Another Second Life Scam Site?

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Massively is reporting a new Second Life scam site based in Singapore; VirtualGet.net. (Actually, it looks more like it is New York based.) This is a very XStreetLS like site. Various creators in Second Life are warning customers that VirtualGet.net is a credit card harvesting site. That is apparently unconfirmed. However, it is confirmed that products and images of products displayed on VirtualGet.net are there without the creators’ permission. Numerous DCMA complaints are filed.

There is a thread about the VirtualGet.net site in the Second Life Blog; Has anyone encountered the virtualget.net ripoff site? As of 10:58 Oct 7, 2009 Jeska Linden has locked the thread and provided a link to file your complaints.

The VirtualGet.net site is displaying and ‘OOPS!’ message as I write this. The claim is that this was a test site and products were pulled by an automated process to populate the site and show the client what the final site would look like. Lots of apologies there. Apparently a new site developer.

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Neil Life Viewer Review Updated

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I added an  update to the Neil Life Viewer Review I wrote in early August. See; Warning – Neil Life Viewer

Today Massively is reporting that a number of those using the Neil Life Viewer for IP theft have been banned. See; Linden Lab rounds up and ejects a bunch of copyright infringers

Massively explains how those abusing IP rights were separated from those just running the viewer. Smart.

This effort from Linden Lab is a good move in the face of the current law suites pending regarding IP theft. (See Wired: Linden Lab Targeted in Second Life Sex-Code Lawsuit) When one considers that Second Life residents spend about US$50 million real life dollars per month an idea of the importance of the action is apparent.

Blue Mars Developer’s Tools Review

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Blue Mars Developer Tools
Blue Mars Block Editor

To create things in Blue Mars one must become a developer. So, how easy is it to register? No problem. How easy is it to build something in Blue Mars? Not very.

Registration

First, one registers on the Blue Mars site and gains access to the Developers’ section of the Blue Mars web site. The tools needed to build things for Blue Mars can be downloaded from within the section. The developer is getting a sub-licensed copy of CryEngine 2 MOD SDK*. Easy enough. Blue Mars is supposed to offer more control over ownership of created items. From the look of the info on your personal developer’s page it looks like that will be the case.

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Blue Mars Review & Tips

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Blue Mars Open Beta
Desktop Icon

I tend to agree with Kanomi of Tiny Dancing in her funny post about Playing Blue Mars. It’s for boys. I registered weeks ago and watched my email and the spam folder too. Still no invitation. I opened a yahoo email account using a boyish name and four days later I have my invite. That could be coincidence. …right.

Updated 10/13/2009 – New Blue Mars Review Stuff Here
Updated 12/17/2009 – Blue Mars Goes Open Beta

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I’ll Be Away

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I’ll be away for the next 3 or 4 weeks. I won’t be updating the blog during that time. I expect to be back in October.

Update 10/23/09

I’ve had some problems getting back on the Internet. I tried to use AT&T DSL. But, I’m out on the end of the line and service is bad. About 500kb/sec on a supposed 1.5mb/sec connection. Plus a high packet loss rate (25% to over 200% – multiple retries failing can drive the rate over 100%). Pings would hit 7,000+ms. Imagine pressing

I have cable now and have a 10mb/sec connection that gives me a measured 6mb/sec. Packet loss is much better, 0% to 20% and mostly 0%.

Second Life Currency Exchange Extended

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VirWoX Home Page
VirWoX Web Site

I wrote an earlier post on the Second Life Currency Exchange as a tutorial. Parts of the post are being updated. The idea behind that post was how to easy get a better price and understand some of what is going on there. However, the SL Exchange is not the only currency exchange available to Second Life residents/players. One is Virtual World Exchange or VirWoX.

VirWoX Advantages

The biggest advantages VirWoX offers are for residents outside the USA. They can avoid exchanging Linden Dollars for US Dollars then their native currency. That saves a transaction/exchange fee. Europeans can use direct bank transfers to avoid some other costs too and supposedly be safer.

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