Warm Winter Nights

Yesterday I was at home trying the surprise Max left in our garden (loved it sweety) when I received an IM from Ky. He came over and we had a long conversation about a subject I really was totally unaware of – Ad Farmers.

All of us that fly over mainland are sometimes confronted with big columns of cubes rotating announcing whatever, from escorts to stores. I always thought those signs were really cluttering the landscape but never knew what was behind all that – pure and simple extortion.

Me and Ky left to meet rm at the Ad Zoo. I had the chance to learn lots of things about all the struggle they are going through to keep ad farmers away.

The “business” goes like this. Someone buys a large piece of mainland, say 22k sqm, divides it in 1024 parcels for sale at a reasonable and competitive price and keeps in the middle small plots of 16 sqm for sale for L$164 and the 4 corners delimiting those plots (16sqm x 4 = 64 sqm) are sold for L$ 9,999.

By now you find it strange how a 64 sqm parcel, separated in 4 corners can be sold so high. That is when the extortion part comes in.

A newb or any other resident comes to the land for sale, the price is good, if you are a Premium Account you even have 512 sqm free of tiers and buys it. The resident builds his/her/its home enjoys the view and overnight, after most of the plots are sold and build, the once wonderful view of the sunset over the linden sea is now cluttered with big ad columns, rotating and lagging everything.

You want to get your view back? Well you can, but you have to buy those small plots for sale and pay 5 times more than you paid for your 1024 parcel. (see the before and the after in the pics bellow)

Linden Lab took some measures last February to stop this, but it is not easy to fight all the alts created to do this. One is banned after ARs have been done, 2 or 3 rapidly are created. Groups are can canceled, more appear.

The Ad Zoo and other groups are doing a great job, but residents must be aware of this fraud going on. The way these people are making money in SL is pure extortion.

How can we inform residents? By mouth to ear, informing our friends who will inform theirs and so on. Us Mentors could include in the Notecards about Land given to new residents the information on Ad Farmers, so they have full knowledge.

Mainland used to be a good place to live. These dishonest people are not only taking our Lindens but are also compromising the quality of life we all want for our Second Life.

Leave you here some links where you can read a bit more about the fight against Ad Farmers:
http://www.your2ndplace.com/node/853
Avastar’s article

Like I told in my previous post I went to SLang Island to speak a bit about Portucalis and our activities.

I was really really nervous cause I have stage fear and knowing so many people were there listening, or better reading, what I had to say was kind of scary.

I am writing this just to thank all of my friends from Portucalis who were there with all their support, asking questions and complementing what I was saying.

The conference took place on the exact day that Portucalis made its first rezz year and all those familiar faces in front of me, the congratulations IMs and e-mails, everything that was written in Portuguese blogs just filled my heart with joy.

Portucalis was built for friends. Each and everything we do there is not only because it really is a lot of fun for us, but also because we want to see our friends happy, make them feel at home and that those 2 small islands also belong to them.

Many of those friends have crossed the border of virtual to real and many more are yet to cross it. And I don’t mean just Portuguese. Friendship is really what makes Portucalis that special place and we never could have made it without all your love and care.

Can’t say it enough: thank you all for being there always in whatever world. You all left your fingerprint in my heart and that will never go away.

May the Goddess bless you all!

(Thank you Marga for the pics bellow)

I already posted about SLang Magazine and Slang Island. This time I would like to inform you that Uzi Boa, the SLang Team and my good friend Ibrahim Bates have been organizing the Portuguese week in SLang Island with several events going on starting today.

So if you want to know what we Portuguese are doing in Second Life take a look at the events schedule here and drop by to have fun and collect some info and freebies from the kiosks existing there.

(Oh, yours trully will be speaking about Portucalis on the 9th at 02:00 PM PDT *winks)