It may be a virtual world, but common sense still applies

When it comes to merchandise, there are differences between SL and RL. Some are good (system clothing is one-size-fits-all) and some are bad (you cannot always return the merchandise).

People who have been in SL for some time realize these things; it's all just common sense. But, for people who are not as knowledgeable about the platform, here are some facts that we, oldbies, take for granted:

- If it's copyable, it's not likely refundable. In real life, you can't go back to a store and say, "I bought an outfit here a week ago and threw them in the garbage because I don't like them. Can you give me a refund?" If the product has both Copy and Transfer permissions, sure, you can transfer it back to the merchant, but you still have copies in your inventory. Asking for a refund for copyable items is asking for a free product.

- System clothes may be one-size-fits-all, but attachments are not. You *have* to learn basic editing skills. It's a fact of SL. In real life, it's like knowing how to hem pants that are almost your size but just a tad too long. If you're the type who would rather have someone do it for you, be prepared to pay additional costs. And in SL, sometimes it's not possible for someone else to edit clothing for you. So head on over to the Ivory Tower of Prims and learn basic prim editing.

- If the product looks good on hundreds of avatars, but not on yours, it's not the designer's fault.

- If the designer recommends AOs and accessories that go well with their designs and you decide to go with other AOs and accessories, please don't blame the designer if it doesn't look right.

I honestly try my best to make my customers happy with their tails. Not everybody needs extra help, and I greatly appreciate customers who read the notecard and do their best before contacting me.

But if a customer takes hours of your time, refuses to do anything you suggest, refuses to learn how to do the most basic editing tasks, and then demands a refund of a Copy-only product, it makes you wonder why you bother to do all this. All for the price of a latte at Starbucks.

*sigh*