I finally have something to say that won’t fit in 140 characters. Ever since my first foray into virtual worlds I’ve taken a bit harassing from friends and strangers alike. I’m not alone. There’s quite a bit of eyebrow raising when you start talking to people about a world that only “exists” on a stack of servers. It’s caused me a lot of thinking. Dangerous, dangerous thinking. Initial reactions to any talk of a virtual world illicit responses of “Why don’t you just hang out with real people?” or “Isn’t it weird that it’s all fake?” or something to that effect. It can get more hostile but it rarely does.

These sorts of comments push me to ponder the “real” vs. the virtual. Most virtual worlds are populated with actual people who are logged in, controlling an avatar. The world might look like a video game but in most cases it’s not. (WOW and such not withstanding) It’s a rendered “place” and it’s intangible but the interactions are real even if the stuff isn’t. If we take a minute to stop and think we, as humans, seem to surround ourselves in all sorts of things that aren’t “real.” Here’s a short list…

• Money
• Government
• Borders (not the book store, c’mon)
• Religion
• Laws
• …

You might have just chuckled…but let’s think it out. Money used to be real. It was based on a certain amount of gold (here in the US) and the perceived value of that gold. (perceived value also being virtual but we’ll let it go) Now, money works because we’ve all agreed the gov’t can tell us what it’s worth. This gets a little more tenuous since government is entirely created and made up, basically, as we go along. If we all decided the President wasn’t in charge any more, he wouldn’t be. It would take an astounding organization of the public but I think you get what I’m saying. And yeah, I’m over simplifying but not absurdly so. What’s next? Borders…I’ve been to the border of states and countries. There’s nothing there. Oh sure, we put up a fence or a gate here and there but you can move a couple of miles in either direction and there’s nothing. At some point, someone decided to draw a line on a map and that line is transferred to reality…sort of. As a matter of fact, borders are MORE real in a virtual world…if you cross a border in some places your data is moving between physical servers. The border exists as a limit to the space on an actual machine. Do I have to go into religion? No? Good. Laws go with government…if you cross an imaginary border the laws you were held to become arbitrary and you’re supposed to follow new ones. They’re all made up, they’re virtual.

Here we are in the physical world living our lives for and by virtual concepts. For the most part we haven’t much choice. If we are to exist in a society we kinda have to go along with the majority if we want any sort of comfortable life. I just ask that we think twice before commenting on the virtual gathering I’m attending in a virtual space where I might use a virtual currency to buy something because stealing it would be against the virtual laws of that virtual space…

The celebration of Second Life’s 6th year has begun and I’m happy to say that the Studio Wikitecture group has an excellent build featured in the sims. Using the wiki-tree the group came together and collaborated on the final design that you can visit here: Studio Wikitecture @ SL6B

Do swing by and check it out! The tree is there with all of the iterations of this project. There’s also kiosks that display info on other Studio Wikitecture projects.

Terribly sorry about the abrupt stop in the journey across the world.  I’ve recently upgraded both my machines to Ubuntu 9.04 and, it turns out, AMD has decided that their driver that is compatible with this latest Ubuntu is not so compatible with my no deprecated ATI cards.  It’s a perfect storm of frustration leaving me without decent 3D support and thus really shitty looking SL.  I’m holding out for a patch to the previous driver that will rectify all of this. 

Until then…I apologize.

Apologies for my extended break.  Let’s just pretend a curled up under a prim tree somewhere and fell asleep.  My journey resumes…

The railway continues into Calleta and there’s an immediate payoff as a large rail yard full of a collection of train models,  that I imagine most enthusiasts would love, unfolds before me.  There’s quite a variety and the setting is nearly perfect for them all.  Beyond the railyard lie some clues as to what this sim really is. 

I find a collection of posters and helpful object willing to get me started with the Second Life Hobos.  I’ve heard of the hobo subculture but I’ve never encountered anyone who’s a part of it.  I endeavor to hang around here a bit and meet one. Further down the rails I stumble into what seems to be a hobo camp! 

(more…)

Whilst on my break from walking I wanted to post this article from New World Notes only because I think it’s rather important.  Important because a lot of folks still don’t grasp VW’s and some refuse to.  This is an application that will make almost anyone take a second to consider the newish technology we all enjoy daily. 

I hope this gets out to the mainstream media as easily as stories of sex/adultery in SL do.

I emerge from below the surface and see a familiar layout.  A light house and a train station.  The boat from Purple pulls up just after I snap a photo.  It looks like I can follow the rails once more and see where they may take me.  I’m barely inland and there’s already some interesting stuff here.  The pipeline from ANWR ends in a green pool which clearly needs to be cleaned up.  The pipe is open ended so, if one desired, one could walk through the pipe back to ANWR.  I do not desire that. 

And now…I feel like a noob…ugh.  There’s a huge map detailing the names and placement of the continents.  I had no idea this map existed.  I’m terribly embarassed as I would have posted this map in the first post to give you, the reader, a far better sense of where I am and what I’m doing.  Sigh.  Fortunately, touching the map gives a copy to place on your parcel.  The object is scripted to update the texture as LL updates or corrects it.  I’m glad this map exists and now, I hope, people are toiling away with written lore of why areas are named as they are.  For instance, the crater at the center of the atoll, when did that happen?  Are there accounts of it happening?  Surely the community can make up some interesting stories that will be passed on through generations.

(more…)

Suduffco and Sandra are the two northern most water sims in this channel.  Their main feature is the pipeline running from ANWR. 

I spot two av’s flying underwater but they zip by before I can chat with them.  This channel of ocean sims is often used for the rather popular boat races.  There’s a start line at the surface where I assume the racers start and finish.  Perhaps I can find someone more familiar with the boat race subculture in SL. 

These two sims are really empty but I don’t mind the solitude at all.  There’s no lag, no ugly builds and plenty of open space to swim/fly around.  If you’re looking to really get away, this might be the place.  After all, what does a vacation in SL really look like?  An empty sim methinks.

Progressing north through Sandra the sea floor slowly rises closer to the surface.  The Northern Continent awaits…

ANWR is one of my favorite sims in all of SL.  I’ve been here many times and I enjoy the atmosphere of the giant, desolate, prim creating platform in the middle of the Linden sea.  It’s set up as  run of the mill oil drilling platform the difference is its sole responsibility seems to be manufacturing plywood cube prims.  So that’s where they all come from…

(more…)

I thought about covering the 4 sim channel as one post but there’s actually more going on here than in most sims I’ve been through thus far. 

Cyclops is nothing but sea.  The sea floor is mostly flat though it does drop a couple of times.  I walk  along and notice a few folks on the radar.  I head west to see what they’re up to and they seem to be playing Tiny Empires (judging by their titles and lack of conversation).  They ignore me completely.  TE is a HUD only, turn based game of gold and royalty.  You work your way up the ranks by acquiring land and paying an homage to a Liege (another TE player).  Each turn offers you the option to do varying things from buying/selling land, bribing other players, improving your land etc.  It’s slighlty addictive…really, I should just send you to Onder Skall’s review of the game for a much more in-depth explanation

There’s one other av hanging out in the NE corner of the sim, he’s also unresponsive but his rez day is fairly old so I don’t assume he’s a bot. I wait around a bit to see if I can get a response…I don’t..I look up and notice the boat from the train station in Purple is going by…empty but with purpose.

 

I turn and head into one of my favorite sims…

Purple is mostly empty.  There’s a couple of stores in the southwest corner selling the usual random variety of clothing, objects and scripts.  Certainly nothing remarkable.  On the north east corner sits a picturesque Victorian home with a few lit trees and a tire swing.  The inside of the house is mostly devoid of furniture…I wonder where the residents went?

I walk along the eastern shore and find another mall/shopping area.  One thing that seems to be common in all of Second Life is the building of vast spaces that only house poster sized prims that sell a specific item.  It strikes me as a terrible waste of space when anything can be scripted to move, react or multiply as if by magic why are most stores set up like a bad beach-side poster shop?  Flex the mind a bit folks, you can do anything here!

As I contemplate that, let’s get back to the railroad….The railway enters Purple, turns north and abruptly ends at the edge of the landmass.  The station is small but it accompanies a small dock and lighthouse.  The way north is vast waterway connecting this, the First Continent, to what used to be the North Continent (now there’s a couple others so calling it THE North Continent seems silly).  The waterway stretches for4 sims and is oft used for boat racing although I have previously encountered people just hanging out under water.  A tugboat sits by the dock but not for long as it will take any passengers across the water to the north.  I…of course…will walk.