Will Ross here, and welcome to The Traveling Avatar’s Quick and Dirty Tips for a Better Second Life. On this show we discuss tips and tricks for the game Second Life, created by Linden Labs. Today’s topic: Love is in the Air: Places to take your virtual date.

Yes, spring is almost here, the time for young couples to meet, fall in love, get a little place together on the coast.  Shared tier, nothing too fancy, just a couch a bed and two crazy virtual kids tryin' to make it in this big virtual... [Will, you’re rambling.] Ummmm yeah, sorry.  The point is, in real life or Second Life the sun is back, seasonal depression is kicked away by a healthy dose of sun and Vitamin D, and...Ok, Ok…You date. In spring…Happy? Anyway, here are two good places to take a date.

The first place I’m going to talk about is “The Blue Note” (Blue Note  SLURL http://slurl.com/secondlife/The%20Blue%20Note/242/181/22)  The Blue Note has quite a few things, an ice skating rink, a beach and lots of private spots to have good conversation, but what it’s best known for is it’s Retro Jazz Lounge. The music is a good mix of big band, jazz and great slow dancing tunes, and it has one of the best collection of dancing pose balls that I’ve seen in Second Life.  It’s even got a place to propose if you’re considering settling down. There’s no dress code, but formal wear is the norm. Luckily they’ve got a couple of formal wear shops right on sight, including Blaze, where I get all my formal wear. Check the website at www.qdnow.com for a SLURL.

The second area, “Svarga”, is a little harder to describe. (Svarga http://slurl.com/secondlife/Svarga/12/119/22) As I've come to understand it, in Hinduism, Svarga is the place good people get to rest before moving on to their next reincarnation…sort of like a heavenly vacation spot. In Second Life, Svarga is, well, just really cool. It’s a fully functional ecosystem with rain, insects, plant life, and sunlight on top of temples, mountains, marshes, and…you’ve pretty much got to see it to believe it. It's just really cool.  Now, it has a fully automated island tour, but it’s more fun to wander around on foot and just explore. When you’re ready for a good place for a conversation, check out the sensory deprivation chamber/light show thingy in the center of the island. Check out the website for the SLURL.

Today’s etiquette tip is about shouting. I know, I know they give you a shout command that lets you share your razor sharp wit with an entire sim at the click of a button, but just because a feature exists, does that mean you have to use it? If you ever think you’ve typed something so brilliant that it has to be shared with an entire sim, either spend your time with your girlfriend's mother to help you deflate your massive ego, or use your massive ego to start a podcast. That's what I did!

No “term to know” this week, instead we’re adding a new section with tips from listeners entitled…well, “Tips From Listeners.” Hey, no one ever said I was brilliant! Anyway, send in your tips and tricks for Second Life and I’ll make sure to include them in future episodes. This week’s was sent in by Second Lifer Gator Brown.  By now you’re probably familiar with the concept of “Home” but if not, here’s the run down.

Home is the area in Second Life that you teleport to by choosing “World,” “Teleport Home.” This will take you to your “Home Location” which can be either on your own land or at a main land info hub which you’ve set in advance by choosing “World” and then “Set Home to Here.”

So when you land in an area and say, “Wooahhh sorry guys… I thought the sign read Male BondING…. (whip sound effect) Ummmm” instead of taking the time to use the World menu and then clicking “Teleport Home” Gator Brown suggests you simply hit “Command” (or “Control” on a PC) + “Shift” + “H” and save yourself some time, and possibly some therapy in the future.

That’s it for this episode! Send your feedback or question to secondlife@quickanddirtytips.com, or the comment line is 206-888-6975, that’s 206-888-MYSL.  The Traveling Avatar’s Quick and Dirty Tips for a Better Second Life is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips network, so be sure to check out other great shows like Money Girl, Mr. Manners, and Legal Lad, at QuickAndDirtyTips.com. 

So until next time remember, just because you can spend all spring inside Second Life, doesn’t mean you should.  Go outside, get some fresh air…. That’s why we HAVE laptops. Play outside.