The Elusive Camping Spot

Camping within Second Life is probably the one profitable venture which does not require any skill or talent. As a result it is the lowest paid and L$100 a day is a very optimistic. Camping as a loose definition within the virtual world refers to transporting your avatar within a defined area for a continuous amount of time, hence increasing a regions traffic and funneling others to its goodies. Camping has spawned a number of devices such as the sploder that work on the same principle, however more on that later.

A typical camping spot pays around 2L$/15 minutes. This varies greatly and to quickly attract traffic a land owner may pay a ridiculous sum per minute for a short period. The actual act of camping usually requires you to log into a device, for example the Camp Master (pictured below) and as anti-bot protection press a pop-up button every so often. Most devices also implore you to remain active and not idle or away. Another common requirement is for you to join a group or participate within the region in some way, for example if you are roleplaying, camping devices can be utilised as wage instruments.

 Camping spots are far and in-between, popping up and disappearing regularly. Easiest way to locate them is to conduct a search or to join a Camp Discovering Group.

Camping etiquette is quite important and should be observed. A friendly and funny nature will make the time go faster and humorous clothes or devices are appreciated. Do not encourage lag with massive avatars or dragon effects, remove inactive HUDs and tasteless or inappropriate props or costumes only offend people and get you banned from regions. Furthermore its also much appreciated when fellow campers share active spots, tips and tricks.

All in all camping is a very reliable, secure and time consuming activity to earn your lindens, however I find it is best for times when you are away from keyboard (AFK) or busy doing other things and your avatar is best left sitting around. Many people view camping as a waste of time, the low income to time rates can be seen as a net-loss due to the internet use costing more than what you are earning Linden wise, but if you need the money and there is no other way, why not?

(Pictured above is the institution named The House of Rama, easily found through the search engine and always attracting visitors. You can access to the Camp Master you must play Tiny Empires and show up in his down-line, it is all explained when you get there)