Tuesday, November 3, 2009

So long, farewell...

Back when this blog began, 750 posts ago, there were few blogs that did write-ups and reviews of great content and installations in Second Life. This has changed dramatically, especially over the past year. Today, a number of academic journals are gearing up to focus on virtual content, and they will be the appropriate venues for most of the topics we've been covering lately.

I like to think Not Possible IRL has raised awareness of quality content, not just in Second Life but in other virtual worlds where User Generated Content is possible. We've certainly showcased a lot of extraordinary talent and work.

I've had dozens of brilliant collaborators, chief amongst them Alpha Auer (aka Elif Ayiter), who blogged at least 100 meaty posts. Alpha is not only an academic, and a spectacular virtual artist in her own right, but also an inspired thinker and writer.

Of course, none of this would have been possible without the intoxicating encouragement, imagination, resourcefulness and originality of the members of my virtual working group, Not Possible IRL, all of them Giants of the metaverse.

Instead of tiring of it, my interest in great 3D immersive content is at an all-time high, so I'm not going away, just redirecting my energies in new ways.

A big thanks to all who have been so supportive, galvanizing me to look in this direction and that... leading me to uncover (and showcase) treasures (and people) under every pixelated rock and leaf. Don't stop.

I'll still be twittering my adventures and discoveries, so feel free to track Bettina Tizzy there.

So long.

70 comments:

Rob / Mo said...

Oh wow. The winds of change really are a blowin'. All the best Bettina.

Juko said...

Sad but look forward to whatever and wherever next!

Unknown said...

Bettina: THANKS!

But, as an avid consumer of NPIRL news I'm a bit worried. Could you give us some more hints about what's coming?

You wrote there are lots of appropriate venues for most of the topics NPIRL has been covering lately:
could you please directly point us to some of them? I'm not aware of anything comparable to NPIRL website with regard to SL news.

Oh, and... THANKS!.

Anita said...

Philip Linden said quite the same when leaving, hope you will enjoy all what you are going to do :)

Unknown said...

I joined SL because you and your blog inspired me to.

No one will ever hold a candle up to you, Bett. I'll follow you, wherever you go.

Anonymous said...

Back to real life I guess. Second Life was great while it lasted.

Thirza Ember said...

NOOOO dont go bettina!!!I write about sl art, over on slartsparks.blogspot.com and will miss the company of your blog whhich has so often inspired me and pointed me in the direction of the great and the blogworthy...well, whatever you do next, I'm certain it will continue to be excellent!!!!

Botgirl Questi said...

NPIRL was one of only a handful of Second Life-related blogs to truly support, articulate and push forward the unique paradigm of virtual worlds as a platform for human potential. Best wishes for your future pursuits!

Afterthought said...

Thank you Bettina. I've learn a lot of SL through the blog. I will certainly miss it. All the best, An

Corcosman said...

Thanks so much for NPIRL, Bettina. You pointed the way to a lot of wonderful people and fantastic creations for a huge number of your fellow residents. When I was new this blog, along with others, was where I learned that there is more to Second Life than just in-world time.

educational resources & SL stuff said...

Your blog will be missed. Change is in the air.

Anonymous said...

NPIRL made me stay in SL. You have been the best guidebook to SL ever created.

I'm awaiting instructions. I love you.

sororNishi said...

Pure quality, your words will be missed. Alpha, thanks too, loved your thoughts, both of you...xxx
Good luck with the new..

Earth Primbee said...

This has been the best SL blog period. Not commercial, not full of itself, just full of great works and great artists.

Thank you all for your efforts to be one of the brightest guiding lights of all.

Great hopes for the future whatever form that takes!

Cienega Soon said...

Farewell Bettina & thanks for you attention to creativity ... i agree with Dirk ... not much info fits in twitter:p

Ka said...

Oh, I shall miss this blog! You introduced me to so many wonderful things - and artists.

Thank you for all your work!

Alpha Auer said...

Bettina is sooooo not going anywhere! I will personally see to that people, even if it is the very last thing I ever do!

Or rather, let me re-phrase that a bit: Bettina is going places - and true to style will be carrying all of us in her wake! Just wait and all shall be revealed in due course...
:-)

Anonymous said...

I really hope this means you are taking on a new project in SL and not leaving us completely. Hugs to you and I wish you the best of luck.

Lizzie Lexington
(Who is currently staring out the window of her fourth floor office in the Domain - Austin TX)

Anonymous said...

OOh thank you Alpha for letting us know. Hugs!

Unknown said...

As others have commented NPIRL blog was an intelligent guide to SL. And the 'wind of change' make me realize the family of the metaverse is dissipating. Hopefully to propagate and grow but I remain apprehensive the metaverse will shrink to small spheres of influence. With NPIRL blog gone it will make SL less inviting but even I know Linden Labs failed to understand how to make a cohesive society. Someday we will all meet again in the metaverse but without NPIRL blog those times will be far and few between. Ciao!!!

Delinda Dyrssen said...

Change is always a good thing. Best wishes Bettina

someone somewhere said...

Change *is* a good thing (usually), but I have to agree with oobscure - what's the deal with saying "this was great! now others are doing it, go follow them" ... and not leaving us a trail to follow? I even like surprises, but that kind of thing just annoys me.

And what about those of us that hate twitter?

I'm not in the least suggesting that Bettina shouldn't go wherever she's going, or whatever change is happening shouldn't happen, but I think it's bullshit to so cheerily imply we're in better hands, when no evidence is given.

chanthira contemporary arts said...

You have been a great mentor - and the blog and important source of knowledge. Thanks to eveyone who has been involved. Looking forward to following whatever is next.

Thaumata said...

Oh, what a sad post! NPIRL has long been the best blog about SL and I will miss it. Thank you so much, Bettina, for being a source of inspiration and intelligent news about SL for so long. I'm excited to see what you get into next and wish you only the best there.

Glyph Graves said...

Yes there are many other good blogs but none have come close to what has been done here. Few have had the capacity to as encompassing and to have the vision that NPIRL displayed. Like many others have noted Thank you!...Ill be sad to see it pass...

On the other hand.... change is good! *waits with breathless anticipation...:)

Osprey said...

Time passes quickly in cyberspace, and things that try to stay the same end up becoming irrelevant. The same spirit of adventure that caused Bettina to create NPIRL is within her (and us) yet, and instead of looking back to the past we should look ahead to new wonders.
Thank you, Bettina - you are an unusual person whose clear sight has guided many.

Joonie said...

Betina....so sad to see your blog go. I could always count on it to show me something new in SL that would open my eyes to the wonder of it all.

Take care and hurry back with that trail of bread crumbs.

JJ

Vincent said...

Best wishes to you Bettina!

I am sure you've made the best decision. Blogging can take a lot of time and effort, and realising when it is time to refocus and make the most of your time is not always easy.

Now you have me intrigued as to what you are shifting your focus on. :-)

Professor Loire said...

Wishing you all the best in the future, Bettina. I found SL because of your blog, via Smarthistory. Thanks for everything. Can't wait to see what you do next!

L1Aura Loire

Bryn Oh said...

I remember meeting you in some obscure sandbox one day years ago and it was then that I learned about this wonderful Blog and the idea of NPIRL. It is a very sad day for me to see the only blog I follow on a regular basis dissapear.

Mako Kungfu said...

Bettina, best wishes to you. I'm so sorry to see NPIRL go -- as many have said, this has been an incredible resource and source of entertainment and wonder for discerning readers seeking inspiration, creativity and the best SL has to offer. You will be incredibly missed. Thanks so much for what you, Alpha and the NPIRL gang have given us.

Anonymous said...

Joins in the chorus of heartfelt praises and best wishes in your future ventures. I will miss this weblog very much, but like everyone, I so look forward to what you do next! Thank you thank you!

Corwin Carillon said...

All the best Bett ... the NPIRL blog posts will be sorely missed but look forward to seeing what your new journey brings.

HeadBurro Antfarm said...

I'll miss this blog a hell of a lot - but as long as you are not leaving us, I'll ride the changes with you :)

Thank you for all you hard work and brilliant, inspiring enthusiasm :) xx

Alpha Auer said...

http://www.alphaauer.com/?p=1294

Alpha Auer said...

oh, and thank you Soror!
:-)

JudyArx said...

all i can do is add to the list of good wishes and the thanks for your efforts. The sadness of losing this extraorinary valuable site is real but the joy of wondering what now?... How will nature fill this very real void?...

bibliobibuli said...

will really miss the blog which has helped me discover so much. i was one lost avi until i discovered the art, thanks to you.

whatever you decide to do, and wherever you go, wish you all the best. and yes, am avidly following you on twitter.

again, biggest thanks for all the very hard work you put into the blog. i will still be reading the archives.

Loquacia Loon

Unknown said...

Hey thanks for working so hard to bring us such excellent content and guide to the virtual world of SL. I always looked forward to exploring some of the best art and most imaginative SL creations you brought to our attention. I'll continue to do it without your guide but it'll be a whole lot harder. Nonetheless, thanks a great deal and the best of luck to you in all future endeavors.

Dividni Shostakovich said...

Thanks to your blog, Bettina, I've seen so many amazing things (and dragged friends to see them too) -- and I haven't managed to see even a tenth of all you've told us about! We'll miss you and the blog, but we'll look forward to whatever you create next! All best wishes!

Maya Paris said...

Thanks for everything Bettina. Will miss the blog a lot, it's been an inspiration in so many ways. All the best for your future adventures!

cyberloom said...

Oh Gosh Bettina! Not Possible IRL has been such a superb record of virtual world creativity. You masterminded something that is simply irreplaceable! Many thanks and best wishes to you.

Narita said...

noooooooooooo!!!!! D:

and by that i mean, thank you for having produced the best blog on sl content ever & for the strongest promoter of digital art & culture.

Lukemary Slade / Luca Spoldi said...

Well, first of all thanks for all you shared with us, it was interesting, passionate and brilliant. Then I think it's life... no one project can last forever, since one need to growth and experiment something new from time to time so I'm sure you're doing the right choice. But at the end I must say I'm sad, since NPIRL was a light for everyone who, like me, is found of graphic art and of the virtual worlds and their possibilities. But since you won't disappear maybe I'll interview you again in the future, so my readers can stay in touch with one of the best voices/writers/commenters (choose you what describe you and your project best) of the metaverse. Cya Bettina, and really thanks for all you made.

Unknown said...

So sad to hear this blog will stop. It was/is by far the best SL inpirational blog I have yet come across. Thanks for all the great post (hopes you change your minds a bit :p)

Faerie said...

I will miss my favourite blog so much. Thank you bettina.

evolutie said...

Thank you for all your wonderful work Bettina. Looking forward to what happens next!

Gary Hazlitt said...

To the foremost Second Life maven. This is indeed a shock, a waste, a crime, but not unexpected and yes life, 1st, 2nd or 3rd, moves on. Many of the accountants that now run virtual worlds have poor community nurturing skills and are blind to the fact that they are responsible to a great extent to build cultural value, as NPIRL so voluntarily exhibited and did on their behalf. Many of us bow to your tireless efforts.

Second Life survived the exodus of gamblers, pornographers (ish), greedy corporates & charlatans but it will not survive losing it's deeper soul if and when the sublime artistes and educators start to filter away to other worlds. Linden to their credit sent the right messages initially, lit a match which became a flame but then, embarrassed by hippy-dippy management, did very little to really encourage and reward efforts like yours Bettina - and many others, myself included.

Of course this isn't the end, or the beginning of the end of the metaverse or virtual worlds - the end of the beginning perhaps - and we will see the Facebooks & YoVilles turn into a mass adoption in the next years as millions tire of Mafia wars text games or grindy casual games.

If I could suggest one thing is that you compile your 750 posts into a large shareable PDF and get one of the academic institutions you talked about to permanently host it untouched - until the time is right for the sublime soul that was beginning to emerge & flourish, to once again take root. My best wishes to your future path - and yes twitter it shall be, Second Life without the 3D :)

A small thankyou present - the real world can be as 'spectacular' as Second Life 'is', sometimes :)

Unknown said...

Oh, I am so sorry to learn that this is ending! And equally sorry that I discovered you so late. This had become my go-to SL blog.

All the best, Bettina and all of you NPIRLers. It has been a joy to be one of you for a little while.

Emerald Wynn said...

This is a horrible loss. I have loved this blog for so long. Thank you so much for all your hard work. You have opened my eyes to many new universes.

Here's to your new beginnings and thanks for sharing all the wonder.

Unknown said...

better not stop posting your wonderful pictures to Flickr!

Bonne Voyage Bettina and thanks for all the wonderful posts :)

Anonymous said...

thank you, thank you, thank you. Without your blog I might have left SL a long time ago - it constantly brought me to places that reminded me why we stay...

Robin Ashford said...

Thanks for the great content, will follow on twitter but will miss this blog :)

Juanita Deharo said...

So long, farewell. I join others in saying I will miss you, thank you, and look forward to whatever comes next. I also add my voice to Gary's asking that the archive of the blog be kept somewhere, somehow. It is such a great resource and an historical record.

Cristopher Lefavre said...

Bettina,

This blog has been on my reading list for so long, and still I dip into its history. It's sad that this is the end, but I know how much work it is to write stuff and ultimately one has to prioritize time. I wish you all the best!

Just a small prayer: Could you please leave the blog open to read? It contains such an immense piece of second life history.

Cris.

Hitomi Mokusei said...

Bettina,

Thank you so much for all the time and effort you have put into writing this blog. Yours and Hamlet Au's are the ones I visit most regularly to find out about what new, and interesting things might be happening in SL. There is so much going on in SL in so many different areas, that it would be almost impossible to keep up with what is out there without the help of these two blogs especially.

I agree with what some of the others have already said, that it would be great if you could leave the blog up, since it is a great resource. I find myself referring back to it quite often. It contains a lot of history. Sometimes when I go back to get a link, or to reread something, I often find some other interesting article that I had perhaps passed over the first time.

I am sorry to hear that it will be no more, but I do understand the amount of work it would take, and the time pressure that would incur in putting out a blog with such thorough, and detailed content..and understand the need to stop doing it in order to move onto other things.

I wish you well, Bettina, in whatever new areas you are off to explore. Hopefully, at some point, you will share with us what you up to. Good luck to you :)

Unknown said...

I loved the NPIRL insightful posts, interviews, and gorgeous pics. Glad to hear you'll still be tweeting.

Dusty Artaud said...

My therapist is trying to calm me down while I sob on the couch in Chakryn. We are working through it and I am learning acceptance that beautiful things, like this wonderful blog, must be appreciated in the moment and treasured in memory.

FreeWee said...

Clearly the end of an era. Bettina has not only reported, but inspired. Her influence on art in virtual worlds is unimaginable. A true champion of the cause. Best wishes, Bettina. We look forward to what's next.

Anonymous said...

Just now we start to have a serious relationship you run away. Did I overreact?
Anyway, I am very bad in not possible, so for good drama I will be available always for you or other stearless people. http://savemeoh.wordpress.com/
Kiss for you and I am already deeply in love with your alt, but I won't tell the secret to anybody.

UWA in SL said...

The UWA in Second Life SIM & its art exhibits & comp, wont be what it is, has uwainsl not come across you Bett & NPIRL

UWA in SL said...

A didication to you... and to all readers of the blogs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PK2R0IwCiY

Time of Your Life

Another turning point;
a fork stuck in the road.

Time grabs you by the wrist;
directs you where to go.

So make the best of this test
and don't ask why.

It's not a question
but a lesson learned in time.

It's something unpredictable
but in the end it's right.
I hope you had the time of your life.

So take the photographs
and still frames in your mind.

Hang it on a shelf
In good health and good time.

Tattoos of memories
and dead skin on trial.

For what it's worth,
it was worth all the while.

It's something unpredictable
but in the end it's right.
I hope you had the time of your life.

(music break)

It's something unpredictable
but in the end it's right.
I hope you had the time of your life.

It's something unpredictable
but in the end it's right.
I hope you had the time of your life.

UWA in SL said...

Per Gary Hazlitt's coment:

The University of Western Ausralia offers to host

Chris said...

Gutted. I love this website.

Anyway, good luck in whatever you do and thanks for the acronym :)

Csteph

Siri said...

can we ensure the content of this blog will be preserved??

Jenn said...

Thanks ever so much for opening my eyes to what is possible and providing such great places to visit. I also hope this blog could be preserved.

w.w. said...

I know that sometimes we just have to take a break from things. I took a break from my own blogging. Life is a journey and an exploration no matter what. I have THOROUGHLY enjoyed your blog and I will miss it, but I know you will be out there doing what you love to do. TC! - Wyatt Wellman

Anonymous said...

Thank you Bettina, and "in bocca al lupo" (good luck in the italian way :o)
Will you tell us where (on which magazine, paper etc.) will you write? So that we can still follow you?

H said...

I'm still relatively new to SL and very new to your blog. I'm sorry to hear there's nothing more which inspires you. Maybe that will change down the line. I'm sorry to see you go so soon from my reading.
- Holocluck

Second Life Hobo said...

Just where are you going Bettina?