There is exactly one month to go until the grand opening of Second Life 21st birthday (SL21B) on Friday 21st June 2024 through until Sunday 21st July 2024. Most SL21B applications are now closed and as you can see below on the map in Second Life the SL21B parcels are now showing up across multiple “SLB” regions on the grid outlined in white squares.
Nearby here there are other SLB clusters of SL21B regions being prepared for the big birthday next month. It’s really interesting watching the SL21B regions coming together with new changes. There are loads of water regions in the central areas at the moment.
SL21B regions cluster 1New developments happening now here
Since the start of May 2024 there has been good progress made for the upcoming SL21B event scheduled for 21st June through until 21st July 2024. There are now new multiple areas that new development is taking place for SL21B. It appears there are stages in progress. some water regions and that there is a new template for general exhibit regions. One of the regions is called “SLB Spicy” which is interesting as this was mentioned on the SL blog at the end of last year.
The first batch of SL21B regions arrived back on the grid back in mid March 2024 with two build regions along with a group of planning regions and since then it’s been steadily progressing. There are now 31 “SLB” regions in total on the grid. This overall number here may be lower at the grand opening due to the planning regions etc which may or not be used for the public.
There is now roughly 40 days remaining until the grand opening day of SL21B. As we get closer to the opening day the big merge will take place where all the “SLB” will come together in one big land mass. More region map transformation and more build development is to be expected within the next five weeks.
Here are the latest SL21B map previews as of Monday 13th May 2024….
The lab have opened up applications for performers this week which is good news for all those interested in performing live at SL21B in a few months time. The lab are looking for a “wide range of performers who share their talent with our Residents”.
The upcoming SL21B celebration is scheduled for 21st June through until 21st July 2024. A whole month this time. Yay.
If you would like to be a performer or a volunteer or be an exhibitor at SL21B then apply today before applications close in May 2024.
Current Open Applications For SL21B – as of Tuesday 30th April 2024.
Four new SL21B regions have arrived recently on the grid shown in black in the south east corner. It’s expected that more SLB regions will be added on the grid in the weeks ahead. When we get closer to mid June 2024 the regions will probably all merge into one big land mass.
The SLB Planning regions have changed slightly within the past week. This could be start of the new birthday stage or birthday cake or something else in the central area.
SLB Planning regions as of 29th April 2024New SLB area on 5th April 2024
I’m keeping watch of new changes for SLB regions and I will blog again with new updates very soon.
SL21B is scheduled for 21st June through until 21st July 2024 in Second Life. I can’t wait.
On Friday 19th April 2024 Linden Lab blogged about the latest progress they are making on the new Second Life mobile app via Lab Gab. There is a new developer video from the latest Private Alpha release for April 2024 which runs for 2 minutes and 59 seconds. It’s been five months since the lab first announced Second Life mobile private alpha to the Second Life community.
The full release of the Second Life mobile app is so close. Premium subscribers will really soon be invited into the alpha testing program. The lab have made big improvements to the Second Life alpha mobile app so far including connection stability, reduced the memory footprint and fixed issues relating to where some avatars weren’t appearing at all.
The lab have improved the user experience by decreasing the sensitivity of pinch and camera controls, moved the camera target closer to the centre of your avatar and improved the size of the area for the V-Stick. The user interface has been recently been updated and now you can start a chat from any screen (friends, nearby and groups).
The lab are now working on getting avatars with skeleton deformers looking better, getting moving vehicles synced with the vehicles, improving teleports and notifications. Sounds very exciting indeed and it’s going to be amazing once the Second Life mobile app goes into the Beta/Public phrase. The lab are still accepting new testers into the Second Life mobile private alpha program for Second Life Premium Plus subscribers.
Lab Gab – April 2024 Update
There was a new Lab Gab that was uploaded on YouTube on 19th April 2024 where the developer update for April 2024 preview was shown (see above). The lab are working through the roadmap and feedback is needed to make the experience better. There was a interesting mobile Q&A section during the lab gab episode talking about whats coming soon to the Second Life mobile app…
Second Life supporting HUDS – yes
Creating and building – possible in the longer term
Voice support – yes
Estate Management – maybe
Supporting GPS, webcam etc – maybe
Keyboard & mouse support – maybe
Free/Pay To Access – No plans to charge for Mobile use
Other Updates In The Lab Gab Episode
Mirrors: This is currently available for testing on Aditi (Beta grid). Simulator support is starting with limited deployment from Monday 22nd April via the glTF Featurettes RC viewer with viewer support
2K Textures: Full support for 2048×2048 textures: Basic/Plus account is L$50 per texture & Premium account is L$40 per texture & Premium Plus: L$10 per texture.
Second Life Age Requirements: Second Life is for adults 18 and older / Anyone 16 and 17 years old are allowed but only in G-rated areas / Second Life is not meant to be experienced by people under the age of 16 / Students aged 13 – 15 are restriced to Second Life sponsoring institutions like schools which involves a special registration process
Age Verification Process: The lab will be sharing more information about this soon
How consenting adults engage in roleplay in avatars that are child presenting: The lab do not and will never allow sexualized age play in Second Life. There is a policy on this issue and it is strictly enforced. The lab have no intention of preventing adults role playing as child avatars.
Child Avatar Policy: The lab are in the process of strengthening the child avatar policy right now and the roll out will be soon. The lab wants an even stronger separation between child avatars and adult-rated content and experiences
Governance/Community Changes: The lab are looking at updates with better clarity and stronger guidelines on conduct within the community/organisation. The lab are now finalizing an update to the conduct policy which addresses issues raised recently including how Linden employees interact with the community and policies that address perceptions of conflict of interest or favouritism
Upcoming Community Roundtable: This will be linked with Second Life leadership and the lab plans to launch this in late May 2024. Details about how to participate will be announced soon.
SL21B: Birthday celebrations start from 21st June 2024 and the theme is Elements. More SL21B announcements will be announced very soon.
Daniel Voyager 