AVWW 2008 – registrations open

The Australasian Virtual Worlds Workshop and (AVWW) is back again in 2008 and it’s looking like a fascinating two-day program. It’s being held at Swinburne University in Melbourne on the 28th and 29th November.

Keynote presenters include the New Media Consortium’s Larry Johnson, SLCN‘s Keren Flavell, Linden Lab’s Chris Collins and VastPark CEO Bruce Joy.

We’re proud to be a media partner for the event and will be covering both the real-world and Second Life proceedings. If you’ve got any interest in virtual worlds and education, health and business then think about registering.

Growth of Australian educators in Second Life continues

One of Second Life’s intrinsic strengths is its education community and the Australian contingent of educators is well and truly up there. Three new presences are on the horizon:

1. Jokay Wollongong’s two Jokaydia islands are developing well – expect a launch in the new year with an accompanying profile here on TMJ.

jokaydia.jpg

2. Right next to Jokaydia is an island called Riverina. It’s apparently going to be developed by Riverina TAFE – we’re hoping to catch up with someone from that project in the near future.

riverina.jpg

3. Finally, Koala Island is in development by Swinburne University of Technology. Again – we hope to get more details soon.

swinburne.jpg

There’s quite a list of Australian tertiary education presences in Second Life now. Notice how nearly all of them are the ‘newer’ universities. The sandstone universities like the University of Melbourne and the University of Sydney are conspicuous by their absence.

Smart Internet and business in SL

Smart Internet, a joint venture between a range of universities, State Governments and industry, has released a report called ‘Business in Second Life: An Introduction’. Authored by Swinburne University-based Senior Researcher Mandy Salomon, it provides a comprehensive overview of the current state of play in SL for Australian business.

salomon.jpg

Previous Posts