There are a few ways in Second Life to make a real life living.  This is not one of them.

At any given time when I’m logged into Second Life, there are about 30,000 other people logged in at the same time.  I’ve spent a lot of my time alone in Second Life learning how to build things and practicing with my movements and some of the stock animations I immediately acquired when I first logged in.  Recently, however, I’ve sought to be more social.

Oddly enough, I’ve had some trouble finding people to chat with.  I’ve made my way to many of the clubs in Second Life, but I’ve found useful conversation to be a rarity.  Am I ugly?  Do my virtual armpits smell?  I’m starting to get a little self-conscious. 

One thing I have found  is a lot of places to make money simply by hanging out.

As in real life, people tend to gravitate to where other people are.  In second life, a search for a certain type of destinaton (a club, a bar, a sandbox, or a store) will list the most populated destinations first.  Second Life businesses have caught on.  They’ll pay users to hang out in their locations with the hope of drawing others.  This practice is called “camping”.  Typically, one can make 2-3 Linden dollars for every 10-15 minutes of camping.  That’s equivalent to about a penny in US dollars.  You’re certainly not going to get real life rich, but it is a decent way to grab some cash for little things like clothes or club memberships in Second Life. 

Many camping spots are in casinos and clubs.  In a lot of cases, camping involves dancing on a dance pad.  If you can find another user on a nearby pad to chat with, then you can earn some money while you’re chatting.  That’s my goal, but so far I’ve only found people who are camping while not really paying any attention to Second Life (as I’m doing now).

If you drop into Second Life and happen to see a bald guy named Brian Chihuly playing a little air guitar, then grab a nearby dance pad.  I’d love to chat.