1. Avatar Orchestra Metaverse
New World Notes has an excellent story on this orchestra.
2. ADABOT, now at the institute
3. The Edge Eden Project
Archives for November 2007
Melbourne 2051
November 29, 2007 by Leave a Comment
Victoria University have a burgeoning presence in Second Life and one of their projects is Melbourne 2051. It’s a small but fascinating build revolving around a segment of Melbourne in, you guessed it, 2051. It’s been created by the 2007 Interactive Storytelling Class (Advanced Diploma of Multimedia – Games) at the University.
The associated website gives the full storyline behind the project and it’s an impressive example of the learning opportunities virtual worlds like Second Life provide. Spend some time flying around the areas surrounding Melbourne 2051 – there’s some fascinating works in progress.
One year of SLOz
November 28, 2007 by 14 Comments
A year ago tomorrow, we posted our first comments on SLOz. We launched in the midst of the mainstream media frenzy around Second Life that brought so many new residents. When we started out, we knew that no-one was covering events in Second Life from an Australian perspective on a daily basis. What we didn’t know was the level of response there’d be. Each day we get IM’s and emails from SL users with story suggestions, tips and feedback. Each week we have someone from the mainstream media making contact, asking us to interpret trends and events in-world. It’s made it the interesting ride we’d hoped it would be and we’ve never been more motivated to continue the work we’re doing.
Over the coming weeks we’re going to be making some fairly large changes to the site as well as to our in-world presence. We’re also hoping to expand our stable of writers so we can cover more issues and events. We even have a book on the way – more on that in coming months.
A big thanks to all of you who’ve supported SLOz over the past year. Kudos to Graham, our education writer and gratitude to our sponsors who help to keep the site running.
As always, we’re very keen to hear any suggestions from you – after all, you’re the reason we do this each day.
Freedom Expressed
November 27, 2007 by 2 Comments
Freedom Xpress is one of the more recent memorials to appear in Second Life. Its subject is freedom of expression and the journalists who have been killed for doing their job.
The organisers of the memorial, Dakila Lacava and Galilla Sinatra, describe their motivations:
“Freedom Xpress is a place of tribute to those who have fallen in the name of freedom of expression and the press. We are also a group dedicated to promoting these freedoms as indispensable to genuine human development and understanding.
Today, people continue to be persecuted, even killed as governments and groups with dire agendas seek to suppress the truth and those who bear witness to it. Freedom XPress is our small contribution to the effort to stave off the darkness from descending on us.
At the moment, we have erected two monuments, one to Philippine journalists murdered since 2001, and another to slain Russian journalists.
We would like to invite journalists from as many countries as possible to join us, to build their own tributes to the heroes of press freedom and free expression in their lands. We also welcome those who, journalists and non-journalists alike, wish to join us spread awareness through SL about how freedom of the press and of expression continue to be threatened and attacked all over the world.
If you want to know more abut Freedom XPress or get involved with us, please feel free to IM Dakila Lacava or Galilla Sinatra. We would be honored to have you on board.”
Are e-books the future?
November 27, 2007 by Leave a Comment
This article makes an interesting case for the e-book. I’m still a long way off convinced – the Kindle certainly hasn’t got me excited.
World Stock Exchange facing legal problems?
November 26, 2007 by 8 Comments
The Second Life Herald are running a story on the Midas Bank saga, alleging that Midas have done some legal investigations around their issues with the World Stock Exchange, run by Australian Luke Connell (LukeConnell Vandeverre).
If the issues aren’t resolved and things do go legal, it’ll provide a fascinating test-case for the status of finance in virtual worlds and associated governance policies. We’ve stated numerous times that the state of financial regulation in Second Life is farcical and there doesn’t appear to be an end in sight at this stage.
I attempted to catch up with Vandeverre in-world this afternoon for comment but his status was set to Away for the 30 minutes or so that I waited around.
Pearse’d & Cut – Victorian Menswear
November 25, 2007 by 1 Comment
Pearse’d & Cut is an Australian-owned Second Life business that focuses on 19th Century menswear. Owner Edward Pearse offers waistcoats, trousers, hats and shoes and an array of military uniforms.
The whole get-up is authentic as you’d expect from a business on the Caledon sim. I even picked up a kilt for the hell of it.
A new government’s genesis viewed from Second Life
November 24, 2007 by 1 Comment
ABC Island played host to an election night party, with lots of chat about unfolding events in the real world. The ‘Australians’ group in SL was also buzzing with a running commentary.
It’d be an understatement to say those gathered on ABC island and the group chat were pro-Kevin Rudd:
Numerous comments were expressed in regard to the ALP’s broadband policy and its impacts on the SL experience. There was plain old partying.
As one party-goer said, “I just wanted to be with some Aussies at this historical moment”. There’s been no involvement by Australian political parties in Second Life to date – my prediction is that by next election there’ll be a marked presence by at least one party in the virtual world sphere.
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