@Fledhyris Proudhon: Thanks for understanding a point of view, and not jumping on the “you’re a freebie basher” wagon, because that is not my intention. I was free once too, until I got hooked Likewise, none of these suggestions would stop me from experiencing SL or enjoying it.

@Joachim Karlfeldt: Agreed and understand it’s unverified accounts.

I’m not “freebie bashing”, honestly I’m not. People have said my proposed measures wouldn’t limit the fun/enjoyment/experience of SL, but would probably ease the load. What I’m trying to say it’s they’re all linked, and it’s vicious circle that needs to be broken (even if temporarily) in order for LL to re-deploy, sort things out and recover.

The alternative seems to be to let matters get worse, or take the grid down for a few weeks whilst it is totally overhauled - neither would be ideal in SL or RL. Anyway it’s looked at there seems to be a pressure value that needs to be released so to speak.

Chin up folks

With a verification system it would be possible to limit the number of characters a person could have, I see no reason for a person to have more than 3, maybe someone else can come up with one.

As far as too many items in a persons inventory, it should be limited to how many items a person has named ‘OBJECT’. If you care enough about an item to actually name it, you may need it, if you don’t, you probably don’t need it.

I like all your points for limitations on free accounts. They would not have stopped me from getting hooked to SL when I was a free resident, they would just have spurred me to getting my account that much quicker. And apart from the point I’m about to make, these restrictions would not stop me from enjoying the use of my free alt account, either.

One point though. Limiting inventory is fine for newbies but what about established accounts, where players have probably already amassed well over 1000 items? You really can’t go about deleting inventory content ad hoc just because someone can’t subscribe. Maybe you could stop them from getting any more items until inventory is whittled down to a manageable level..?

Actually that could work for *any* residents - I know I have a huge inventory, well managed but I’m sure it still causes load on the database every time I open it up. I wouldn’t mind somehow archiving a lot of my stuff, although I would need immediate access to all of it - I never know when I’ll want a particular item even though at any point in time I’ll only be using a tiny fraction of my hoard. It seems to me that we could do with a kind of linked inventory system, where only a request for a particular item runs a search on the main DB - the rest of the contents are just static names in a directory. (Apologies if that makes no sense, I’m no programmer.)

>>>I don’t know if this has been posted yet or not, but no matter what I type in on Search at the Places tab the only thing that comes up is Amsterdam. Any wonder why the top place in Popular Places is Amsterdam? How is that fair to the other places competing? Seems like an all-or-nothing should be used here. And yes, I have access to landmarks at places I’ve already been to, but to find new places to shop is entirely too much work the way it is now.

Yes, I said it, and in my opinion is a total shame. SL actually looks like a banana republic (the country I come from, for example) where the bigger (involuntarily in this case, at least I really really hope) capitalize on the disfunctional establishment to erase all competition. BUT NOBODY SEEMS TO CARE. The next liberal claim I read about sl being all about freedom, creativity and free expression I swear I vomit.

If that be made, ALL BUGS will disappear as MAGIC.

Also note that a free account does not have to mean “unverified”.

There are some “arguments” I’ve gotten sick of reading:

1. “I can’t afford anything but an unverified account”. Oh really? Then how were you able to afford a decent computer (the purchase of which usually requires an above average income) and a broadband connection? Furthermore, you can enter your data and become verified *without* being charged a penny.

2. “My country doesn’t have credit cards or paypal”. Hmmm… Visa.com and other credit/debit card providers say otherwise. While it may not always be easy to have a full-fledged credit card, you can perfectly well use an ATM/debit card (such as the Visa Electron) for verification purposes.

3. “I don’t trust LL with my data, there was a fiasco in September”. Yahoo! is far worse than LL (I’ve seen a multitude of identity theft occurencies in there), yet people have no problem trusting it. Have you failed to notice that the pages concerning your account in SL are secure (https)?

4. “I have kids, I don’t want some sicko to come after me”. That’s NOT a valid argument. If you avoid giving out your 1st Life info to strangers here on SL, you have absolutely no worries whatsoever.

So, there is no excuse at all for someone to be unverified. Furthermore, the price of the subscription is actually quite low. The quarterly pay scheme I’m on is not the most cost-effective in the long run, but still, $22something every three months is far from threatening to my livelihood. Mind you, I hail from Greece, where the average monthly salary is approx. 60% that of the European Union average - and even lower compared to the average US monthly income. So yes, I’m a paid account, fully verified, I come from a country with lousy salaries and have no problem paying for my subscription. I merely stopped buying two stupid magazines I used to buy - and also did the environment a favor by not rewarding (financially) the publishers of those magazines which are nothing but a waste of trees, ink and electricity.

Then if they want to upgrade, they can. In the meantime they are free (with a few limitations, which is more than fair) to live their SL…. I mean what use is the grid if it’s down for everyone?

I too am a great believer in free accounts, and they don’t need to be stopped, just limited in capability a bit. At present it’s only the land ownership which makes them differ.

Another suggestion: Lastly, maybe only have X new signups for free accounts per day…. others are placed in a queue and will get their account in Y days, or have the option to pay there and then and join as a premium right away… This way new membership can be “staggered” in order to give LL and the grid time to expand