Second Life Vendor Systems

One thing that I know a lot of content creators in Second Life would love is for Linden Lab to implement a better vendor system. Having the ability to redeliver items, offer gift cards or reward repeat customers with store credit are just a handful of options that creators would welcome from the Lab.

To fulfill all these needs, creators often choose to use 3rd party vendor systems so they can offer more to their customers. E2V is one of the most popular vendor systems in Second Life. Today they announced that they will be retiring their services starting May 31st, 2018. So how will this affect the content creators that use their service, and the customers that shop from these creators?

If you are a customer that shops from a creator that uses E2V:

• Check this Pinterest Page from Delmar Quintessa – Delmar is creating a list of content creators using E2V, so you will know if you’ve shopped from them.
• UPDATE: Google Doc List of E2V Creators – There is also a Google Doc list of E2V creators and it is also noted if they are Self-Hosted. The creator of the document is Delmar Quintessa, please contact her directly if you are having trouble getting your name added to the list.
• Self-Hosted E2V Creators – Ask the creators if they are self-hosted with E2V and if they will be staying with the system even after May 31st. They do have an option to do that if they choose to.
• Check Credit – Go to those stores and check if you have any leftover credit before May 31st. You might want to then also use that credit or contact the creator and ask if they are planning to transfer the credit to any new vendor system.
• Redeem Gift Cards – If you have any left over gift cards in your inventory from any of these stores and you haven’t redeemed them yet, make sure to do so before May 31st.
• Get Redeliveries – Redeliver anything that you may need.

If you are a creator that uses the E2V system:

• Start looking for a new vendor system – There is a Vendor System Comparison Chart on the Second Life wiki which was last updated in February 2018.
• Vendor Systems Discord Server – A Discord server has been started where creators can join to chat and compare different vendor systems so they are able to make an informed decision on which to switch to before May 31st. If you are not familiar with Discord, you can check out my Discord Tutorial.
• Responses from other Vendor Systems – CasperTech and MD Labs have both responded to the closing of E2V and both have offered to assist any creators to transition as smoothly as possible. Contact them for more information about your options.
• Don’t rush your decision – Allegory Malaprop, designer of Schadenfreude in Second Life, shared an important message on plurk. Don’t rush to make your final decision. There are several weeks still and there are many options to think over. Take at least a week or two to come to a decision. She also has some other insight and advice in her plurk that I linked above.

I know there are many creators that are in a panic right now and don’t know what to do. Hopefully if you join the Discord Server and do your research you can make an informed decision on which vendor system would work best for you and your needs. I am sure the community will be there for each other in the next several weeks to try and help everyone transition smoothly.

As for E2V, it will be sorely missed. DavidThomas Scorbal has been a beloved creator in Second Life for many years. I wish him all the best in all his future endeavors. David is also currently answering questions on plurk, so if you do have any questions about E2V’s closing, you can ask him there.

If you have any more information about Vendor Systems in Second Life that you would like to share, or if you are creating your own system that will be released soon, please do share in the comments so creators are aware of all their choices. Thank you.

UPDATE: CasperVend has created EasyVend, which is an expansion pack that is designed as a drop-in replacement for E2V vendor scripts.