SL User's Manual
For EFL Student Teachers at Assiut University College of Education
Registering for and installing Second Life
Follow this quick four-step process to register
for and install Second Life.
1. Choose an avatar
If you change your mind later, don't worry—you can select a
different avatar any time you want! Once you learn Second Life, you can
also customize your avatar to your heart's delight, or pick from a vast
selection on Second Life Marketplace.
2. Create a username
Later, you can also choose a display name that everyone
sees in addition to your username.
For more information, see Usernames and Display names.
Warning: Choose your username carefully! Once chosen, you can't
change it. Although you can designate a "display name," your
username will still be visible, and others may use it to refer to you.
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3. Select an account type
With a premium account, you get your own private Linden Home (if you're at least 18 years old), virtual
currency rewards, exclusive virtual goods, and many other benefits. For
more information on premium accounts, see Premium membership in the Second
Life Knowledge Base.
If you choose a basic account now, you can always upgrade to premium
membership later.
4. Download Second Life
You may need to run the installer program explicitly.
Basic skills
Some of the first things you'll want to learn how to do include:
- Walking
- Flying
- Changing your view
- Text chatting
- Changing your avatar
- Interacting with objects
- Finding out more about nearby people
- Controlling inworld media
Walking
- Click to walk. Simply click on the ground at the point to which you want to go. If your mouse pointer turns into a hand instead of an arrow, you won't move but will instead interact with an object. See Interacting with objects.
- Use the arrow keys. The up-arrow ↑ and down-arrow ↓ keys walk you forward and backward, respectively. The left-arrow ← and right-arrow → keys turn you left and right, respectively.
- Use the W, S, A, and D keys. The W and S keys make you walk forward and backward. The A and D keys turn you left and right, respectively. Make sure you click inworld first so that the chat field doesn't have focus. Otherwise, you'll be typing chat text instead of walking.
Running
To run forward, simply double-click the W
or up-arrow ↑ key. To run backward,
double-click S or the down-arrow ↓ key.
Flying
To fly, press and hold the Page Up key or the E
key. Press and hold the Page Down key or the C
key to land.
Use the same keys to move through the air as you do to walk.
Note: Some regions don't allow flying. In these areas, you'll
see this icon in the location bar
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Changing your view
There are several ways to change your view:
- To rotate your view, click and drag anywhere on the world. NOTE: If your mouse pointer turns into a hand before you click, then you'll interact with the object instead of rotating your view.
- To zoom in, press and hold the Alt key, then click and drag your mouse; or use your mouse wheel.
- To orbit, press and hold the Alt and Control keys, then click and drag your mouse.
- Click the View button and use the controls, shown at left.
To return to the default view, press the Esc key.
Text chatting
Click the Chat button (by default in the bottom toolbar) to text
chat with people nearby. Everyone within twenty meters of you will be
able to see what you type.
To shout, press Control-Enter instead
of Enter after typing your chat text. Everyone
within 100 meters will be able to see what you type.
Click the triangle icon in the chat field to show recent chat
history.
Mouse over names in chat history and then click on the
icon for more options.
Changing your avatar
Click Avatar
to change your avatar to one of the free provided
avatars. You'll be able to choose from a wide variety of people, robots,
animals, and even vehicles. For information on customizing your avatar,
see Editing your appearance.
Interacting with objects
If your mouse cursor turns into a hand when over an object, you may
be able to interact with the object by clicking on it. In some cases,
clicking performs an action (such as turning on a light switch); sometimes, the
object displays a special menu that lets you select from a variety of actions.
Finding out more about nearby people
- Their avatar name and how long they've been in Second Life.
- Profile "biography" information (if they've added it).
- Voice chat volume control for that person only.
- Add Friend button, to send a friendship request. See Making friends.
- Profile button, to see the person's profile. See Using Profiles.
Click the
for additional options, as illustrated at left.
Controlling inworld media
Volume control
Many areas in Second Life have music playing for ambience, or video
displayed on an inworld surface. Use the controls in the upper right of
the Viewer window to control the volume of the audio or, if you like, to turn it
off entirely.
Mouse over any inworld surface displaying video or other media to
show special media controls.
Finding cool stuff to see and do
Click Destinations to see the Second Life
Destination Guide. Click on a category, then click on a destination in
that category to teleport there immediately.
Go to http://secondlife.com/destinations/ to see more categories
and destinations.
Tired of typing? Use voice chat to talk to nearby people.
You'll need to set up a headset or speakers and a microphone. Using a
headset avoids annoying echoes of your own voice.
Generally, it's best to connect your audio devices before
you start Second Life. After you have connected your headset (or speakers
and microphone), you may need to configure your sound devices. To do
this, choose Me > Preferences > Sound & Media. You'll be
able to select your input and output devices and change your volume setting.
Once you have configured your sound devices, simply click Speak
to speak to those nearby. Click it again to turn off your microphone.
Note: Some regions disable
voice chat. In these areas, the Speak button will be dimmed, and
you won't be able to use voice chat.
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Voice dots
You can tell if voice is enabled and working properly
because you'll see a small white dot floating above your name tag, as shown
below. If other people have voice enabled, they will have voice dots as well
Making friends
To make someone your friend, mouse over their avatar, click
the
and choose Add Friend. This person
will receive a friendship request: if they accept it, then they will be on your
friends list, and you will be on theirs.
How to accept or decline a friendship offer
If you click Accept, your new friend receives
onscreen notification that you have accepted the friendship offer.
Click Decline to cancel the offer.
The other person receives onscreen notification that you declined the
friendship offer
seeing nearby people and friends
- NEARBY shows everyone within 100m of you.
- MY FRIENDS shows your friends list, with those currently online shown first.
- MY GROUPS shows information on your Second Life groups, which are like clubs. See Groups overview for more information.
- RECENT shows everyone with whom you recently communicated via instant message or group chat.
In all of these tabs, a person's name appears dimmed if they are not
currently online.
Mouse over a person's name for additional options:
- Click
- Click
The mini-map in the NEARBY tab shows a bird's eye
view of the area you're in; the yellow dot shows your location, and the green
dots represent other people.
Zoom in and out with your mouse wheel or right-click on the map for
more options.
Using profiles
Click Profile to edit your profile. Use your
profile to express your personality and interests. You can also share
things with your friends and see things they share with you, similar to social
networking sites. You can link your Second Life profile with your
accounts on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other popular social networks.
To view someone else's profile, mouse over their avatar, click
, then click Profile. You'll be able to
see the things they have allowed based on their privacy settings.
To configure your privacy settings:
- Click Profile
- Click
- Click Privacy.
Moving on
Once you've mastered the basic skills covered in this article,
you're ready to move on to learn the full richness of the Second Life
experience. Have a look at the Second Life User's Guide.
Most importantly, have fun!
Shortcut keys differ between PC (Windows and Linux) and Mac
not just in Second Life, but across applications in general. PC shortcuts are
indicated in the tables below. For your convenience, here's a table showing how
modifier
keys for keyboard shortcuts translate
between platforms:
Walk forward
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W or ↑
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Walk backward
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S or ↓
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Turn left
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A or ←
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Turn right
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D or →
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Run
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Double-tap W or ↑ (forward); S or ↓ (backward)
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Always run
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Ctrl+R
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Jump
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E or PgUp (Tap once)
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Toggle flying
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F or Home
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Fly up
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Hold E or hold PgUp
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Fly down
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Hold C or hold PgDn
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Mouse look
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M
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Reset View
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Esc
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Look at
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Hold Alt and click mouse to re-center
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Zoom in
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Ctrl+0
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Zoom default
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Ctrl+9
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Zoom out
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Ctrl+8
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Zoom camera in
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Alt+↑
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Zoom camera out
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Alt+↓
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Orbit up
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Alt+Ctrl+↑
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Orbit down
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Alt+Ctrl+↓
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Orbit left
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Alt+Ctrl+←
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Orbit right
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Alt+Ctrl+→
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Pan up
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Alt+Ctrl+Shift+↑
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Pan down
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Alt+Ctrl+Shift+↓
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Pan left
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Alt+Ctrl+Shift+←
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Pan right
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Alt+Ctrl+Shift+→
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Friends
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Ctrl+ Shift+F
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Local chat history
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Ctrl+H
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Look at last speaker
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Ctrl+\
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Gestures
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Ctrl+G
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Previous message entered*
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Ctrl + ↑
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Next message entered*
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Ctrl + ↓
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*Available in Nearby Chat, Group Chat,
and Instant Message windows.
System
Undo
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Ctrl+Z
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Redo
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Ctrl+Y
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Cut
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Ctrl+X
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Paste
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Ctrl+V
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Duplicate
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Ctrl+D
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Select all
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Ctrl+A
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Deselect
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Ctrl+E
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Close window
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Ctrl+W
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Close all windows
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Ctrl+ Shift+W
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Preferences
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Ctrl+P
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Help
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F1
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Search
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Ctrl+F
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World Map
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Ctrl+M
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Mini-map
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Ctrl+ Shift+M
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Teleport home
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Ctrl+ Shift+H
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Inventory
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Ctrl+I
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Build
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Ctrl+B
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Upload image
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Ctrl+U
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Take snapshot
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Ctrl+ Shift+S
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Quit Second Life
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Ctrl+Q
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It is possible to remap the Second Life Viewer's keyboard
controls, but be aware that the procedure is risky and can compromise the
Viewer's functionality. To learn more, read our wiki article on Keyboard mapping.
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