New Second Life / InWorldz Group: The Grid Walkers Welcome Center

By Bixyl Shuftan

In recent months, interest in the InWorldz virtual world has been growing. The majority of people visiting the place have been from the larger Grid of Second Life, often annoyed with updates that their computers have problems with or policies from Linden Lab that they do. But without anyone or anything to help you out, it can get pretty confusing on how to go about there.

Fortunately help arrived in the form of the InWorldz / Second Life Connection Center. This group in both grids, with locations in both, helped residents from the older grid get started and go about on the new one. It also helped organize a public discussion in Second Life about what was true and what wasn't about InWorldz.

But without any warning, on December 8 Amore Crux, the owner of the Connection Center, suddenly announced the group was closing. While the groups themselves have remained open, many of the staff have found themselves locked from posting, and most of the virtual locations were deleted. Zia Larina, the former manager of the center, was caught off guard like everyone else, and made a public statement to help clear up some misinformation going around. There has been much speculation as to why Amore closed down the place, and the reasons are still unclear.

The group's sudden closing meant that residents commuting between the grids would be without reliable help. Nydia Tungsten of White Vixen Enterprises, which had cooperated with the IW / SL Connection Center, made the decision to found another group to take it's place: The Grid Walkers Welcome Center. Zia began helping her out from the start.

"We started the Grid Walker group to address the need that was made by Amore's announcement and then closure of all the Connection centers," Zia explained, "The volunteer coaching will continue and the coaches are willing to keep helping people. There is a connection between both worlds and a group we can stay in touch with each other here or in SL. I feel sad that the Decisions that were made. In the end playing our game is for us and being able to do that with help and laughter makes playing and working in both SL and IW enjoyable."

At the Angels Foxshire sim in InWorldz, managed by White Vixen Enterprises, Nydia explained, "We were planning to make this area a form of welcome center already, when we found Zia and Amore. I thought to join with them in promoting a cross grid community, that is why WVE and IW/SL got together to hold the Q&A meeting in SL. I was blindsided by the closing of their welcome centers then found out it was a decision Amore had made on his own because of.... "differences"... he had with the founders, his decision affected ALL their members and left them out of the loop as to why and what would happen now."

"The idea behind the group was too important to let hang in limbo, so together with Zia we have formed 'Grid Walkers Welcome Center,' leaving it open for not just SL and IW for for ALL grid visitors, we have a Inbiz ATM here now for those that need it, and it should also be said that there was NO disruption in ANY inbiz services."

Asked about InWorldz's rate of growth and if the new group can handle the influx if numbers continued to grow at the level, Nydia stated, "I think as the grid grows our group should grow and the number of guides along with it, I have every confidence Zia will handle and train our guides so they can handle the new arrivals as then get here."

So once again, Second Life residents needing help while getting themselves established in InWorldz have a place to turn to.

"In the end, words of intention are all fine. It is the actions that we do that people will grow to trust," Zia commented, "not our words, but our actions and our consistency."

Bixyl Shuftan

InWorldz/Second Life Connection Center Closes - Statement From Zia Larina

On December 7, Amore Crux suddenly announced the InWorldz/Second Life Connection Center was closing. Taking place less than a week after the discussion in Second Life about InWorldz which it helped organize, and about a day after the article on the event was published, this move was a complete surprise. Amore made a short anouncement, and deleted the center's regions in InWorldz and Second Life. The groups themselves are still up, though word is many people have already started leaving them.

Zia Larina, the manager of the Connection Center group and places, was not online at the time. Today, she made the following statement to the group in InWorldz and Second Life.

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Hello A/all,

I had some things happen in my real life that needed my attention starting about a week ago.  I needed to give up the IRT management position because I have real-life schooling.  Because of some issues concerning classes I needed to let that go and just focus on the Coaching which allowed me to be more random in my schedule; focused around my real-life classes.  I am in my BS/MS degree program right now and that is my primary focus in my real life.

I was in SL when Amore decided to close the centers and send word in group chat here.  I received some IM's in SL saying to get to IW.  When I went to IW I was given many NC on the conversation that happened in the group chat.  I will attempt to answer the main questions that were being asked and didn't get addressed.

1)  I sincerely apologize for what happened yesterday and the choice of Amore to close the connection centers down.  It was a big shock to all of us and to be fair I am not sure what really happened.  He has officially closed them down and there is no going back from that.

2)  All of you that have been volunteering your time to help people link and get set up here in IW and making their expansion of game and business we can still help and I am leaving lm's at the bottom.  Any terminal can be used as a linking point to help people get connected.

3)  For those of us who wish to still have a help group in case this one gets shut down.  Contact Nydia Tungsten.  She has created a group here and in SL for those of us still wishing to have a help group for each other.  This is their attempt at participating in helping us in this new direction.

4)  Elenia did a clean house and removed 6K from the welcome center group last week it is in the forums on the website.  Elenia did have a private discussion with Amore and made and official request that he stop a certain provision (check certificates).  To be fair she has never said anything against the centers, the group, and sat on a stage with us in SL answering questions in the meeting last Saturday.  If her official stance was in distancing the founders away from connection to us and our group then she would never have sat on that stage and would have done official IW answers based on the Feed after the meeting was done.  I had been speaking with her last week about getting connecting link to help people know solidly the reporting  people if they had issues with specific people at the Welcome Center and how to navigate that.  This was going to be included in the Coaching staff pieces.

5)  InBiz is a viable and established business and the terminals are working and linking and transfer of fund is still running as it has always been available.  You are able to use any atm terminal in IW at any location to access InBiz market place and to transfer lindens to IW.  There is an InBiz HQ on SL side.  ......Ellesmere (173,26,147)

**when using any terminal that will take money from your account whether it is a store or an ATM use the ctrl+alt+T if the prims are NOT red they are safe to use.  Use the Ctrl+alt+T to turn off again and shop or transfer funds.

In Conclusion,  I did not agree with the decision and I can understand if there have been stresses on Amore that maybe we don't know about.  I am at a loss as to how I can help on a personal level and that can not be helped.  I so sincerely apologize for all for all of the upset.

There are some options for all of you if you wish.  I will continue to help people if they need it and be available for questions the best I can.  I am sorry that Amore chose to close the centers and I apologize for the closures of the physical center locations.  If you have any questions please IM or send a NC and I will do my best to get answers to you as soon as possible.  For those of you who were coaching please IM me you are still very much needed and we can stream line this process a bit more if you are willing.

Sincerely,

Zia Larnia ~~ Ex Manager of the Connection centers.