Want to come and hang out with Suzanne Vega to celebrate the release of her new album, Beauty and Crime? Organize your invitation here - heaven knows this is going to fill up quickly.

Vega will be appearing in Second Life on Friday, July 13 at 4pm SLT (US Pacific), and will be available to chat with attendees inworld.

"Every visitor will receive a free player for Beauty & Crime, which can be used to outfit their avatar or to host a listening party of their own. Second Life users can also create their own musical street graffiti, explore the sounds of the city, and watch concert footage recorded live at the Hiro Ballroom in New York."

So, you want to check out Second Life. You've created your name and you're ready to begin designing your avatar. What happens next?

Well, the first step has already sort of been offered to you: the 'Select an Avatar' page offers 12 choices for a default, startup look, 6 per gender. Once you've chosen your default, and filled out the rest of the necessary fields, you're ready to jump into SL. Incidentally, this step is relatively new; back in The Day (something you'll hear me say a lot, just 'cause it's vague enough to mean anything), you weren't offered the 'Select an Avatar' screen. You jumped in head first, and bit the bullet by the horns. Wait... did I just mix a metaphor?

Anyway, unless you've chosen the Furry avatar, you'll get a bewildering array of options for changing your shape and appearance. My heartfelt advice to you is: Don't. Don't change your appearance right away. Spend some time looking around and mastering walking and flying. Talk to some other people. After a day or so, you'll start to see the wide variety of looks available to you, only some of which depend on your using the Appearance interface. If you really need to change something right away, go ask for help from someone that you think looks good; you'll get much more practical advice that way.

Next Tip: Where Should I Go? (coming soon)