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I've been tinkering around with video in SL using WeGame. As you can see, I've not mastered the settings yet, It's a little jerky and the quality is sorta sucky.

I'll sort it out, eventually.

The King of the Freebies

Survivor: Second Life

How to Get by on the Grid

Part 2

I spent a large chunk of my early days in SL with my butt parked on a brick wall at the Bear Dream Lodge Infohub. It was there that I first met the self-proclaimed "King of the Freebies." He was tall, thin, bald,  wore a big trench coat and the glow from his bling could be seen for miles.

The boy had more attachments than an Electrolux.

The King prided himself on having everything anyone could need tucked safely away in his inventory. We eventually became good friends and he taught me all I needed to know about how to find the best freebies. Well, until he got involved with some psycho chick, bought her some stuff and sexed her up, sending her crying back to her ex boyfriend, telling him The King was stalking her and wouldn't leave her alone.. or something like that. The ex boyfriend formed a posse and he and his buddies tortured him mercilessly...

That's when he disappeared.

But don't despair! Before he left, The King shared his vast freebie gathering experience with yours truly.

How to Find Freebies:

• Freebie stores: If you're new and looking for some stuff to get you started, freebie stores (like Free Dove or the Freebie Dungeon) are a great place to begin. They usually have the basics like clothes, furniture, freebie scripts, etc. Once you start getting out and about however, you'll want to upgrade from the basic newbie free stuff.
• Events: If you browse the events listings, you'll find all kinds of freebie offers as a bribe to get you to stop by the event. Go for it. It's kind of a crap shoot, sometimes you end up with the same free junk you've got 100 copies of already, but you can also end up with some cool clothes and shoes. I've got a folder full of beautiful wedding gowns I picked up that way. I've never gotten to wear any of them, both my past partners were more the run-to-town-hall-and-get-hitched types. I'm still holding on to the dresses. You never know.
• Hunts: I've only done one or two hunts, but it's a great way to find free stuff. They usually have a theme and seem to be more popular around holidays. Take a friend with you, it's a cheap inexpensive date.
• Group Gifts: Most of the big retailers in SL have started giving out free gifts to residents who join their groups. Some offer a goodie when joining, others offer a monthly freebie to bring people into their stores. My favorite is Azul (beautiful dresses and gowns.) In my opinion, this is the best way to get high quality freebies and the stores involved increase their traffic by tempting you to visit. Everyone wins.

The King reappeared a few weeks after his disappearance with a new alt, hunting me down on the beach where I always seem to end up. He eventually became my first SL ex-partner after things started getting a little too weird. I'm sure he's still out there, somewhere, with a new name and a new face.

I used to spend alot of time out looking for feebies. It becomes almost like a game, seeing what you can come up with. It's also a great way to discover SL.

Where do you find your best freebies? Let me know in the comments.

We'll talk again soon!

Friendship

I received some bad news about a SL friend tonight, news that broke my heart in to a million pieces. I  found myself back where I always go when I need to think or pout or have a good cry. I sat, watching the waves crash on the beach at CinCin and I thought about the friendships we form on the grid.

Why do we feel the need to designate relationships we form here as "Second Life friends" or "virtual friends?" We care for each other with the same heart, shed the same tears, grow attached to the flesh and blood people on the other side of the screen.

Friends are still friends, regardless of how you found them, aren't they?? Right?

Take a moment today to tell your friends on the grid how much they mean to you. Give them a big, pixel squishing hug.

Because you never know...

Script Madness: When Scots Attack

Survivor: Second Life

How to Get by on the Grid

Part 1

Wandering the infohubs in the wee hours of the morning is a good way to meet some.. well.. unusual people. It was around 3a.m. at Bear that I first met the Scot, who actually lived in England but couldn't go back to his home in Scotland because people were trying to kill him or some bullcrap.

Anywho, for the purposes of this post, we'll just call him Scotty, kay? Kay.

Scotty's plan was to live, virtually, in Second Life. He was logged on 24/7, his avatar slept when he slept. He had completely given up his first life in exchange for a virtual one. Part of his mission was to do this without spending a dime, which wasn't hard to do because he was unemployed and had no credit or bank account.

I know how to pick 'em.

Scotty planned to go into business in SL, writing scripts for people and doing other odd jobs. We frolicked around the grid together for a while, living like Gypsies, hanging out on park benches, infohub walls and dressing ourselves in handouts.

Well he did. I used to wait until he passed out drunk and go shopping for the latest couture.

Time zones can work to your advantage.

I wasn't about to let him catch me in "bought" things. I had him convinced I was poor as a church mouse.

It soon became crystal clear that Scotty's only talent for scripts was in passing off freebies as his own. All he really knew how to do was mooch. Which he did. He met an affluent SL real estate mogul and left me in the dust, doing "work" for her. The fact that she was, at the time, my only real female friend on SL didn't seem to matter, to either of them, NOT THAT I'M BITTER.

*cough*

Anywho...

He eventually convinced his RL son to become a part of his SL family and Scotty, the Real Estate backstabbing mother frickin bitch Lady and some other random people formed a weird, free love kinda commune... thingy.

Or something. It was just weird.

When the love fest came crashing down on him and the real estate mogul kicked his skanky little pixelated butt to the curb, he did not handle it well. He went from a long haired biker type to a dark, angry..

Yeah.. that. Pardon the crappy picture. It was taken before my graphics card transplant and before I learned just enough Photoshop to make a ginormous mess. The long staff he's carrying usually held the head of a blood soaked furry. He would stand on the telepad and shower particles on the extremely lagged region continuously until everyone crashed.

He didn't take being dumped very well.

From the Scot we learn that lying isn't going to get you very far in SL. It will catch up with you eventually. We also learn that mooching isn't a very reliable source of income. If you're unemployed, have no bank account and drink so much that you pass out on your keyboard, here's some free advice:

STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER. GO TO A.A. FIND A DAMNED JOB.

And you're welcome.

Next time, rather than tell you what not to do, we'll meet another old friend of mine, the self proclaimed King of the Freebies and get some great advice for newbies and long time residents alike.

See ya next time!

Survivor: Second LIfe

*click to enlarge*

We're all feeling the pinch of the struggling economy, even on the grid. It would make sense that when making the choice to cut back on expenses, our Second Lives will be one of the first things to suffer. This raises the question, can you still have a Second Life worth living without spending real dollars for your virtual existence?

I've met bunches of people from all over the world during my time here with differing opinions on how to best support your life on the grid. I've decided to explore their theories with a series I'm going to call:

Survivor: Second Life

How to Get by on the Grid

The first installment, coming soon, will be "Script Madness, When Scots Attack."

Ya'll be sure and stay tuned.