Second Life® Welcomes New Users amid Pandemic, but Struggles to Meet High Demand
COVID-19 forced many of us to embrace a different lifestyle. In the age of social distancing, the internet has become the new way to socialize with friends and family, and find new ways to keep us busy and sane. There are no exact numbers of how many new users are signing up for Second Life®, but the increased demand for new regions is enough proof that more people are discovering Second Life® and embracing virtual reality. Although these are exciting news for the community, Linden Lab was forced to halt new region inventory growth. Yes – that’s exactly what you are thinking; Second Life® is running out of land. Due to high demand, the old servers are now hitting maximum capacity and the new cloud-based servers are not stable enough to deliver a desirable performance. According to Linden Lab, a number of services and data has been transferred to the on-going cloud migration, but they are “not quite ready to host simulators in the cloud." Once the cloud migration is complete, Second Life® will offer a “nearly unlimited region capacity." - from "Limited Availability of New Second Life Regions" blog post
Normal region sales are expected to resume by early fall, but if you are looking for land now, there are other options such as purchasing abandoned mainland, renting land from other residents, acquiring land through auction services, or acquiring land by reaching out to third-part sellers.
The Solution Provider Directory Revamp
This directory has been around for a couple of years as an old, unaesthetic wiki page. Linden Lab has plans to refresh the website with several enhancements to be added over-time and most importantly, a better and updated list of service providers. The listing is a great way for residents to promote their services and reach out to new customers - from custom content creators to personal shoppers, users will soon access a wide range of in-world services. As of now, five categories are listed in the interim wiki page: Full Service Companies, Specialists, Developer Tools, Software Solution Providers and Solution Providers that have worked with teen-focused organizations.
In a time where Second Life® is receiving a wave of new players, this new project couldn't come at a better time. Land Operations Team Senior Member Izzy Linden recently shared more details on this project: new categories may be added as the team continues to receive new submissions and all residents are welcome to apply regardless of their experience. Izzy's recent appearance on Lab Gab gave users a clear explanation of what's ahead for the Solution Provider Directory.
To become a Service Provider, fill out the Solution Provider Submission Form.
A New Logo
On Friday, May 22, 2020, Linden Lab introduced a new logo for Second Life® featuring the all-seeing (?) hand in a new bright, sharp blue. On the brief introduction post, Linden Lab explains the new color choice: “When it comes to what you can do with SL™, the (blue) sky’s the limit!” - from "A New Look for Second Life" blog post
Personally, I’ve never been a fan of the Second Life® logo - the hand often reminds me of the Eye of Providence (all-seeing eye of God) and it gives me the weird feeling that I’m being constantly watched in-world by this “secret” entity. Although we all know our online activities are being monitored 24/7, I really don’t need a constant reminder of that. The new choice of color didn’t change my personal perception of the logo – am I the only one thinking this way? What do you think of the new logo?
Premium Plus Membership Delayed
The highly anticipated release of the new Premium Plus membership plan has been delayed. According to Inara Pey's "Second Life Premium Plus roll-out postponed" blog entry, Director of Product Grumpity Linden has confirmed the delay due to residents’ financial hardship during the pandemic. In addition, the team is entirely focused in the cloud migration.
The release of the Premium Plus plan has been postponed to 2021.
COVID-19 forced many of us to embrace a different lifestyle. In the age of social distancing, the internet has become the new way to socialize with friends and family, and find new ways to keep us busy and sane. There are no exact numbers of how many new users are signing up for Second Life®, but the increased demand for new regions is enough proof that more people are discovering Second Life® and embracing virtual reality. Although these are exciting news for the community, Linden Lab was forced to halt new region inventory growth. Yes – that’s exactly what you are thinking; Second Life® is running out of land. Due to high demand, the old servers are now hitting maximum capacity and the new cloud-based servers are not stable enough to deliver a desirable performance. According to Linden Lab, a number of services and data has been transferred to the on-going cloud migration, but they are “not quite ready to host simulators in the cloud." Once the cloud migration is complete, Second Life® will offer a “nearly unlimited region capacity." - from "Limited Availability of New Second Life Regions" blog post
Normal region sales are expected to resume by early fall, but if you are looking for land now, there are other options such as purchasing abandoned mainland, renting land from other residents, acquiring land through auction services, or acquiring land by reaching out to third-part sellers.
The Solution Provider Directory Revamp
This directory has been around for a couple of years as an old, unaesthetic wiki page. Linden Lab has plans to refresh the website with several enhancements to be added over-time and most importantly, a better and updated list of service providers. The listing is a great way for residents to promote their services and reach out to new customers - from custom content creators to personal shoppers, users will soon access a wide range of in-world services. As of now, five categories are listed in the interim wiki page: Full Service Companies, Specialists, Developer Tools, Software Solution Providers and Solution Providers that have worked with teen-focused organizations.
In a time where Second Life® is receiving a wave of new players, this new project couldn't come at a better time. Land Operations Team Senior Member Izzy Linden recently shared more details on this project: new categories may be added as the team continues to receive new submissions and all residents are welcome to apply regardless of their experience. Izzy's recent appearance on Lab Gab gave users a clear explanation of what's ahead for the Solution Provider Directory.
To become a Service Provider, fill out the Solution Provider Submission Form.
A New Logo
On Friday, May 22, 2020, Linden Lab introduced a new logo for Second Life® featuring the all-seeing (?) hand in a new bright, sharp blue. On the brief introduction post, Linden Lab explains the new color choice: “When it comes to what you can do with SL™, the (blue) sky’s the limit!” - from "A New Look for Second Life" blog post
Personally, I’ve never been a fan of the Second Life® logo - the hand often reminds me of the Eye of Providence (all-seeing eye of God) and it gives me the weird feeling that I’m being constantly watched in-world by this “secret” entity. Although we all know our online activities are being monitored 24/7, I really don’t need a constant reminder of that. The new choice of color didn’t change my personal perception of the logo – am I the only one thinking this way? What do you think of the new logo?
Premium Plus Membership Delayed
The highly anticipated release of the new Premium Plus membership plan has been delayed. According to Inara Pey's "Second Life Premium Plus roll-out postponed" blog entry, Director of Product Grumpity Linden has confirmed the delay due to residents’ financial hardship during the pandemic. In addition, the team is entirely focused in the cloud migration.
The release of the Premium Plus plan has been postponed to 2021.
"Fractal Eyes - Blue" Eyes from ANATOMY (69L for Single Color Pack or 331L for Fatpack - We <3 Role-play
Event *May Edition*. Fatpack Includes L & R Mesh Eyes in Blue, Bluegreen, Grey, Pink, Purple and Red. Includes Omega Appliers)
"Shamiya" Hair from DOUX (325L for Basic Pack + 125L for Deluxe Pack - The Fashion Community Plaza)
"Ballerina" Mesh Nails from StunnerOriginals (Free - Group Gift)
"Bompu" Dress from Pucca Firecaster Creations (750L - New Release. Includes Corset, Skirt and Sleeves for Freya, Hourglass, Lara, Legacy and Nana. Includes Texture HUD with 16 Texture Options for Main Material, 4 Texture Options for Cords, 4 Metal Texture Options, 4 Cleavage Shadow Options with Shine Options and 12 Skirt Texture Options. Original Ad HERE)
'Ellaria Vest - Grey" from Peqe (50L Per Play, Gacha Machine)
"Witching Sword" from MUSU (300L - We <3 Role-play
Event *May Edition*. Includes Sword, Sword (Sheath), and Unscripted Sword Version with Draw and Sheath Trigger Gestures and Sword Animations)
"Unisex Roleplay HUD - Bento Poses for Hands" from ANTAYA (399L. Includes 12 Hand and Arm Poses for L & R Hand and Arm)
"This Beautiful Life" Poses from West End (Free - Group Gift)
Location: It All Starts with a Smile
Second Life® is a trademark of Linden Research, Inc.
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