Occasionally I give obviously new players a small 'donation' to give them a boost.
I actually 'watch' a new player for a little while, to make sure they aren't a old player starting a new char.
Sudden jumps in character level are a bit of a give away.
How much is too much?
I want to give them a 'boost', enough cash to either get a better ship to go trading in -OR- a better ship with better weapons, so that they actually have a chance of holding their own against the 'bad guys' if they decide to go to doing missions.
I DO NOT want to deprive them of the priceless experience of fighting/trading their way up from scratch, I just want to give them a bit of a hand up.
I use the ANON switch when I make my donations and I don't do it too often these days.
