'Want to Make Some More New SL Friends?

Have you ever wanted to meet new and different people in SL but are maybe not really up for hanging out at the meat/meet market clubs or new person information hubs or newbie places feeling like a troll preying upon fresh meat, or don't feel like you have the energy to really get out there again?  (Sounds like a RL dating commercial doesn't it) Do you really want to meet some new people who don’t already have all the same SL experiences and knowledge yet but might have things in common or things not in common that you’d like to learn about? I was checking out the SL web pages and stumbled upon the “meet new friends” thread in the forums. I found myself oddly draw to this and read several of the entries. Some sounded like lonely people just looking for others to hang out with, some did make it sound like a dating service looking for others with like interests, others were looking for a family, or something else specific. At any rate I did find it interesting and apparently many others do also, as there are many many entries (over 28 pages worth) that have over 100 hits and on up to over 2,000 each. Being the social person that I am I could not resist making my own post there today. Anyway, check it out here: http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Make-Friends/bd-p/MakeFriends.   Direct link:  http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Make-Friends/bd-p/MakeFriends  And while you are at it you might find some other fun or informative forum or entry by LL.

(And a quick collage of some recent friends pics just
for fun-some sneaky snaps and some they were aware of.)


Addendum:  So then I had to add more to a diff post but thought maybe it would be good to go on my blog here for any new avatars looking to meet people, as apparently some people have a hard time making friends in SL. Here are some of my thoughts:

Personally I think some of the best ways to meet others in SL is to find large groups of people with like interests, such as:

-Go to a popular dance club like Club Ambrosia, Big Daddy's, or Club Zero or one with a style of music a person likes and don't be afraid to IM and talk with people. (Use search, although there are many places that are just empty all the time)

-Read people's profiles to get ideas about places others like and things that SL has to offer, even teleporting right from their profile pics if desired.

-Check the LL events calendar and go to some of those, as often many people congregate for special events in areas that may not otherwise have a large group.

-Go to live music venues during peak event times such as The Roof on Mondays and Wednesday evenings when there are always a lot of pepople having fun, or Key West.

-Find the latest great sim explores off the destination guide features or editors pics. Some of the very nice sims to explore and dance in generally always have a lot of friendly people like in Tempura.

-Join groups that hold a lot of big events and have many members such as BOSL (The Best of Second Life), Fab Free, or some of the events groups.

-Participate in a big hunt like madpea hosts as it is a great way to see a lot of people and fun sims and have fun doing it.

-Search for and find a sport or some hobby you like and join with a group such as a football team or cheerleading group. Even if this sounds silly to a new person it really is a lot of fun. Another fun one is the photohunt group for people who love to find new or very good explores and take pictures of them on Mondays during the day (I forget the time becuase I'm at work, but good for people in diff time zones) and also again Wednesday evenings. Many of those groups make a lot of close friends who work and play together on things they enjoy.

-Google Second Life and read blogs-they often tell of great places and things in SL.

-Join a class to learn to build or take pictures or make things or model or get a job. Some good starting points are Builder's Brewery, Katink pose shop, BOSL. And many clubs are on the look out for good dependable eployees of all kinds from hots, hostesses, djs, security, etc. This can lead to income and enhanced SL time as well as making good friends.

-There are some large "game" type sims such as Zombie hunting, combat areas, Star Wars etc. and some of those type of groups get close and form some large tight friendships.

-External social media sites also help enhance or develop SL friendships such as in Facebook, Flickr, Twitter, etc.

-There are also "alternative" lifestyle sims that get a lot of traffic and many form some very tight friendships there if that is your thing.

I've found people friendly overall and the best way to make friends is to just speak up, be kind and friendly, ask people for help, to dance, where they like to go and what they like to do, and if someone isn't helpful or friendly just move on to another area that you have an interest in.
 
Places to avoid include sandboxes filled with griefers that can be confusing and frustrating to new people. Some of the bigger freebie areas while serving a purpose are filled with vampires trying to bite all the time which also can catch a new person unaware. (if a person WANTS to get bitten and be a vampire that is another huge area of contacts/freinds that can be developed) Newbie areas can also be a bit of a double edge sword for both of these reasons. When I am in these places I try my best to help new people who seem to be trying hard to figure things out. SL is very much what you make of it and how you chose to interact once you get the hang of it. It is different from RL in many ways since people tend to do and say things more readily than they might in RL due to anonymity but if much is forgiven of some people the good ones will remain and recognize your goodness and ability to be a good friend.