HOUSES:
Everyone has a link to their house address -- if you're in the HOUSE area, click on the link below "Share my home." Just PM the address to all your friends. The bad thing is, you can only have 5 links to your friends' homes in your Directory. What I did, is paste my friends' house URLs into a txt file and saved it on my computer. This way you can save as many as you like, then just cut and paste it into your browser. Woot!
By the way, you can also make your house open only to friends if you want (highly suggestible). In your HOUSE window, there are preferences listed at the bottom. You can also go into your ACCOUNT area from MY GAIA.
If you know someone's profile and if their house is unlocked, you can always get into their house. If someone has their house set to "friends only," then you can only get in if you're a friend. If someone's house is locked, you cannot get in.
For example, my house is set to "friends only." If you know someone's profile, you can get into their house. My profile link is
http://www.gaiaonline.com/profiles/10113922
My house link is
http://www.gaiaonline.com/homes/?user=10113922 All you have to do is change the number that comes after "user=" to the same number that is in the profile of the person's house you wish to visit. Then put that link into your browser location bar.
Also...if you didn't know -- there is an awesome site with information on Gaia --
http://www.tektek.org. You can do all kinds of things there, as well as make your dream avatar, preview every item that has ever been out in Gaia and the price even if it's no longer available, find a design for your profile, get signature images, find information on Gaia quests, and more.
MAKE YOUR HOUSE DARK WITH LAMPS ON:
To make your house dark and just keep lamps on: Hover mouse over MY GAIA -> Click on HOUSE -> Click on DESIGN MY HOME -> Move over items from the left side to the right side into your home inventory -> Click on DESIGN MY HOME (on top of the box that has a roof shape) -> After Gaia Homes loads, you will be in your editing mode. Click VIEW on upper left -> Then click the circle-shaped yellow sun in the upper right-hand corner. This will turn your house lights off. Now you can click on any lamps you have in the room to turn them on and then off if you choose. Save your home after you're done.
HOW TO COORDINATE A COMMUNITY MOVE:
Join the VMK Refugee Guild on Gaia to meet other VMK/Gaians: Click here
During the last week of May, 2008, some friends decided that we wanted to try and make a VMK community. We had planned to actually do it the next night, but our test turned into the real thing -- it just sort of happened. We ended up quickly contacting as many ppl as we could who were on, but not everyone we had planned was online. Our first VMK community is called,
"VMK Town: Friends 4 Ever (heh, our section is titled, "Got Days?"). We have 21 people living in our neighborhood, and 1 non-vmker (more on how this happened below).
I hope I can explain this clearly, because it really is fairly easy to do -- it just takes a lot of coordination and patience.
- Choose a community coordinator. This person will be the one to scout out a full 9-section block of vacant lots. You will also be the first one to place your home. If there isn't already a link in your profile to your home (doesn't matter if your house is not placed yet), then you should put the link in there (I used BB code and pasted my house link in my ABOUT US section of my profile). You can also send friends a pm with your house link (see HOUSE page for your link). But it was very easy for me to tell someone to meet me at my house -- link is in my profile.
- Ask friends if they want to live in your VMK community. Decide on a time when you all can meet on Gaia (possibly gather in a game room or get on IM so you can speak to friends in real time).
- Find out if friends have ever placed their home. If they have never placed their home, it will be free to place their home the first time. All they need to do is hover their mouse over MY GAIA, click on HOUSE, and choose the type of house they want (there are 3 styles). Once they've done this, they will have to choose "I'll place my home." Community coordinator does the same if they have never placed their home. Tell friends to stand by -- as soon as you place your house you will tell them to click on the link in your profile to go to your house.
- If a friend has already placed their home and wants to move it, they would need to have 1,000 gold in their account in order to click on relocate. They cannot click on RELOCATE MY HOME unless they have 1,000 gold. Once they've clicked to relocate, they would need to click on "I'll place my home." Now they wait. Community coordinator does the same if they have never placed their home. Tell friends to stand by -- as soon as you place your house you will tell them to click on the link in your profile to go to your house.
- The Community Coordinator needs to locate an vacant 9-block section..so you need to go to town. Here are a couple of ways to get into town: you can click on the "Go to Town" link on the HOUSE page; hover your mouse over Community and click on Towns; or you can go directly to a friend's house.
- Once you're in town, you can view the Directory's population chart. Either way you get into town, once you're there, click on Directory at the bottom of that window. The blinking square block will show you which block you are currently in. If you look at the legend at the bottom, the green houses are vacant. If you close the Directory you will be back in town. If you saw green houses in the Directory, you would see white vacant signs while you are in town.
- Go back to the Directory. In the upper right-hand corner, click the arrows to go in either direction (N, S, E or W) on the map...eventually you will find sections with vacancies. Once you've found an entire 9-section block of vacant towns, choose one and enter it. Find a vacant lot and place your house down.
- Now is the time to tell friends to click on the link in your profile (or pm if you've sent them your link in a message). Once friends begin arriving, have them exit and locate a vacant sign. Once they put their house down, they can hang around in the area to help show newcomers where there are still vacant lots. Once 6 plots have been taken in your section, you can check the directory to see where there are still green houses (vacant lots). In the Directory, friends' houses will show up in a blue color. Your home will show up as yellow.
- Once houses start going down, you will have to hurry -- people like to move near others, and there may be strangers showing up to join your town. Move quickly to place everyone.
OUR DISCOVERIES:
One of us had a wonderful idea -- why not try and save plots with mules? This way, friends who were unable to put their house down with us, would be able to switch with our mules. It sounded like a perfect plan. Until I tried it. The moment I lifted a mule's house off its plot, another house took its place -- I didn't even see a person there (they must not have placed their own home...they must have had Gaia place it for them). So, now there is a stranger living among one of our VMK sections. I would have tried it again, but I didn't want to spend another 1000 gold without a guarantee that our friend would take over the plot. We would have gladly spent the gold on friends to live near us, but it doesn't really make sense to pay 1000 gold each if it isn't guaranteed. I've sent a message to Gaia to see about their letting us have VMK communities...will let you know if I hear back.
So, someone has to take charge -- friends all have to get ready to place their homes -- everyone has to be ready to go when the Community Coordinator says "Go" -- and everyone who places their homes has to help the people who show up after they have placed their house.
MY HOPES:
A lot of planning and work goes into gathering everyone and helping them to move in the same area. I know I have no right to ask any of you to keep your house where you place it, but it's like this -- if you join a VMK Community and then decide to leave for whatever reason, a stranger is guaranteed to move into the neighborhood. I know you're probably thinking -- so what, 1 person we don't know. Well, the entire point of a VMK Community, is to have a safe neighborhood...as many plots as we can get. If you don't know Gaia towns, well then you're lucky. You don't want to be living next door to a title that I can't even name here...I'm sure no one does. So, if you're going to move with us, please be dedicated and don't leave your fellow VMK friends with a stranger among them. Now please stay put!
Good luck!! If you've set up a VMK town, let me know so I can list it here. PM me with any questions.
========VMK TOWNS========
VMK Community Move #1: May 29, 2008
VMK Town #1: VMK Town: Friends 4 Ever (the lines were the plots that were supposed to be saved for friends)
Total plots occupied: 31 (7/15/08 Update: 30 plots / 21 VMKers)
Addresses:
3, 4, 6-8 Barton 059569
2 Barton 059579
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Our second VMK Community move was scheduled in advance this time, which enabled many more plots to be filled. It was a little tough going at the beginning after I placed VMKRealtorsFriend's house and posted the link on my profile -- not sure if there was trouble on Gaia's end or if there were just way too many people trying to access one house all at the same time. I think next time I will first send the new house link to someone else and have them place their house second, and then have 2 links to post in my profile so not everyone accesses the same link. Again, not sure if that was the cause of us all freezing and getting a flash error, but it's worth it to try for the next time.
Overall, this move went smoothly. We placed 30 more VMKers in another VMK neighborhood -- we could have placed more at least 50 more VMKers, if they had only showed up. I think for the next move, I will start a waiting list for those of you who still would like to move your house. There is a waiting list below. I was there from 9pm EST until at least 3:30am EST with a few friends staying up really late with me. Thanks to all the people who hung around and helped with all the moving -- I sooo appreciate you!
Below is the second community -- Congratulations everyone!
VMK Community Move #2: July 11, 2008
VMK Town #2: VMK Town 2: Friends 4 Ever (after 7 hours there were still available plots - the green houses)
Total plots occupied: 30 (7/15/08 Update: 29 VMKers)
Addresses:
1, 4, 6, 7-8 Barton 065317
2 Barton 065327 (2 plots)
=================================================
VMK Community Move #3: TBA
Waiting list:
- PurpleDuckyXD
- PirateMe
- KrazyPete
- amazingsuperpixie
- capturedbiGrace
- SkippyPaul
- SweetVanillaGirl
- FeyDolphy
- LD_Fantasmico
- Melp555
- FilamenttheBright
- Elegant ShelbyMarie
- illuzioniztic
- Midiens
- SweetAsADaisy
- littlenikky1206