html on a prim - What can it mean for the future?

It's just a beginning... but Linden Lab's new Second Life Release Candidate 1.19.1 became available a few hours ago with a feature that has a few of us in a tizzy.

What it boils down to is this: you can display a web page on a prim on your parcel of land. It's not dynamic, interactive, clickable, scrollable, and it won't refresh... yet.

As it happens, I learned the above news while I was checking out a new build and dreaming of the future with Impossible IRL'er Daemon Nikitin. She had just TP'ed me to Phil's Supermarket (teleport directly from here).



As it stands today, Phil's Supermarket - which bills itself as "the first supermarket in the rapidly-growing online world of Second Life," - is intended as a location where Residents will be able to "pre-shop for the Real World – comparing product information, nutritional information, getting recipes from our fully interactive store “shelves” and, with just a touch, sending the information directly to your Real Life email or cell phone."



The person behind the FOOD sim is Phil Lempert (aka Phil Lempert), better known to Americans as the Supermarket Guru and food editor for NBC’s TODAY Show. This is no small fry. Phil's established audience and arsenal of connections just might pull this off.

But getting back to html on a prim. Where I live in Real Life, there is a supermarket chain called Yummy.com from which I can order online and have everything delivered within 30 minutes. Now imagine walking through Phil's Supermarket one day... virtual shopping aisles, and ordering the makings for tonite's dinner.

LL's blog today said, "Interactivity is not currently enabled inworld. We’re planning on implementing interactivity and shared browsing in a later version."



Hmmm. I sure hope Phil's Supermarket will carry my brand of ice cream.