hand, hands getting cold, losing feeling is getting old

Today's fun and games started here:

[10:52] Marcia (marciawatkins): Hey there, can you lend me 100L? Please, I promise pay it back tomorrow. I really need pay my rent now.

Group unimportant, everyone else in it who responded has been anonymized. Not Marcia. Marcia keeps her name, as Marcia got reported (and has now been axed by the Lindens).

[10:52] [Exxxxxx Rxxxxxxx]: nope

Remember my notation for mods? Mr. E's a mod in this chat.

[10:52] dxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: wow. the beggars are getting greedy. it's normally 20L, you know

Actually this is the new run. "I need to pay rent, can you give me 200L/500L?". With that *exact* phrase after: "Please, I promise pay it back tomorrow." Which tells me this is a bot.

[10:52] cxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: You just posted in another group. 1 day old account.
[10:52] Nxxx Axxxxxxxx: Two groups you asked in now..
[10:52] Uxxx Axxxxxx: 1 day and already rent fee? yeah yeah.
[10:53] vxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: lol
[10:53] Rxxxxxxx Nxxx: i'l gladly pay you tuesday for a tofu burger today
[10:53] [Axxx Dxxxxx]: Taken care of
[10:53] [Exxxxxx Rxxxxxxx]: Pff they left the group faster than i could ban them

The lass above this is another mod, and both of them tried to ban Marcia, but Marcia hit exit before they could.

[10:53] [Exxxxxx Rxxxxxxx]: dammit
[10:53] cxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: lol
[10:54] Uxxx Axxxxxx: thank you.
[10:54] Bxxxxxxxxx Gxxxxx: That is not a begger, it is a hijacked account. You should report those so SL can can freeze it.
[10:55] axxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: a hijacked 1 day old account?
[10:55] [Exxxxxx Rxxxxxxx]: There really is not need to hijack a 1 day old account

It's not a hijacked account.

[10:55] Rxxxxxxx Nxxx: I man if I was gonan take an account it wouldn't be 1 day old.. less they got no taste
[11:19] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): No, one day old account isn't a hijacked account, it's a bot.
[11:22] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): reported anyway.

When I reported it, I found something else interesting. First, this bot repeated the pattern of the others I've seen over the past few months: general white female face on the SL bio page, and on the FL bio page, a full name, full address, age and phone number. Why? Some of the addresses have tracked out as fakes, but others aren't. Why?

[11:22] oxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: are we still talking about this
[11:30] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): Nah, just took a bit from the last comment to reporting.

The FL bio image, by the way? This one:



This is most assuredly not the bot that popped up in this chat. I'm fairly sure her name isn't even Crystal Colette, because as far as I'm aware, this is Crystal Colette--and she's a redhead.

So why do this? Are people still this gullible? I guess so, or they wouldn't farm so many bots out to throw out the Linden nets.

this war will never be over, gonna last too long

[12:50] Elizeea: Hi, I am so embarrased for asking for this that I can't even use my main avatar. I am in a really rough place irl at the moment and if you could spare 200L or any amount really, it would mean the world to me. I am sorry for asking and thanks in advance :(
[12:54] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): AHAHAHAHAHA
[12:54] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): That's a new spin on the scam, I've only seen that the past four months or so.
[12:54] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): Still not going to work, but I wish you well.

Nope, she does not get anonymized. So sad not sorry. People need to know that this day-old yahoo is doing this. Reported and blocked.

You know the thing that really gets under my skin? There *are* legitimately people in need...people who don't want to lose their land, but maybe just can't afford the entire tier right now...people just scraping by...I do get that. I do. But do you know exactly how not to get what you need in SL? Sound like a Linden scammer. Flat out. This? Comes off entirely as a Linden scammer from the day-old profile on down.

The 'too embarrassed to use my main avatar' is new, though. First time I've heard that. I have heard the 'please give me 200L' before. The 'I can't face myself so I invented someone to ask', while entirely ludicrous, is at least new.

Still. Nitwits should know better.

a love carved out of caring, fashioned by fate

It hasn't been the easiest few days for a variety of reasons. So when the news started filtering out, I was not in the best place emotionally to react. But life doesn't stop just because we stagger, and death never stops at all.

Yesterday, the Second Life community learned we'd lost Ebbe Altberg.



At first, the main reaction was one of shock. For once, no one (at least that I heard) said "Is this a joke?" or made derisive statements. We seemed collectively stunned. 2014 isn't yesterday, but it's also not 2004. A great number of us remember what SL felt like before Ebbe took over, and noted the changes after.



USDay News speculated--somewhat bluntly--about the cause of Ebbe's death; I don't think it matters, save to say many, both in the Linden offices and on the ground in SL, knew he'd been ill for some time. It's a loss either way.



I think Wagner James Au's take on his passing is much more cogent, and works much better as a genuine tribute to the strength of the man, both as a human being and as a CEO. Of course he made mistakes--who human doesn't?--but I think Au's right in that he had the clearest vision of what Second Life could be since Philip Rosedale.



Inara Pey put up a tribute to him as well, and that tailors in with something I heard in ISC chat today: that M Linden had fostered the separation mentality, the corporatist ethos that Lindens were only to get involved on the ground when it was absolutely unavoidable, and that that had been one of the first things Ebbe had changed. One of his first appearances in world after he took the role was visiting Oxbridge University in Caledon Oxbridge, and speaking with some of the professors there. Many remember that meeting, and how open he was about wanting to learn about SL not just from fellow Lindens, and the data sheets, but from the residents in world.



A few hours after word had gone out, additional word began to circulate--a memorial was taking place in one of the Linden parks. I arrived towards the end of it, as I'd just stopped hosting an event, and I had no words. I just stood, and listened, and when concurrency hit 44 on the sim, I quietly left to make room for others who wanted to commemmorate the loss.

The thing that impressed me, and why I had to take a small set of images of my few minutes there, was the diversity of avatars around the rotunda. You could not point to one "type" of person who was drawn to be there, and say, yes, this is exactly the type who would react. It was a cross-section of the grid as a whole, and really, that makes its own statement. People I knew, people I didn't, Lindens, Moles, humans, Tinies, furs, robots, aliens, people in full mesh, people still in system avatars--I think the only thing I didn't see was wings, and you cannot convince me the fae didn't show up as well, before or after my moments there.

What I do know is he will genuinely be missed by many of us. And we're not speculating on the future without him yet, save to hope that whatever does happen, it's done with respect for the man himself, and for the world he tried to support. And I wish his friends and family all sympathies for the loss, because it's ever the ones left behind who struggle the most.

But life, and death, will continue. In time, the pain will ease. The ache will always be there, but...that's also the way of things, isn't it? All we can do is continue, and be our best selves, and keep moving forward.

Rest well, Ebbe. You've earned it.

cold reflections, they tell no lies, but eyes just scratch the surface

There was a thing that came up in ISC chat earlier...Leaving names in because there are no guilty to protect, per se. So.

[08:44] Kara2016: Did hear that LL is going too increase the linden exchange rate?
[08:44] Grimoire Hexem: yeah.
[08:44] Grimoire Hexem: it's 3$ per every 10k L
[08:45] Zantyago Mannonen: so evey linden is worth more or less=
[08:45] Justine (justinejohndory.amethyst): every linden will cost us more.
[08:45] Zantyago Mannonen: WHAT?
[08:45] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): Err....no....
[08:45] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): 10K in Lindens is currently $41.67, not $3.00?
[08:46] Grimoire Hexem: they're adding a tax.
[08:46] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): In addition to the $1.49 they already charge?
[08:46] Isobel DeSantis: They're increasing the $1.49 - that will now be the minimum
[08:46] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): Ugh.
[08:47] Kara2016: i use the Instant buy(Market buy) not the Best rate buy(Limit buy)
[08:47] Isobel DeSantis: Mari sent a notice about it the other day - it changes on the 22nd

The notice Miss Mari sent goes thusly:

Not polite [ but we're family ]
to discuss money but Linden is raising the BUY, not sell Linden dollar transaction fee eff 4/22 to 7.5%, $9.99 cap, $1.49 minimum (current max). So, if you long term rent you may want to save a bit and stock up before 4/22 to cover your tier for a while
https://community.secondlife.com/blogs/entry/7770-infrastructure-investment-update-buy-fee-change-effective-april-22/. {in case of error website info rules}

And I say again: Ugh.

[08:47] Grimoire Hexem: they must pay tribute to the new Amazon Cloud overlords.
[08:47] Isobel DeSantis: yeah, this is the instant one as well, [Kxxx]
[08:47] Isobel DeSantis: Those of us outside the US already pay a huge exchange rate charge to Tilia

Which sounds like the advent of Tilia gave the Lindens the ability to charge fees above and BEYOND VAT, which (at least personally) I think is a terrible idea...

[08:48] Kara2016: it may not be that bad..
[08:48] Zantyago Mannonen: CURSE YOU BEZOS
[08:48] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): Well, bother. I appreciate her suggestion to stock up before the 22nd, but that assumes one has enough TO allow stocking up before the 1st.
[08:48] Isobel DeSantis: they give us the worst exchange rate of anywhere in the world!
[08:48] Isobel DeSantis: ikr, Emily?
[08:48] Isobel DeSantis: When my bank was giving $1.30 to the £, Tilia gave $1.18
[08:49] Isobel DeSantis: They make more on selling Lindens than anything else, I would think [08:49] Kara2016: Just be glade you are not paying $40.00 for $500.00 Rays on top of a $20.00 membership..
[08:50] Kara2016: a week
[08:50] Isobel DeSantis: what are Rays?

Yeah, I have no idea. I never played on Red Light District, Utherverse, or Oasis, though I'm sure there are other adults-only virtual worlds.

[08:50] Isobel DeSantis: "Linden is raising the BUY , not sell Linden dollar transaction fee eff 4/22 to 7.5% , $9.99 cap , $1.49 minimum(current max) "
[08:50] Kara2016: i used too be on an adult virtural site..those were the currancy
[08:52] Isobel DeSantis: I normally buy 15,000L at a time - so my transaction fee will go from $1.49 to about $4.50
[08:53] Kara2016: Thats a lot of Lindens..I like 2,500
[08:54] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): Part of the annoyance with the new fee, for me? I had started buying my largest lump-sum amount of Lindens at the start of the month, TO avoid hitting that fee again and again, buying L$1K here, L$500 there.
[08:54] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): With this, it's basically making us choose--either accept the higher fee for the larger lump sum, or LET us charge you $1.49 for every smaller transaction.
[08:56] Isobel DeSantis: My rent is about 7500L$ a week Kara
[08:56] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr) nods
[08:57] Isobel DeSantis: Yeah it's capped at $9.99 which is about 30,000L$
[08:57] Isobel DeSantis: maybe 35,000
[08:57] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): Still no. $9.99 is L$2397 in Lindens.
[08:58] Kara2016: if i bought 5,000L NOW, IT WOULD BE 22.33$
[08:59] Isobel DeSantis: I mean if you buy more than about 35,000L$ at a time, your transaction fee won't go up
[08:59] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): It won't go up from that four-buck-plus figure, probably not, no, but that's still more than double the fee for transactions $9.99 or less.
[08:59] Isobel DeSantis: so you can buy 50,000L$ and pay the same transaction fee as someone buying 35,000 is what I'm trying (badly!) to say
[09:00] Isobel DeSantis: not $4 - the max is $9.99 Emily
[09:00] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): The FEE is $9.99??
[09:00] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): Oh good gods.
[09:00] Isobel DeSantis: Yes
[09:01] Isobel DeSantis: it's 7.5% with a max of $9.99

Thanks, I hate it.

[09:01] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): Do they...want...people to stay in SL?
[09:01] Isobel DeSantis: currently the max is $1.49
[09:01] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): Because this is how you drive people off a platform.
[09:01] Isobel DeSantis: From Thursday, the MINIMUM will be $1.49
[09:02] Kara2016: SO THE NEW FEE WILL BE 9.99?
[09:02] Isobel DeSantis: the new maximum, Kara
[09:02] Kara2016: sory for the caps.
[09:02] Isobel DeSantis: the new minimum will be $1.49
[09:03] Kara2016: what i seeibng now is the transactiuon fee of 1.49
[09:03] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): Right, but it's not the 22nd yet.
[09:03] Emilly Shatner-Orr (emilly.orr): It's the 18th.
[09:03] Isobel DeSantis: that's the current maximum yes
[09:03] Isobel DeSantis: it WILL be the minimum
[09:04] Kara2016: oh, well.

Now, I should add that since I captured this, I linked the forum URL to Hiro, and his perspective is that this is a good thing? To encourage people not to carry huge amounts of Lindens on their accounts (he suggests potential money laundering concerns, and maybe that's a thing?), but also, to make money in-world and not buy through the Lab.

Which, again--are they trying to discourage people to buy Lindens? Isn't that Second Life's chief microtransaction? Why would they want to make it less desirable to buy the in-game currency?

we are lost and we're falling

Before we get into today's patch of sturm und drang, something Mr. Ormstein put together, which is very, very useful--a .pdf tracking Linden fluctuations from 2009 to 2020. This data is going to be very, very helpful indeed.

Now then.



feels like you made a mistake
you made somebody's heart break
but now I have to let you go
I have to let you go

You know, it's bad enough when I'm the one crushing hearts; it's really beyond the pale when I have help.


you left a stain
on every one of my good days
but I am stronger than you know
I have to let you go
no one's ever turned you over
no one's tried
to ever let you down

And I know I get through this. I do, because that's kind of my nature--bleeding, battered, broken, doesn't matter, I fall down, I get back up again. Outside of one incident with a semi-truck RL, I'm too stubborn to stay in place.



beautiful girl, bless your heart
I got a disease, deep inside me
makes me feel uneasy, baby
I can't live without you

This one's bidding fair to keep me staggered for a while though. It's not a compliment to me, or to my love life, that I've been staggered longer, but...this is starting to get up there.



tell me what I am supposed to do about it
keep your distance from it
don't pay no attention to me
I got a disease

And I still can't, I can't, I don't trust myself, seeing him again. Just that. Just seeing the man. I am not some ravening feral animal, damn it, I have standards, but the temptation to do more is making my skin itch.



feels like you're making a mess
you're hell on wheels in a black dress
you drove me to the fire
and left me there to burn

Was it the abruptness of everything? From 'Let's take some time to talk about this' to 'You're done'? No time to say goodbye. No time to have one last date, so to speak, though I've always hated farewell sex. It's so depressing.



every little thing you do is tragic
all my life before was magic
beautiful girl, I can't breathe

And I'm fairly sure I stumbled on the explanation, I'm not sure the other involved in all this helped, and of course the third in this uneven, hitching contraption was justifiably, understandably, upset.



I got a disease, deep inside me
Makes me feel uneasy baby...

Well. So was I. I am still. I am starting to give up on finding a workable way out, though, and crowbarring it into my brain that this is the new normal, and I'd damn well start to adjust to it.

I have never wanted to adjust to a thing less, in the whole of my life, but...this is what I have to work with.

Damn it.

(All photos taken at Vale Arcadia. Turns out if you go to the side of the AEnigma event, there's a whole half-buried dune outside with wrecks. Who knew? Lyrics from Matchbox Twenty's "Disease".)

moving on up and forward onto all that will become

Out of the blue, wandering the Erratic Black Friday sale, I got an offer to friend someone. The greeting sent with it was in French and I didn't save it, I just pulled the profile. One day old. Yeepers.

So the next step was figuring out why:

[11:25] Emilly Orr: Do I know you from somewhere?
[11:25] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: salut (Hello)
[11:26] Emilly Orr: Hi. Do I know you? I tend to friend only people I already know, or who are interested in my work.
[11:28] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: j ai pas compris le concept de jeux (I did not understand the concept of games)
[11:32] Emilly Orr: j ai pas compris le concept de jeux?
[11:32] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: oui

Okay, off to Google Translate it is!

[11:33] Emilly Orr: Tous le jeux ou juste Second Life? (All the games, or just Second Life?)
[11:34] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: just secon life
[11:35] Emilly Orr: Pensez-y comme à un simulateur de vie. (Think of it as a life simulator.)
[11:35] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: ah ok
[11:35] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: merci en tout cas (Thank you anyway)
[11:36] Emilly Orr: Vous pouvez tomber amoureux, vous pouvez trouver un emploi, vous pouvez construire des choses à vendre. (You can fall in love, you can find a job, you can build things to sell.)

Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful for Google Translate, but one must keep things fairly simple to get the point across.

[11:36] Emilly Orr: C'est moins un jeu avec des niveaux et des points, car c'est juste ... une autre vie. (It's less a game with levels and points, as it is just...another life.)
[11:36] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: et j ai pas de maison (and I do not have a house)

Oof. You're really straining the coherency of my ability to translate the words. Which, by the way, regarding French, and several other languages, I just don't have. A few words here and there is about as fluent as I get.

[11:38] Emilly Orr: Vous pouvez en trouver sur le marché, gratuitement ou gratuitement, et vous pouvez louer un terrain pour le mettre en vente. Ou achetez un compte premium, qui vient avec une maison. (You can find cheap or free ones on the Marketplace, and you can rent land to put it on. Or buy a premium account, that comes with a house.)
[11:39] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: ok
[11:44] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: et toi tu as acheter quoi a ton debut (and you bought what you started)

Uhh...was she talking about Lindens? I wasn't sure, but I assumed she was talking about Lindens.

[11:45] Emilly Orr: Vous pouvez obtenir un compte premium à tout moment. Vous pouvez acheter des Lindens à tout moment, par le biais du site Web ou du navigateur. (You can get a premium account at any time. You can buy Lindens at any time, through the website, or through the browser.)
[11:48] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: ok

And that seemed to be that. I moved on, she stopped talking, I declined her offer of friendship, but it was puzzling. Did she just hit the wrong key? Did she think friending people is how you ask questions? The Lindens really need to bring back Orientation Islands in some form, there's just zero instruction on what to do with Second Life before they're shotput onto the grid.

And a bigger question is, if she doesn't know what Second Life is, why is she here? Why'd she make an account in the first place? Seriously? It's not like Overwatch or World of Warcraft, there are no points, there are no levels, there are no quests--at least, within the main grid, there are countless mini-games people have come up with to entertain themselves. But Second Life itself? As I said, it's more a life simulator than anything. At its basest level, it's a 3D chatroom.

So why did she make an account?

river swells and breaks its banks, acting up instead of thanks

[10:35] Txxx Rxxxxxxx (god): LALALALA

Handy life tip: if you have to specify you're a god...you're not one.

Also, unless you're specifically playing an idiot god, might be a good idea to upgrade the level of pronouncements from "LALALALA". Just sayin'.

In other news, I got a card today from the creator behind Caverna Obscura, and I will honestly be shocked if more people don't follow her lead:

Greetings!

Maybe some of you have heard the news that Linden Labs will raise Marketplace fees to 10% on December 2. Here is the blogpost with the official announcement:

https://community.secondlife.com/blogs/entry/3016-the-return-of-last-names-and-changes-to-marketplace-events-premium/

It is a 100% raise from what we are paying now (5%) so many creators/merchants will be raising their prices on Marketplace by 10% come December 2.

Caverna Obscura will also raise MP prices by 10% on December 1 (for all mesh items and some of the older prim/sculpt items). The in-world prices for everything and MP prices on most older prim items will remain the same. Here are a few examples of the price difference:

an item that is 595L$ in-world will cost 660L$ on MP, or

an item that is 395L$ in-world will be 440L$ on MP,

just to give you a feel of what it all means. I encourage everybody to use MP for finding items you like, then going in-world stores and using your viewer’s Search Area tool to quickly locate the item you are looking for on the sim. If you can’t find something in-world please don’t hesitate to contact Elvina Ewing. Of course those who prefer the convenience of MP and will not mind the price increase can continue to buy on MP.

Now, for me personally, I am likely going to see how this plays out, and make the decision then on what to raise. My biggest seller on my tiny MP store is still my very, very vintage Sukkot kit, which desperately needs revision, and the only reason I charge for that at all is because I want to track who's bought it in case I do find a way to revise it. (There are, still, no Sukkot poses on Second Life. It's not that they're hard to do, just that a) I'm not an animator, and b), I'm not Jewish. Shouldn't someone more qualified be doing this?)

But that seems to be where things stand. It's either a cash grab on the Lindens' part, or they're trying to drive traffic back in-world, and honestly, not sure which.

To the rest of the blog post, bringing back last names is a great thing, and everyone's been asking for it for years now, but what's cheap and underhanded in that is, they're requiring people be premium members to make the change, and they're charging an additional fee on top of that. It's baffling.

From the article linked above:

THE RETURN OF LAST NAMES -- UPDATE and CONTEST

We heard you loud and clear.

That's difficult to believe.

Soon it will be possible to change the name of a Second Life account. This is one of our Residents’ most requested features and we’re working furiously to make it available by the end of January. Name Changes will be exclusively for Premium members at an additional fee.

But note, they're not mentioning what, precisely, will define that fee, nor whether the fee will be in Lindens (as most in-world transactions) or in actual real currency (as in in-world divorces).

Changing one or both of your First and Last Name will be available as a single transaction. Last Names will be picked from a list, which you can help us curate.

Yay?

What’s a last name you would choose for yourself? We’ll soon hold a contest seeking your contributions to the pool of last name options. From all of the suggestions, we’ll pick five, and those five lucky Residents will be able to change their names completely free of charge! You will not need to be Premium to participate or to win. The contest will run December 16 through January 15th, and participation details will be announced shortly.

How...lucky for those residents. I don't want to enter, because I'm pretty happy with my last name, but this all seems very strange. Especially that post-January, people who choose to pay $12 a month (which feels like a forced choice, because elsewise, they're stuck with Resident until the end of time) will gain the ability to pay more to change their names, which is something Linden Labs shouldn't have completely screwed up so badly in the first place. Great. It feels like they're asking us to pay for their mistake.

Though it wouldn't be the first time...

everyone wants something from your soul on the molly

The blurb for the Fenway Asylum and Chapel reads:

Welcome to the Original Fenway Asylum which closed it's doors on Saturday August 16, 1919 due to gross neglegence of patients by Asylum Medical Staff. It is said that the spirits of Fenway still roam the halls looking for assistance. Come for a visit and read the Tragic Story Of Fenway...... chapel, asylum, spooky, scary, halloween, medical, sad, death, ghost, spirits, caretaker, spider, web, fun, building, church, hospital, blood, rats, roaches, dark, story, grave, buried, visit, open, roleplay, nurse, doctor, operations, illness, sick, graves,

...and there it trails off.



Deeply unimpressed. It's not even a well-textured box. I'm just baffled. And so unimpressed I didn't even bother to frame these shots.



This is the entire parcel, apparently, just this oversized eyesore of a terribly-textured box, with an innumerable number of dance pads for some reason, plunked down in the middle of people who at least attempted landscaping. Done here. So done here.

About an hour after I'd gone back to Twisted hunting, the fellow that owns the sim dropped a notecard on me thanking me for visiting, and telling me to invite my friends for future concerts. No, but I did send a notecard back telling him that I hadn't gone there for music, I'd gone there for the asylum. He said it had closed, and then said he'd forgotten to take down the ad.

Forgotten. To take down an ad that charges a weekly recurring amount of Lindens. Let's assume extraordinarily low investment in this, and propose he's paying L$50 a week to host an ad for a haunt that no longer exists. That's only L$50, sure, fine, but that's L$200 a month, that's L$2400 a year. I don't know about anyone else, but I have never operated with so many Lindens that I just fail to notice entirely losing over two grand in Lindens. So baffling.

And keep in mind that's making the assumption that that's all he's spending on that weekly ad. I know designers who routinely drop L$2000 per week for their businesses. I know some clubs (granted, none of them lasted, they all ended up closing) where their weekly ad fee was L$10,000. So...I don't get it. Maybe I'm just not in the income bracket for me to barely notice thousands of Lindens withdrawn for something I'm no longer promoting.

long way down, suffocating in this dream

Pursuant to the (far earlier) discussion about Tilia, this longish chat capture:

[12:56] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: Hello neighbors
[12:57] Jxxxxx Zxxx: Hi [Rxx]
[12:57] Cxxx Sxxxxxxxx: Greetings Mr. [Oxxxxxxx]!

Now, this is, in the technical sense, breaking an agreement I had with one of the personages above (who I will not further identify in any way), not to mention them on this blog. I am hazarding they meant in an unflattering light, and not just casual conversation along with the rest of everything. If I am wrong in this assumption, expect this entry to disappear at some point.

[12:58] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: just got the information by a friendly cat, that LL prepared some serious changes. I have not read the articles myself, but you can find the forum thread about it here: https://community.secondlife.com/forums/topic/439384-tilia-takes-over/
[13:08] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: This only affects people with USD accounts, that process credits through them. If you use a credit card or similar to buy L$, there's no change.
[13:09] Emilly Orr: Through Tilia, or...? Because card purchases do accrue the fee now.
[13:10] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: In other words, people who keep a USD balance at LL

I'm still not sure, but to be honest, I haven't followed up, just engaged in a wait-and-see policy. Or watch-if-things-explode, is another way to put it.

[13:10] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Feds pestering LL again for potential of money laundering? BEcause this looks a lot like what banks have been doing to be able to do business in the USA
[13:10] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: I have no idea. the nice cat said, some business owners in SL are closing now because of this change.
[13:11] Emilly Orr nods.

So far, that I know of, Purplemoon Creations has closed, Carrie's Lingerie is closing, Ember Games (mentioned below) may have closed, and there's a few others I don't remember the names of offhand. Yes, it is true, stores close all the time, but some of these are big, established names.

[13:11] Emilly Orr: It's also going to affect Euro residents deeply, as Tilia will be demanding personally identifying information to verify the accounts.
[13:11] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: again, only if you keep a USD balance at LL, not if you only purchase L$ using a credit card
[13:12] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I wonder if any Eastern European oligarghs are in SL...
[13:12] Emilly Orr: Not true according to what I read of Tilia's terms of service.
[13:12] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: i.e. most residents, even European ones, will not be affected
[13:12] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: Tilia already handles L$ purchases by credit card for us
[13:12] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: If they convert Linden dollars to U$, they will be.
[13:12] Emilly Orr: "4. Your Tilia Account
4.1. Identity Authentication
If you use certain Tilia Services, federal and state law requires that Tilia verify your identity. This means that Tilia may require you to provide your name, street address, date of birth, social security number, and other information that will allow us to identify you. We may also ask to see a copy of your driver’s license or other documents at any time. You authorize Tilia, directly or through third parties, to make any inquiries we consider necessary to validate your identity and the information you provide. You may be required to provide confirmation of ownership of your email address or financial instruments or you may have to verify your information against third party databases or other sources. Tilia reserves the right to close, suspend, or limit access to your Account and/or the Tilia Services in the event we are unable to obtain or verify this information or your identity."

That does seem to indicate not only that individuals release personally identifying information, whether or not an individual keeps an extant cash balance in their accounts to be converted into local currency.

[13:12] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: well, I'm in the EU, but many friends are US-based, so it tangents we any way
[13:13] Emilly Orr: That's from their ToS: https://www.tilia-inc.com/legal/tos/
[13:13] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: "If you use certain Tilia Services"
[13:13] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: not ALL Tilia services

And admittedly, that is the point that remains unclear.

[13:13] Emilly Orr: As I understand it, asking for that level of information is now illegal to request from European citizens.
[13:13] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: That is going to make dealing with LL very complex. At least if one deals with money
[13:14] Emilly Orr: Yes.
[13:14] Kxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: uh-oh.
[13:14] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: (apparently 'Tilia' is Latin word for 'Linden')
[13:14] Emilly Orr: It is.
[13:14] Kxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: of course.
[13:15] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Banks have right to ask for personal information from their customers, even in Europe. LL is not equivalent to a bank so they are effectively assuming authority they do not have.
[13:15] Kxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: wow.
[13:16] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: But this does seem like the old news about using SL to launder money. So if you are getting money out of SL, LL wants to know who you are.
[13:16] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: well, some governments are worried about Facebook's plan to introduce this new currency, but our Linden-Dollars are officially play-money
[13:17] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Since Linden Dollars can be converted to real money, that's basically rhetoric.
[13:17] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: yeah, but they made a TOS change about that years ago
[13:18] Emilly Orr: If it was just in response to Lindens being treated as real currency, they covered themselves on that score eight years back.
[13:18] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: You already cannot buy huge amounts of Linden Dollars at once to ensure you are not putting your drug money to SL to launder it.

That and general money laundering, yes. So if they're already legally protected--in at least two different directions--why launch an entire new company solely to handle money transfers from individuals to the Lab? It doesn't make practical sense. There's something else going on.

[13:21] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: I suspect those businesses who don't declare their SL income will want to pull their money out before August 1st.

Perhaps some businesses did. Perhaps others are transferring Lindens to friends who have no issues going through the process. And then closing their businesses and quietly leaving, or coming back on alts that have no intention to retail in SL.

[13:21] axxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx): is this about that new company that will handle lindens?
[13:22] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: Well, actually - they will handle Lindens to dollars and they're owned by LL. They're not a new company
[13:22] axxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: :sighs "basicly what happened is that a court ruled that electronic arts was a legal form of gambling..so of course, that aopplies to everywhere

I can't track down the actual ruling, so I'm not sure if that's more than a rumor, but I did track down this article which goes into the nature of the problem. How'ver, that's far and away from what's under discussion at present.

[13:22] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: They've been handling purchases of Lindens by non-US citizens for some time already.
[13:22] axxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: so we have loot boxes to thank

Maybe. Maybe not. The Lab already squelched both banks and open gambling in SL, what, a full decade back? So it's not that.

[13:22] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: I think it's a money laundering thing - as usual
[13:23] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: AGreeing with that
[13:23] Kxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: how clean does money have too be?
[13:23] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: i.e. if you're cashing out L$ into USD, they want to know who you are
[13:23] axxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: well, as they as they do not demand the sort of id normally required for credit axccounts

Ah, but there's the hitch. Read passage four from the ToS again for Tilia. They have all and every plan to do exactly that.

[13:23] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: they will if you have a credit account, i.e. a USD balance with LL
[13:24] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: that means pretty much all business in SL, I would think
[13:24] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: businesses*
[13:24] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: so, when a SL business shuts down because of upcoming TOS change, they are afraid of revealing their identity?
[13:25] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: possibly - or they don't declare their SL income in their home country
[13:25] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: May be just a principle of the thing to them
[13:26] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: yes, if they're not earning that much it might not be worthwhile to them
[13:26] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I do remember that one Australian guy who made al his creations free of charge because he noticed that IRS wanted to tax him because the income was gained in the USA
[13:26] Emilly Orr: Or, they're just tired of being in SL, that happens too.
[13:26] axxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: and again, I think now that the courts are snooping into gaming, they want to have armopr
[13:26] axxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: granted, we are NOT ea, but
[13:26] axxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: EA=satan

Yes, but again, we're discussing Tilia specifically.

[13:26] Emilly Orr: And as far as I know, Tilia *is* a newly established company, formed precisely for this purpose.
[13:27] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: yes, the IRS like their share of anything they can persuade themselves is earned in the US - even if you're not a US citizen
[13:27] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: IIRC EA wants to monetize _everything_
[13:27] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: Emilly, Tilia EU has been processing my L$ purchases for some time now
[13:27] axxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: evenn if it makes people stay the hell away from theiur games
[13:27] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Yeah, the print-by-demand service Lulu had to apologize to their non-American customers who did not expect to be taxed in the USA: That includes some people I personally know here.
[13:28] Emilly Orr: Well, fair enough then, I just noticed it beginning this month. Before this, no charges marked Tilia were on my statements.
[13:28] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: With Amazon, you have to sign that you're not a US citizen AND that your income isn't generated on US-based servers, or something
[13:28] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: So if one lady I know sells a copy of her Finnish-language poetry collection she has to deal with IRS...
[13:29] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: wow
[13:29] axxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: well, that is because the us taxes people aboraid
[13:29] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: If you're in the US, you wouldn't have been aware of Tilia before
[13:29] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Dealing with the new print-by-demand ompany in Germany is not that complex...
[13:29] axxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: basicly as a futile attempt to go after the billionaires that stuff tax havens
[13:30] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: VistaPrint?
[13:30] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: The US taxes all US citizens, wherever they earn their money, and all non-US citizens who earn in the US - unless you can prove that you already pay at least an equivalent amount of tax in a country that has a double taxation agreement with the US
[13:31] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: ohoh
[13:31] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Yup
[13:31] Emilly Orr: Gad, VistaPrint is so awful, don't deal with them. They offset their custom work frequently, and their post-it notes don't stick.
[13:31] Ixxxxx Dxxxxxxx: If however you pay tax at 20% and the US would charge you 40%, you have to pay the 20% difference to the IRS
[13:31] Jxxxx Dxxxxxxx: sonofabiskits
[13:32] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I meant Books on Demand. Thought I have not used them myself
[13:32] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: https://www.bod.fi/
[13:32] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Books are printed in Germany
[13:33] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I heard about this because some members of the Finnish Science Fiction Writers have used them.
[13:33] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: ah

The same fellow sent me this link, which I believe leads to the same company.

[13:40] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: well, we can keep an eye on this topic, and I guess more information might get revealed later
[13:42] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: There may be some changes as well.
[13:43] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: btw
[13:43] Emilly Orr: Let's hope.
[13:43] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: No, i have no money to buy a way....
[13:43] Emilly Orr: To date, the Tilia website quoted doesn't exist, so I'm hoping it will spontaneously appear August 1st.

And I am sad to say I didn't check August 1st to see if that were true. It does now, though, and the initial blurb I read reading that makes it sound like Linden Lab is aiming for a larger section of the pie, so to speak--not just funding and exchange through Second Life, but funding and exchange through any virtual world setting.

[13:43] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: the fine cat also told me, a Jez Ember is giving up their business, and therefor giving away the table games for free, like Greedy
[13:44] Emilly Orr: Really? I'll have to tell friends who play.
[13:44] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: well, she told me so. I never played it myself, and this Jez Ember is not known to me
[13:44] Emilly Orr: That makes three I've heard of so far--PurpleMoon Creations, Carrie's Lingerie, and Ember Games.
[13:45] Emilly Orr: At least we know PurpleMoon is closing because the designer wants to stay at home with her new baby.
[13:47] Rxxxxxx Oxxxxxxx: one has to pay 1 L$ for a game, but it gets refunded. and one avatar can buy two games only

I didn't know about the limitations, but in case anyone's interested, here's Ember Games. I've never been one for card games in SL--the closest I got was the early days of sim-leveling mahjongg boards--but it might be nice to own the one or two allowed.

[Note from the Editrix: I intended to get this out two weeks ago. So...at this point, Ember may have already closed.] Bother.

[13:58] exxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Are they closing their Marketplace accounts as well?
[14:05] Emilly Orr: Carrie Bridger is leaving jewelry up on her marketplace, but no attire. PurpleMoon is leaving things up on her marketplace for now, but the designer has said she'll likely kill her MP when she formally finishes closing things down.

And then it hit on another front--a store group's Discord:

2:30 PM] Chloe: https://community.secondlife.com/blogs/entry/2577-important-changes-to-your-second-life-account-introducing-tilia/
2:31 PM] Chloe: more hoops to jump through for SL
[2:34 PM] Chloe: So anyone who cashes out - its the 7.5% plus whatever tilia will charge now too, plus paypal fees, plus submitting ALL your identification to tilia now and they can take up to 30 days to process stuff. With no warning again
[2:34 PM] Tia: umm so what happens if you just wanna buy lindens?
[2:35 PM] Chloe: Im guessing you would buy it through the tilia account it says is created for you automatically and I would assume they charge a service fee for that too cause apparently they havent been greedy enough yet
[2:35 PM] Tia: wow
[2:35 PM] Chloe: also it says if you dont use your tilia account in a 12 month period you get charged a fee for inactivity
[2:35 PM] Tia: it also says in the terms they can cancel tilla tokens without warning
[2:36 PM] Chloe: So if you have alt accounts and they get created tilia accounts please watch that to see if you can cancel them so youre not charged inactivity fees on alts
[2:37 PM] Chloe: Why does it feel like they are trying to completely destroy SL - it makes no sense when it probably makes them millions a year, like what genius is running things
[2:37 PM] Tia: they just wanna make more money
[2:37 PM] Tia: greedy
[2:37 PM] Chloe: you dont make more money that way, you do it in ways that dont piss off people when theres already a dying userbase
[2:38 PM] Chloe: you do things to help grow it so you get more money and things that actually make sense - like when someone suggested charging for partnerships a higher amount, that makes sense as its not something that would actually affect peoples lives in a big way
[2:39 PM] Tia: true
4:56 AM] Fr0zenHawk Chillsmoke: Just wanting to clarify some information I'm seeing posted: New fees will be 5% ($3 minimum) they've warned us about this fee increase for a while now. Time to process is expected to be the same as now, the 30 days is the just-in-case time on the outside. Just checking your balance counts as activity, and inactivity fees can't drain your account below 0.

(I'm not saying these are good changes, just wanting to prevent more panic over misinformation.

So now it's not going to be the already insane $1.49 to buy Lindens, but a full three dollars? Ridiculous.

I'd like verification on that, and I'll do better trying to find it.

but isn’t it nice when we’re all afraid at the same time?

Was Lucrezia Borgia the calculating, greed-driven murderess history has painted her? Perhaps not.

There is a real, and very human, cost of loot boxes and gachas in triple-A games. And let's be fair, we've seen some of this with rare items offered in gachas in Second Life. Digital addictions can be just as devastating as physical ones.

And now...let's discuss Tilia.

Now, I will say this is not the first time I've heard of Tilia, because when I bought Lindens today, it said I was buying them from my Tilia account. My what? But I was busy, so I just hit "Buy" and went on with life.

From the page linked above:

"We’re making some important changes to Second Life that will help us comply with U.S. laws and regulations. To do this, Linden Lab formed a new subsidiary, Tilia, to offer certain financial services to the Second Life community. While Tilia might not be a name that is familiar to many in the Second Life community, it was created to efficiently handle the ever-growing and complex needs of our operations."

So, near as I can figure out so far, the formation of Tilia shoves financial responsibility off to this newly-formed subsidiary division, so that if anything really goes wrong, Tilia takes the hit and not Linden Lab? Am I wrong, or am I misunderstanding?

Pursuant to that mention, one of my groups started discussing a bit of the situation:

[20:46] Fxxxxx Bxxxx: does anyone see this already?

Ms. F is referring to the link given above, which I'm going to break down further as we go on.

[20:46] Ixxxxxxx Axxxx: yeah
[20:48] Cxxxxxxx Kxxxx: Goodness! they're going to ask for social security numbers!

Really? Where does it say that?

Beginning on August 1, 2019, Tilia will take over certain aspects of the Second Life service. Tilia enables Linden Lab to continue the Second Life service in its current form through enhanced regulatory compliance protocols.

"Enhanced regulatory compliance protocols" seems to mean, to me at least, "We got caught doing something hinky and we're being told not to do it again" or "Some other country has exacted better financial guidelines than the US has, and we have to comply with those whether we like them or not".

I did a search for the phrase and came up with the WhatIs definition:

"Regulatory compliance is an organization's adherence to laws, regulations, guidelines and specifications relevant to its business processes. Violations of regulatory compliance regulations often result in legal punishment including federal fines."

That still sounds obscure, but reading through the WhatIs article gives me several examples of regulatory compliance laws: the Dodd-Frank Act, which imposes far stricter guidelines for banks and financial institutions, the PCI-DSS, which is essentially a group of guidelines and laws that are used together to regulate credit and debit cards, and to secure digital privacy, HIPAA, which is supposed to ensure digital privacy for medical insurance, plus prohibits insurance and group health plans from denying health insurance based solely on pre-existing conditions, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, turned into law in 2002, which is designed to protect investors from accounting "errors" by large financial firms, and other fraudulent financial reporting, and FISMA, which is another series of regulations and bylaws that assign data privacy protection to several governmental agencies in case of "natural or man-made threat". So, I think I'm getting the gist of what they mean--Tilia is Linden Lab's new financial arm. I think.

To achieve this, Tilia will assume responsibility for managing your USD denominated account, which will be referred to as your "Tilia Account." After August 1, Tilia will handle process credit requests and payments made from your Tilia Account.

So...we won't be registering a new account with Tilia? I'm confused.

What’s changing?

Effective August 1, in order to continue using Second Life you will have to agree to Tilia’s Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. A Tilia Account associated with your Second Life Account will automatically be created for you and you will not need a separate username or password to access your Tilia Account.

So.....Tilia's going to create individual user accounts for all of us and they will use the same password and username as Second Life? That's very dubious. At the least it's very insecure, especially considering how many laws listed above feature data protection.

In order to stay in compliance with regulatory requirements, if you wish to process a credit, we will need certain personal information to verify your identity, including your name, address, date of birth, and social security number (or government-issued identification if you are not a U.S. Citizen). You may be required to provide additional information to complete the transaction. Tilia will securely store this information so that you should only need to provide it once.

Ah, here it is. And now I can see why people are worried. Even in this country, giving unknown entities our SSI numbers is iffy, but for residents of the EU? It's actually illegal for them to give out personally identifying information.

Note, also, that this seems to apply only to people who "cash out", so to speak--in other words, mainly estate owners, businesses, nonprofit charities that need to withdraw Linden funds into local currency to complete the financial amount owed to said charities. How many of those are people living in the EU, who cannot give out such forms of identification?

Additionally, please note that customers under 18 years of age will not be able to process credit after August 1, 2019 until they reach the age of 18.

I'm actually fine with that, I'm still creeped out that the Lindens merged Teen Grid with the regular grid, and all of a suddden, I had to look at everyone through that "Is this going to get me accused of statutory rape?" lens.

As always, Second Life remains free to access and enjoy! However, if your Tilia Account is inactive for a period of 12 months we will charge your Tilia Account a fee to the extent permitted by applicable law. If you have questions about the inactivity fee, please see Tilia’s Terms of Service.

First time I'd heard mention of a fee, so I went looking. Their ToS contains some dense legalese, but I think section 3.4, "Fees", covers it:

You agree to pay the applicable fees listed on our Fee Schedule published on the Website (”Fees”) for use of the Tilia Services. All Fees are charged at the time we process a transaction and are applied to the payment method you select. We reserve the right to change our Fees upon thirty (30) days’ advance notice. By continuing to use the Tilia Service after a change in the Fees, you hereby agree to such change. All Fees, charges, and payments collected or paid through the Payment Services are denominated in US dollars.

Or...not, because they're still not saying how much the fees will be, at least in the ToS. That's irksome.

And when I went off to Google to check if the website was up yet:



...Oh.

Look, Lindens, I realize you have a theme, I realize "tilia genus" is the name of the Linden tree, ha ha, very amusing...but did you not once stop to consider other businesses running with the same name? By my count, just on the first page, there's a couple wineries, four restaurants, and a band--not to mention on the second page, there's a naturopathic clinic, more restaurants, a property management group, and a flooring company. Great.

[20:48] Fxxxxx Wxxxxxx: Linden Lab has done a *horrible* job of communicating what's going on. But if you read and understand the TOS and a bit of contract law (I'm a contract lawyer in RL) then it's not the big deal it sounds like.

Well, really, when hasn't the Lindens done a horrible job of communicating, on ANYTHING? Be real.

[20:48] Mxxx Hxxxxxxx: its going to basically be illegal to withdraw money in many countries due to LL asking for more information than even some financial institutions are allowed in some cases
[20:49] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Is this due to money laundering?
[20:49] Mxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: whats up with an inactivity fee?
[20:49] Ixxxxxxx Axxxx: ok then i'll stop it
[20:49] lxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: yep I am confused. I already did the verify with LL's.
[20:49] Mxxxx Sxxxxxx: I thought it pertained to people who make money in here
[20:50] txxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: thats wrong
[20:50] kxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I don't like this inactivity fee, seriously?

I don't either. I especially don't like not being able to find even briefly sketched guidelines for what it will eventually be.

[20:50] Axxxx Nxxxxxxx: is this just for if i wish to convert L$ into USD? or is this for buying L$ also

Don't quote me, but it sounds like it's just when people are transferring Lindens into local currency? But I could easily be wrong.

[20:50] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Long ago, when I joined nearly 13 years ago, we had to give personal information such as our driver's license number or passport ident. That was to ensure that we are in fact of age to be in adult related sims. A few years after I joined LL got hacked or something, so they removed that requirement.
[20:50] Bxxx Hxxxxxxxx: Meh, my identity isn't doing much for me. Maybe someone else can do something exciting with my SSN. lol
[20:50] Sxxxxxxx Lxxx: there is a decent thread about it in the SL Forums, lots of questions and confusion, but a few tidbits that are helpful
[20:50] Fxxxxx Wxxxxxx: Nope.
[20:50] Pxxx Dxxxxxxxxx: maybe they trying to find out how many alts people have
[20:50] Fxxxxx Wxxxxxx: Sigh. I'm lagging so bad I give up.
[20:51] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: You can have alts, back in the day you had to pay $9usd to create a new account.
[20:51] Fxxxxx Wxxxxxx: I remember that [Nxxx]! I gave them my credit card number or my paypal or something so I could buy Lindens. But I never did give them my drivers license or passport. Still would have a problem with that.
[20:51] jxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Tilia is owned by Linden Lab
[20:51] Mxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: so if we dont cash out any more lindens after August will we still have top pay a fee?
[20:51] jxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: wasn't there was an issue years ago with the gambling' in SL and there was money laundering going on?

Oh, there probably still is, it's just more underground than it used to be.

[20:52] kxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: this is just following the same path as crypto. The gov wants their cut of money made in sl. its income.
[20:52] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: There was a data breach before, it was even listed on the wiki once. Where all those driver's licenses and passport idents were at risk.
[20:52] Ixxxxxxx Axxxx: as i've already said, i paid for a year of my premium membership already and wasnt asked anything

Because this is a separate system from paying premium fees. That is likely still handled by the Lab. Financial withdrawals, starting August 1st, will not be handled by the Lab, but by the functionary Tilia.

[20:52] jxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: l have a small store but I have never cashed any in. I just us the lindens inworld
[20:53] axxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Same with Skype asking for mobile now, it's voluntary now but one day it might be the gatekeeper.
[20:54] jxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: all they are doing is gathering our personal info and sharing it

Well, any large company is doing that. In that regard, LL is just doing the same thing everyone else is.

[20:54] Mxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: the tilla is for cashing out or using your lindens as a credit right?
[20:54] jxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: SL is free to play as long as you pay the yearly fee to there new company Tilia

Wait, there's a yearly fee to use Tilia? When Linden Lab is making it mandatory for all users of SL? I haven't heard that.

There's a lot that's still up in the air, apparently. I'll keep reading.

there is nothing left to hold me

Cue aggrieved sigh. You know, if people would just make ads entertaining, or relevant, or at the least SHORT,...we wouldn't have these problems.

In other controversies...

[22:42] Uxxxx Sxxxxxxxx: Hey you basics, good news for you, you all will keep your 42 groupslots, just read a LL Blogpost
[22:43] Uxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: whaaattt?
[22:43] Exxx Hxxxxxxxxx: Will premium get more slots?
[22:44] Txxxx Jxxxxx: yes
[22:44] Cxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Premium gets 70.

I won't lie, this is the first I'd heard of this. I went digging for more information, and found this. So apparently, at some point, Linden Lab rolled back slots for basic, and there was mass protest? So they caved and kept them at 42? I mean, yay for protests working, but I don't understand.

[22:44] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: true they heard too many complain, basic player get back 42 and premium still get the 70

And that's another point of confusion. When last heard, the reason the Lindens didn't grant more group slots was because of their coding, which they are wholly unwilling to change--namely, that when any avatar logs into the grid, that avatar is 'checked' to verify things. In specific, every single calling card they carry are pinged to verify it's still from an active account, and every group that avatar is in in pinged to ensure that they are still active groups. This can case tremendous local lag depending on how busy the sim is the avatar rezzes into, up to and including that avatar crashing due to this group- and calling-card-checking.

So why increase the group slot limit? Won't that increase the amount of verification the system does for everyone who logs in, thus causing more crashes? How is this good for anyone?

[22:44] Exxx Hxxxxxxxxx: woooooo
[22:44] Uxxxx Sxxxxxxxx: yes premium still get more slots but basic member will not get taken away their slots :)
[22:44] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: good news for everyone
[22:44] kxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: the way I read it it goes to 35, but you don;t get kicked out if you are already over. What it means if if you are at 42 and want to join something you must first leave 8 groups o go down to 34, then you can finally add the new one

This is Ms. M responding to the earlier, pre-edited article, where the Lab was dropping basic members' group slots to 35, over 42.

[22:44] Txxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: oh thank you Jesus! seriously I didnt know what I was going to do
[22:45] sxxx Jxxxxx: so premium will increse in price to join

Yeah, that one's really worrying me.

[22:45] Uxxxx Sxxxxxxxx: They changed it, kaylee
[22:45] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [kxxxxx], they changed today
[22:46] kxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: oh good
[22:46] kxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I wonder how many people complained

Probably a lot? And it was complaints the Lab actually responded to, which is unusual.

[22:46] lxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: basic members groups go down to 35. You keep your 42, but if you drop one, you can't join another. You will have to drop all the way down to 34 before you can join one
[22:46] Kxxxxxx Fxxxxxxxx: 38 pages plus on the forum

I bet. I still haven't decided if I'm going to go through the comments on that post; it sounds like Zindra-protests levels of work and editing, frankly.

[22:46] txxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I have the update link if anyone wants it
[22:46] Exxx Hxxxxxxxxx: I don't see the increase yet.
[22:46] Uxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I do
[22:46] lxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Not til June 3

Which means it goes into effect today; this conversation happened yesterday.

[22:47] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: many ...many premium members stood by the basic players and told linden lab to give it back to them
[22:47] Sxxxxxxxxx Dxxxxxxxxx: I don't either [Exxx]
[22:47] Exxx Hxxxxxxxxx: oh
[22:47] txxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: June 3 is when they start
[22:47] Txxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: yay!!! because we make money here and spend it here too!
[22:47] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: yep
[22:47] lxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: oh am i not up to date? basic still dropping to 35?
[22:48] txxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: they cancelled that change
[22:48] Txxxx Jxxxxx: I think the people MOST impacted were store owners who realized they were about to have customers quitting their groups.

Probably. But also, if Ms. V is correct about groups of premium users pushing for 42 groups being standard for basic users, that also could have had an effect.

[22:48] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: lol so basic gets what they were losing back and premium gets nothing more than the 10 that's good but LOL - I'm very very glad but WOW really giving no incentive either with that 27 dollar hike
[22:48] Uxxxx Sxxxxxxxx: noo you will keep your 42
[22:48] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I'm very glad though it was dumb
[22:48] txxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: the Basic free membership groups are staying the same
[22:48] Xxxxxx Lxxxxxx: wait..basic stays at 42?
[22:49] Txxxx Jxxxxx: if I were a store owner and I relied on keeping my group members happy... I'd have been [censored] at LL for doing this.
[22:49] sxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: whoo, hoo! the plebicite wins one! lol
[22:49] Xxxxxx Lxxxxxx: LL actually *listened*?

Yeah, I was surprised too.

[22:49] Kxxxxx Lxxxxxx: I would like the link too, please
[22:49] Txxxx Jxxxxx: is there a mod here who can post the link for everybody?
[22:49] sxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I think maybe their eears were BURNING!
[22:50] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: lol
[22:50] sxxx Jxxxxx: I was thinking of going to premium, will the cost still increase

Yeah, and that's still worrying me. Under the chart given on the earlier link, monthly membership cost $9.50 (US) a month, and that's going up to $11.99 (US) past June 3rd. Quarterly, which is where I'm at, was $22.50 (US) billed every three months, and will raise to $32.97 (US) billed every three months. And yearly premium membership was at $72 (US) billed once a year, and will raise to $99 (US) billed once a year.

And for yearly users, it's a change of $27.00 (US), which is again not a savings, in any way. This seems less like cost-of-operations price raising, and more just straight-up pricejacking.

[22:50] Exxx Hxxxxxxxxx: This is great. I've had to shuffle my 60 around. There are some of my groups that I had to pay huge to get in.
[22:50] Xxxxxx Lxxxxxx: they should have fallen off the second they thought of that
[22:50] Xxxxxx Lxxxxxx: such an obviously shot in the foot..only a moron could think that was good idea
[22:50] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: yes suzy
[22:51] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: still a shot in the foot....not exactly giving premium any reason to stick around if they were on the fence
[22:51] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I'm premium member my fee is going up to $11.00

$11.99, but yes.

[22:51] nxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: offer a minus then keep it status quo good sales technique to keep them expecting more
[22:51] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: they said something about a better premium - idk maybe just make that the normal one
[22:51] sxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: so many pppl around the world, USA too that depend on those GGs to increase their inventory. we Basics send many thanks to u premiums who stodd by us!!!
[22:52] Xxxxxx Lxxxxxx: just checked the blog...yes, basic stays unchanged
[22:52] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I'm so glad they just dropped the dumbest part about this all though GOD

Which part?

[22:52] sxxx Jxxxxx: ok ty [Vxxxxx] really not worth it for me so awesome that basic stays the same yay
[22:52] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: thank you ...I voiced mine allowed and clear
[22:52] Txxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: yes, thank you premium members for the support
[22:52] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: loud
[22:53] Txxxx Jxxxxx: the offline message limit is still going to be trimmed for basic members. Course I solved that issue ages ago by just staying logged in 24/7.. :)

This is another problem. And this one I haven't been able to track down--the rumor goes (and I've heard it so many places I have to think they're getting it from SOMEwhere) that offline IMs will be cut down. To what, and whether that's a change for basic, or premium too, I can't find. But considering I'm not the only one that relies on offline messages, how is this going to affect estate owners, club owners, designers and makers with active stores? How is this a good idea?

[22:53] Uxxxx Sxxxxxxxx: I was basic until last year I can remember very well when we were fighting for 42 slots... So why take it away again.
[22:53] Txxxx Jxxxxx: I remember how wonderful it was when the limit was raised to 25...
[22:53] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: lol me too
[22:53] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: how dumb...and yes the 42 slots is rough the idea that the limitation is just arbitrarily there and held over peoples head for so much money is really dumb
[22:54] Txxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I wish I could [Txxxx], I play on my laptop and am dependent on wifi
[22:54] lxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: oh that post says june 24 not june 3. so we gotta wait til june 24 before we get more groups at premium members.

Well, wait, does that mean the price changes go into effect on the 3rd, with the group extension for premium members going into effect on the 24th, or that pricing changes and group slot changes go into effect on the 24th? I'm confused again.

[22:54] Exxx Hxxxxxxxxx: I'm paying $22.50 per quarter. I'm guessing it will go to $24.00

You'd be wrong. It's going to $32.97 (US).

[22:54] Txxxx Jxxxxx: the limit is not arbitrary, there is significant load on the comm servers for each group someone is in. Because it has to continually "poll" each group ou're in for new messages

Right, but why increase it then? Has their architecture substantially changed? Is that why the price hike, they're trying to pay for tons of new equipment?

[22:54] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: game might be more social and players might do better meeting others or selling which would keep things active and alive if you didn't have ot constant shuffle these few groups

Eh, a lot of us aren't social in many of our groups anyway, even the ones we've been in from go.

[22:54] lxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: and my bill date is the 25th. hah
[22:54] Kxxxxxx Fxxxxxxxx: they are taken quarterly payments away

No, but I don't have official verification for this? But friends have told me that those with quarterly premium memberships will retain them, just at the new rate. It's new accounts that will be hit with the monthly or yearly membership only options. And again, why? Why remove the mid-range premium? More people are going to be comfortable paying that than will be comfortable paying month by month, or yearly.

[22:55] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: it said if you are already quarter you can keep it
[22:55] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: but can't get it if you aren't already
[22:55] Kxxxxxx Fxxxxxxxx: only for that one year
[22:55] Dxxxxxxx Sxxxxxxx: quarterly went up to 32.97
[22:55] Kxxxxxx Fxxxxxxxx: least thats how I read it could be wrong

No, you're right.

[22:55] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: it's closer to that than 24
[22:56] Txxxx Jxxxxx: I'm annoyed I have to wait until next month before I can pay my yearly fee early
[22:56] lxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: if you have quarterly now, you keep it at the new price of $33. but no new quarterly plans will be issued
[22:57] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: yeah I am on quarter at as well - when that drops off idk it'll be rough

Now, that's something I hadn't heard. If it drops off, I'm going to have to seriously consider whether I want premium, because for right now, the only reason I'm premium is a) group slots and b) buying land on auction. I don't use the Linden sandboxen, I gave up my Linden home because I never used it (and also so I can, if I ever find one, buy a 1024 parcel for gratis because I no longer have the Linden home granted). If I don't end up finding land I might just give up being premium if they're going to gank the quarterly payments for existing quarterly users anyway.

[22:57] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: not really giving me a reason to want to stay even if I need stuff like the IM's and groups - I can just rent land instead it's hard enough to get as prem and not exactly a LOT of land

Exactly.

[22:58] Dxxxxxxx Sxxxxxxx: if ur quarterly u get to keep it. only if ur new quarterly is not an option
[22:58] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: someone said it was only for a year or was that wrong?
[22:59] Dxxxxxxx Sxxxxxxx: New premimum members have to chose either monthly or yearly as I understand it
[22:59] Uxxxx Sxxxxxxxx: I Think it's really depending on individual in that case. For me more prims + building a skybox now over my linden home (which was not allowed before) is ok.
[23:00] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: the linden home isn't really anything I can't get just renting....for a lot cheaper
[23:00] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: the size prim wise is pretty tiny too and you can't just easily get said linden home is the other prob...

Ah, but you can get rid of it easily. Which then puts members in line for auctioned 1024s they don't have to pay tier on.

There was some chatter about future sales, then...

[23:10] Gxxxxx Pxxxxxxxx: So regarding earlier discussion of the new fees. It says you can pay one last year on the old rate. I think I am going to call and see if I can do that.
[23:10] Gxxxxx Pxxxxxxxx: I just paid my normal premium two weeks ago so I wouldn't have my tier go up until May 2021
[23:11] Txxxx Jxxxxx: you'll be able to do it on their payment website starting june 3rd
[23:11] Txxxx Jxxxxx: I'm annoyed I couldn't do it before the end of june, now I have to put the charge on next month's business
[23:12] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I pay monthly, I think, I get one month at old rate
[23:12] Txxxx Jxxxxx: er, I mean I'm annoyed I coudnt do it before the beginning of june
[23:13] Gxxxxx Pxxxxxxxx: Hm I thought I read you could call and arrange to get one last year at the old rate?

So which is it, you have to call and talk to a Linden directly, or it just goes into effect for one last month?

[23:13] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [Txxxx] do you pay for the whole year?
[23:13] Txxxx Jxxxxx: yes
[23:13] Txxxx Jxxxxx: my usual billing month is august
[23:14] Txxxx Jxxxxx: but they're letting people pay for their next year (or other period) early
[23:14] Vxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: I thought you had up to June 24th to get the old rate for a year
[23:14] Txxxx Jxxxxx: but not quite early enough for my tastes, cause of the way my credit card reward system is structured
[23:14] mxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: sigh - I might do that but really really inconvenient and do you seriously only have a few days?

I missed the rest of the conversation, as I had to log out to help people in RL, but...sounds like a lot is still up in the air. So if anyone has more information, do let me know?

the alternative’s nothingness, might as well give it a try

Well, this is new. Seen at the Hipster Fair. Wonder how long that booth's going to stay up?



In other news...I guess that's one way to put up a gaming table. The most dangerous game--playing at an extreme angle! 

I still don't know what this all means to me

This is not an outfit. It's a shamrock tattoo with a tartan belt.

In the meantime, a very strange chat capture:

[21:54] Ixxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: danger [jxxxxxx] fake , racker is conta

"Conta" apparently means "account"?

[21:56] Sxxx Nxxxxxx: The robin flies at dawn

Yeah, because that didn't make very much sense.

[21:57] gxxxxx Rxxxxxxx): muak te amo

Which is "I love you", which makes even less sense. Then this:

[22:05] Ixxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: to a player who hits the women in second life, his name rl and [lxxx bxxxx], city reef, federal retired, he has several bills, he takes advantage of the gambling women, after he does not have what it takes to get him some, watch out for his lindens, scripts, all he can get, some of his avatars: [mxxxxxxx], [dxxxxxxx], [qxxxxxx], [xxxx], [xxxxxxxxxxxxx], [xxxxxxxxxxx], [dxxxxxx], [dxxxxxxxxxxxx] [ixxxxx]. [ixxxxxxxx], [mxxxxxxxx] among others careful with this racker
[22:06] Emilly Orr: I guess...thank you for the warning, but....why here? Why not in some of the gambling groups?

She didn't say anything else, so I started looking up some of the names. "[jxxxxx]" is six years on the grid, no picture, no SL bio, no picks, no FL bio. What I tend to call a blank profile or alt account. There is no "[mxxxxxxx]" but there is a "[mxxxxxxxxxx]", which, again, is 3 years on the grid, no picture, no SL bio, no picks, no FL bio. No "[dxxxxxxx]" was found, so can't get any info there. There's no "[qxxxxxx]" but there is a "[qxxxxxxxx]", which again--nearly two years old, no no picture, no SL bio, no picks, no FL bio.

I am beginning to see a pattern.

Let's run down the rest. So "[xxxx]", same thing, 7 years old, no picture, no SL bio, no picks, no FL bio; "[xxxxxxxxxxxxx]" didn't exist; "[xxxxxxxxxxx]" didn't exist; "[dxxxxxx]" didn't exist; "[dxxxxxxxxxxxx]" didn't exist; "[ixxxxx]" didn't exist; "[ixxxxxxxx]" didn't exist, but "[ixxxxxxxxxxxxx]" did (9 months old, no other info), along with "[ixxxxxxxxxxx]", who's four years old and nada elsewise; and "[mxxxxxxxx]" is 2 months old and has no other info.

Okay, so buncha alts, that I get. Why do we care? The group this is being posted in is a pastoral photographic sim.

[22:17] bxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [Ixxxxxx] can you im me a list of those names please
[22:21] bxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: mmmm weird
[22:21] bxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: the owner or a mod on?
[22:25] Emilly Orr: [Kxxxx], most of them don't exist, at least under search.

So I pulled Ms. [Ixxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]'s profile next. This is her SL bio:

Sou muito legal, mas não me faça sentir ameaçada ou reprimida, pressionada, viro uma fera.

Which means "I'm very cool, but do not make me feel threatened or repressed, pressed, I become a beast."

My two thoughts are: this guy and all his alts are legitimately sleazy and running a Linden scam on the impressionable, or, Ms. [Ixxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] used to date this guy, or one of his alts, was spurned for some reason, and wants to tear him down. Calling someone a scammer is a pretty easy way to get people to suspect a random man.

My only question left is, what's a "racker"?

I'm not going to go through the groups all the alts are in, I really don't care that much, but seriously, if you're going to warn people about a scammer, these are the steps to go through:

1. Report the name to the Lindens using the "Report Abuse" menu item under "Help" in most browsers. Include any relevant chat for verification.
2. Put together a case for why you believe X is doing bad things. Present it calmly. You are trying to warn people, not cause hysteria or disbelief. Keep your complaints simple and clear.
3. POST IT IN THE RIGHT GODDAMN GROUP.

Okay? Okay. Moving on.

and it leaves its mark all stamped with lead in the lines and the grime inside your skin

This from a notice by Wordsmith Jarvinen to the Independent States of Caledon group:

Linden Lab blogged that SL has been under significantly larger than normal DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks since last Sunday. Basically networks of infected PCs attempting to overload the SL network with traffic. It's humorous that the blog says "unscheduled".

https://community.secondlife.com/blogs/entry/2438-unscheduled-ddos-on-10-28-2018/

I, too, found it humorous that the blog says "unscheduled". There are scheduled DDoS attacks?

But if you've been having problems since Sunday, October 28th, that is why. They're still ongoing.

In the meantime, this bit of utter lunacy from a gacha group, of all things:

[20:37] sxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: pls remove me from this group or else
[20:37] sxxxxx Yxxx: do it ya self
[20:37] Emilly Orr: You joined, you can leave any time.
[20:37] dxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: You can leave it.
[20:37] Emilly Orr: It's not hard
[20:40] Emilly Orr: Wow, that's some profile, on top of the rampant hostility.

I'm not kidding--I pulled the profile, and the first thing on her SL bio?

Cute puffy nip lactating Futanari feline avatar here 4 kittyplay click my IM box sitting in a ray of sunlight filled with Swedish fish lollies, pillows and a new collar.

I...have no place in my brain for any of that, save for it throws me back to my City of Heroes days, where the common hang-out space was just bursting at the seams with catgirl vampire futa loli supers asking for sex. Just...wow.

[20:40] axxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: don't you know how to remove yourself from a group?

Apparently not. Oh, and from the first-life bio section of Ms. S's profile?

I lik sillycute-looking seductress chicks with cat ears, a tail, and maybe paws and a few patches of fur. Catgirls usually act rather cat-like and always succeed in being very very cute and sexy.
Cgirls walk the line between Furry and anime.

Right...Oh, and of the nine picks on her picks page? One is for a store. The other nine are all clones of one of those "earn Lindens now!" places.

[20:47] Jxx Sxxxxxx: or else what lol
[20:47] Jxxxxx Wxxxx: that's what I was waiting for too.
[20:49] sxxxxx Yxxx: maybe the else was i will turn into a clown and run around?
[20:49] Jxxxxx Wxxxx takes out a hit on [Sxxxxx]
[20:50] sxxxxx Yxxx: lmao they have to catch me first
[20:51] Emilly Orr: I notice she's still in the group.
[20:51] Fxxxxxxx Cxxxxxx: it's no fun to create drama, if you don't stick around to watch the fallout!
[20:52] sxxxxx Yxxx: exactly
[20:53] Emilly Orr: Yeah, but that's the thing. She has. Why doesn't she just leave?
[20:53] sxxxxx Yxxx: yeah
[20:53] Emilly Orr: Unless she doesn't want to, she just wants us to squabble amongst ourselves. Takes a low mind, but hey.

[20:54] sxxxxx Yxxx: [20:52] sxxxxx Yxxx: [20:37] sxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: pls remove me from this group or else we all want to know else what?
[20:53] sxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: jus remove so u wont have to find out thank you kindly

[20:54] sxxxxx Yxxx: i asked lol
[20:55] Emilly Orr: Oh, that tempts me so much to talk to Little Miss Thing.
[20:55] Fxxxxx Axxxxxxxx: 20 minutes laer still talknig about that?
[20:55] Jxxxxx Wxxxx: I know I now wanna know why they did that [Wxxxx]!
[20:56] Fxxxxxxx Cxxxxxx: because clowns pink, [Jxxxxx]
[20:56] Jxxxxx Wxxxx: one of these days [Fxxx]....one of these days!

Some time later...

[21:02] Sxxxx Pxxxxx: ok i logged into something
[21:03] Emilly Orr: I want to say you did, but unfortunately, the 'cute catgirl' is unwilling to play. Or leave the group. So we're sort of stuck.
[21:03] Sxxxx Pxxxxx: huh

So, I finally wrote her.

[21:05] Emilly Orr: Okay, seriously. Pull open your group list. Select the Gimme Gacha group. Hit the Leave button. Done, and your furry little butt can go play elsewhere. This is so simple a three-year-old could do it.
[21:07] sxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: damn i try to keave i get errir or else i wouldnt be asking you im not stupid i know that
[21:07] Emilly Orr: Okay. Log out, log back in. If you still have the group, leave then. If you don't, then you're good. It's not on the group owner to kick you unless you become abusive in chat, in which case, I'm sure they'll be happy to kick you.
[21:07] sxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [f*ck] i wilk never join another group again because they wont let you leave
[21:08] Emilly Orr: They ALL will let you leave, it's voluntary, easy, and everyday.
[21:09] sxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Simple mind good bye

Gosh, guess I've been told. How will I ever live past this day?

Honestly, I'm not surprised with the current problems with logins, inventory, crashing, random restarts, and avatar persistence since the 28th that we're also having issues with leaving or joining groups. But she is being an upper-level idiot for not trying the basics first.

never put themselves here, so undone at the seams

Ah, yes, the infamous Linden haunted house is back. This one has always bothered me slightly simply because of how gory and disturbing it is. After years of the Lindens telling us that blood, gore, viscera and intimated violence will always be classified as Adult, they throw something like this up on a General sim. Dafuq, to be blunt.



Though to be fair, I've always liked the ghostly TV.



All right, this is something I just don't get. There have been two major changes through the initial 'house' (slash asylum) portion that I can see: first, they seem to have taken about half the corpses and made them more shimmery, partially metalized (which I guess reduces the visual violence level? Not sure why, because the rest of the corpses and corpse sections are still bloody and visceral). The other big change I'm noticing is the addition of burping pumpkins and weird little eye insect monsters that sound like flies. Whuh?



Like, I don't...I don't understand it at all. Either you're a cutesy haunt and you have twee little haunted things, and it's all for fun and show, or it's a serious haunt with real horror. The Lindens seemed to have decided on both this year? That makes zero sense.



And it's not like the eye bugs aren't cute, they are...though the fly buzzing sounds around the piles of meat and former humans is disturbing...but...I just don't see why they had to be included. Toss in the burping pumpkins and the widdle monsters and the buzzing eye creatures and tone down the violence and blood? Great. Or keep the violence and blood and get rid of the cute touches. PICK ONE.



The rest was pretty much the same, with the addition of the weirdly cute touches, as noted: Freddy's basement, Carrie-Ann's house, IT's sewer. Not much has changed from that since last year.

I just don't get the burping pumpkins and the eye bugs. I just don't.

I'm queen of attention to details

This seems to be happening a lot, this particular game going down--in the sense of, there's some issue with the servers they're paying to host it, not the game itself. And most of the time people are patient. But every once in a while...

[10:24] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: i paid in coins it still says that i havw to pay the budget
[10:24] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: and lost around 60 lindens
[10:25] Bxxx Bxxxx: ke sayed not to pay ito the coins sever is down

Yeah, so just to make this clear--notice went out early, early this morning. By ten SLT the word of the servers being down was well and truly out. There had been follow-ups in public chat. The only way Ms. T would not have known would be if she didn't read anything that came from notices or chat.

[10:25] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: oh wow

And look, she's surprised. So that means she didn't.

[10:25] Bxxx Bxxxx: if you did it while the sever is down you would lost the lindes wehn the sever xcomes up at some point ithink you will need to do a ticket

Probably, yeah. Because there's nothing that can be done about demanding funds while the server isn't up to deliver them. As was stated in the notices.

[10:26] pxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: you need to read notices that are sent [txxxxxxx]
[10:26] Bxxx Bxxxx: yes
[10:26] Bxxx Bxxxx: there wer notices send out
[10:26] Bxxx Bxxxx: abut the sever being down

There were. Multiple ones.

[10:26] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: i should haha
[10:26] Bxxx Bxxxx: lol
[10:28] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: oy but it doesn't says not to pay into coins..

THE SERVER IS DOWN, Ms. T. What does that mean for you? The ENTIRE SERVER, for the ENTIRE GAME, is DOWN. You know what that means? Coin hunt is down. Fishing is down. ATMS to request funds from are--yep, for really real--DOWN. Do we need to write it in crayon for you?

[10:29] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Wili Clip: Group Notice Sent by: Wili Clip

SERVER - STATUS (currently offline for virus cleaning)
Hello everyone!

The tech support took the web server offline to clean it from viruses.

Sorry for inconvenience and thank you for your patience.

Oh, good, you found the notice. She can be taught.

[10:29] sxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: thats the 1
[10:29] axxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: would take that as don't pay into coins because the server is offline
[10:29] bxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: thanks for the recap of the message
[10:30] Gxxxxx Lxxxxx: the server runs everything, its down
[10:30] Gxxxxx Lxxxxx: what more do you need
[10:30] sxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: not down had to be taken offline
[10:30] Gxxxxx Lxxxxx: symantics
[10:31] Gxxxxx Lxxxxx: down , offline, its the same thing, the game doesnt work in any fashion

What Ms. G said. Whether they took it offline manually, or it crashed, it is down, and until it comes back up, nothing's going to work. Period.

[10:31] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: ye i bet i'm not only one.

Probably not. And that level of stupidity is kind of terrifying, actually.

[10:31] Bxxx Bxxxx: yes so no coin hunting fishing or farming and other things on here to
[10:32] Bxxx Bxxxx: util sever is back for sure
[10:32] Bxxx Bxxxx: so dont pay ito any coins
[10:32] sxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: down and offline means 2 differnt things
[10:32] sxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: down means broke and gone on its own
[10:32] sxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: offline mean taken off

Miss S, you are not helping. So for the people in the back row: as far as getting funds from an ATM--which was what Ms. T was trying to do--"down" and "offline" mean THE EXACT SAME THING. And what that exact thing is, is NOT. WORKING. Do I need to write it in crayon for you too?

[10:33] Bxxx Bxxxx: if you payito the coins while the sever is stil l not up yet you will ose the lindes you payed ito with
[10:33] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: but he should still write -not to pay into the coins though-. Not everyone are smart enaugh to know that

But they should be, Ms. T, because it's not a stupendous logic leap. Machine down, game not work. Even the weakest, most fluttery brain cell should be able to spark the neurons enough to get "Cannot get paid for game" from that. It is not hard, because the coin hunt and the fishing game pay earnings into the same account that is then sent to one server. And whether that server goes down or is taken offline, it is still not UP for anyone to withdraw funds from the game account on that downed or offline server.

[10:33] Bxxx Bxxxx: so its best to wait for all clear
[10:33] sxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: THE SERVER IS DOWN. WILI CLIP HAS TAKEN THE NEEDED ACTIONS TO GET THE SERVER SORTED ASAP. AND THERE IS NOTHING TO DO BUT WAIT. IN THE MEANTIME...NO
ATM
FARMING
CRAFTING
PAYING IN TO
BUYING OF WORMS
ANYTHING RELATED TO LGH
EXCEPT CHAT - THATS WORKING GREAT \O/
[10:34] Bxxx Bxxxx: thank you [sxx]
[10:34] sxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: notice before
[10:34] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: i don't see that message anywhere

By all the dark gods, you really are a lump of clay, aren't you? Miss S was trying to dumb it down for you, and--and I'm baffled that I'm even typing this--apparently, she didn't dumb it down enough for you to grasp the problem.

Okay, how about this? "THING NOT WORK. STAY AWAY FROM THING UNTIL THING WORK AGAIN. STAY AWAY FROM ALL THINGS UNTIL THING WORK AGAIN." Does that help?

[10:34] Bxxx Bxxxx: theres your notice everyone
[10:34] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: till now ^^
[10:34] Bxxx Bxxxx: will now hopely people that come on and dont know the sever is still down will se the notice now
[10:35] Bxxx Bxxxx: or dont know at all
[10:35] Bxxx Bxxxx: it was down
[10:35] Dxxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx: notice posted by [Dxxx] on 7.31... 15 18:11gmt
[10:35] Dxxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx: THE SERVER IS DOWN. WILI CLIP HAS TAKEN THE NEEDED ACTIONS TO GET THE SERVER SORTED ASAP. AND THERE IS NOTHING TO DO BUT WAIT. IN THE MEANTIME...NO
ATM
FARMING
CRAFTING
PAYING IN TO
BUYING OF WORMS
HUNTING
FISHING
TRIVIA HUNT
ANYTHING RELATED TO LGH
EXCEPT CHAT - THATS WORKING GREAT \O/
[10:35] Dxxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx: CHECK THE DAMN NOTICES
[10:35] Dxxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx: SHEESH

Watch your language, Ms. D. But beyond that, that wasn't Miss S's rewording--that was actually from [Dxxx], a moderator directly in communication with the owner of the game. Which means we're back to Ms. T never reading a damn notice that comes from the game she plays. Her own damn fault, then.

[10:35] Bxxx Bxxxx: yes thank you [dxxx]
[10:35] Dxxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx: got the brains of a freakin' hamster.. lol
[10:35] Dxxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx: always check notices
[10:36] Bxxx Bxxxx: lol
[10:36] oxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: lmao
[10:36] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: like I would open the damn chat and scrool up every message

No, obviously you don't, because you have all the brains of a small yellow plastic soap dish.

[10:36] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [dxxx]
[10:36] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: don't
[10:36] Dxxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx: lazy twit, aren't you? pfft

I tend to agree.

[10:36] Bxxx Bxxxx: ok lets be good now
[10:36] Bxxx Bxxxx: lets not get to cerry away you might wake [hxxxx]
[10:36] Dxxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx: not too far to scroll, it's the 3rd one down
[10:36] Sxxxx Cxxxxxxxxxx: Just got in. Have the servers been cleaned?

Nope.

[10:36] Dxxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx: lol
[10:36] Dxxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx: that's true, [Bxxx]
[10:36] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: bitch come to im

Ooh, snippy little twidget, aren't you? When it was your fault for not reading the notices in the first place.

Look, I'm all for missing notices once in a while, it happens, and sometimes, one notice is all we get for an event or sale. But there were four notices yesterday, plus chatter in group yesterday and today. The only way Ms. T missed that is by deliberately not reading the notices--which she's confirmed--as well as not paying attention to group chat...or living under a rock.

Or actually being a rock, I'm honestly not sure.

[10:37] Bxxx Bxxxx: ok g rated
[10:37] Bxxx Bxxxx: chat
[10:37] Bxxx Bxxxx: no bad words please
[10:37] Bxxx Bxxxx: or name calling
[10:37] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: no harrasing too* you should say

Well, I would, but you so clearly demonstrated your contempt for notices, I think "brains of a freakin' hamster" was pretty mild, all things considered. Beyond that, all she said was 'damn'. Which also isn't allowed, but is a far cry from your calling her a 'bitch'. Harassment would be far different.

[10:37] Bxxx Bxxxx: bye [Dxxx] frend
[10:37] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: ye go

You don't get a say in this. You're deliberately choosing to be stupid. No points for that.

[10:38] Bxxx Bxxxx: ] [txxxxxxx] keep in mind this is a g rated chat you cant call peopple names and say bad things to them we have to keep this chat clean

Yep. And Miss D stayed--mostly--within those rules to express frustration. You, you great clod of waste space, did not.

[10:38] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [Dxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx]: got the brains of a freakin' hamster.. lol

So you can copy and paste but not read? Good to know.

[10:39] Bxxx Bxxxx: i know al ot of you guys are upset but all we can do is wait util tec fixes it
[10:39] pxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: please read notices then people wont get upset if you miss the notices its easy enough to find them just click at the top of the group chat on the picture next to the arrowa pointing to the right once clicked then click on notices and scroll down the notices to read a notice click on the headline and bingo the ntice appears
[10:39] Bxxx Bxxxx: so we jsut have to be good
[10:39] Bxxx Bxxxx: yes thank you [pxxxxxx] what [pxxxxxx] sayed
[10:39] txxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: no. [bxxxx]. i can not harass others.. bet cuz [dxxx] is you friend you let her. and you ignore her messages just so u know

NO. Again, because you're too stupid to get this without breaking it down into monosyllabic statements, you said bad word. Bad word bad. This not chat for bad word. Okay?

[10:40] Bxxx Bxxxx: ok wer not going to go there frend ok
[10:40] Bxxx Bxxxx: no dreama
[10:40] Bxxx Bxxxx: so moveing on hows the weather

Pretty good, today, we finally got a break in the heat.

[10:40] oxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: o.0
[10:40] Sxxxx Cxxxxxxxxxx: ffs. Forget this LOL. Too many judgy people

Then, later:

[10:45] Cxx Rxxxxxxxx: isthe server up?
[10:45] axxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: no, still asleep :p
[10:45] pxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: no [Cxx] if you read the notices you wouldnt have to ask that question
[10:46] Cxx Rxxxxxxxx: sorry i get to many notices
[10:46] sxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: notices are saved for 14 days on group info - notices
[10:47] Cxx Rxxxxxxxx: i delete all as i get 200 a night

Y'know...you can--and just suggesting this as an option, mind...turn off notices from the groups you're just going to delete anyway. I have several of my weekly sale groups turned off, so they won't dump into my email and max out my offlines. The beauty of having notices turned off is it only works for notices sent when we're not logged in, so if we want to know what's going on in any group while we're on the grid, w'll e'll hear anyway.

[10:47] sxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: can turn receiving off

Yes, that, exactly.

[10:47] pxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: you can still read them by cocking at the top of this page

I think she means "looking", but also--note Miss C is not asking, hey, game doesn't work, what gives? She's saying, are the servers still down, which means she was paying attention to chat, at least, yesterday.

[10:48] Cxx Rxxxxxxxx: wish i figured that out. only been back to sl after 3 year break for only 3 weeks
[10:55] Bxxx Bxxxx: um rember sever is down guys if you do fish you wont get anthing
[10:55] Pxxxxxx Lxxxx: ...
[10:56] Bxxx Bxxxx: fisihng is on the same sever as coins
[10:56] Bxxx Bxxxx: so just letting you all know
[10:56] Bxxx Bxxxx: thank you [axxxx]
[11:16] fxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxx: its up

About this time was when the servers came back up, yes. After most of yesterday and this morning down.

[11:16] txxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: 12 phone calls later ......
[11:17] nxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: 70... years... later...
[11:18] txxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: was a day and half night
[11:19] txxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: there was a netbot whatever that is and wili was traeling for an important femily event out of the country and di dnot catch the email informing him .. so the cleanup did not happen until he got home but by then the server had been turned off by the host
[11:19] txxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: once thathappened we needed tocontact the host and get itall back up again .
[11:19] txxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: im reading the drama over the past day and tall the various conspiracy theories ...and shakingmy head

Yeah, really. So this is what actually happened. This notice came from Wili on July 31st, so yesterday,, at 4:29 pm SLT:

Hello everyone,

It seems that despite of security hardening that the techies did on the server it somehow got infected by a virus that included our server into a botnet that attacked many different companies... even some Korean financial institution...

The support ticket has already been sent and request to run an antivirus on the web server issued as well.

I was away for last 4 days and couldn't have caught this before to prevent infection spreading.

So it sounded pretty serious, but also sounded like Wili caught it as soon as he could and instituted safety measures to keep the problem from getting worse. Isn't that all what we want?

I just wish we could do that without people having to choose between honest thought and continuing to breathe.

Oh, and a bit later still:

[11:30] txxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Every few hours I check the bot logs also to see if [hxxxx] has made anymistakes with warnings or bans
[11:31] Pxxxxxxxx Cxxxxx: i just relogged, so i missed everything, and noooo prob
[11:31] txxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: and im so disappointed today art whatI esee thatI am goign to let [hxxxx] have his way . if anyone who gets warned has a comment aboutit they can messageme and talk to me about the situation
[11:31] txxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: normally i block many of [hxxxx's] warnings .. today I willnot
[11:31] kxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: ut oh

And then the warnings started.

[11:32] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [axxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:32] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [axxxx Rxxxxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:32] Nxxxxxx Hxxxxx: offers [txxxx] chocolate
[11:32] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [axxxx Rxxxxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:32] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [axxxx Rxxxxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:32] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [Zxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:33] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [axxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:33] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [bxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:33] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [bxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:33] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [bxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:33] cxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: ohhhhh my not good "slowly backs away"

Keep in mind that [Hxxxx] is a bot on the server, and in the group. He's got some limited AI functions for responses, but for the most part, all he watches for are words and phrases classified as not G-rated. That's all he does other than logging all chat. So [Hxxxx] really does know all, and [txxxx] really does usually stand in the way. Today, she didn't.

[11:34] kxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx hides from [Hxxxx]
[11:34] Axxx Rxxxxxxx: hee report card day
[11:34] Nxxxxxx Hxxxxx: [zxx] hasnt done any thing?
[11:34] rxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: And some people wonder why I keep my trap shut during server down times
[11:35] nxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [bxxxxxx] has apparently been warned 3 times??
[11:35] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: This is a G rated chat . [zxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx] is aware of that .
[11:35] lxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: if [Zxx] gets warned then [Kxx] provoked her into it, just saying
[11:36] nxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Also, I'm just a casual wanderer so I just randomly poke in random stuff
[11:36] Axxx Rxxxxxxx: [rxx] u lie, we saw u chat
[11:36] nxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: So I have no clue what's going on xD

Basically, [txxxx] took the reins of [Hxxxx].

[11:36] rxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: chat, but my trap was shut :P
[11:36] rxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: aka my fingers were censored
[11:36] rxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: lol
[11:36] Axxx Rxxxxxxx: lol
[11:37] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [Dxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:37] exxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: lol [rxxxxxx]
[11:37] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [Dxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:37] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [Dxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:37] Nxxxxxx Hxxxxx closes her mouth and attaches her fishing rod
[11:37] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [Sxxxx Cxxxxxxxxxx] has been WARNED by the group moderator
[11:37] Axxx Rxxxxxxx: fishes happily
[11:38] rxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx eats chili happily
[11:38] dxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: fishing working again please?

Yes, at this point.

[11:39] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [Dxxxxxxxxx Lxxxx] has been EJECTED by the group moderator and banned from SmartBots services
[11:39] nxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: *steals [Axxx]'s' worms*
[11:39] nxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: *replaces them with peaches*
[11:39] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: [axxxx Rxxxxxxxx] has been EJECTED by the group moderator and banned from SmartBots services
[11:39] Axxx Rxxxxxxx: i planted more np
[11:39] nxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: One does not simply plant more worms
[11:40] kxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx peeks to see if [Hxxxx's] done yet

Seems to be.

[11:40] Axxx Rxxxxxxx: happily harvested last crop
[11:40] exxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: im hiding in a corner
[11:41] Hxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rxxxxxxx: Rests my weary bolts.

Which is fine, but not one warning for Miss T? I'm disappointed.