Welcome home! We hope this page helps you find an answer you need!
I am completely new to There.com, what do I do now?
If you're creating a brand new avatar, just press the MALE or FEMALE button on www.there.com and get started!
I am a returning veteran of 'Old There', what do I do now?
If you're trying to get access to one of your "Old There" avatars (Legacy Avatar), then one or more of the following answers might be of interest:
What do you mean by "Old There"?
The original There.com service was shut down early in 2010. At that time, all the old avatar information was tucked away in a legacy database. Before you can log in to "New There" you will need to create a new avatar. This could be a completely new avatar name, or you can claim your old avatar name.
How do I recreate my old avatar?
Starting at www.there.com, press the MALE or FEMALE button to start making a new avatar, but when asked for the avatar's name, use your OLD avatar name and your OLD password. It will then know you are claiming an old avatar and will automatically make the new one look just like the old one.
Do I have to use my old email address? It doesn't even work any more!
No, but you must use a WORKING email address (we will need to verify it before you can log in to the 3D world). Also, email addresses must be UNIQUE (no two avatars can share the same email address).
Do I have to be at least 18 to use 'new' There.com?
Yes, you do. We know this comes as a disappointment to our younger friends.
Will I have to pay a monthly fee?
You can subscribe to a monthly Premium Membership subscription in There for $10.00 USD. Basic Trial Membership is available for a one-time fee of $0.50 USD and comes with limited access. You can also play for free with a Silent Trial Membership during a periodic Free There Weekend (FTW) event in There.
Tell me more about FREE There Weekends!
During Free There Weekends (FTW), community members can sign up for FREE as Silent Trials. The ability to log in for free is limited to 6:00 PM Pacific Time Friday to 11:59 PM Pacific Time on Sunday on a designated FTW. Dates are announced on the There Blog and Facebook. Silent Trials are only allowed to text chat with Phoenix Stars (official new member helpers) and Staff members. Silent Trial nametags will also appear as an auto-generated random avatar name to other community members in order to discourage nametag abuse. The avatar's chosen name will appear on their nametag once an upgrade to Basic Trial or Premium Membership has taken place.
What are the limitations on Basic Trials and Silent Trials?
Trial memberships do not include Voice (but do get Music and the Explorer Pack features), and a trial member is limited in their economic activities with other members (for example, a Trial member cannot give Tbux or items to other players). Silent Trials become Basic Trials after an age check (a one-time fee of $0.50 USD), and can then use text chat with all members. For a full list of limitations, see the help article on low-cost trials.
I like to chat, how do I get age-checked?
Each time you log in, we provide the opportunity to perform an age check. This consists of our successfully charging 50 cents to your PayPal account. If PayPal thinks you're 18, then so do we. This is a one-time charge (per avatar) and it's the least we could charge and still cover the PayPal fees. Note that we DO give you 50 cents worth of ThereBux, so it's not really a 'fee' per se. Alternatively, you could get a full subscription (at which point you get both text and voice chat, as well as full member privileges).
I had several avatars in Old There, do I need a $10/month subscription for each of them?
Technically, yes. No avatar can log in without its own subscription (or Trial). However, if all you want is the STUFF an avatar possessed in old there, then you can create a single 'main' avatar, and can then use the 'claim possessions' tool to grab the STUFF from another old avatar, without actually recreating the other avatar itself.
If I claim the possessions of an old 'alt' avatar, will I later be able to resurrect that avatar and log on as it?
Once an avatar has its possessions 'claimed,' it cannot thereafter be resurrected as an avatar in its own right.
When I try to create my avatar, it tells me my avatar name is 'not available'
This means there was some form of moderation pending on your old avatar on the day Old There shut down in 2010. Moderated avatars are not allowed to be recreated.
When I try to create my avatar, it tells me my avatar name is already in use.
This means someone has already claimed that old avatar. Hopefully, it was you.
I tried to log in to There and it wouldn't let me
Assuming the service was running (we go down for maintenance around 3am California time), are you SURE you created your avatar? You can't log in until AFTER you have created your avatar on the *new* There.com
I forgot my password and the "forgot name or password" feature says my avatar doesn't exist!?
The "forgot name or password" feature on www.there.com is for use on 'new' avatars (which have already been created on the new There.com).
OK, I forgot my OLD password, how do I recreate my old legacy avatar on new There?
If you are trying to recreate your old avatar, but have forgotten your OLD password, you can use the Help me remember stuff tool to try to jog your memory, or reset the OLD password.
I forgot my OLD password, and my OLD email no longer works, AND I never set up a 'secret answer' on my old avatar!?
We will try to do what we can for you, but for obvious reasons, we must adequately identify you were the original owner of that avatar. Send an email to feedback@thereinc.com to describe your predicament.
Where do I get the 3D client?
There is a link to download the 3D client from the bottom of the www.there.com page.
When I try to log in to There 3D, it says the "servers are busy"?
From time to time we may limit the total number of people who can be logged in at the same time.
When I try to log in to There 3D, it says the "service is closed"?
Occasionally the service is run in a 'test mode' (usually after some major software update) for a few hours. While in this mode, only our debug avatars are allowed to log in, while other avatars would see this message.
When I try to log in to There 3D, it says I need to validate my email?
We now require that each avatar has a working email address before it can log in to the 3D world. If your email address has not yet been validated, you will be challenged when you try to login. Just click the link when asked and we will send you an email with an activation link in it. If that email has not arrived within 5 or 10 minutes, please check your Spam/Junk folders.
When I try to log in to There 3D, it says "Problem connecting to world, are you sure your avatar name is correctly spelled?"
Assuming you spelled your name correctly, and that we're not down for maintenance, this means you have security software (on your PC or in your router/network) which is blocking the There client from contacting our webapps servers (http://webapps.prod.there.com). Sometimes this will start happening after receiving a client update, if your firewall feels the updated client doesn't deserve the permission you granted to the original client. If you can't figure out how to get your firewall (or other security software) to approve the client, you can generally resolve this by uninstalling the client and then re-installing it.
After logging in successfully, I never see my avatar appear in world. I just see some mountains on a blue background?
Assuming the servers are not down for maintenance, this generally means that security software (on your PC or in your router/network) is blocking or not forwarding some forms of internet data traffic. Some of our client/server interactions depend on "UDP" packets (both incoming and outgoing) in the port range 2300-2399. These need to be 'not blocked' by your firewall/router/NAT. And in some cases you might need to set up explicit "port forwarding" rules in your router so it knows which PC on your network should receive the packets.
While we can't provide much specific help for your particular AntiVirus package, be aware that AV packages are taking on more firewall-like roles, so what looks like a firewall issue might be some add-on AV functionality. For example, if you use the AVG antivirus package, it has a module called Web Protect which is causing this symptom in Dec 2015.
Tell me more about my firewall!
Well, we probably don't know much about YOUR firewall, but it needs to allow our client software to use TCP (in and out) in the port ranges 2300-2399 and 52300-52399, as well as the traditional ports 80 and 443. We also need to use UDP (in and out) in the port range 2300-2399. Note that you probably have more than one firewall, and if you have an antivirus package like Norton or Avast it probably came with some add-ons that also have firewall-like behaviours. Any one of these can nuke a program it feels should not have access to the Internet.
When I try to log in to There 3D, it says I need a subscription?
Yes, in an effort to keep the service open this time around, we're charging a monthly subscription fee of $10 per avatar. You will be prompted to set up your subscription when you try to log in to the 3D world without one. These subscriptions are managed by PayPal or Stripe and can be cancelled at any time.
How do I start my monthly subscription?
Just try to login to There 3D. If your avatar needs a subscription, you will be unable to login and a link will be provided to help you set one up. Note the other options available to you at that time.
How do I cancel my PAYPAL monthly subscription?
For this, you need to visit paypal.com directly and cancel it. It will appear as a "subscription/ recurring payment" with the name: "Monthly subscription for There.com avatar AVATARNAME". After cancelling, you will continue to be able to log in until the end of your pre-paid period. There are no refunds for subscription payments.
I meant, how do I cancel my STRIPE monthly subscription?
If you used Stripe (non-PayPal) to start your subscription, then you should use the "Info about your subscription" link on your avatar's Member Info page to review/manage/cancel your subscription.
What happens when I cancel my monthly subscription?
The moment you cancel your subscription, you will stop any additional payments being collected. But your avatar will still retain full membership rights until the prepaid portion of the subscription is 'used up.' This should happen roughly at the 'month anniversary' of the payment that started the subscription (say "3 o clock on the 15th"). At that point, the avatar is unharmed, but reverts to a trial status until a new subscription is started.
Can you tell me EXACTLY when my privileges will revert to Basic Trial Status (after I cancel my subscription)?
Not really. The subscriptions are managed by our payment processors (PayPal and Stripe) and we just react when they send us notifications (sub Starts and Ends). From practical experience, it seems the notifications arrive within a few hours of the book-perfect moment (monthiversary of first payment). Stripe seems to average within a 2 hour window of perfect, while PayPal is more variable than that.
Can I pay for someone else's Monthly Subscription?
What a generous question to ask! And yes, you can. Just log in as yourself, open your own Profile and select "Member Info." At the bottom of that page is a link to buy a gift subscription for some other avatar. (the avatar in question must have already been created in new There.com).
What are the downsides of a Gift Subscription?
Well, if an avatar has been very very naughty, we will start looking for other avatars run by the same human, and consider punishing ALL of them (to discourage abuse). This can sometimes reflect poorly on the gift giver unless we can sort things out. But if the avatar is paid for by the same account as another avatar AND they have both logged in from the same computer, it will be difficult to convince us they do not deserve to share the moderation. Other than THAT, if two avatars share a funding source, they cannot both submit reviews of the same developer items.
Can I buy age-checks for my friends?
No. That defeats the entire purpose. To discourage this, we limit the number of age-checks we will accept from a single paypal account. Unfortunately, we have no way of seeing ahead of time how many you have used up, so each time you do an age-check, we send you an email telling you how many you have left. You have to pay attention and not ask for any more once that is used up. Though extra uses will still buy you 50c of TB, so we're not robbing you! But this does mean you cannot start 50 trial avatars and do the age-check successfully on all of them, even when they are all you. Sorry about that. In that case, you are the baby, and the excess age-checks are the bathwater.
Where is all my stuff? I re-created my old avatar and it has no stuff!?
We will migrate your old possessions, skills, favorite places (and anything else we can figure out) within a few days of your re-creating your avatar on new There.com These migrations can only be done on weekdays.
Some of my stuff showed up, but where's the rest?
Our records show that a large number of possessions were moved around between avatars during the last few days of "Old There." Our experience shows that people often mis-remember which of their avatars owned which items. And we have also noticed that sometimes people have forgotten how they came to possess an item. Possessions are only migrated to their registered OWNER, not just to whomever had them in their pocket. This also includes items which may have been left in your possessions after a TryIt timeout failed to re-collect them. Also, 'verbal agreements' between avatars are unknown to the inventory system. And, of course, a "lent" item also does not belong to you.
No, seriously, I completely remember buying stuff for this avatar, and I don't see it anywhere!
Assuming you are not just having problems finding it in Organizer, and that it isn't one of the possessions we know we are not migrating, then please send an email to feedback@thereinc.com with as complete a description as possible of the item in question (ideally you would know its ProductId, but even an accurate product name is better than nothing. But we can't really say anything definitive about "my stuff" or "my buggy" etc.) We can then run a special search to verify you owned the item in question and try to see what happened. So far, such identified items (with the exceptions below) have ALWAYS turned out to be mistaken-memories, or had been transferred to an alt.
Some stuff is not migrated?
We try as hard as possible to recover all your stuff, but we currently have the following limitations:
I have an alt avatar, with lots of stuff that I want, but I don't want to recreate it (and pay the subscription)
If you have not already recreated your alt, you can claim its possessions for your main avatar by logging on as the main, opening the main's profile window, and selecting the "claim possessions" option from the Member Info page. If you remember the un-claimed alt avatar's name and password correctly, we will mark its possessions as having been 'claimed' by your main. They will then be migrated to your main avatar during the next data migration (done on weekdays).
I already created my alt avatar, how do I move items from it to my main?
At present, this will require that you sign up the alt with its own monthly subscription so that it can log into the 3D world and you can then manually move its items to your main. (after that you could cancel the subscription if you no longer needed to log that alt into the world). Claiming an alt's possessions only gives you the possessions, not the skills.
I was the leader of several clubs, are they gone?
Yes and no. We are unable to automatically re-create clubs, since they are fundamentally collections of avatars, and the avatars in question may not yet have re-joined the service. However, we have 'reserved' the names of all the old Clubs so that they can only be re-created by their original leaders.
I had a house/funzone in old there, and now someone else is renting it?
We maintained a Rental Reservation System for about six months, but have shut it down as of 2/1/2012. If you did not re-rent the property before that point, it has either been reclaimed (funzones) by "there_hoods" or is now available (houses) in world on a first come, first served basis.
I was renting a funzone or house in Old There, is it gone?
All the old properties have been restored in New There. If you feel something is missing, please let us know by email to feedback@thereinc.com
I was the leader of a neighborhood in Old There, is it gone?
Yes and no. The neighborhood is not automatically re-created, but the location is still reserved for its leader. If you're ready to resume your mantle of hood leadership, please send an email to 'feedback@thereinc.com' with the subject: "I am a hood leader that is ready to resurrect their hood" and include whatever info you can to help identify the hood in question. This email MUST come from the 'landlord' of the hood, who MUST have recreated their landlord avatar. Be sure to include the landlord avatar name in the body of your email. We generally restore Hoods on Mondays (all pending hood requests are processed on Mondays, I mean).
I was an active developer and submitted many designs, will I have to re-submit them?
No, your old, approved, designs from Old There will be migrated to New There as soon as you resurrect the original designer avatar, and have it re-join the Developer Program (in 'new' There). We do these migrations on Mondays..
How long do I have to wait for you guys to approve my new submissions?
Actually, we don't do that any more. Developer Submissions are approved by the developers themselves, after a Peer Review process. To be a Peer Reviewer, just join the Developer Program and then click the "Review Something" link on the Developer Program page. Another important change to the Developer system, is that you may now optionally list your new designs for sale in USD or TB (or let the customer decide).
What do I need to do to start making USD sales of my new Developer Designs?
Not much. There is a help article on the subject (Check out our new Help System, where the top of every ThereCentral page has a help option in the search widget at the top right). But basically you need a PayPal "Merchant Account" to receive the incoming payments (and you have to tell us the address of that account, by setting it on your Developer Profile). You probably want to work with PayPal to set that account for "micropayments" so that the fees charged by PayPal will be as low as possible (see that help article for details).
Can I act as a third party ThereBux seller?
No. This time around we need to control the ThereBux money supply. You are *not* allowed to sell ThereBux yourself. However, we have provided a system by which developers can monetize their sales (rather than just accumulating billions of ThereBux).
I was banned in Old There, am I still banned in New There?
Short answer: yes. But depending on the nature of the ban, we might be able to review it at some future date. But don't hold your breath.
I don't have a PayPal account? How may I pay?
If you cannot, or choose not to, use PayPal, you can take advantage of our Stripe support instead. Stripe is a card processor that accepts a variety of credit and debit cards around the world. If your card is supported, you may use our Stripe interface to purchase ThereBux or avatar subscriptions. (Note: currently only PayPal supports our: gift subscriptions, low-cost trials, and RealMoney developer payments). Stripe's web site prefers modern browsers, so you might need to dink with your ThereTweaker settings
Since 'new' There.com has a minimum member age of 18, does that mean I can swear like a sailor and prance about naked?
No. Our guidelines are much as they were before. Michael's general rule of thumb is that if you would hesitate to do something on a busy new York street out of fear someone would punch your lights out (or arrest you), then it definitely is not ok in There. But we do expect adults to be able to resolve most of their own problems through constructive dialog (or by using the 'ignore' feature if you just can't stand a fellow member).
I can ignore people?
Yes. Sometimes you will run into people who just don't talk the way you like to listen, Rather than get into a big argument about it (they're probably just trolling you for a reaction anyway), point to their NAMETAG and select IGNORE from the popup menu. Once ignored, you will not hear their voice, see their chat bubbles, get IMS, see their name, or see their custom clothing, and they will be unable to approach within a dozen meters of you. You will, instead, see them partially sunken into the dirt. (Everyone who is NOT ignoring them, will see them normally. You're not GOD, we're just insulating you from the irritant.)
Are there any Windows Compatibility issues I should know about?
Our client works with Windows, versions "Vista" through "10". However, Win10 has led to some issues that people have let us know about.
* the use of the mouse wheel has changed, and you might have to use Windows Control panel to set it as you like
* Even if you have EDGE installed, you also specifically need Internet Explorer 11 to be installed
* When installing Flash, be sure to be using IE 11, so as to get the proper version
* the version of AVG that many win10 users have, specifically hates our client until you add us as an exemption in "Web Protect"
* Your super modern version of DirectX might not include the version 9.0c we need (available from microsoft)
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?displaylang=en&id=8109
Are there any Browser Compatibility issues I should know about?
Our 3D Client depends upon the Internet Explorer reusable browser control, which emulates an appropriate version of Internet Explorer, so as to be compatible with the web sites you need to use while 'in world'. We automatically pick what we think is best for your particular combination of operating system and browser, but you can influence that decision via the "IE Emulation" setting in ThereTweaker.
ThereTweaker? What's that?
ThereTweaker is a standalone tool you can use to modify key client parameters (like screen size and IE emulation level) outside of the client itself. This is particularly useful when the current settings are preventing the client from even starting up! Use your local windows search to find your copy of ThereTweaker inside your installed client folder (it's in thereclient/dlls), and execute it. The interface is pretty straightforward. Once you save your changes, they take effect the next time you launch the There 3D client.
I can log in OK, but I never get system messages, and my compass and changeMe controls won't open!
Some of our popup control windows depend on Flash. In particular we need the 'activeX' flavor of Flash. This is the same flavor as used by Internet Explorer, while many other browsers use the HTML5 flavor. If you do not regularly use IE, then you might not have the activeX flavor installed. To get it, you just need to visit the Flash Download Site while using Internet Explorer
I can log in and play for awhile, but pretty soon things get really weird and stop working until I reset my router?
This could be a symptom of owning a Motorola SURFBoard modem (popular with cable modem ISPs) that needs to have its "IP Flood Detect" feature disabled. The Motorola implementation of this feature erroneously treats most incoming stream data as 'an attack' and its reaction to that attack is to just start throwing every other packet away. Turning it off will improve your internet experience considerably, not just for There.com
I was able to log in just fine until the most recent client patch. Now I get told it was unable to contact the login servers?
Generally this means your firewall (or other security software) feels the client program has changed (it just did!) and thus no longer benefits from the permission you previously granted to it. Most firewalls are smart enough to just ask you again, but some will wait for you to manually change the firewall settings (remove the old permission, then either add a new permission manually or run the client and hope to be challenged by the firewall again). If you can't figure out your firewall, you might achieve success by uninstalling and then re-installing the client.
None of this helped me! How can I notify you of my problem?
Please send us an email to 'feedback@thereinc.com' with as many details as possible, but please do not forgot to include your avatar name in some prominent location in the email.