SL for Nowt

Alliteration aside, this is a fantastic group gift. Search for Gala and Rita Design Announcements (I used the new search: the first tab on the left, and it was the only result). Join the group (free to join) and check the past notices. Inside you’ll find Free Skin for you all ??? and Hair :D

The skin is a full pack of Gala Phoenix’s ‘Nightshade’ skins, in ten skintones, and including three eyebrow options. The hair is a full pack of Rita Groshomme’s ‘Hipster’ hair, in 33 colours and with a colour-changeable headband.

These group freebies come ahead of the opening of their new sim, Curio, at noon SLT tomorrow (although group members get a sneak preview at noon today). Hurry, because they won’t be in group notices for long!

I took Mar to La Reve for this photo session. She’s wearing the Nightshade skin in ‘opaline’ and the Hipster hair in ‘vamp purple’. Her outfit is the Silent Sparrow group gift, ‘Sylvan’, which I blogged about in my previous post.

Hop behind the cut for more.

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As well as the three gorgeous free outfits she has at The Gnubie Store, Hyasynth Tiramisu of Silent Sparrow has put out in her own store a freebie for new avatars less than 30 days old. This was an older group gift, and I can tell you that it’s stunning. I can also tell you to RUN over there and grab it! Silent Sparrow outfits are some of the most beautiful hand-drawn clothing in Second Life, and you want this!

(Screenshot taken at Discord North. Jeans are free from Evocative Free Designs.)

Hop behind the cut!

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The Basics - 02 - Inventory icons explained

This post is one of a series aimed at newbies in Second Life. In the series, I hope to be able to answer all those questions that newbies have in-world and yet might not want to ask of anyone around them, for fear of appearing silly or noobish. There are no silly questions here; we all wondered these things when we first appeared in-world. *g*

This time we’re heading into the first of several posts about your inventory. This first post will explain the icons you’ll see in there, and the various items they are used for. All is not as obvious as it sometimes may seem!

Hop behind the cut to find out more.

Edit: Once again, WordPress ate the formatting of this post. *sigh* I think I’ve found a crafty workaround, though…

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I think I just hit the motherlode of freebie urban items and textures. Head on over to Urban Spirit in Camazotz. The entire build is available for free. Yes, every single grubby mattress, garbage truck, cardboard box, trashcan, skip, dumpster, etc is set to ‘free to copy’. Not only that, but the build has a freebie textures store, too. You’ll find that by the TP point (it’s the place with a giant clown’s head above the door). There’s also dumpster diving to be had just inside the shop doorway. Look for the trashcan on the left, with the sign poking out of it, right-click the can and select ‘harvest’. You never know what delights you might come up with…

If you can, drop a few L$ into the tipjar there, because owner Astin Miles has created a treasure trove for urban junkies at Urban Spirit :)

The latest post on the official Linden Lab blog is yet another great step by them. First of all, they teamed up with some of Second Life’s well-known designers to bring everyone great new default avatars, and now they’re seeking out animators to help them kill the awful duckwalk that so many of us hate!

The duckwalk is often one of the first things that newbies want to get rid of (I’ve lost count of the cries of, “How do I lose this stupid walk?” that I’ve heard). It might be a while yet before the new default walks are available to everyone, but it’s a welcome step in the right direction.

All we have to hope for now is that the priority on the walks isn’t set so high that they override the (sometimes expensive) animations that many residents have paid for!

Read the blog here: Attention Second Life Animators: Help Kill the Duckwalk!

The basics - 01 - Getting stuff out of boxes

This post is the first in a series aimed at newbies in Second Life. In the series, I hope to be able to answer all those questions that newbies have in-world and yet might not want to ask of anyone around them, for fear of appearing silly or noobish. There are no silly questions here; we all wondered these things when we first appeared in-world. *g*

We begin with boxes. Some of the questions you might have about them are:

* I’m in a store and it has stuff that’s free and in boxes. How do I get it?
* Someone told me I need to ‘rez’ my stuff. What does that mean?
* I got this stuff, but it’s in a box. How do I get it out of the box so I can wear it?
* Why can’t I unpack my boxes here? I keep being told I don’t have permission.
* I tried to wear these clothes I got, but I’m wearing a box. What went wrong?
* I opened the box, but do I choose ‘Copy to inventory’ or ‘Copy and wear’?
* I opened the box, but what’s this about ‘you have selected no-copy items’?
* I opened the box and got the stuff out. Where did it go? How do I find it again?
* What do I do with the box once I’ve got the stuff out of it?

If you’re new, and you have any other questions about boxes, please do feel free to ask them in a comment here, and I will add to the post. I’ve tried to think of all the questions that might be asked, but there’s bound to be something that I’ve missed! Likewise, if you’re an older avatar and notice something that I’ve missed out, please let me know in a comment.

Hop behind the cut for answers to the questions listed above.

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Mar’s just been over to Maitreya to grab their freebie fatpack of ‘Aimee’ hair. Alas, the slinky stiletto shoes that Maitreya had out for the longest time are now gone, but in their place is this great hair pack. Aimee comes in 21 colours, and also contains a useful notecard with Windlight Environment Editor settings for lighting so you can always look your best *g*

I’ve paired the hair with Desert Moon Clothiers (DMC) smoked low-rise jeans for women (tucked version) (free), PushButton Industries’ ‘The Bricolage’ shirt (1L$), Katat0nik’s ‘Axis Mundi’ sculpted boots (1L$), and Yak & Yeti’s Tibetan Dzi stone necklace (free). Details and SLurls below.

Maitreya - Aimee hair (free)

DMC - Smoked low-rise jeans (free)

Katat0nik - Axis Mundi sculpted boots (1L$)

PushButton Industries - The Bricolage shirt (1L$) [No longer available at this price]

Yak & Yeti - Tibetan Dzi stone necklace (free)

Hop behind the cut for close-ups of the hair, plus more of the freebies available at The Block, where the DMC jeans come from!

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Hi, guys! Last but not least in this series for you is a tutorial in putting together a full AO, or animation overrider. An AO will get rid of that funny, waddling ‘duck walk’ that is the newbie default, and it can also give you many more options for standing, sitting, flying and other poses in-world.

There are many great AOs to be bought in Second Life, and some of them are very pricey. There are a couple of good new freebies around, too, which I’ll mention at the end of this post. But whether you stick with a pre-made freebie or want to put together your own AO with individual animations you’ve found and bought, it’s still a very useful thing to know how to do.

Hop behind the cut for your tutorial.

ETA1: My apologies, guys. Once again, WordPress has screwed up the formatting on a post for me. I’m doing my best to fix it, but it looks a bit squished up at the moment. I hope it’s still readable, for all that :(

ETA2: OK, it’s fixed to the best of my ability. I’m afraid the sidebar is still screwed when you view the post, but the post itself should be more legible.

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Lads, I’m sorry it’s taken me so long. For a while I thought I might have to wind this blog down, but I have managed to put together this second part of the non-newbieness for boys guide.

Hop behind the cut.

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You have some new freebies in your inventory that were delivered by stealth. You didn’t know they arrived, and you’re about to be pleasantly surprised.

Open up your inventory library folder. Yep, the one you probably never touch. The one with all the Linden-created stuff in it. Now open the clothing folder inside that one.

Yes, new library avatars. Note the creator’s names: some of the biggest designer names in Second Life. And what’s more… those avatars have PRIM HAIR. PRIM SHOES! GOOD SKINS! All of which can be mixed and matched with other library items and store-bought items in-world.

Nope, I can’t believe it too, but it’s a great move from Linden Lab. They’ve teamed up with some big-name designers in-world, from Renegade Clothing, Adam & Eve, Nylon Pinkney, Wraith Unsung, and Grendel’s Children, to bring everyone 16 new avatars that every resident will have in their library folder from scratch.

I’m so pleased about this! Hop behind the cut for screenshots.

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