2024 Holiday Shop & Hop

The 2024 Holiday Shop & Hop is almost here with 320 participating merchants across 16 shopping regions, bringing you loads of festive fun! Every store will have at least a 20% discount on all items and a free (non-group) gift for shoppers or a gift certificate valued at L$300 or above!

The event formally opens to the public on Friday, December 6th at 9 AM PT/SLT - but who wants to wait when you can get early access?! If you can’t contain your excitement, join the official Second Life Birthday group inworld to be granted immediate access.

Before you jump inworld, you can get a sneak peek at many of the items that will be available in the official Second Life Shop & Hop Flickr pool. And don’t forget to share photos of your haul after your shopping excursion!

To visit the 2024 Holiday Shop & Hop - start at any one of the Regions - but be sure to visit them all to see everything that's available. Happy shopping!

Scroll to the end of this post for a complete list of all 320 participating Shop & Hop Merchants and their direct slurls!

Winter Last Names 2024

To celebrate the winter holiday season, we have released some festive new last names!

The following winter-themed names are only available for a limited time:  
Candyclaws
Merry
Frostlake
Candlewick
Prancer
Silverbells
Mistlefluff
Alegria
Befana
Hollyberry

These names for winter are seasonal and may come back around this time next year, for a limited time.

We will continue to make additional updates to the available last name pool, so if these options aren’t for you, stay tuned for future updates. You can also suggest your favorite name on our suggestion form, the new names were chosen from there! 

For more information about the costs and how-tos involved in name changes, read the Changing your username FAQ. Click to change your name now!

New Winter Premium & Premium Plus Gifts

Premium members, get ready for a special treat! Enjoy an exclusive, limited-edition Premium and Premium Plus gift designed to bring extra holiday cheer and charm to your inworld adventures. Drop by one of the Premium Gift kiosks and pick up your exclusive holiday gift!

Santa Patch & "The Molelves"

Mark your calendars for Friday, December 6, 2024! From 12 PM to 3 PM PT/SLT, join us for a special festive event with Santa Patch and the “Molelves”!

Stop by for holiday fun, photos, and plenty of cheer. Share your Christmas wishes, and don’t miss out on the exclusive Frosty Puff Boopie, available only at the Christmas Expo!
We can’t wait to celebrate with you!

📍 Location: Santa Patch & The Molelves

Linden & Resident Snowball Fight

Grab your warm clothes and prepare for some snowy mayhem at the Winter Wonderland Snowball Fight Arena! This year’s event promises sparkling snowballs, big laughs, and a chance to face off against your favorite Lindens.

Event Details

• When? Friday, December 20th
  • First battle: 8 AM - 9 AM PT/SLT
  • Second battle: 12 PM - 1 PM PT/SLT
• Location: Winter Wonderland Snowball Fight Arena

Arrive early to snag your free snow-launching gear from vendors around the arena. Assemble your squad and prepare for the ultimate showdown. See you on the battlefield! Mark your calendars!

Winter Wonderland

Explore Winter Wonderland by Linden Lab, opening at 7 AM PT/SLT on Friday, December 6, 2024. Winter Wonderland is your go-to holiday destination! You can access this magical region through Portal Park or by direct teleport. Once inside, dive into the action with competitive snowball fights in the arena, race down the slopes in an exciting sledding mini-game, and glide gracefully across a picturesque ice skating rink.

Join the Snowflake Hunt to discover hidden treasures and collect the exciting new 2024 Boopies as your prizes! The Snowflake Hunt is open for everyone to enjoy throughout December.

Snowflake Hunt: Collect Limited-Edition Boopies

The Snowflake Hunt is an exciting activity within the Winter Wonderland regions! This hunt is all about tracking down snowflakes scattered throughout the frosty landscape to win exclusive prizes.

Collect all the snowflakes to claim limited-edition 2024 Boopies! These adorable and festive collectibles are only available during this event, making them the perfect winter keepsake.

How to Join the Snowflake Hunt:

1. The hunt kicks off at 7 AM PT/SLT on Friday, December 6, 2024.
2. Visit the Winter Wonderland region and pick up your Snowflake Hunt HUD.
3. Locate hidden snowflakes throughout Winter Wonderland.
4. Collect snowflakes to unlock your exclusive Boopies!

The hunt runs throughout December, so there’s plenty of time to track down all the snowflakes. Happy hunting!

Second Life Swaginator Hunt for Winter

Are you ready for a winter adventure filled with even more prizes? The Second Life Swaginator Hunt returns with a seasonal spin, offering frosty fun and fantastic treasures!

How It Works

• The hunt kicks off at 7 AM PT/SLT on Friday, December 6, 2024.
• Start your journey: Pick up the free Swaginator HUD from one of the kiosks inworld.
• Solve the clues: Explore winter-themed locations and uncover unique prizes.
• Collect all the gifts: Complete the hunt to gather an exclusive bundle of seasonal items.

This exciting treasure hunt runs throughout the entire month of December, so bundle up and dive into the adventure. Hidden treasures await—don’t miss out!

Winter Swaginator Hunt

The Second Life Swaginator Hunt returns with a seasonal spin, offering frosty fun and fantastic treasures! Pick up the free Swaginator HUD from the kiosk, attach the HUD from your inventory and teleport to winter-themed locations, then complete the hunt by gathering an exclusive bundle of unique prizes and seasonal items. This exciting treasure hunt runs throughout the entire month of December, so bundle up and dive into the adventure. Hidden treasures await! Happy hunting!

More Info Teleport

Winter Attractions on the Destination Guide

If you’re looking for even more winter activities, there are already 100 snow-covered locations in the Winter Attractions category on the Destination Guide. We’re adding new regions daily, so if you have a spot you’d like to invite other Residents to explore, make sure to check out the submission guidelines and submit yours today!

Wishing a safe and happy holiday season to everyone in our virtual community! ❄️🎄🧑‍🎄

A complete list of all participating Shop & Hop Merchants and their direct slurls is below: 

How long have you been in Second Life? 
16 years on 12/12/2024.

ECLIPSE Magazine October 2021 featuring DFS

What inspired you to create the Digital Farm System (DFS), and how has it evolved since its inception?
I have always loved farming simulation games, especially because I find it challenging to keep a garden alive in real life. I truly enjoy the tranquility that farming brings, which is why I spent a lot of time playing Farmville on Facebook and Minecraft. However, after becoming more involved in Second Life, I wanted to recreate that same sense of enjoyment within the game. I explored various farming systems but often found them lacking in fun; they were either tedious or simply didn’t have that special "spice." To address this, I discussed the idea of creating a farming system with some friends and began researching and building prototypes. DFS started in a small skybox parcel, where I set up a basic vendor and an area to demonstrate how the system works. I initially used a brown and pink box to represent a cow and a bull. My skills were primarily in coding, so I relied heavily on the amazing full-perm meshes, sculpts, and textures available from Second Life stores and the marketplace.

As DFS gained popularity and became financially viable, I was able to hire 3D model designers and texture artists to create more custom and unique items. This led to the expansion of DFS into three full regions on the grid, starting with the main DFS store, and two community regions: Benbrook Acres and Benbrook Springs, which feature a large market where DFS customers can sell their items.

Over the past eight years, DFS has experienced significant growth, now boasting over 33,000 registered users and an average of seven new users joining each day. In addition to farming crops, raising animals, and managing fields, I would like to highlight our incredible crafting system. This system allows players to utilize all the items and ingredients harvested from farming, ensuring that users are rewarded for their hard work with access to over 2,000 recipes in our database. We have also embraced new technology in Second Life by expanding into animating mesh with DFS Pets. This subsection of DFS features animals with smooth animations, enhancing the realism of the environment. So far, we have created an adorable Highland cow and a Shetland Pony, with plans to introduce many more pets in the future.

DFS Pets - Shetland Pony

DFS has become a popular community in Second Life. What do you think makes it so engaging for its users?
From the beginning of DFS, my vision has been to create a community-driven system where customers can assist one another instead of relying solely on staff for help. We prioritize transparency in the information we provide. Since the functionality of items throughout the system is similar, the farming process becomes easy to navigate once you grasp the basics. I take great pride in fostering a welcoming and supportive community, which includes many families that enjoy doing farm chores together.

DFS includes features like crop cultivation, cooking, and raising animals. What are some of your favorite aspects or activities within DFS?
Many of my friends and customers say that the best part of DFS is the "Oopsie!" item you receive when you make a mistake in cooking or crafting. However, my favorite aspect of DFS is how everything is interconnected. You start by growing items, then craft them into food for energy, which you use to farm, and then repeat the cycle. This creates a closed system that consistently provides a surplus of food, allowing you to resell it or use it in various roleplay scenarios within Second Life. I particularly enjoy the cooking and crafting aspects of the system. Creating some of the more complex recipes can be quite challenging, as it requires careful attention to place items in the correct slots, use the right equipment, and gather all the necessary ingredients.

DFS Pets - Highland Cow

Are there any memorable moments or milestones in DFS’s journey that stand out to you?
I would like to share some memorable moments from the growth of DFS over the years:

1. One of my first breakthroughs was figuring out how to enable the animals to breed with each other. It involved two prims communicating with each other and requesting a baby from a web server.

2. I also discovered how to make fields work with new seeds without recoding them. I streamlined the process by sending the texture stages, growing times, and product data to request from the server upon harvesting.

3. One of the most challenging yet exciting moments was when I developed the crafting system. I loaded recipes into a database, making them instantly available to all customers without requiring any changes or updates. This achievement had me jumping out of my chair in excitement!

4. I will always remember the day I secured my first region on Second Life and moved my store there. I was incredibly proud and chose to name it DFS to align with my system.

5. Perhaps the most life-changing moment came when I successfully withdrew money from Second Life. This success with DFS allowed me to pay for real-life bills and focus more on developing the system. It also enabled me to hire staff from Second Life, helping them improve their own lives.

These moments mark significant milestones in my journey with DFS.

Are there any exciting updates or new features coming to DFS that you’d like to share with the community?
We have some exciting new items and recipes on the way, including unique offerings and limited-edition seasonal items! With DFS Pets, we're introducing more animals, such as a reindeer for the Christmas Shop and Hop event in 2024. We're also thrilled about upcoming additions like a baby chicken and an axolotl currently in development.

What advice would you give to someone looking to start their own system or community in Second Life?
When developing your own system, you must have a solid understanding of coding, databases, server management, and problem-solving. There is a lot involved not only in creating a system but also in maintaining it afterward. I was fortunate to study software development, server management, and database administration. With several years of experience in system development, I have been able to keep up with the demands of the field. One of the significant aspects of Second Life is that many talented coders and designers are available for hire to assist with the development process. It’s also important to surround yourself with positive people who motivate and keep you on track during difficult times. Having team members who can provide constructive feedback and suggestions is invaluable. When you create a system or start your own community, design it so you would enjoy participating in yourself. The most rewarding aspect comes from witnessing the joy and excitement users express when interacting with your system. Avoid including elements you would not want to engage with, such as making processes overly tedious or difficult to follow. Keeping the rules and guidelines simple and easy to understand will enhance the overall experience for you and your users.

Where can people see your work? Please share links to your sites, store, and social media accounts.
Website: https://www.digitalfarmsystem.com 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/digitalfarmsystem
Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/groups/official_dfs/pool 
DFS - Digital Farm System store: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/DFS/126/149/24 
DFS Community Sims: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/DFS Community Sim/119/128/22
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/DFS Fishermans Bay/110/71/22
DFS Main Market: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/DFS Fishermans Bay/80/119/22

DFS Highland Cow and Bull

Thank you Ice, for sharing your journey and innovations with us. Your dedication not only enhances the experiences within Second Life but also inspires countless others to pursue their own creative ventures. And happy 16th rez day!

Each of our Spotlight interviews offers a unique glimpse into the diverse experiences and vibrant personalities that shape our virtual world. Explore more stories and get inspired by visiting our full collection of Spotlight posts.

How long have you been in Second Life and how did you first hear about it?
Seventeen years ago, I was on an old social network called Orkut when I noticed Brazilians creating profiles with photos of characters that were unlike anything I’d ever seen. Intrigued, I started chatting with one of them, and they introduced me to Second Life. That’s how my journey began in 2007.

What inspired you to create VELOUR, and could you share more about the range of products you offer and what makes them unique in the Second Life market?
Before creating VELOUR, I managed It Girls, a store owned by my childhood friend Annie Jolifaunt. When she was on vacation, I would take care of her store, analyzing sales through the vendor system. During that time, I started noticing patterns, identifying the best-performing products, and understanding which niches were the most successful for It Girls.

I wanted to apply this analytical and statistical knowledge to my own brand while continuing to support It Girls. Annie taught me many skills in SL, including how to create makeup and skins, which set the foundation for VELOUR.

Today, VELOUR offers a wide range of products, from body and face skins to makeup, add-ons, and hairbases. What makes us unique is our Universal Match Project, which allows customers to seamlessly match our body skins with face skins from other creators. With more than 1,300 affiliated stores, we’ve created a collaborative network that elevates everyone’s work.

VELOUR has played a pivotal role in standardizing body skin tones across Second Life. Could you tell us more about the decision to offer such partnerships to other creators, and how can new creators sign up? 
The idea of offering our skin tones to all creators—whether they started yesterday or are already well-established—came from Annie. She recognized my business skills and encouraged me to pursue this concept. While she focused on textures, I worked on developing the Dev Kits and reached out to designers to invite them to join our affiliate program.

Our partnership program is open to everyone, and all applicants are accepted. To join, creators can apply here: https://tinyurl.com/VELOURpartnership.

Could you tell us more about the concept behind VELOUR Mall and how it enhances the shopping experience for Residents?
I’m obsessed with malls. Whenever I visit a new city, the first place I look for is a mall because I love being able to shop for everything I need in one place.

In Second Life, I’ve built lasting friendships with some incredible people who have become real-life friends. One day, I said to them, “What if we all joined forces in one big space that looks like a real mall? A place where residents can come to buy a skin, and then shop for shoes, clothes, hair, and accessories all in one trip?”

That’s how VELOUR Mall was born. It’s designed to create an immersive and convenient shopping experience for our customers. Residents have told me it’s one of their favorite destinations, and that kind of feedback means the world to me.

Velour Mall

Velour Mall caters to all your avatar needs with a variety of high-end stores that sell skins, shoes, cosmetics, poses, accessories, and more! Some of the stores include Velour Beauty, It Girls, Faenzo Hair, Salvadori Paris, and more.

More Info Teleport

In your view, how has VELOUR influenced the beauty and fashion landscape within Second Life?
VELOUR has set a new standard in the community by simplifying how customers match their skins with our body tones.

Although we weren’t the first to share Dev Kits, we were the first to make them publicly available, which made VELOUR the top choice for body skins. Our initiative has helped establish a collaborative and inclusive approach that benefits both creators and customers.

What are some of the future plans or upcoming innovations for VELOUR?
We’re planning to expand VELOUR Mall with a second region connected to our current one, giving customers an even bigger and better shopping experience. (Hair stores, we’re looking at you 👀).

In addition, we’re excited to announce new body skins coming in 2025. These will feature significant improvements over our previous lines, and we can’t wait to share them with everyone!

Where can people see your work? Please share links to your sites and social media accounts.
You can check our work in our FLICKR! https://flickr.com/photos/133402407@N06

Thank you, Kiria, for your visionary contributions and for elevating the virtual beauty landscape in Second Life.

Each of our Spotlight interviews offers a unique glimpse into the diverse experiences and vibrant personalities that shape our virtual world. Explore more stories and get inspired by visiting our full collection of Spotlight posts.

We’ve categorized and created public RSS feeds for participants of the SLBN, making it easier than ever to explore the diverse content created by our community. These feeds are organized to reflect the unique platforms and approaches our bloggers use to share their stories, styles, and insights about Second Life.

Important Notes on RSS Feeds

• We do not endorse or take responsibility for the content in these public RSS feeds: The opinions expressed in these feeds do not reflect the views of Linden Research, Inc. or its employees. All content remains the responsibility of the individual bloggers. These feeds simply provide a way to discover the incredible work being done by members of the SLBN community.
• We will not share all posts from these feeds to our official social channels and web properties: As always, we’ll curate and highlight specific posts that stand out and align with our SLBN Terms & Conditions and Content Guidelines at our discretion.
• Help us keep the feeds current: While we monitor these feeds to identify posts for promotion, there may be instances where we miss changes in a blogger’s content. If you notice that a blogger no longer creates content about Second Life or their focus has shifted away from topics relevant to the Blogger Network community, please let us know. Email us at editor@lindenlab.com, and we’ll review and, if necessary, remove them from the network.
• Content inclusion: We reserve the right to exclude any bloggers or content from these feeds at our discretion, even if they have signed up for the SLBN.

Explore the SLBN RSS Feeds 

The following public RSS feeds are now available:

• Second Life Blogger Network: This RSS feed showcases the posts from all bloggers in the network, offering a comprehensive view of the diverse content created by SLBN participants. Below, we’ve categorized the feeds into specific topics to help you find exactly what you’re looking for. However, if you’d prefer to see everything in one place, this is the feed for you.
• Second Life Bloggers: Featuring bloggers who publish on official blogging platforms or their own domains and write in-depth posts about Second Life. Whether they’re covering fashion, art, destinations, tutorials, events, or community highlights, these bloggers are crafting written content that dives deeper into the Second Life experience.
• Second Life Video Bloggers: This feed features Residents who craft compelling video content, including live streams and edited videos about the world of Second Life.
• Second Life Fashion Bloggers: This feed highlights fashion-focused bloggers who share their creativity by showcasing stunning imagery and detailed style credits. These bloggers celebrate the artistry of fashion in Second Life.
• Second Life Decor Bloggers: This feed features bloggers who specialize in home and decor content, showcasing beautifully designed spaces and sharing decor details. These bloggers inspire others to transform their Second Life environments.
• Second Life Destination Bloggers: This feed includes bloggers who often spotlight must-visit locations in Second Life, offering stunning visuals and helpful slurls to explore destinations. These bloggers make it easier to discover the many incredible places in Second Life.

We may expand these categories in the future as new formats emerge.

Limitations for Social Media Bloggers

If you’ve signed up for the SLBN with links to social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Primfeed, or blogging platforms such as Wix and some others, please note that not all of these platforms generate proper working RSS feeds. While we’re unable to include your content in these public RSS feeds, rest assured that we’re still actively following your work and may feature it on our own social channels as part of the Blogger Network’s promotional efforts. If you don’t see your blog showing up in the RSS feeds, this is likely the reason. Feel free to resubmit your application with a social network that does have a working RSS feed, such as YouTube or Flickr.

Join the Conversation

We’re excited to see how these public RSS feeds enhance the visibility of the Second Life blogging community. If you’re already part of the SLBN, your eligible content may be included. If you’re new to the program, sign up today to share your work with the broader community.

Let’s continue to celebrate and support the creativity of the Second Life community. Together, we’re shaping a vibrant future for storytelling in Second Life.

For questions or feedback, reach out to us at editor@lindenlab.com.

Happy blogging!

Since its inception, the SLBN has been a platform to amplify high-quality, independent blog content through our official channels, including social media. This aspect will remain a core focus as we relaunch and refine this initiative, but SLBN 2.0 brings an exciting new element: exclusive insider access to Second Life executives and early previews of upcoming features.

What’s New in SLBN 2.0?

In addition to showcasing your incredible content to the broader Second Life community, SLBN 2.0 will now include:

• Direct Access to Executives: Gain insider insights with occasional opportunities to meet directly with Second Life executives in a group setting to discuss platform news, updates, and strategic initiatives.
• Early Feature Previews: Be among the first to learn about and discuss new features before they are publicly released. This means you’ll have a head start in sharing timely and relevant updates with your audience.
• Exclusive Conversations: Participate in closed discussions that allow you to provide feedback and shape conversations about the future of Second Life.

These enhancements are designed to empower our community of bloggers and influencers by offering new tools to engage their audiences with exclusive content and insights.

How to Join SLBN 2.0

Participation remains free and non-exclusive, and joining is simple:

• Review the SLBN Terms & Conditions and Content Guidelines. We respect diversity of opinion and your blog and voice remains independent if you participate in this initiative. However, access to executive meetups is reserved for constructive conversations and feedback - and we reserve the right to remove participants if they engage in hate speech, trolling, or toxic behavior. There is also the opportunity for your blogs to be amplified across our social channels, but we will only promote content that meets specific standards to ensure suitability for all audiences.
• Fill out the Submission Form. If you’re already an SLBN participant and actively blogging, you don’t need to reapply—you’re automatically eligible for SLBN 2.0 perks. Please make sure that you include the link to your active blog – only active bloggers will be considered for inclusion in this initiative. We reserve the right to remove participants if there is an extended period of blogging inactivity.
• Optional: Add the SLBN Badge to Your Blog. Proudly display your participation with an SLBN badge. Grab it here.

Once enrolled, you’ll continue to have your blog, stream, or social posts reviewed for potential promotion through our existing channels. Participation in executive briefings and feature previews will be managed separately and by invitation. Depending on the number of total participants, we may occasionally break down meetups into smaller groups - so if you are not invited to one event then keep your eyes peeled on your inbox for future opportunities.

Why Join SLBN 2.0?

SLBN 2.0 is not just about promoting your content—it’s about building deeper connections within the Second Life ecosystem. You’ll be part of an exclusive group of bloggers, streamers, and influencers who are uniquely positioned to inform, inspire, and grow the Second Life community with timely, impactful updates.

Ready to Get Started?

If you’re a new blogger, get started by signing up here. If you’re an existing SLBN participant, keep an eye on your inbox for updates about upcoming opportunities in SLBN 2.0.

We’re excited to grow this initiative with our amazing community of bloggers and influencers. If you have questions, feel free to reach out to editor@lindenlab.com.

Thank you for being an essential part of the Second Life story. Together, we’ll continue to create, share, and shape the vibrant world of Second Life.

Let’s get blogging!

Update of Public RSS Feeds for Blogger Discovery

We’ve categorized and created public RSS feeds for participants of the SLBN, making it easier than ever to explore the diverse content created by our community. Read more about them here.

The much-anticipated Second Life Mobile Beta is here – and it’s available now to everyone! 

With Second Life Mobile, you can:

• Socialize & Stay Connected - Chat with both text and spatialized voice, you can keep up with your virtual friends and communities. Take your conversations anywhere and never miss a message again with Notifications!
• Discover & Explore - Thousands of exciting 3D spaces await you: dance clubs, stores, art, role playing, community hubs, and more. Now you can visit all of Second Life on your mobile device!
• Style and Show Off your Avatar - Choose the right outfit for where you’re going, whether it’s dancing, shopping, or just hanging out with your friends.
• Experience Game-like Moving and Camming - Much like your favorite mobile games, you can get around Second Life with one hand, using a familiar virtual joystick. Zoom and pan the camera using gestures you already know. Long press on avatars and objects to see a menu of actions like “sit,” “pay,” “view profile,” etc. 

Experience the Second Life virtual world you know and love - available in beta on both the App Store and Play Store.

The app is still in beta so don't hesitate to share your feedback and ideas. Your input helps us enhance your mobile experience!

Happy Autumn! Thank you for all the suggestions sent in for future last names through our Last Name Suggestion Form. 

Today we are doing another big last name refresh by removing some of the older last name options and adding the following new ones from your suggestions:
Mouse
Victis
Wheel
Pudding
Demure
Nightwish
Fledermaus
Whisper
Pooh
Velvet

The following is a screenshot of the full list of current last names available:

We will continue to make additional updates to the available last name pool, so if these options aren’t for you, stay tuned for future updates. You can also continue to suggest your favorite name on our suggestion form, all new names are chosen from there! 

For more information about the costs and how-tos involved in name changes, read the Changing your username FAQ. Click to change your name now!

How long have you been in Second Life and how did you first hear about it?
I joined SL in 2006. Wow, 19 years! I took a year off from my job in advertising to stay home with my real-life baby. He is 18 now. I was bored as a full-time stay-at-home mom and read an article about an innovative virtual world with user-generated content. I joined out of curiosity. I became hooked instantly and bought a prim cat. I felt a need to hold my cat when I logged in. My cat became part of who I was. I realized that the cat became part of my own virtual identity.

I then thought maybe I could make a better cat. I made my own white fluffy cat with prim flexies (old avatars will know what that is) that was a representation of my real-life cat named Spaceman. I then held my own cat while I wandered various sims. Random users would ask me where I purchased my cat and wanted to buy it. I then decided I should open up a virtual pet store and convinced my husband at the time to spend $300 USD on virtual land. Within a year I replaced my advertising salary and have not looked back.

Zooby Animesh baby clothing by Sweet Penelope through the Zooby Affiliate program

How and when did you get into content creation in Second Life?
I have been consistently making content in Second Life for roughly 19 years. It is my full-time job and I support my family with income earned from selling virtual goods. I took a break from 2014-2017 to make a mobile game. I came back to SL in 2017 when Animesh was in development. I knew I had to update my products, so I spent close to 2 years developing the Zooby Animesh Baby. I also wanted to be one of the first creators to focus on Animesh. I have a team that helps me develop products, and I focus on my strengths which include project management, art, design, 3d modeling, and painting/drawing. I hire and collaborate closely with software developers, 3d modelers, and animators.

Zooby Animesh baby clothing by Sweet Penelope through the Zooby Affiliate program

What tools do you use to craft your content? Are there specific resources you recommend to aspiring creators?
I have a master's degree in fine art from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. I do not have a business degree. I learned the basics of C4d in 2017. I did not learn Blender until 2019-2020. I did not learn Substance Painter until 2022. I have always had the mindset that if you are dedicated to learning regardless of your age or circumstances, you can. It just takes time, patience, and dedication. I have always loved art and have been able to focus for long periods of time on a project. Substance Painter allows projection painting and that became a natural tool for me and helped me create the realistic fur for the Zooby Animesh Puppies. Blender is also a terrific resource because not only is it free, but there are endless tutorials online to learn and develop a skillset. I fell in love with 3d modeling. I also work with extremely talented people and give them freedom to develop their skills and foster their own creativity.

Click to watch the Zooby Animesh Yellow Lab + Wings! on Flickr

Tell us more about your latest project, the Zooby Animesh Puppies. What inspired the designs and features?
I have a deep understanding of the SL community and intuition on what people like to do here. Role-play is huge. Creating experiences you cannot otherwise have in real life is also essential. I wanted to make puppies that had advanced interactive functionality. The idea was to create a shared experience with the puppies so users could enjoy them together with friends and family. The puppies had to look as real as possible. There had to be an emotional connection so the owner of the puppy felt it was their puppy. It is not possible to do a project of this scale alone, so I have a wonderful team that helped make my vision become a reality. It has also taken years to build this team.

Here is a list of key features that set the puppies apart:

• Zooby Puppies can share accessories.
• Zooby Puppies include a care system where you can collect tokens and redeem them for puppy toys.
• Friends can be added to all Zooby Puppies to provide care and interact.
• All Zooby Puppies can be interacted with.
• Zooby Puppies can sleep in beds, poop/pee on puppy pads, relax on love pillows, chew on bones, snuggle with toys, and eat from food bowls.
• Zooby Animesh Babies can interact with Zooby Animesh Puppies.
• Zooby Puppies include over 100 animations.
• Post launch Zooby Puppies will be able to wear clothing. Texture Hud Kits will be provided to 3rd parties to create and sell clothing and accessory     textures for the puppies.
• Zooby Puppies can walk/run/fly while attached to you and while in travel mode they can be taken anywhere in SL.
• Zooby Puppies can be held and snuggled by their owner.
• Zooby Puppies can independently fly with wings. (Flying independently with wings includes new animations, is an add-on, and has a small fee.)
• Zooby Puppies can run or walk around your sim where you set the radius and location.
• Zooby Puppies include a Hud that allows you to rez any puppy you own and you can never lose a puppy.
• Zooby Puppies have carefully detailed, custom, realistic fur and will make your heart melt when you look at them.
• In the future, you will be able to walk them on a leash, and play ball/fetch with Zooby Puppies and they will bring you a newspaper.

Click to watch the the Zooby Animesh Husky + Baby Interactions on Flickr 

What are your future plans or upcoming projects that fans of Zooby can look forward to?
I plan to make many more puppy breeds and then move on to other pets. I plan to stick around SL for a few more years and see how things go!

From your perspective, how has Second Life evolved over the years, and what makes it an incredible experience for new users today?
I love the freedom to make anything I can think of. I was not a fan of working for an ad agency and was glad to quit. I also needed a creative outlet. SL has provided me the opportunity to make amazing products and watch them come to fruition. Having a connection to the community has been inspiring because I have seen people fall in love with ephemeral things and that is absolutely fascinating to me. I have met incredibly talented people here and we have worked together without any typical social barriers. Your gender, identity, race, religion, ethnicity, education, and upbringing do not matter. All that matters is the work. I love that for so many reasons. SL has allowed people to make beautiful things and given users the opportunity to explore and imagine a life they want to live.

Where can people see your work? Please share links to your store, websites, and social media accounts.
Here is a list of the social media links:

Discord  
Facebook
YouTube  
Instagram  
Twitter  
Zooby Store  
Zooby Group: secondlife:///app/group/fc43d42e-3ba3-b77c-cdf3-5ec035f7a230/about 

Thank you, Carrie, for pushing the boundaries in SL and enriching our virtual experiences with every new Zooby creation.

Each of our Spotlight interviews offers a unique glimpse into the diverse experiences and vibrant personalities that shape our virtual world. Explore more stories and get inspired by visiting our full collection of Spotlight posts.

Brad Oberwager, who has led Linden Lab’s evolution over the last four years, notes this exciting transition with enthusiasm: 

"Over the last four years since the acquisition, Linden Lab has re-focused itself on improving and serving Second Life. We’ve divested ourselves of unnecessary projects, streamlined our operations, increased the quality of customer support, and grown our overall revenues and profitability. We’re now in a unique position to define the future of virtual worlds, and Philip is returning to help myself and the exec team achieve that goal."

Philip’s return comes at a time when advancements in AI and mobile technology are rapidly making virtual worlds more accessible and mainstream than ever before. A pioneer in virtual world development, Philip is uniquely able to drive Second Life forward in new, transformative directions. Reflecting on his journey, Philip shares:

“I started Second Life in 1999 – a decade before cloud computing and two decades before AI. We were early, but the success of Second Life to this day shows that we were not wrong. Virtual worlds will play an increasingly important role in the future of human culture, and I’m coming back to help make that happen in a way that has the most positive impact for the largest number of people." 

Community Roundtable with Philip - This Friday!

As part of his return to Second Life, Philip will be actively engaged inworld with our communities and creators to listen, learn, and collaborate on ways to improve our shared virtual world. He will be taking your questions and sharing more of his vision for Second Life this Friday at 10 am SLT as part of our next Community Roundtable series, located at the Linden Estates Services region. Here’s your chance to interact directly with Philip inworld to learn more about the past, present and future of our shared virtual world. Questions can be submitted in advance for consideration at this link.

Meet Philip Rosedale: A Legacy in Virtual Innovation

For those who may not know Philip’s background, his journey to Second Life was fueled by a lifelong fascination with using computers to simulate the beauty and complexity of the real world. Born in San Diego and the son of a Navy carrier pilot, Philip grew up moving across the United States before returning to San Diego for high school and college, earning a B.S. in Physics from UC San Diego in 1992.

Philip’s career began with a software startup he founded in high school, funding his college education. Moving to San Francisco in 1994, he discovered the Internet and developed FreeVue, a groundbreaking video conferencing app that was acquired by RealNetworks in 1995. There, he led the development of RealVideo and ascended to the role of CTO.

In 1999, Philip left RealNetworks to found Linden Lab, pursuing his vision of creating an open virtual world. After leading Second Life as CEO for a decade, Philip went on to co-found experimental projects like LoveMachine, Worklist.net, and Coffee & Power, before founding High Fidelity in 2013, an open-source virtual world platform initially focused on VR. More recently, High Fidelity has innovated in spatial audio, an area critical to the immersive experience of virtual environments.

Beyond these achievements, Philip has been actively involved in new projects at his IRL415 lab in San Francisco, including FairShare, an initiative aimed at addressing wealth inequality through group-based digital currency.

As we enter this new chapter with Philip’s expertise and visionary leadership at the helm, Linden Lab is more committed than ever to enhancing and expanding Second Life in ways that impact our community positively and prepare us all for a future where virtual worlds play a central role. Join us in welcoming Philip back and stay tuned for exciting updates as we move forward together!

Join us at the Helios Casino for a hauntingly good time at our Halloween Party and Costume Contest.

🎃 Event Details:

• Date: October 31st
• Time: 12 PM SLT - 2 PM SLT
• Location: Helios Casino, Second Life

👻 What's in Store:

• Costume Contest: Don your best Halloween attire! From ghouls and ghosts to witches and wizards, show off your creativity for a chance to win fantastic prizes.
• Dad Jokes: Get ready for a spooky dose of humor with our hilarious dad jokes, featuring special appearances by Patch Linden and Abnor Mole—guaranteed to make you groan and giggle!
• Gaming Fun: Try your luck at our casino games! Who knows? You might get lucky and win big!
• Spooky Decorations: The Helios Casino will be transformed into a haunted haven. Prepare for some eerie surprises!
• Socialize and Mingle: Meet new friends and reconnect with old ones. The Halloween spirit is all about community and fun.

👗 Costume Contest Categories:

• BEST IN: Best Elvis Costume (Male or Female)
• BEST IN: Best Elvira Costume (Male or Female)
• BEST IN: Best Non-Elvis/Elvira Costume

🎁 Costume Contest Prizes:

• 1st Place: 150,000 Chips
• 2nd Place: 75,000 Chips
• 3rd Place: 50,000 Chips

💰 Exclusive Virtual Prizes:

• You can exchange your chips for exclusive virtual prizes!
• Work your way up the leaderboard to show off your wins.
• Free casino chips will be available to get you started!

📅 How to Join: Simply teleport to the Helios Casino on October 31st, and you're in for an unforgettable night.

So, dust off your costume, gather your friends, and head over to the Helios Casino for a Halloween party like no other. We can't wait to see you there!

Teleport now: https://secondlife.com/destination/helios-casino-lounge 

Helios Casino & Lounge

Love slots, video poker, and Blackjack? Helios Casino & Lounge is Second Life's premier social casino where you get free chips to play daily! Work your way up the leaderboard to show off your wins, and don’t forget to try your luck on one of the many games in this exciting social experience.

More Info Teleport

Happy Haunting! 🎃👻

Halloween may still be spookily lingering, but we’re already brewing up plans for the festive season! We’re excited to announce the return of our highly anticipated Holiday Shop & Hop event. Mark your calendars for a spectacular shopping extravaganza starting on December 6th, 2024, and running through January 5th, 2025. Get ready for a festive shopping experience like no other!

Calling all Merchants - now's your chance to be a part of this year's festivities! Applications are now open for Creators to participate and add a dash of magic to this seasonal celebration, which will feature multiple shopping regions and tons of festive fun! We are looking for Merchants willing to offer a discount on their items (at least 20% off) and provide a new non-exclusive gift to shoppers.
 
If this sounds like something you would be interested in, please fill out this form as soon as possible and no later than Sunday, October 27th. We will contact you soon after that date if your application is accepted. We can't wait to usher in this holiday season with you!

Remember, the 2024 Halloween Shop & Hop is still ongoing, so don’t miss your chance to explore it through November 3rd!

New Support Hours
Starting October 18, 2024, our Phone and Live Chat team will be available during the following hours:

Monday – Friday: 6:30 AM – 2:30 PM SLT

Our ticketing system at https://support.secondlife.com is always available. 

These updated hours will allow us to focus our resources during peak times, ensuring that your questions and concerns are addressed more promptly. We believe that this change will help us provide even better customer service, and we look forward to continuing to support you during these new hours.

We remain dedicated to delivering the same high level of support and customer care, just within a slightly adjusted schedule.  In the near future, we will have some exciting new ways in which to help all our Residents. This will take a little time, so as soon as we have something new to share we’ll post a new blog with all the information.  

Stay tuned!

What’s Changing?

In 2021, we implemented a general prohibition on gachas to align with global regulatory concerns. Starting October 7, 2024, we are lifting this prohibition. Residents can once again engage in gacha-based sales, but with a key new rule: gacha items, including the boxes or containers they come in, must not be transferable. This means that once you purchase a gacha item, it is yours and cannot be passed on to other users.

Key Highlights:

• No Transferability: Gacha items and their containers must be set as “No Transfer” to ensure that they can only be used by the buyer. This applies to both the object inside and any packaging used for delivery.
• Breedables: Breedable pets and other life simulation content are exempt from this policy and can continue to operate as they have before.
• Games of Skill: If a game of skill (like throwing darts or spinning a wheel) is used to win a prize, it is still permitted as long as the prize and its container are marked as "No Transfer."
• Subscription Boxes: Subscription boxes are unaffected, as long as all participants receive the same content. Different items distributed to different subscribers based on chance are now allowed but must also follow the “No Transfer” rule.
• Warnings and Enforcement: Violations of this new policy will result in warnings or removal of items and vendor systems. Repeated violations can lead to account suspension, termination, or loss of land.

Why the Change?

At Linden Lab, we believe in giving our Residents the freedom to engage in a wide range of activities in Second Life. The changes in the legal climate surrounding gachas and loot boxes have allowed us to relax our restrictions while still maintaining protections for our community.

For more detailed information on the specific rules and exceptions, please refer to our Updated Gacha Policy FAQ.

With the holiday shopping season approaching, we’re excited to see how creators and Residents will engage with these new opportunities in Second Life while adhering to these updated guidelines!

Why Update Your Drivers?

Video card drivers are crucial for translating between your computer's hardware and the software you enjoy. Manufacturers regularly release driver updates to fix bugs, improve performance, and add new features. Keeping these drivers updated ensures that your system runs software more efficiently and reduces the likelihood of running into problems while navigating through Second Life.

How to Update Your Drivers

Updating your drivers is straightforward. For most users, the simplest method is through automatic updates:

For Windows Users: You can update all your hardware drivers, including your graphics driver, by performing a routine system update. Just click on the Start menu, type "update," and follow the instructions to check for updates. This will help ensure that all your drivers, including those for your video card, are up to date.

For Mac Users: Mac users can update their drivers by performing a system update through the Apple menu. Simply click on the Apple icon, navigate to 'System Settings' or 'System Preferences,' and select 'Software Update' to check if there are any updates available.

For those who prefer a bit more control or want specific driver updates, manual updates can be done through Device Manager on Windows, or by downloading updates directly from the graphics card manufacturer's website for NVIDIA, AMD and Intel alike.

Additional Resources

For a detailed guide on updating your graphics drivers, whether automatically or manually, and to understand more about why this is important, you can refer to this helpful wikiHow article.

Let's Keep Second Life Beautiful!

Updating your video card drivers might seem like a small task, but it can significantly enhance your Second Life experience. Better graphics performance leads to a richer virtual world where everything from textures to animations looks as stunning as intended. So take a few minutes to check and update your drivers today; it's an easy step towards ensuring that Second Life remains as engaging and immersive as ever.

1. Enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

Adding an extra layer of protection to your account through Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) is one of the most effective ways to secure it. MFA requires you to verify your identity using something beyond just your password, like a code sent to your phone. This means that even if someone gets your password, they won’t be able to access important parts of your account without the second factor.

How to enable MFA:
Visit this guide for step-by-step instructions on enabling MFA for your Second Life account. Adding this extra layer of protection will make it much harder for unauthorized users to access your account, ensuring your virtual life stays secure!

2. Don’t Reuse Passwords

While it might be tempting to use the same password for different accounts, doing so opens the door to a dangerous vulnerability called “credential stuffing.” If one of your accounts gets compromised, cybercriminals can try the same password on other accounts, including your Second Life account. Create unique, complex passwords for each platform to prevent this.

Password Tips:

• Use a password manager to store and generate secure passwords.
• A strong password includes letters, numbers, and symbols.
• Try using a passphrase instead of a regular password.

3. Be on the Lookout for Phishing Links

Phishing attacks are common and aim to steal your personal information by tricking you into clicking malicious links. Scammers may pose as trusted sources, like Second Life support or even other users, asking for sensitive information or tempting you to click suspicious links. Always verify the source before clicking on anything unfamiliar.

For more tips on how to spot phishing scams, check out this detailed post.

Phishing Red Flags:

• Unsolicited messages or suspicious requests.
• Strange looking URLs
• Messages urging immediate action (e.g., “Your account will be locked if you don’t act now!”).

Remember if something seems off, it’s always better to ignore it and report it.

4. Don’t Fall for Scams

Scammers in Second Life often use clever tricks to exploit users, including fake offers, giveaways, or emotional stories designed to tug at your heartstrings. They may claim to need help, ask for donations, or promise something in return if you assist them. Sometimes they might even pose as support from Second Life or other trusted sources. While it’s easy to sympathize, always be cautious with anyone asking for money or personal details.

How to Spot a Scam:

• Unrealistic promises (e.g., “Get free Linden dollars now!”).
• Unverified contests or giveaways.
• Emotional stories asking for help, especially if they involve personal gain or require sending funds or sharing sensitive information.

If it sounds too good to be true, or too heartbreaking to be true, it probably is. 

5. Don’t Share Your Account

Sharing your account with others, even friends or family, increases the risk of someone using your account for something they shouldn’t have. You never know how secure their devices or networks are, and once someone else has access, you lose control over your account’s security.

Remember:
Your Second Life account is personal. Keep it that way to stay secure.

By following these simple yet effective tips, you can better protect your Second Life account and enjoy your virtual experience worry-free. Stay safe, be vigilant, and spread the word during Cyber Security Awareness Month.
 

Annual Trick or Treat Event in Bellisseria!

Join the Halloween fun in Bellisseria this season to collect candy and win exciting prizes! This interactive event is open to everyone, with Bellisseria Residents hosting Candy Buckets on their parcels. Don’t miss out on the spooky partygoers and creative costumes during this virtual Trick or Treat.

Plus, there are prizes for all participants! Check out Patch Linden’s forum post for all the eerie details and teleport over to grab the HUD and start trick or treating! 

2024 Halloween Shop & Hop

The 2024 Halloween Shop & Hop is just around the corner, featuring 400 merchants across 20 shopping regions, promising loads of spooktacular fun! Each store will offer at least a 20% discount on all items, along with a new and exclusive gift or a gift certificate valued at L$300 or more, available for free!

We’re eagerly awaiting the official opening to the public on Friday, October 4th at 9am PT. But why wait when you can get early access? Join the official Second Life Birthday group inworld to start shopping now, ahead of the general public.

Before diving inworld, sneak a peek at many of the available items in the official Second Life Shop & Hop Flickr pool. Don’t forget to share photos of your haul too!

To visit the 2024 Halloween Shop & Hop, start at any of the regions, but make sure to explore them all to see everything on offer. Happy shopping!

Keep scrolling to the end of this post for a complete list of all 400 participating Shop & Hop merchants in alphabetical order!

Halloween Last Names

The following Halloween-themed names are only available for a limited time.  
Claw
Fangsby
Shade
Spooktail
Growl
Bloodstone
Witch
Vile
Ebony
Phantom

We will continue to make additional updates to the available last name pool, so if these options aren’t for you, stay tuned for future updates. You can also suggest your favorite name on our suggestion form, the new names were chosen from there!

For more information about the costs and how-tos involved in name changes, read the Changing your username FAQ. Click to change your name now!

Halloween Swaginator Hunt

Halloween Swaginator Hunt

Linden Lab's Halloween Swaginator Hunt is back! Start at the spooky Millbank region, touch to receive the Halloween 2024 Swaginator HUD, right-click and add it from your inventory, and then dive into a thrilling adventure as you search for hidden treasures and exclusive Halloween-themed prizes. Explore eerie locations, solve mysterious clues, and enjoy the festive atmosphere. Don’t miss out on this exciting quest to celebrate the Halloween season!

More Info Teleport

Embark on the Swaginator Hunt in Second Life, starting at the spooky Millbank region! Dive into a thrilling adventure as you search for hidden treasures and exclusive Halloween-themed prizes. Explore eerie locations, solve mysterious clues, and enjoy the festive atmosphere. Don’t miss out on this exciting quest to celebrate the Halloween season!

Halloween Premium Gift

Pick up your Premium Gift, Halloween Mirror at one of our Premium Gift Collection Spots on the Destination Guide.

Halloween Premium Plus Gift

Pick up your Premium Gift and Premium Plus Gift, Animated Bat Wings and Decor Pack at Premium Plus users-only Sandbox Radiantia. 

New Seasonal Overlay Regions

The Muehlenbach and Chippewa Junction regions will be temporarily adorned with festive decorations to celebrate the fall and Halloween season.

Halloween Haunted Neighborhood

Halloween Haunted Neighborhood

The Millbank region has undergone a spooky overhaul, with numerous Linden Homes getting a haunted horror theme. Grab a red balloon, explore the haunted houses, and enjoy the eerie sights! Take a step inside the homes while you’re at it: there are such sights to show you.

More Info Teleport

The Millbank region has transformed into a spooky wonderland once again, with many Linden Homes adopting a haunted horror theme. Visit the Halloween Haunted Neighborhood, grab a red balloon, explore the numerous haunted houses, and enjoy the eerie sights!

Halloween Haunted Tour

Halloween Haunted Tour

The bone-chilling Halloween Haunted Tour by Linden Lab is back again! Hop in a coffin and enjoy the wild ride through the twisted mind of madness.

More Info Teleport

Our classic Halloween Haunted Tour is back again for a limited time. Are you brave enough to enter? Hop in a coffin and enjoy the wild ride through the twisted mind of madness!

More Haunted Destinations!

Pictured: Ride of Doom

Explore even more haunted destinations listed on the Destination Guide where ghosts, goblins, and other scary surprises lurk around every dark corner. 

Got a spot that you’d like listed in the Destination Guide? Make sure to submit your spot via our web form. 

There is so much to do this Halloween season, so grab a costume and hit that teleport button now! Happy Halloween! 🎃👻 

A complete list of all 400 participating Shop & Hop Merchants in alphabetical order is below: 

Have you seen what’s new with Second Life Mobile? Second Life Mobile continues to be available on iOS and Android to all Premium Plus and Premium – and, for the first time, it is now available to Plus members! 

We’ve just added some of the most-requested features from loyal community members just like you including:

• Full Access to All Regions - Premium Plus, Premium, and Plus members now have the freedom to explore ALL of Second Life – including regions across all maturity ratings!
• Experimental: Spatialized Voice Chat - Speak your mind with voice chat on any voice-enabled regions. We’ve added new WebRTC voice support - check it out for yourself in these test regions (1, 2, 3, 4)
• Improved Controls - Now easier-than-ever to navigate with reduced sensitivity controls
• Group Tags, Push Notifications & More - Stay connected while on the go and express yourself fully with even more new features added in the latest release. You can also now use L$ to pay objects and avatars from the mobile app!

See a full list of updates in our Release Notes and check out our latest Developer Update video above to learn all about the latest improvements or, better yet, jump in now and see it for yourself! 

Learn more about Second Life Mobile at https://second.life/mobile.

Questions? Get answers.

Explore our FAQ to find answers to common questions about the Second Life Mobile app, and don't hesitate to share your feedback and ideas. Your input helps us enhance your mobile experience!

Current Add Payment Method Process

On the Billing Information page, there are dedicated buttons to 
Add a Credit Card: (https://cashier.secondlife.com/addpm) 
Add a PayPal account: (https://cashier.secondlife.com/addpaypal)
Note: There will be no changes to the Add a Skrill account process at this time.

The Add a Credit Card process takes you to the Second Life Cashier page as shown here:

And the Add a PayPal account process takes you to PayPal to connect a given PayPal account with your Second Life account as shown here:

New Add Payment Method Process - None or One Payment Method on File

The changes that will go live on September 25th, 10:00am SLT will make it so that clicking either Add a Credit Card or Add a PayPal account will go to same Cashier link to add either type of payment information (https://cashier.secondlife.com/addpm_tilia_widget).

Both 'Add' methods will take you to the same page, shown here with a PayPal account as the only Payment Method on file as an example. In order to add a new Payment Method, click the “Add payment method” link:

On the next page you will see a Credit Card add form by default, with an option to select 'Add PayPal' beneath it if you prefer. If you want to add a Credit Card, please enter all of the card info and click the blue “Add” button at the bottom. If you want to add a PayPal account, please click the bottom “Add PayPal” button which will open up the PayPal form:

New Add Payment Method Process - If You Have Two or More Payment Methods on File

If you have two or more Payment Methods on file, there will be an additional click you will have to take to see the first “Add payment method” link above. You will have to first click “Other payment methods” to see a list of your current payment methods and then click the bottom Add payment link beneath them as shown here:

What’s Next

We will be making changes in the coming month to simplify this process and to make it easier for you to add Payment Methods. 

FAQ

What if I want to add Skrill as a payment method?
There will be no changes to the process to add Skrill as a payment method at this time.

Why are you making these changes?
While we try to keep the process for adding payment methods and handling billing as simple as possible, in this case, we have to make changes to comply with financial regulations. We're sorry for the inconvenience!

Will my existing payment methods work?
Yes! All currently added valid payment methods should work like normal.

We are happy to announce the next steps in our efforts to enhance your Second Life experience and performance.

DeltaFPS Viewer (7.1.10) Officially Released

After thorough testing and your valuable feedback, we’re happy to report that version 7.1.10, known as DeltaFPS, is now available for all residents as the official Second Life viewer. This update brings performance enhancements that are on par with our pre-PBR levels, ensuring a smoother and more responsive experience.

What’s new in DeltaFPS?

• Improved frame rates: You’ll notice smoother movement and transitions, especially in crowded or resource-intensive areas.
• Bug fixes and stability improvements: We’ve squashed several bugs reported by users during the release candidate phase, making this the most stable version yet.
• Enhanced rendering: DeltaFPS optimizes how the viewer handles textures and shadows, providing better visual fidelity with less strain on your hardware.
• Here are the detailed release notes, if you’d like a play-by-play! 

You can download Second Life DeltaFPS (7.1.10) from our official viewer page here. As always, we welcome your feedback, and our team continues to monitor reports and suggestions to ensure that we can make even more improvements going forward.

Firestorm Viewer Update Released

We’re also excited to announce that our collaboration with the Firestorm team has borne fruit! Firestorm has officially released their updated viewer, which incorporates all the performance improvements from Atlasaurus with WebRTC, along with several additional enhancements unique to the Firestorm platform.

Firestorm’s key updates include: 

• Atlasaurus and WebRTC integration: All the performance boosts from our Atlasaurus viewer are now included in Firestorm, improving performance whether you use the default viewer or Firestorm.
• See more details in Firestorm's official release notes or check out Inara Pey's writeup: https://modemworld.me/2024/09/18/firestorm-7-1-10-webrtc-and-performance-tweaks

What’s Next?

With DeltaFPS now fully released we are going to be closely monitoring the performance metrics, and our team is hard at work on ExtraFPS (7.1.11), the next major update designed to push Second Life’s performance beyond previous limits. Stay tuned for more updates on ExtraFPS as we continue testing and refining this release.

Thank you for your continued support, feedback, and patience as we work together to make Second Life better for everyone. We are proud of the strides we’ve made, and we look forward to hearing about your experiences with both Second Life DeltaFPS and the latest Firestorm viewer.

Enjoy your Second Life adventures,
The Second Life Team

Spooktacular Shopping Deals: The Shop & Hop event features hundreds of merchants offering incredible discounts on their best items. Expect to find everything from eerie outfits and creepy costumes to haunted home decor and spooky accessories. Many merchants will be offering at least 20% off their items, so it’s the perfect time to stock up on all your Halloween essentials.

Gifts: One of the highlights of Shop & Hop is the gifts available at each store. These gifts are free for all shoppers. Make sure to visit every participating merchant to collect your goodies and discover unique items.

Halloween-Themed Last Names: To add to the Halloween fun, Second Life is introducing new Halloween-themed last names! These special last names will be available for a limited time, allowing you to embrace the spooky season with a fitting moniker. Whether you choose something eerie like “Macabre” or playful like “Boo,” these names are sure to add a festive touch to your avatar.

Premium Member Perks: If you’re a Second Life Premium member, you’re in for some extra treats! Premium members can claim exclusive virtual gifts at various inworld kiosks. These gifts are designed to enhance your Halloween experience and add a touch of luxury to your virtual life. Not a Premium member yet? Now might be the perfect time to upgrade and enjoy these special perks.

Annual Trick or Treat Event in Bellisseria: Creep or crawl over to Bellisseria this Halloween season to snag some candy and win prizes! This is an interactive event open to everyone where Residents living in Bellisseria can host Candy Buckets on their parcels. You don’t want to miss the paranormal partygoers and creative costumes throughout Bellisseria during this virtual Trick-or-Treat. Plus, there are prizes to be won for all who participate! The event starts on October 1st! Participants who rez out a candy bucket will get 5 extra bonus candies per day starting on October 1st. Starting next week , you can get your Candy bucket in the Millbank region to set up for the event.

Swaginator Hunt: Join the Swaginator Hunt starting on October 8th to find hidden items and collect exclusive prizes. Look out for clues and hints to guide you through the hunt.

Get Ready for Second Life’s Halloween in 2024!

• Event Dates: October 1st - November 3rd
• Shop & Hop: October 4th - November 3rd
• Annual Trick or Treat Event in Bellisseria: Starts October 1st
• Swaginator Hunt: Starts October 8th

How to Join the Fun

• Mark Your Calendar: October 1st - November 3rd.
• Explore the Shop & Hop: Visit multiple shop and hop regions to discover deals and gifts.
• Change Your Last Name: Embrace the spooky season with a new Halloween-themed last name.
• And many more things to do in Second Life during the Halloween period! 

More information will be posted on October 1st.

Get ready to immerse yourself in the Halloween spirit and enjoy all the thrills and chills that Second Life has to offer. Happy shopping and haunting! 🎃👻

We know many of you have been waiting patiently, and we’d like to update you on our ongoing efforts to address performance issues.

Current Viewer - Atlasaurus (7.1.9)  
The default Second Life viewer, version 7.1.9 (Atlasaurus), has already shown positive performance improvements, and we’re pleased to see progress being made.

Release Candidate - DeltaFPS (7.1.10) 
Our next viewer update, version 7.1.10 (DeltaFPS), is now available as a release candidate (RC). It is already performing on par with our pre-PBR levels. You can download it here, but please keep in mind that as a release candidate, it may still contain undiscovered issues. We welcome your feedback through bug reports and feature requests at feedback.secondlife.com. 

Future Release - ExtraFPS (7.1.11)  
We are also actively working on version 7.1.11 (ExtraFPS), which is still in development and coming soon. Our goal with this version is to surpass previous performance benchmarks and take your Second Life experience to the next level.

Collaboration with Firestorm  
We’re also collaborating closely with the Firestorm team to ensure that these improvements are integrated across the board. The next Firestorm release will include all the performance fixes of Atlasaurus, as well as additional enhancements that Firestorm is developing. 

We’re excited to move Second Life forward in ways that benefit all our residents. With your feedback and the dedication of our third-party developers, we’re confident we can continue to improve the Second Life experience together.

Thank you for your continued support,  
The Second Life Team

If you see a link advertising a Third-Party Viewer, don’t click it directly. Always check our Third Party Viewer Directory for a list of safe download locations. All approved third-party viewers are included here, and the official Second Life Viewer is available from the Second Life site. To help keep others safe, share this blog post and submit an Abuse Report if you see a suspicious link shared in world.

Last year, we posted this blog with information on keeping your account safe from phishing. It includes these additional precautions:

1. Be wary of unsolicited messages or emails. If you receive a message from an unknown sender or even a friend (you never know if their account was compromised), be cautious before clicking any links. It’s always best to err on the side of caution.
2. Check the website’s URL. Before logging into the website, ensure you’re on a legitimate site. A phishing website will often have a similar-looking URL, but with slight variations. Check for spelling errors or subtle changes in the website’s address.
3. Look for security indicators. Legitimate websites will often have security indicators, such as a padlock icon or “https” in the URL. This indicates that your information is being transmitted securely. If you are unsure if a URL is legitimate, you can always send in a support ticket and ask for clarification.
4. Use strong passwords. A strong password is at least 8 characters long and combines uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. You should also use a different password for each online account to reduce the risk of multiple accounts being compromised if one password is stolen.
5. Enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA). This will add an extra layer of security to your account by requiring a second form of identification to access your account to make account changes.

Now let’s catch you all up on recent product developments! Continue reading for mobile updates, server changes, news for creators and Viewer releases.

📱 Mobile Update

Our Second Life mobile app – in Beta for Premium and Premium Plus users since SL21B - received a bunch of updates last week including the following bug fixes + improvements:

• Fixes to the client against bad extended material data
• Reduced sensitivity of v-stick resulting in improved control of avatar movement
• Support for new voice chat functions 
• Lighting falloff calculation is improved 
• Groups: Fix so Groups identifies correct members
• New Memory Allocators: iOS and Android: We'll now use the OS memory reports to hint our memory allocations in real-time, allowing us to load a bit more content before we run out of RAM.
• Fixes resizing the app on Android folding devices (e.g. Samsung Z-Fold)
• Prevents several issues relating to executing UI operations on the wrong thread
• Water no longer appears in weird places after you teleport
• More fixes for BOM-using avatars where textures would not load

And UI Changes:

• Wear or remove a group tag
• UI to show (or hide) group titles
• Fix to not include self in nearby count
• L$ balance (in developer settings)
• Modal dialog updates
• Simplified loading animation for Destination Guide

Please give WebRTC Voice on mobile a try! Enable via menu > Settings > Developer tools > Voice 

and visit one of the following WebRTC Voice regions:

• WebRTC Voice 1
• WebRTC Voice 2
• WebRTC Voice 3 
• WebRTC Voice 4 

And never miss a message from friends (or non-friends!) while offline when you enable Notifications!

🌐 Server Changes

Some important fixes and features have made their way across the grid in the last several months. 

We fixed the hovering-on-login issue. Your floating avatar landed as soon as you moved, but we’re still very happy that this fix landed! 

We also shipped support for 2k textures which allows artists to add much more detail to their creations. 

We made several under the hood changes to support upcoming Lua scripting and fixed a bug with region restart scheduling. 

And this week, the grid also welcomed a bunch of changes in support of Combat 2.0 – read more below – and we shipped support for gamepad input to LSL scripts.

Lua Scripting

We are working on Lua scripting for compatibility with LSL, there is a lot to be said here, so perhaps it's better to link you directly to the Lua FAQ.

• FAQ https://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Lua_FAQ 

🪀 Creator news

💣 Combat 2.0

Combat 2.0 is here with the Tuesday 8/20/2024 update to Second Life Server

• New LSL functions and region settings to support building flexible combat systems using the built in damage system.
  • Damage adjustment for armor and healing. 
  • Damage types, allow for vulnerabilities and resistances. 
  • System supported combat logs for leader board support.
  • Region settings allow control of death teleports and damage throttles. 
• More in depth information in the wiki https://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Category:LSL_Combat2
• Find cool combat destinations in our new Combat category in the Destination Guide

Coming soon:

💻 Viewers

🗺️Atlasaurus

In addition to several performance fixes for Macs, VRAM budgeting and improved memory handling for all, Atlasaurus includes support for taking large groups of items back into inventory as individual objects, instead of a coalesced bundle of items, leaving you wondering if your favorite chair is really in there with the rest of your living room set. There is also a new Max Nearby Lights slider in Advanced Graphics Settings, for when things seem too bright. Plus a sneak peek at GLTF model imports which allows you a local, preview-only version, of what an imported model will look like. Plus all of WebRTC merged in! More below.

🗣️WebRTC Voice Viewer

We are very excited at this opportunity to update the voice experience for all Second Life residents! In fact it's worthy of its own blog post. 

🧰Maintenance Viewers

DeltaFPS will be the next Release Candidate (RC) which will contain many more performance improvements focusing on bringing frame rates up to and if not better than, where they were before. With the move to GitHub we are also trying a new development method called GitFlow. This will mean fewer parallel Release Candidates (RCs) and more frequent, smaller feature releases with only one active RC at a time. For this reason both Maintenance B and C, which were published and had several thousand user hours each, were closed and merged into the develop branch. All those users were offered an upgrade to Atlasaurus already.

Default Viewer

Materials Featurettes

This viewer was promoted to default release in June and contains support for Mirrors, PBR Terrain and 2k textures. We are excited about supporting these features and improving the visual quality of content in Second Life. Now it's time to focus on those performance issues though.

Follow our Featured News Blog and connect with us on Social Media for future Second Life News!

Both the official Second Life Viewer and the Firestorm Viewer have been updated with performance improvements including less crashes and more speed! Check the update at this link!

Sept. 6 Update:

Our development team has posted another update on Second Life performance enhancements. See the latest update here.

Aug. 26 Update:

We are happy to announce that we have promoted the Atlasaurus Viewer to be the official Second Life Viewer today. As mentioned, this Viewer contains performance improvements that will benefit lower-end systems, stability fixes to reduce the crash rate, and also contains WebRTC Voice support (more info on that in this blog post). More performance improvements are coming in future releases. See a full list of features and fixes in the Release Notes here.

ORIGINAL POST BELOW:

Are you experiencing graphics issues or increased lag with Second Life after recent Viewer updates? Let’s get you back up and running without missing a (virtual) beat. 

OFFICIAL SECOND LIFE VIEWER: UPDATE NOW FOR IMPROVED PERFORMANCE

If you are having issues with the Official Second Life Viewer, you can immediately download an update here that addresses many of the issues affecting performance, particularly among those who may be using older or less powerful computers. We are continuing to work on additional fixes that will further address texture loading issues and low framerates. If you don’t update proactively now, you’ll soon see a prompt when you go to login to Second Life in the coming days encouraging you to update.

FIRESTORM & THIRD PARTY VIEWERS: UPDATE OPTIONS 

We are working closely with the Firestorm team to coordinate the rollout of updates that will improve your performance. You have a few options:

• If you are having performance issues and don’t want to wait for the next Firestorm Viewer release with fixes, you can download the older 6.6.17 version of the Firestorm Viewer which its development team recently announced will continue to be available “forever.” While this version is more stable in the short term, it may not be the best option in the long term for those who want to continue to see future enhancements to Second Life including updates to voice chat in the coming weeks. Once the new release with performance fixes comes out, we encourage you to give that a try.
• The next release of the Firestorm viewer will include all the performance fixes we are working on. You’ll be prompted to update your Firestorm Viewer once it is ready in the next few days, but you can also be one of the first to try it by joining the Firestorm Preview Group inworld and continue to stay connected with their development progress on the official Firestorm Viewer website and its dedicated download page.

As a reminder, our Third Party Viewer directory contains a variety of specialized Viewer options that have been vetted and approved as alternative ways to access Second Life.

SO WHAT HAPPENED?

We are always striving to add more improvements to Second Life and we’ve been particularly excited to roll out integration of PBR Materials, which has the potential to improve and modernize much of the look and feel of our virtual world. However, the introduction of PBR has not gone as smoothly as we would like and we have heard community frustrations and feedback with recent PBR-enabled Viewer releases of both the Official Second Life Viewer and Firestorm Viewer.

We share your frustration and are taking steps to make things better for everyone on both lower-end and high-end systems. This means that we’re actively focused on improving the performance in a variety of areas including improved FPS, VRAM management, texture loading, alpha blending, and even how lighting is rendered within the world. Additional fixes are already in our development pipeline and will head to QA soon.

We know that many of you just want to log in and enjoy your Second Life and we are committed to making things right. We appreciate your patience and loyalty to Second Life and encourage you to continue to send us your feedback and help us continue to improve as we move forward. We also have the PBR wiki and several Support resources available if you get stuck or need help.

We’ll see you inworld!

The Second Life team

The Second Life WebRTC Voice viewer (now Atlasaurus+WebRTC) has been a Release Candidate viewer for some time and is on the cusp of becoming the default viewer! Download

We expanded the Second Life WebRTC Voice channel “Pop Rocks” to 4 regions: 
WebRTC Voice 1 
WebRTC Voice 2 
WebRTC Voice 3 
WebRTC Voice 4 

Any WebRTC Voice-enabled viewer can also be used for voice on non-WebRTC, voice-enabled regions. Our Second Life mobile client (now in Beta for Premium and Premium Plus subscribers) also has integrated WebRTC voice support! 

There are some known issues, however, that we want you to be aware of:

• Conference/Group/P2P in WebRTC is not yet available on the WebRTC Voice regions.
• An occasional popup regarding voice server incompatibility can appear. Restart voice if you see this.  To restart voice in the viewer:
  • Hover over the speaker icon in the upper right corner of the viewer.
  • Wait for the dialogue to appear.
  • Uncheck the voice checkbox and wait a few seconds.
  • Recheck the voice checkbox.  
• Voice morphing is not available in WebRTC-Voice enabled regions.
• Selecting another voice device while in a group, conference, or peer-to-peer call may drop the call. 

If you are using the WebRTC Voice RC Viewer during this period of time when most regions support Vivox Voice while only a few regions support WebRTC Voice, be aware that Vivox Voice Morphing is not supported in either WebRTC Voice regions or Vivox regions. If voice morphing had been enabled via an older viewer, you will see a dialog to let you know the implications of using voice:

• OK - Acknowledges that voice morphing does not work in the WebRTC viewer and using voice will transmit unmodified audio.

Because voice morphs are tied to Vivox, the third-party voice service that's supported voice in Second Life for many years, they do not work on the new WebRTC protocol. While we're sorry for this inconvenience, there are many excellent alternatives for voice morphing that have become available to the general public as technology has developed. For questions about WebRTC and Voice Morphing we have an FAQ to help.

For Third Party Viewer developers, please check out this branch: 
https://github.com/secondlife/viewer

We’re excited to bring WebRTC Voice to the entire grid. Please share your feedback or any issues found in our feedback portal. We’ll continue to deploy updates to the WebRTC Voice regions during this time.