided items for free, but there is a booming economy in-world. Shopping is certainly one of the primary activities for residents. People like myself, who would never think of opening a store in real life, can and have owned stores in SL. Again, its a chance to try something new and different. There are some very well-known real world companies doing business in-world, but a large part of the commerce involves the small shop owners who continue to offer the fruits of their creative labor for a price. While some have replaced their real life incomes in SL, and some have a hefty supplement to their incomes, many just enjoy having a shop to display their goods, and are content if sales pay the rent for the store space.

I think those who end up in virtual worlds are not looking for the complete role-playing fantasy that multiplayer games offer. Second Life is not a game. It’s a virtual place to go and become involved in an idealized world, where everyone (who chooses to) looks great, and there are fun and creative things to become involved in. It is a penultimate social communion space where you can not only chat (type or voice), but you can actually share activities with others. It is the almost real aspect that I believe is the real attraction in virtual worlds. So if you are looking for something just a little, or a lot better than the world you are living in, go into a virtual world and find yourself there.

SL Tour of Reuter’s Island

This is a picture of Reuters Island in Second Life. I chose to write about their Island because it is a well-known brand name and has had a presence in SL for about a year. When it opened, it was a much talked about site in-world and out. A visit there found it crowded with people (avatars) with a very busy successful look to it. The build itself is impressive, quite attractive and a pleasant space to walk through.

A year later I found the build deserted. I met no one during my visit. It still is an impressive build and speaks well for Reuters. So why would I make this my top pick for brand marketing? Well, the fact that they are still there says much for the success of the branding. I had planned to use American Apparel, but they have discontinued their efforts in SL, and have only an abandoned building with a sign saying they haven’t left SL, they will be back. It had a sad feeling to it.

When you walk into the main building at Reuters you find large open spaces. There are several floors, and they have given you a reason to explore each. They utilize kiosks, or HUDs to convey their news information, and each one displays a different type of news. There is Entertainment, World news, and Odd news:

You can run a media stream there for the live news appearance. It worked quite well. The Odd one was the only one working at the time I was there. They also have text HUDs that display current news for both worlds:

You can also get a free one to take with you and put on your property:

So I set one up on my Beachfront property. All the news I could want, anytime. It all worked quite well. I really liked that Reuters was trying innovative approaches to presenting news.

Of course they have to have a way to profit from this, so they found a way to present advertising:

Another item you obtain inside the building is a notecard containing the following information:

Reuters
18:51] Story Abstract: Reuters has an empty but gorgeous headquarters here. They are doing some interesting things with news delivery. Their news HUD evidently gives out landmarks to conference areas to discuss each story. It’s nice to see a news organization innovating

Notecard:

Welcome to the Reuters Atrium!
Here you can pick up a copy of the Reuters News HUD and two home versions, the Wall Display and Floor Display. They will give you access to exchange rate information for the Linden dollar, Second Life news written by bureau chief Adam Reuters and a range of Reuters real-world news.
Inside the Atrium, you will find a video screen carrying Reuters news as well as discussion areas for various news categories. The discussion areas may be used as general-interest areas for these news topics, or in conjunction with the HUD and home display, which allow you to indicate interest in a specific story, and dispense landmarks to teleport to a chat area to discuss that story.
Reuters’ goal is to provide fast, accurate and unbiased news to benefit the community and the fast-growing Second Life financial sector. Adam Reuters will hold regular office hours within the Atrium; his calendar is available here:

http://www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=1c2ir3q55g6q3v8jibr0f0u5rs%40group.calendar.google.com

Throughout the island there are bits of video - top Reuters news in the main atrium and some interesting clips in other areas. Be sure to push ‘play’ on your movie control to view these.
Please contact Adam Reuters with questions about Reuters in Second Life.

Enjoy your stay!

I consider this site a success because it is such a recognizable brand name, and such an impressive build. They have held a presence over time and have created some innovative approaches to news presentation. With their central and take-home HUDs, they are introducing a method of news dissemination that is created for and effective in a virtual world, rather than just presenting a TV or newspaper format in the virtual space. The introduction of the ability to go to discussion rooms to discuss the news with others who are interested is a very effective way to combine news dissemination with the social aspects of SL. I believe that as places like SL become more populated and utilized, this is the sort of approach that will make Reuters a number 1 source for news in-world. For now they are just surviving, but i think they are poised to be at the pinnacle of news dissemination in the new world.

Is Second Life for Fun or Profit

After viewing the video and reading the articles for this week, I was left with a very strong impression that Second Life is all about making money. It seems like it was designed with profit as it’s main intention. Linden Labs stands to make a profit on its project, which one would expect, or why else would they be in business, and pour all that time and money into it? What I found surprising was the very strong emphasis that this platform called Second Life was designed as a place for its entrepeneurial residents to make alot of money and eventually quit their day jobs.My experience over the last year in SL was one of fun and social interaction. While I did start building things, and had a store and a photo gallery, I never really thought either would replace my day job. I was meeting alot of really good people from all over the world, and having fun with them. But when you consider that alot of the fun involved shopping for items, or having experiences such as balloon rides and boating, you realize that someone did indeed have to create the items we were having fun with. We paid them for the items they produced. Even the land we buy tends to be from large real estate investors. While they didn’t produce that product they commodicized it. So it appears that commerce is the backbone upon which SL is built. If we all stood around in vacant fields to talk, it would be no more than a chat room on steroids. Linden Labs promotes SL as a user-created world, and other than the ground and sky, it most certainly is.I somehow resented the commercial slant to the articles and video, but putting it in perspective, they were addressing the foundational aspects of the world, the vehicle and venue that I have my treasured social interactions. And I am thankful that I can create items, which provides an outlet for my expressive cravings. So is Second Life for fun, or profit. I think the answer is yes; it is both. It is a rich playground for those who use it and a source of income as a reward for those who create the items and environments for the rest of the SL residents to seek their happiness and fulfill their dreams. 

A New Life

I am Kram Sidran. I have been in Second Life for about a year now. I have introduced several people to the world, and more just recently. Some things have changed, and I don’t like all that I see. I remember starting out not knowing anything. I had never been into gaming, or chat rooms, so I had a lot to learn. Second Life started me at orientation island, where I remember wandering around looking at different instructions that pretty much meant nothing to me.

After entering into the mainland world there and trying to do things and get around….that’s when I had questions, and wanted to know how to do things. Luckily I made friends with some very helpful people who showed me what I needed to know. I would have benefited from the instructions after entering the world, but at the time could no longer go back. I learned anyway.

Recently, I’ve helped a couple of people get started. There is now a formalized tutorial that seems to be forced on you at entry. While it’s well-intended, I think there is the same problem that people don’t know why they would want to know the information provided. It’s also a rather tedious process, and not completely clear as to where to go next. I found it frustrating, and if I was new, I might have been deterred by all this and not have bothered going any further. But I’m a little impatient about such things.

I think people should be able to enter the world and experience things right away. There should be information kiosks available in whatever first area people end up in, so as they get about in the world, and have questions, they can just check in at the nearest kiosk and get the information they need.

These kiosks would only have to be in the initial area, and if people move on and later have a question, they can go back to that area to consult the kiosk.

There have historically been mentors available to help new people, but I don’ t think that’s a scalable concept. There are simply too many people in-world now.

Social behavior is an area that I don’t think is covered very well. While it’s possible to behave in outrageous ways, I have found that most people take a fairly conventional approach to their looks and activities. It would be good for new people to know this. They should be told that walking into a mall naked with a huge erection is possible, but not a good way to meet new friends, or find a sex partner. Since friends are the main way I learned in SL, I think that should be covered, and made clear that making friends is probably the best way to get started, and develop a social network.

So maybe there should just be a New City, where new people can go and learn and live for a while before they venture out into the mainland world. They would probably learn more and quicker, and develop friends right there. They could actually end up learning from each other as each studies a different area. Then maybe mentors could be available in these areas as well as kiosks.