Torley amplifies my awesome 3X over

Posted by Bettina Tizzy

Torley Linden - Linden Lab's Resident Enlightenment Manager just keeps contributing to the quality of my Second Life® and my Real Life. In the span of just 24 hours, the man has dropped three jewels onto my lap.

For starters, I came across this video he created to demonstrate how funtastically cool Vectorpark's new Flash game, Windosill is.


The physics are perfection!

Then, I'd been looking for just the right music for a little machinima I was making, and discovered this treasure-trove of Torley's original compositions and improvisations, all of them downloadable MP3s.

Finally, to demonstrate a bug he'd encountered on Twitter, @Torley created this video using Jing, a nifty and effective freebie screen capture program.

In fact, anytime I follow Torley's cookie crumbs (and they are all over the Internet), I come away smarter, cuter and better equipped to meet the challenges in both of my lives.

The Patron Saints of Poetik and what they have wrought + Interview with Hern Worsley, it's creator

Posted by Bettina Tizzy

You may wish to listen to the music that is played at Poetik while you read this.

Oh, to be cherished by Nur Moo and JuJu Dollinger (aka Ju)! To be housed and given unfettered artistic freedoms by the new Medici of the Second Life® grid!

Nur is an esteemed fellow-Flickrite with a photo style somewhat reminiscent of Tamara de Lempicka that I am fond of, but I'm only just now realizing the degree to which she - together with Ju - has mutated into a bona fide patron of the arts. Months of assembling, fostering and cross-pollinating an electrifying cross-section of artists and musicians will finally come together full force tomorrow, Saturday, March 14 with a party that is expected to run 24 hours.


Event poster featuring the Patron Saints of Poetik

The duo began their curatorial work back in March, 2008 on the mixed-use sim Sintetika, even before they took ownership of it, but what they are best known for are their branded parties: Poetik. I've never been to one but as I understand it, they expose people to new ideas and environments, and then encourage them to be disruptive and create. Hmmm. Sounds like a good workplace tactic, doesn't it? In their case, it's about parties: art parties, concept sound and light reveries.

A few months ago, Nur (a graphic and fashion designer in Parma, Italy) and Ju (a French artist in Real Life) boosted the pace and snapped up a pair of sims because, "...using Second Life network possibilities to share Art, we are trying to create a different visual / sound experience that goes further than what is possible in Real Life." They'll get no arguments from me on that count.

"I was always surprised, from the beginning of my second virtual life, by how much people try to copy reality and don't try to be more creative," said Nur. "That's why I look for the most visionary people on the grid and (then) try to support them. (We try to make) Poetik this total experience; every month a different artist creates a different installation and every week there is a music event there."

"Different, but always experimental, is our project with the first sim [formes nocturnes]. We call this sim "our art playground," and invite the artists we like the most in the virtual world to play here with 15,000 prims... so it will be really an unique experience. Selavy Oh is the first artist to build at [formes nocturnes]," said Nur.


Selavy Oh's hallmark is the studied application of physics to prims

Nur added, "With time, the Poetik party has grown. We needed a new place, a whole new sim, and we decided to share this new 'work' with Hern Worsley, an open-minded artist and one of best builders in Second Life with whom we share a creative vision for what the metaverse should be like."

Speaking for myself and given my schedule, wild horses couldn't make me blog these days, but I'm not completely crazy. One teleport to the new Poetik Velvets sim where Hern Worsley has been ensconced and Kung Fu'ing prims for three months, and I was tossing my busy calendar aside.


Poetik love by Hern Worsley

You remember Hern, don't you? Owner of Avz and hairdresser of my dreams? Creator of the cyberpunk specs worn by that chimp that left me frothing with curiosity?


Hern Worsely at Poetik

Turns out that Hern is about way more - eons and tons more - than fantastic avatar adornments. To begin with, I'm a sucker for black and white striped ticking, and a whole sim ground textured with it strikes me as elegant and completely chic. Then consider the environment it is all situated in... Why, it's an endless aurora borealis!


This photo was taken using the Funky Funky Windlight setting, which Hern recommends at Poetik

Then... take a good look at this edifice on its own merit. It is, at once, industrial and organic.



The moment I saw it, I was reminded of a certain chair...


The Wassily Chair was designed by Marcel Breuer in 1925-26 while he was the head of the cabinet-making workshop at the Bauhaus

I had a chat with Hern to learn more.

There are some of us who are convinced that you are actually a master architect, here to let loose some creative juices.

Hern: It's just about nice lines and pleasing shapes that flow. I think stuff should just speak for itself really, and everyone can interpret it how they like. I've been doing Audio and Visual stuff in my own time in Real Life but it has never been my profession. It is now, though... apparently. I've learned everything in Second Life, to be honest. Without Second Life, I'm prolly not much use to anyone as far as creatively goes. ;) For me, it is a perfect medium to work in. I just hope it carries on and develops. I think it is possible... the next 5 years, once all the hype is over, and all the inflated expectations and misunderstandings, etc. Now that we're just coming out of that phase, I hope we'll move into a more steady growth phase where people who really "get it" are coming in and working.

How'd this come together?

Hern: Nur has been a good supporter of my store for a while now. She'd commission custom work from me a lot, so we've kinda developed a relationship via this around work. So yea, she just mentioned to me that she was looking to get a new SIM and would I build it? I knew I'd get freedom so I was pretty much up for it from the start.

What were her stated objectives?

Hern: She didnt really have 100% solid ideas. I had to talk with Nur the whole way to solidify what she wanted, etc. I'm not sure I'd do this without freedom, basically. She's a dreamer, really, but it's great. Wouldn't have it any other way. I see it as her showcasing the artists she likes. We both want to show that Second Life can be a lot more than just orgy rooms and shopping malls. Come try this... It's fun. Follow me, plz princess.

He then weaved his way (he uses an endearing kinda tipsy walking animation) over to one side of the building and invited me to sit on a sphere.


Sit on one of these for a bouncy ride to the ground level

Hern: For me, the time is always "now." I love what is new. I don't like looking back all the time. I'm excited by technology. We should be celebrating Second Life and virtual worlds and all the new possibilities they bring us, not building toy towns, and little versions of Real Life: cars, houses with kitchens...



Hern: I have this idea. How often do you zoom right out from a SIM, like to see it all? When I was doing this I thought people should be able to zoom out and then the surfaces of the SIM can have buttons and hold info, like a giant 3D website, basically. That would make it really elegant. If you go back to the scale of an avatar, all these surfaces are also really nice spaces for your avatar to be in... getting that connection in scales could be interesting.

By the way, to fully experience Poetik Velvets, you simply must, must, must disable camera constraints. Only in this way will you be able to free your camera and zoom way back to view the sim from above and all sides. This is something everyone in Second Life should learn how to do.


Thank you, Torley, for your smart and fun tutorials!

If there aren't too many people on the sim, please increase your draw distance so that items will render for you at greater distances.

Increase your Draw Distance
> Edit
> Preferences
> Graphics
> Check the "Custom" box if hasn't been already
> Use the slider to go to 512m (the higher, the laggier, but it's worth it unless you are in a laggy situation)
> Hit the OK button and close
IMPORTANT: Many people forget to set the Draw Distance lower after they've been maxing it out. I keep it at about 200m most times these days, and increase it when needed.

Music to work by is of critical importantance to Hern, and he shared the stream that he used throughout the three months of creation: http://205.188.215.225:8018/, which I thought was mighty generous of him, since most people keep their stream sources private like a great hand of cards.

Hern: It would be pretty selfish of me to keep them all to myself. This radio station was a huge influence on my work. They were in Second Life a while ago but not anymore. I may try to coax them back soon though. This station makes me more intelligent, lol. I don't really have words for what I make, but music does a great job of explaining things I think.


The Moo Gallery

Was there an "aha" moment?

Hern: Yea, the "aha" moment was about 5 evolutions ago, though, lol.


Hern created about 90% of the textures he used. He has just gotten started on Flickr. You can access his stream here.

How did you alter the water surfaces?

Hern: Mega prim, double layer. Secret recipe ;)

Are the shapes for this silvery wheat-like growth on the sim inspired by kitchen utensils a little bit? (Silly question, I know, but I cook so maybe not so silly). Musical chords?

Hern: I guess I see 'em as kinda receptors or circuitry, but then I see a lot of correlations with nature and technology anyway. Art nouveau and art deco styles definitely reflect that, too.

Hern lives in a British town but has big plans for the not-too-distant-future.

Hern: You know what I'm gonna do :) I'm taking a laptop and going off to Asia, and I'll be working in Second Life from all over the world soon, I hope, via wifi.

Ah, sounds like an adventure and good economy!

Hern: Yea, like my ideal... live in a treehouse and work in a virtual world. I think I can see a way to like travel and earn money from my work in Second Life, which means I don't have to ever stress about work or running out. I don't see it as a holiday, I see it as a lifestyle. I'm treating it like a mission. I'm gonna take a lot of tech with me. I've found a way to run a laptop with solar power.

Theft is an important hindrance. And in the world economy that we are entering now, it is a primary consideration.

Hern: To be honest, what I earn here in Second Life is more than most people earn in many countries in Asia, but I want to get away from the west and its values and priorities. You can't let fear rule you or you'll never do anything. I am of the belief that 90% of human beings are very nice people, and I expect I'll find out I'm right when I travel, too. But yea, I will be equipped up and as secure as I can be for my tech stuff.

Last question. What did you learn from making Poetik that you are taking with you to future creations?

Hern: A lot. Well, for one, I learned I can do it. Also, it has engaged me a lot more closely with the "art" scene in Second Life, something I'd not really been into a great deal before. My first attempt at here... I was very serious and planny, but it didn't work or help anything. Just killed it. I threw that away and just went for it, and it worked out anyway. You have to give yourself time to play, and if your lucky like me, (you'll) have a client who will let you do that. They are rare. Either there's total trust and good communication or it won't work. If it's a build for someone else, it's important if they have specific ideas that you get them out of them, or it will just cause probs later.

~*~

Unlike most builds that I admire, the strong vibrations I'm feeling at Poetik Velvets aren't just about prims and sculpts, or the people who created this place, but also the folks who will inhabit it, as you will appreciate in Lyric Lundquist's - my new obsession and a favorite machinimator's - vid.


poetik velvets from lyric_lundquist on Vimeo.

The parties are slated to start tomorrow at 8am SLT when the sim will be opened to the public and run for 24 hours. Hern will be DJ'ing, too.

8am SLT - Bibdui Babenco
10am SLT - Hern Worsley
12pm SLT - Luigy Balhaus
2pm SLT - Andy Seiling
4pm SLT - Radi Roffo
6pm SLT - Juju Dollinger
8pm SLT - Damon Dollinger
10pm SLT - Dane Koba
12am SLT - TBA
2am SLT - Mr Widget

Slurl effective March 14th at 8am SLT: Teleport here.

The sim will feature the works of Hotel Dare artists (curated by the founder of that concept, Gattina Dumpling), including soror Nishi and artoo Magneto, as well as Alpha Auer, four Yip, Pixel Price, and several others. I'll be telling you more about them over the course of the coming days.


Gattina Dumpling has been hush hush about which artists she will end up featuring at the new Hotel Dare location. We'll have to get it out of her

Ducky...

Posted by Alpha Auer

Ever since I wrote the post on art in the age of computational (re)production a few weeks back I have been meaning to follow up on it with a few posts exemplifying what it is that I am actually trying to say there. What my point in all of that ultimately is.

I wrote a while back that it seemed to me that the folk that stayed the course in Second Life® were in fact the very ones that were creatively active: Only so much shopping and disco hopping you can do - and let's face it, when it comes to those kinds of activities Real Life is really far more engaging. So yes, as far as I can see, the metaverse is teeming with creative activity. We seem to have gone past the early days and entered a new era where more than just a few select individuals are putting out the content. These days Second Life seems to be in the process of transforming into a petri dish of activity where individuals from all walks of life are engaged in creative expression.

And one remarkable manifestation of this is the output of the Second Life community on Flickr, which is where I encountered Ravenelle and Ducky.

Now, although some of the "point and snap" photo documentation undertaken in-world by Residents is very accomplished indeed, the output that I have in mind here is the one where an individual takes the raw images captured in Second Life and then proceeds to manipulate them in an external bitmap application. In other words, the image processing activity surrounding Second Life photography. Indeed, I am quite surprised that this phenomenon isn't being widely talked about and indeed exploited in the "serious" Real Life art enclave out there. Probably is already, and I just don't know it yet...

So, why Ducky? Why is Ducky so very special? I am not going to spend a lot of time discussing the visual accomplishment of these, I would instead urge you to go and take a look at the collections on Flickr. I will say this however: There is a finesse, a sophistication in Ravenelle's visual approach which reminds me of the Renaissance masters. I will merely give links to who/what these images below remind me of and then proceed on to say how it is that Ducky really grips my heart.


Sandro Botticelli?


Georges de la Tour?


Leonardo?
...

And then of course there are these here, in a world of their own, maybe reminiscent of Max Ernst's Bride, come to life in a new shape and manifestation?




...

Unfortunately - and no matter how I slice this - I do have a real gripe with solely "viewable" art. I have had it for a long time I suppose, long before I ever came into Second Life, in fact. And I think the reason that Second Life grabbed me as a creative platform in the first place is the very fact that here creative activity has the hope, the chance of metamorphosing into a lifeform. Into becoming a living entity. An organism in its own right. Not something on a wall or a designated 3D space - but alive! (Really - an installation, no matter how accomplished - is absolutely no different to a modest 2D painting in my book - it is still there to be viewed and then gone home and left behind!)...


Ducky and Torley

Ravenelle gives us no textual clues outside of the visual material about Ducky. And yet, as I look and watch the videos, a fully formed persona emerges: A creature of ladylike elegance, with dreams and affections. Unspeakably delicate and feminine. Who loves her all too human Torley. With fears that haunt her and then the occasional lighthearted playfulness. Just as it should be, the personality slowly emerges as we watch. We get to know her over a passage of time. She is there, present, alive. Not hanging on a wall. Not on display in a showcase. She is wandering Second Life, she is wandering in the crevices of Ravenelle's mind and now she is also wandering in mine.

And no, this is not just about "building" a gorgeous avatar. Ducky is a gorgeous avatar - no doubt. But, far more is involved here: This is about making something come alive. This is about the deep commitment of an individual to a being created out of her own innermost being. An emergent, ongoing process. One which evolves and changes over time. One which I, with my huge tribe of alts, have yet to master. Alas...
...

Is Ducky Ravenelle? Well, maybe. Only Ravenelle can say. She has emanated from Ravenelle for sure.

Is Ducky "art"? I say yes! Emphatically so! I believe that a decade from now the "serious" art world will be making room for a new category of artistic expression: They will probably be calling it "avatar art". Just like "body art" "performance art" today... These were not around 50 years ago, or at least the activities undertaken in these domains did not yet have these handles attached to them. And I really think that "avatar art" will take its "official" place as a novel form of artistic practice in the very near future. Hopefully the officialdom of it all will not ruin the spontaneity, the unselfconsciousness, the selflessness, the utter abandonment to the joy of the creative process of its early day practitioners like Ravenelle...
...

Again, you can get to know Ravenelle's Ducky here.
...

Torley's art of life in Second Life - Part Three in a series

A few days ago, I asked our readers to name the first three words that came to mind when they thought of Torley Linden. Eleven of you responded with this:

High-octane Generous Resourceful Fun Love Watermelon Crazy "On" C*R*E*A*T*I*V*E Pink Green Torley Amazing Inspiring Awesome Video Cool Brilliant Artistic Kind Friendliest-Greeter-Ever! "Over the top" Exuberant! Ever-expanding-outward Giving Open Positive Super-teacher-extraordinaire


This watermelonish eye is Torley's trademark

To these I would add:

Eccentric Energetic Bodacious Giving Knowledgeable Bright Altruistic Unique Different Benevolent Magical Boundless Imaginative Weird Funny Patient Succinct Transparent Fascinating Entertaining Active Animated Bizarre Maverick Accomplished Thoughtful Quirky Soulful Vibrant Evangelist Sparkling Understanding Powerful Wacky Significant Loved Surprising Colorful Talented Wild Detailed Organized Unbelievable Credible Freestyle Inspired Inexhaustible Artful Big-hearted Open-handed Hard-working Smart Prolific Original Inventive

In fact, Torley is easily most everyone's favorite Linden and his sphere of influence is as broad as the grid is wide, for he is everyone's passport to understanding and enjoying Second Life®, from the basics to the most esoteric information imaginable.

While he may be an employee of Linden Lab, the company that owns Second Life, he has taken what could have been a thankless job and turned it into a magical one.


Torley's many Windlight Presets are among my favorite things in Second Life. A true gift! Download them here

I recently had occasion to ask Torley a few questions regarding his seemingly inexhaustible contributions to our world.

Torley, in my earliest days in Second Life, I thought you were a woman and married or in a relationship with Philip Rosedale! (It’s true! Sorry about that!). I vaguely knew that you loved watermelons and watermelon colors. Of course, it turns out that I was only right on one count. When I think of innovation in Second Life, you are the face of it. Your lively and rich communications are infectious, in the best kind of way. But do you sometimes feel the weight of this responsibility?

Torley Linden: LOL! It's certainly true I am a big fan of Philip, and one time when he was AFK, I prayed to him at the edge of the Ahern-Morris Welcome Area.

I used to feel more weight but things have changed, Linden Lab has grown, and we have more specialized Lindens helping with communication — for example, Katt is our Communications Manager, and our I-World Team in Support often gets the message out to Residents in-world and on the Grid Status Reports. As Resident Enlightenment Manager, my communications are focused on "bridging the knowledge gaps" and helping Residents solve everyday problems.

Can you point to one area or topic that we (your followers) aren’t especially “getting” yet that we need to pay more attention to

Torley Linden: I'm always fond of the opportunity to highlight little things that make a big difference: there isn't a single area/topic, but look for underused features with big benefits. For example, click actions (make buying and using objects easier) and FollowCam (better camera angles for machinima and general exploring) are SEVERELY UNDERUSED! A CRYING SHAME. It's true some stuff could be more intuitive to use in the first place, but there are plenty of possibilities which aren't being exploited. I'll continue to call out those specifics with applicable results.

Like NPIRL, I also strongly believe in getting more exposure for creativity and philosophy in Second Life, and coupling that with business stories — there are too many dry biz stories which don't have a personable, memorable touch. (Reference point: see the book Personality Not Included by Rohit, it's a gem.)


Who among us does not own many of Torley's textures? Get yours here


Torley's office hours are the stuff of legend

How can the Residents of Second Life help to promote quality content more to the Real World, beyond blogging? Do you have some insight and advice - or even requests - based on your experiences?

Torley Linden: Simply put: BRIDGE GAPS. Always, ALWAYS be looking for what other people are missing out on — unmet needs and unfulfilled desires they may not even know about yet. I get sick to my stomach when I hear "Everything's been done already!", that's so lame and myopic, because in plain view, we keep seeing innovations and incremental improvements march forth.

Sometimes on my personal blog, I'll state specifically what I want to see more of in Second Life. It's not just for my personal amusement; it's because it could bring joy to others. Get involved with coolhunters and other "trendy" groups — yes, there's a certain clique-ness to it, but PEOPLE WANT TO BELONG. PEOPLE WANT TO FEEL SPECIAL. And like it or not, to paraphrase Tim Sanders, life is a series of popularity contents. You'd rather be loved than hated — not by everyone, but by those who matter to you. And it's far better to be focused within those deliberate interests than trying to appeal to all (hint: it won't work).

Think of problems in your own life, and make something that solves your problems. Or team up with someone who has the technical ability. E.g., I started video tutorials because doing too much text was both a time-suck and insufficient to SHOW what's happening in SL. It's been both a professional + personal boon.

The usual maxims apply: be persistent (don't give up), believe in yourself, be likeable, etc. — but always, ALWAYS BRIDGE GAPS. In case we haven't made that point strongly enough, let me just say how impressed we are by SL fashions which draw from first life influences, but are wildly eclectic enough to stand on their own, and fulfill unique spots where nothing has been before. Some of it is even physically impossible, but... it creates waves of opportunity for first life to be inspired by Second Life. Therein lies the magic.


Torley doesn't preach to us about how to live our Second Life. He lives by his own maxims and shares them with us as his formula for happiness. This extraordinary list on the topic of Creativity is viewable in the sky at Here, the new sim Torley and his wife Ravenelle recently inaugurated

Is building that is NPIRL (Not Possible in Real Life) important, in your view?

Torley Linden: It absolutely is, depending on intent/purpose. I love what bridges the alien and familiar, and obviously, there's no point to Second Life if all it can do is create mere knockoffs of what we already know to be true in their analogue forms. By taking first life and extending it to areas which are physically unfeasible (for the time being, anyway), we heighten the imaginations, invigorate the senses, and demonstrate — live in 3D! — fresh possibilities.

(And yet, should we be scared, we can always return to our "ground comforts" before flying — as our avatars do — again.)

NPIRL building is also important when it's intrinsically essential and a special, unique part of Second Life. That someone can see it nowhere else and experience it the same way. That someone who's sufficiently intrigued WILL come into Second Life to witness it. (And hopefully as the registration/login process gets easier, this will become more lucidly true.) I'd love to hear stories of people who, say, have read your blog, Bett, and CAME INWORLD because they were enchanted by what you shared. I know that's true of me and Hamlet's (Au) New World Notes way back.

Editor's note: In fact, I'm extremely grateful to a number of very special people who have contacted me to say that this blog enticed them to hop in for the first time, or return after a long absence.

Torley Linden: For the record, I don't think it's sad that we have accurate recreations of things like food and toilets in Second Life where our avatars don't need them. But I do love seeing those forms extended (e.g., a commode that roams the fields and cleans up after your sculptie-goats) and think unnecessary constraints suck. I hate being in buildings that are tough to navigate because the ceiling is arbitrarily impenetrable. That's just... ugh!

Beyond any labeling, I like to see reactions, and those of delight and surprise and novelty that come with much NPIRL-ish creations is a wonder indeed.

As I like to say a la infomercial: "ONLY... IN SECOND LIFE!"

See also:

* Celebrating Second Life's Power Couple
* Ravenelle and Torley sound out on maintaining balance between both lives

Ravenelle and Torley sound out on maintaining balance between both lives

Ravenelle Zugzwang began Second Life® in December 2002 as Ravenelle Feaver, which makes her almost 6 years old, while Torley has been around forever, first as Torley Torgeson and later as a Linden employee.


"The photobooth" taken by Ravenelle

Not long ago, Ravenelle shared a bit of wisdom with me when I complained of being overwhelmed by my Second Life, saying "Keeping a good life balance is a never ending challenge. When I get word that someone is off balance with their life I share my meat story... and thankfully Torley has documented it for me and others here." This really struck a chord and I have taken it to heart. To me, it speaks to priorities and staying true to your ultimate goals.


Morning coffee by Ravenelle

Still, I wondered about their secrets for longevity and how they manage to keep it fun and productive.

Torley, I am under the impression that you keep a healthy balance of interests that are grounded in both real and virtual worlds. How intentional is this, and do you sometimes find yourself leaning more in one direction than the other and having to take steps to rectify things so that the balance is restored?


This scale was created by Madcow Cosmos

Torley Linden: It's absolutely intentional. My Second Life is built upon my first life and they cycle into each other. Rewards in one life inform and better the other. It's a cross-reality ecosystem, I tell ya! In the very beginning of my Second Life, my First Life was frail. I was in this very depressed, sad state, and finding friends and adventuring inworld helped boost my confidence.

It's a dynamic balance, for sure, which changes day by day. But all things said, my "lives system" is blessed with equilibrium.


Torley and Rav keep it playful

What advice do you have for the passionate Second Life user (like myself) who is often challenged by issues of balance?

Torley Linden: Learn to recognize - and only you can tell - the difference between unhealthy obsession and what we call "gladdiction," a glad, or healthy, addiction. Regularly check to make sure parts of your life that need attention to are being paid that tribute. Otherwise, it's like a weed infestation starting at one corner and killing your whole garden. Always look for lessons from First Life you can apply to Second Life, and vice-versa — whether it's artistic ideas, inspirational self-help (of the practical, not the kooky quack kind), and fellowship with other like-minds.

Take breathers, but don't be overly dramatic. Don't say "I'M LEAVING SECOND LIFE!" because of drama that's understandably hurt you when, in fact, your emotions are just a transient phase of maybe a few days, or weeks at most. Follow-up your words with profound actions, for there are many great ideas but few awesome executions (in comparison). GIVE YOURSELF SPACE when you need it, but don't stay there forever — socializing and learning from others is good!

And if it works for you (as it did for us), grow bolder about what you share. Some Resis are quite anonymous and keep their lives separate. Of course, there are contexts when this is appropriate, but we've often observed it has to do with something damaged (e.g., baggage, broken trust ) in First Life that hasn't "leaked through" to Second Life.

To wit, we're advocates for using Second Life as a tool to deal with your bagagge, as opposed to dumping it (and inflicting suffering) on others. Unite yourself.

And always: "CHOP THE SLOP!" It means, hunt down what's NOT contributing to either of your lives and kill it. For instance, say you have a friend who's always harping on about how jealous they are of other content creators, and basically spews bile and venom in your conversations. If you've deeply encouraged them and guided them to help resources to get better — and yet, they still drag on you — then it's time to remove them from your lives.

That gives you more time to spend with people who contribute to, not drain, your well-being.

See also: Celebrating Second Life's power couple

Celebrating Second Life's power couple

Quick! Tell me the first three words that come to mind when you think of Torley. Really, please tell me.

Over the next few days, I hope you will accept my invitation to celebrate two people who make a difference in most everyone's Second Life®, for who among us has not learned in some small or large way from Torley Linden and Ravenelle Zugzwang? He is synonymous with mentorship, having taken that time-honored activity to a new and effervescent zenith, and she is often the first friend a Second Lifer has on Flickr. They are both builders, scripters, photographers, videographers, writers, and... a couple: Second Life's best known and best loved couple. Even if they disappeared from virtual worlds today, their legacy of creative empowerment - and smiles - would endure.

I've just completed an interview with this duo, and there is so much to share with you that I'm going to give it to you in bite-sized fun pieces. Because they are so well known, we can begin most anywhere, so I thought we might look at how they are both bursting with creativity in unexpected and delightful ways.

Making the most of Google Lively is what Ravenelle Zugzwang did within hours of creating her account there. A little fire, a lava lamp, and a plant, together with several of Lively's believable and cute animations and her warm, smiling voice resulted in this, "Journey to a New World, Pt 1."



Meanwhile, I will never, ever forget this video. I watched it the other night sitting on a comfy, shocking pink bench on their new island, Here. While Torley has created more videos than there are days in the year, and nearly all of them are tutorials to help you "amplify your awesome" within Second Life, he does branch out eclectically to share just about anything he is passionate about, and that is a lot.

If you have already seen it, then watch it again! I guarantee you will smile from ear to ear.



Now then, what three words come to mind immediately when you think of Torley? And yes, you can duplicate other's suggestions.

Eshi Otawara's one-hour sim project is blossoming

July 22 - 1:47am UPDATE: The flower will stay for a bit longer. Eshi would have to eject people from the sim otherwise! I look at what is there and wonder... how can people who aren't in Second Life® look at this and not want to dive in immediately?


Can you smell the Night Jasmine? Eshi's tux dress against Eshi's flower

1:40pm UPDATE: Dusan Writer has just acquired this installation... thank heavens! Eshi has not been saving any of her sim-wide creations for this project, but this one just couldn't disappear. It just couldn't!

Also, I should mention that I took all of these photographs using Torley's special Windlight presets.

~*~

These are just a few of the dozens of photographs I took at Eshi Otawara's latest in her ongoing one-hour sim project... a towering flower. I didn't retouch them.

Just go... Teleport directly from here. It will poof by midnite tonite SLT.

The safety of spaces

He has challenged our idea of place since the beginning with the Far Away... a field of wheat, grey skies, a rusty old train, a table... but in our pixelated reality it is a comforting riddle that has gripped the imagination of tens of thousands of its visitors. Now, AM Radio, degreed in Fine Arts and living in the Chicago area, has unveiled two new installations: Husk, on a sim sponsored by the New Media Consortium, and The Quiet, sponsored by Princeton University. It gives me great pleasure to introduce you to his new Machinima featuring - and weaving together - all three places, with music by Torley Linden.



I learned today that AM seeks to inspire viewers to create and define their own narratives of experience as evidenced within the Flickr groups (see below) that are dedicated to each of the installations.

He shared the following quote with me from John A. Jalke's "The Visual Elements of Landscape":

A view, as a complex set of objects (a kind of place itself), can be categorized to basic components. These components include: (1) extent of view or the distance over which sight is effective; (2) foreground-middleground-background discontinuities or the existence of multiple horizons; (3) enframement by which the sight is bounded; (4) focal points that serve as attention getters; and (5) sense of security implicit in focal points that imply refuge. Effective views contain prospects that enable viewers to survey considerable distances over several successive horizons.

AM Radio: At once, you can read these ideas to mean that safe havens are, in fact, tactical positions, or more simply, great hiding places. Refuge implies safety. The way in which a place can imply safety is via its tactical position in a landscape. Comfort can be specifically constructed into a new unfamiliar space via it's ability to supply a visual advantage. The visual advantage allows the user to remain in a place while monitoring all entry points, as well as to plan an escape should the refuge fail. The design of the space should also imply the possible exploration of further, unseen spaces.

AM's work seeks to show that ideas of landscape and tourism are as pervasive in 3d virtual spaces as they are in real life. By creating a framework of traditional, and recognizable experiences based in realism, the artist can begin to manipulate the rules our souls would wish to prohibit. Rules such as gravity.

AM Radio: Realism in virtual spaces declares a universal language, upon which abstractions can be created. By transporting the user into a safe place by using rich visuals steeped in nostalgia and familiarity, these spaces calm the user into accepting what would seem to be impossible and dreamlike situations. The viewer is then free to form ideas and to make emotional associations upon the implied meanings of objects and symbols within the sims, rather than wondering if and how they should. The viewer subsequently and confidently shares those ideas and emotions with their fellow virtual travelers via images, dialog and stories.

Flickr groups about these three installations:
The Far Away (teleport directly from here)
The Quiet (teleport directly from here)
Husk (teleport directly from here)

Lumiere Noir - The best teacher you never knew you had

If Second Life® has an aristocracy... meaning an elite group of people who act behind the scenes with an interest in benefiting the entire population, then Lumiere Noir is a true aristocrat. Yes, there are people who are perhaps better known... limelight-happy, if you will... but I've come to think that many of them reflect rather than generate light.

He didn't invent the tools, but Lumiere (who's name means "light" in French) has single-handedly taught thousands upon thousands of Second Life's residents (and probably you, dear Reader) how to build via his Ivory Tower of Prims (teleport directly from here).



A model of the first Ivory Tower of Prims above; and below, the actual Tower
The trouble with interviewing Lumiere Noir is that he is too good a conversationalist, and so our talks, which spread out over a number of days, strayed off to many unrelated and engrossing topics. To give you some idea, I have over 50 pages of logged conversations and notes! He is - at once - fascinating and fascinated with all worlds, both virtual and real, and well read, and curious as all get out.



Tell us about the man behind your avatar.
Lumiere Noir: I'm Vince Frost, I live in Plano, Texas, which is close to Dallas. I'm an English-as-a-Second-Language teacher at a high school in Plano. I teach 12th graders world literature, and I've done that for about 11 years now. My background is in art, but I discovered teaching after I graduated. I love teaching.

What is your favorite book to share with them?
Lumiere Noir: Pygmalion... I see them all as Eliza Doolittle! Their story is a little similar and language is what holds them back in this country, just as Eliza's accent holds her back, but I don't see myself as Henry Higgins! They are mostly Spanish speakers, from Central and South America, as well as a lot of Chinese. I specialize in the Chinese, and Mandarin is my second language. I mastered in art, and when I was about to graduate, I fell in with the Chinese community at my university. Through them, I got some connections, and went to Taiwan. I had planned to go for a year and learn the language and culture, and wound up staying almost four. I taught English to support myself and studied Chinese, and traveled a lot in Asia. This was between 1988 and 1991.

How did a man with this background end up in Second Life, on… Christmas eve! (Rez: 12/24/2003)
Lumiere Noir: I came here via The Sims Online, which I liked but it was so limited, and later There.com. What I loved about that world is that there was so much to explore, but most of it was made by the creators of There. One could create things but it was expensive. I hated being nickel-and-dimed to death... How do you say that in the U.K.? I made several things in There, mostly clothes… very eccentric things. Then I started hearing about this place. I tried Second Life in early Beta but I'm afraid to say I hated it. It was just so awkward, so I stayed in There until late 2003.

You were in Second Life earlier then?
Lumiere Noir: That was as a different avatar. SwenKong Wu I think... I can't remember the password :-) Probably no longer exists. (Note: It doesn’t). I was Swen_Wu_Kong in There, and Wu was available here at that time.


The Ivory Tower of Primitives today

How did the Ivory Tower of Prims come about?
Lumiere Noir: I love to make things, and I love to teach. Making the Tower was a natural thing for me as a teacher. I taught myself to build, and my first impulse was to turn around and teach it to others, but I quickly found that I didn't like teaching in-world very much.

So you created the tutorials instead! Have you held anniversary parties at the Tower?
Lumiere Noir: I have....I used to do a lot of things here. Unfortunately (or fortunately) I'm on to other projects at the moment. I tend to work on the Tower in the summers. It sort of lies fallow, except for maintenance work until the summer, and then I go through and add new things, and revise.

In an interview with Hamlet Au, back in June 2004, Lumiere described the Ivory Tower by saying, "[T]his is a user interface about a user interface. I like it when there are layers of reality and simulated reality that go in layers like this... I've interviewed a lot of master builders to get tips and tricks and experience and building methods that go beyond my own."

Lumiere Noir: It’s now pretty current, except it doesn't cover sculpties. That's okay with me on the whole because you have to learn about sculpties in conjunction with the 3D modeler you use and there's no way for me to cover all of them. Sculpties are a lot like scripting. It's best learned on the web. I can't cover Blender, Maya, Studio 3D Max and all the others :-)

Featuring a series of self-taught, self-paced lessons on how to build with prims, the Tower, is a lively place filled with newbies, doing what newbies do. Some are lost in concentration, while others are discovering gestures or editing their appearance.



It must take incredible patience to be Lumiere Noir. While standing at the Ivory Tower for about 20 minutes the other day, I was offered unsolicited, undiscussed friendship twice, and asked for help another three.



Earlier this month, Torley Linden made another one of his terrific videos, this time featuring a tour of the Ivory Tower of Prims and its sandbox.



Lumiere Noir: I got hooked on Second Life when I rezzed my first prim. Up until then I thought the world was interesting, but chaotic and a bit trashy. Then one day I accidentally rezzed a prim and I was amazed.

Accidentally?
Lumiere Noir: Yes! I was trying to ride a motorcycle away, missed hitting “ride,” and hit “create” instead. Newbie me! I became so fascinated with that prim. I learned everything you can do with it. I think I still have it somewhere, but I did so many things with it, and began learning about scripting with it.

That same prim???
Lumiere Noir: Yes, for two weeks it was me and my prim! Not long after that I met Starax. We started about the same time, and we both worked in Morris, the greeting area at that time. We were friends and friendly rivals. We took very different directions over time, and don't talk as much as I'd like to, but he's one of my dearest friends here. He'll hate me for saying this, but under all that crust beats a heart of gold. The crust is there to protect it.

So you and Starax were working at Morris, and you were with this one poor prim…
Lumiere Noir: Yes, I saw all these crazy things he was doing, and I was learning and experimenting. He'd build something, and sometimes I'd build my own and he'd get mad because at that time mine was better. Except maybe he did his in an hour and I'd spend a couple of weeks on mine. But he's really the genius of this place!

I was playing with architecture, virtual of course. My style was always pretty weird. The thing that always distresses me about this place is that we have so much available to us to create with, but most people seem to make the same everyday airplanes, cars and buildings. I realize that a lot of that has to do with comfort level. We like what's familiar, but we can do so much more.


The first dome for the Tower


The second dome

Lumiere Noir: Back then land was very cheap and I got all the land I could in one of the last landgrabs. The Lindens used to release land for a $1L per m2. I don't think there were more than 20 or 30 sims when I first arrived and, oddly enough, that seemed large. (I) got most of Natoma over time, and started getting land in Noyo. Noyo was a busy sim because it had a telehub - back when we had to travel telehub to telehub - so I first built the library there.

Do you pay tier for this land that the Tower sits on?
Lumiere Noir: No, but I had the pleasure of paying a lot of money for a couple of years. The Lindens now sponsor it, and I'm very thankful for that.

As well they should! It would be a scandal otherwise.
Lumiere Noir: I've never asked for contributions. Most of the people that use the place are newbies. Word got out that I'd only ever had two supporters in the history of the Tower, about the time I put up the new Tower, maybe two years ago. They posted that on forums, and people started contributing a lot. A while after that the Lindens became sponsors. I gave over all my land here in Natoma and they left me in control of it.



How closely do you work with the Lindens? An official FIC, huh?
Lumiere Noir: Lol....screw the FIC and the anti FIC! I just do my work... hang out with close friends; I really don't care about the rest. Truthfully, (the Lindens) are like silent partners. I almost never hear a thing from them. I know they keep an eye on the place. I've got to tell you about my partner in crime here, Avi Arrow. She helps a ton with this place.

She never said a word about it! What is her role?
Lumiere Noir: I don't see how I could do what I do without her. Avi heads up the group Ivory Tower Dwellers, which she keeps running smoothly, and they help us keep watch over it. I mostly keep my nose down and make things. I have my own way of looking (after) them, but Avi keeps it together.

“Lumiere is a dear and trusted friend - my best friend in here, really. I've known Lumi for 23 months, yet much of what I know about him, I've been told by others (usually in the form of how much Lumi had influenced them). Lumi is a very innovative builder, primarily through his modular building exercises at the Ivory Tower. He has helped many residents who have gone on to do great things in here... from architectural building to making avatar attachments. His legacy in-world is one of being generous and tirelessly fun.” – Avi Arrow

The Ivory Tower is just one of the many projects that Lumiere has up his sleeve. There are his mostly extra-terrestial vehicles, which you can read about here and here, and his Planet Mongo, a Flash Gordon-inspired sim which we'll be talking about again soon... and his avatars...

Escher coming out of the pixelworks!

Yesterday, I told you about Furia Freeloader's Escher Relativity House, and this morning, I discovered a comment to that post from none other than Torley, alerting me to this (teleport directly from here). Per Torley, "It used to be in Uli, then I recall it moving to Serenite."


Photo by the inimitable Torley Linden

Keith Extraordinaire (rez: 7/8/2004) built it in July of 2004, which also happens to be the same month he rezzed!

I attempted to contact Keith, but he was not in-world. I had to smile when I read his profile, though: "I love to build and love to explore what folks have made in SL. There is nothing like walking through another’s creativity, and for me that is what SL is about. One of the things I enjoy most is getting totally lost in another’s imaginative dream."

I guess when you've been in Second Life almost four years, you give up trying to showcase your highlights in your profile picks. Instead, this generous man focuses on pointing others to the work of people he admires, including Lumiere Noir's Ivory Tower of Primitives (teleport directly from here).
Update: Ah... IMs can be so distracting! I got so caught up in them that I completely missed an onsite notecard giver that offered me this, by Keith Extraordinaire himself:

"SL Date 7/4/2004 A noob is born into SL with wide eyed amazement at all he sees.

Week one he discovers the Cordova sandbox and starts to play. I had MC Escher on my mind and so what better project than to try and replicate his 'Relativity' in 3D. (Why I always pick ambitious projects to learn from is beyond me.)

I started on one wall, baby steps lol... At this time I didn't know about shift and drag copying, nor that one could sit down to avoid push guns in the sandbox, but I dredged on and soon one wall section was done.

About this time I found a beginners building class so I went hoping to find some tips. In attendance were two others, now SL landmarks in themselves... a guy in a funny Spy vs Spy avatar, none other than Lumiere Noir and an odd looking blue fellow, junk collector extraordinaire YadNi Monde (pity that poor teacher!)

After class, Lumi invited us over to see his little pet project still under construction, The Ivory Tower. He was still building it and adding the tutorials but what he had done I devoured and quickly ran back to the sandbox with my new knowledge.

Soon my first build was done, MC Escher's Relativity in Prims, same as it stands before you today. I could go in and trim a few prims here and there, get rid on the flicker, but eh, It's my bit of SL history, so I leave it be and remember those early days being shot out of Cordova and faceplanting two sims away.

The build has moved with me as I have moved in SL and now lives on my island sim, Serenite.

KX"

Doncha love Second Life and the people who make it this incredible?

What every Second Life newbie should know - 10 secret tips that will boost your experience from the get-go

October, 2009 update: This blogpost is soooo old, and desperately needs to be refreshed with new links, slurls and photographs. I fully intend to do so as soon as I can find the time. While some of the information may not be current, and some of the links that are offered here, broken, the core message remains the same. - Bett

Let's face it, the first few days and even weeks in Second Life are friggin' hard. Whether you are a geek or computer-clueless, take my word for it... you are going to be challenged. Looking back, I can't believe I stuck around. I almost didn't make it.

Is it worth it? Oh yes. Whether you are looking merely to socialize, explore business opportunities, or exercise your mind... whatever your reasons may be, once you "get it," you will realize that it is the ultimate creative tool, and superlative fun.

There is very little about Second Life that truly parallels Real Life. Just as a day in Second Life is only four hours long, so goes the speed, the immediacy with which things take place once you become an active participant. It is also so much easier to expose yourself to new information. Fact is, Second Life is a library, a school, a conversation... on steroids.

Speaking for myself, nearly every sentence I uttered in my first few weeks in the metaverse ended with a question mark. You aren't alone in worrying that you don't have enough time in your Real Life, let alone a Second Life. I also worried that it was unproductive and possibly not the wave of the future that the media kept reporting on. I was quite frustrated with the technical glitches I was experiencing, too.

In my earlier explorations, I sometimes inadvertently found myself in the seedier areas of Second Life, which I hardly ever come across anymore, just as I don't elect to spend time in the back alleys or social wastelands of Los Angeles. You learn where to go and what to avoid as you become more experienced, but a word of advice here: avoid the areas that report the highest traffic numbers. They are nearly always traps.

Second Life is so territorially immense that you could travel continuously, day and night, and never see it all. Yes, it is quite possible to be the only person in a region, but a quick teleport will land you amidst 70 other avatars, all doing whatever it is that you most enjoy... and this at any time of the day or night.

So... if you think you are ready for a taste, but want to skip a lot of the growing pains, take heed. Here are 10 rarely disclosed secrets - actually a lot more - that will greatly enhance your experience, right off the bat:

1) MONEY - Access to Second Life is free... so splurge a little and enter the metaverse with the idea that your experience will be vastly better if you are willing to spend $10 to $15 US dollars (less than the price of a movie ticket plus popcorn and a soda, if you think about it) to get yourself started off on the right foot.

It is fair to say that asking for money upon arrival in Second Life is shameful and akin to begging in Real Life. Realize, too, that your skills - especially in the first few days - make it nearly impossible for you to earn any real money. Later, yes, your chances are much better. Early on, no.

You get a much better exchange rate for your Real Life money at SL Exchange than you do in-world (sorry, Linden Lab and no, I'm not getting a kick-back from SL Exchange).

I'm still on the fence regarding the value of a premium account ($9.95 US dollars a month), though one benefit I really enjoy is the ability to see who is online even when you are offline. Only paying members can access this info on the Second Life website.

2) YOUR PERSONA - Choose your name wisely. Pick a name that is easy to type, easy to spell, and easy to remember. Nearly everyone experiments with who they are in the beginning. Consider the possibility that someday you may actually want to meet one or more people you've encountered in-world, face-to-face, in Real Life. You might fall in love, or develop genuine business relationships, and friendships in the metaverse can be as real and as deep as anything you've experienced before. On the opposite side of that spectrum, but equally important, I would advise you not to reveal much about your Real Life until you've had a chance to get to know the people you are interacting with.

3) TAILORING YOUR AVATAR: Ladies, before you begin customizing your avatar's chest (there's a little slider that goes from flat to humongous... just like that), consider Neil Stephenson's description of the three almost-standard-issue breast sizes on female avatars in his landmark book Snow Crash: improbable, impossible, and ludicrous. Too much can be ridiculous.

If you choose to be a human, you have the option of purchasing ready-to-wear shapes, though keep in mind that you will not be able to alter them later (they are rarely modifiable), and they are often very, and I do mean very (read: unrealistically) tall.

Some of the best known non-human or barely-human avatar creators give away a few basic and cool avatars for free or at very low cost. Flea Bussy's Grendel's Children, and Tooter Claxton always have fun things. You can also pick up free avatars (and scads of off-the-wall and/or practical and interesting things) at Hobo Village (teleport from here), Yadni's Junkyard (teleport from here), and the Gnubie store (teleport from here).

One other thought... less practical, but certainly droll... A friend of mine and his in-world girl friend amuse each other by donning the avatars of attractive celebrities, and yes, it is entirely possible to indulge your inner A-List yearnings and look like Angelina Jolie or Johnny Depp.

There are dozens of good websites and blogs that are devoted to fashion in Second Life, but one of my favorites is a column by Iris Ophelia on New World Notes.

4) PRIVACY: There is no such thing as complete privacy in Second Life. Once you learn how to operate your camera well (see the next tip), you will realize that your camera can look inside a house on the next island over, traversing through walls... with ease.

That said, here are some helpful privacy tips:

Teleport directly from here to Mystical Cookie's shop and pick up a free version of her Mystitool. Mystical just lowered the price on the full version of the Mystitool, and believe me, this is the best purchase your $396 Lindens can buy you. One of its many features is that it gives you the ability to always know who is within 96 meters of you, and how far away they are, and if they are coming closer. Use this tool immediately (you wear it) and never take it off.

Chime Desoto - one of the members of our Not Possible in Real Life group - created a Private Changing Room, and you can pick up a free copy of it, as well as easy instructions for its use, at my treehouse by teleporting directly from here.

5) SEE THINGS BETTER - Learning how to use your camera will turbo-charge your experience. In fact, learn how to do this first. It takes a little practice in the beginning, but later you will maneuver your camera automatically. The best instructions are available via one of our favorite Lindens - Torley - and can be viewed here.

6) RECORD YOUR EXPERIENCES BETTER - One of the pleasures of Second Life is the ease with which you can capture moments and places through photography. In-world snapshots cost $10 Lindens a piece, which doesn't sound like much, but ultimately adds up. After a few months, you'll find that your inventory is beginning to clog up with photos, too. In-world snapshots are good to have if you plan to share them with others immediately, but most of the time it pays off to save them on your hard drive or send them directly to Flickr or Snapzilla. Both of these services are free, although Flickr does offer a very reasonably priced premium account and you can retrieve your photographs for blogging or editing or duplication purposes whenever you like.

It is easy to keep a log of in-world text conversations, which you can later refer to, though it is considered a violation of the Terms of Service to share these records with anyone who didn't participate in them. It is also considered good form to secure permission from the person with whom you are "speaking," and whose conversation you are recording.

7) LEARN THE BASICS FIRST - As soon as you are able, learn at least a little about building and scripting. Even if you don't become a dedicated content creator, some notions of what's involved/elementary knowledge will serve you very well, indeed. Two people whom I'm extremely proud to know, have given generously of their time and land to provide stellar tutorials: Lumiere Noire's Ivory Tower - Library of Prim (teleport directly from here ), is essential when it comes to learning about building, and Jopsy Pendragon's Particle Laboratory, is a first-rate place to learn basic script and particle creation (teleport directly from here).

8) ASK QUESTIONS WHENEVER YOU CAN; FIND A MENTOR OR TWO - Nothing beats first-hand advice. Nothing. Also, never forget that we were all newbies in the beginning.

9) KEEP YOUR INVENTORY ORGANIZED FROM DAY ONE. Oh, oh, oh how I wish I had done this. Don't be like me and start thinking - and acting - this way from the beginning. Here's another gem video by Torley Linden, which will help you tidy up that inventory and keep it lean.

10) PEOPLE AREN'T ALWAYS WHO YOU THINK THEY ARE - Until the advent of Voice in Second Life, a surprisingly high number of men opted to portray themselves as women. Many, many still do. Do not assume that this means that they are transexuals or gay or any such thing. In fact, throw all your assumptions out the window. It's been my experience that most of them are straight. My advice: go shopping with them. It's fun, though they tend to have racier tastes than I do. :P

I'm sure I've missed oodles of good tips, and I won't be surprised - in fact I hope - that seasoned SLers will gently remind me of them. I'd like to learn more things! Seriously though, all comments are most welcome.

I'd like to especially thank Pavig Lok, Orhalla Zander, Arcadia Asylum, Thinkerer Melville, Wellington Bahram, Luna Idler, Corporate Jay, Alec Paragon and dozens of other people who didn't pitch me out with the bath water... and put up with my endless questions during those first few months. Thanks to them, I collapse in bed with a grin on my face every night and bolt out of bed the next morning, eager to see what the new day will bring. For now, I hope it will bring happy and informed newbies.


January 2 update: Ha! Just discovered this video about a "noob" - and clearly for newbies - via Caleb Booker's blog. Created by Akanjee Yongho and Anamkhaï Sodwind, it's a pilot for a series, and is set up for advertising. Pretty clever.

January 3 update: Since posting this piece, I've met over a dozen newbies who have read it! Nearly all asked me for suggestions on what to do in Second Life. Best answer I could think of was to suggest that they bookmark this blog since I make every effort to share our best findings here, complete with slurls (the equivalent of a Landmark), and that they join the Impossible IRL group in-world. It's free and open registration. I send about two or three notices a week with information on the best new builds and builders.

January 4 update: Just discovered what promises to be an excellent blog for men in Second Life. This is a first! Are We Not Men looks like it might have a real future, indeed. Men get short shrift in Second Life, especially when it comes to hair, but I have a feeling they'll give you some important leads on this and more... manly stuff for those teeming with testosterone. ^.^

February 10 update: Interested in art? Get your virtual life off to a bang-up start and make use of Sasun Steinbeck's extraordinary HUD which guides you from one gallery and museum to another (teleport directly from here). Hehe, that's how I got started!

February 26 update: Experiencing Second Life is not a requisite to understanding the wealth of information in the just-published book The Making of Second Life by Wagner James Au, the first embedded journalist and historian in the metaverse. Highly recommended.