gaeta 1

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    Linden Lab Paid Me for My Pain and Suffering

    Bygogo Fashion, iheartslFeed, JuicyBomb, Second Life, Uncategorized
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    Ocean

    Gaeta 1 is staying, baby.

    This whole thing is going to go down as Gaeta Gate in Second Life history, the time Linden Lab tried to remove a small, unfinished continent, only to completely reverse course a few months later. I waited forever to be relocated from Gaeta 1 to New Zindra, but it never happened, so I eventually started selling off the land I’d bought there piece by piece because I’d already acquired quite a bit of snow land and figured I was simply going to move on.

    Then on Monday I received an email from Linden Lab basically saying, “We’re giving you some money for your pain and suffering, and by the way, Gaeta 1 isn’t closing anymore.” Suddenly the whole situation changed. You can stay if you want to. You can still move if you’d rather have a parcel in New Zindra and keep Gaeta 1 too. If you’ve already moved, you cay stay or come back to Gaeta 1! I have to admit I’m pretty happy with the outcome, even if this has been one of the biggest rollercoasters I’ve watched Linden Lab put residents through. From the original announcement until now, it’s been one surprise after another, and I still don’t think the ride is completely over.

    If you look around Gaeta 1 today, a huge amount of land is marked “On Hold,” which most of us assume means former residents are deciding whether to return. I’ve already noticed some of the larger land barons making their way back, but it does raise an interesting question about whether people will end up keeping both their new land or coming back to their original Gaeta 1 land. After all, the original reason Linden Lab gave for closing Gaeta 1 was the massive amount of abandoned land, and that problem isn’t automatically solved just because some previous owners decide to move back.

    I think Linden Lab knows they need to move quickly, and the August 17 deadline they gave everyone in the email makes that pretty obvious. I didn’t wait around because I’m easy. I replied immediately and told them I was staying, mainly because I have absolutely no interest in moving to New Zindra. I was originally interested, but have you seen the horrendous new grass texture? No thank you! My guess is they want to wrap this entire situation up as quickly as possible so Gaeta Gate becomes nothing more than a strange chapter in Second Life history, after which they can start selling and auctioning parcels in both Gaeta 1 and New Zindra again. I could even see them experimenting with more double-prim parcels if it helps encourage people to buy mainland, although I don’t expect they’ll spend time finishing the unfinished west coast of Gaeta 1 when they already have so much abandoned mainland elsewhere on the grid.

    Ocean

    I love land, so after all of this, I decided to officially move into my little Gaeta 1 parcel instead of letting it go. My friend Malayaa decorated the cozy 1,500 sqm oceanfront property for me, and it’s exactly the right size. As long as my neighbors don’t move back in tomorrow and completely ruin my view, I think I’m going to be pretty happy here.

    Ocean
    Ocean

    What I’m Wearing:
    Exile – Prisma
    The Kiwi Co – peaches Set (Top, Shorts, FlipFlops)
    Sparkle Skye – Emily Pearl Headband
    Glam Affair – Gwen (L003)
    LeLutka – Ubon Mesh Head

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    This Town Hall Could Have Been an Email

    Bygogo Fashion, iheartslFeed, JuicyBomb, Second Life, Uncategorized
    2 Comments
    This Town Hall Could Have Been an Email

    I was so excited to go to the Gaeta 1 / Zindra Town Hall, and I ended up leaving that meeting feeling disappointed.

    First of all, I didn’t want to say this, but I will. The Town Hall could have been planned so much better. Dear Lindens, please make a question submission form, collect questions throughout the week, then choose the most informative ones to answer live. Letting everyone ask questions in local chat was complete chaos, and a lot of people couldn’t stay on topic. I was also surprised it was entirely handled through chat. You know that meme that says, this could have been an email? Yeah. That.

    This meeting could have been genuinely informative if they had come in with a clear list of answers, explained exactly what residents need to know, then saved the last 15 minutes for open Q&A. Why that didn’t happen is anybody’s guess. Sometimes these meetings feel like Linden employees struggle with creating an agenda and sticking to it.

    I was also disappointed to learn that residents who bought in on April 15 or after the expansion blog post went live seem to be treated like second class citizens. The relocation process should not prioritize only the biggest landowners or the people who have held land there the longest.

    If I were managing this move, I would contact every current landowner, I think they said there were around 349, and ask two simple questions:

    Do you want to move to New Zindra?

    Can you move now?

    If the answer is yes to both, put those residents at the top of the migration list and start moving them immediately. The people with more complex requests, unusual parcel needs, or plans to relocate elsewhere can be handled afterward.

    Residents who are ready now should be first in line. Tier doesn’t stop while people sit in limbo, and it would be nice if Linden Lab remembered that.

    I hope this whole thing wraps up within weeks. If the new continent is ready to go, I’m ready to move too.

    And now onto what I’m wearing, because even when it isn’t a fashion post, it somehow becomes one.

    Another round of Anthology just opened, and this shimmery dress is the Artemis Dress by Madame Noir. This dress is an example of when PBR is done so well it creates reflections and highlights correctly. With this outfit, I needed to find a place to serve as the backdrop for my photo. I opened the Destinations menu in-world looking for a music venue, and somehow ended up outside an 80s movie theater. I love The Breakfast Club, so naturally I had to take the picture in front of the poster.

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