
New Zealand OpenSim grid on the way
I stumbled across a communication from a consortium of New Zealand Universities, who are making a public call for support for their... Read the story »
Peter Rowsthorn gets virtual
Last Friday night, ABC show Can We Help covered the topic of virtual worlds, with host Peter Rowsthorn being shown around Second Life... Read the story »
Journalism in Second life: research underway
In the past week i had the pleasure of spending an hour with Annabelle Boyd Jones, an Honours research student from the Department... Read the story »

The Watch - virtual worlds in the news
1. Newstrack India - Stardoll.com is Brit kids’ most popular site. “Britain’s most popular website for under-12s... Read the story »
Weekend Whimsy
1. WoW & Second Life: Review Of MMORPGs (Part 2) (Note: some swearing in this one) 2. Second Life Visions 3. Lucent Heart Popularity:... Read the story »
Von Johin’s public relations bid for ’stardom’
Today we received a breathless press release announcing a ‘world first’. The release in full then some commentary afterward: PRESS... Read the story »

Students vs Second Life
When I started thinking about education in Second Life, and the reactions of students of university/college age to it, I rather naturally... Read the story »
Journalism in Second life: research underway
In the past week i had the pleasure of spending an hour with Annabelle Boyd Jones, an Honours research student from the Department... Read the story »
Call for chapters: book on ethics in virtual worlds
Got a hankering to write a scholarly article on an ethics and virtual worlds-related issue? Then check this out. There’s nothing... Read the story »
News from the Wider Metaverse
I don’t want to remember 100 passcodes. And I recently blogged on this….and blogged…and blogged…..and 4,000 words later came to the same conclusion as Edutechy who also had a nice simple diagram and a name (Virtual World VD) to explain ... [Link]
The Metaverse Journal highlights the work of Annabelle Boyd Jones at the University of Sydney, who is researching the role of journalism and governance in Second Life. Blogging her progress, I was intrigued (or maybe bemused?) to note her comments ... [Link]
Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Second Life, Virtual worldsBy now, if you've been keeping track of the metrics, it should come as no surprise to you that Linden Lab's virtual environment Second Life is dominated by Generation X and Baby ... [Link]
I recently came across this video, demonstrating the changes made to the combat sysem for BSG47: Battlestar Pacifica, a fan-made MMO inspired by Battlestar Galactica based in Second Life, and was so impressed by the obsessively high level of military... [Link]
On the Linden's official blog comes news that there will, after all, be a Burning Life 2008, fifth in an annual tradition, an impromptu, temporary art community created and then disassembled in a vast virtual desert expanse, running parallel to... [Link]
This Wednesday at Noon SLT, Orange Island is hosting its second Photo Session, a series of free classes teaching the art of creating beautiful screenshots in Second Life; tomorrow will feature Kee Llewelyn of The Photo Institute, teaching the use... [Link]
The SL Bar Association, an informal professional organization for attorneys and legal scholars in the virtual world of Second Life that I founded in late 2006, recently concluded its 2008-2009 elections for President-Elect, Vice President of Communication, Vice President of ... [Link]
The SL Bar Association, an informal professional organization for attorneys and legal scholars in the virtual world of Second Life that I founded in late 2006, recently concluded its 2008-2009 elections for President-Elect, Vice President of Communication, Vice President of ... [Link]
Read about the adventures of librarians in virtual worlds this fall when
“Virtual Worlds, Real Libraries” comes out in October. You can order a copy now at
http://books.infotod~ WARNING: Virtual Worlds, Real Libraries and the experiences it references may be ... [Link]
BURNING LIFE 2008
September 27 - October 5 In 1999, an innovative man made the long trek from San Francisco to the sun-baked playa of an enormous, flat, dry lakebed in the Nevada high desert. He went to attend the renowned ... [Link]
Inspired by news that SL bluesman Von Johin signed a deal with an established record label, musician Dizzy Banjo (no slouch himself when it comes to metaverse-based music) fired up his blog to write a wide-ranging and perceptive survey of... [Link]
Tomorrow at 9:30am SLT on Harvard's Berkman Island in Second Life, two Boston professors are going to show off progress on Hub 2, their program which uses Second Life's building tools for community-driven urban planning. Their pilot project is pictured... [Link]
With the indispensable help of Tish Shute/Tara5 Oh of UgoTrade, I just wrote a briefer on Open Sim for Ostatic, the GigaOM network's open source resource site. Besides the Lindens' interoperability efforts, what's Open Sim about, who's working on it,... [Link]
Kean Kelly the avatar, and the Four Yip portrait Four Yip paints mixed reality portraits of Second Life avatars, and you could say her art merges three realities. "I make snapshots from avies I see," she explains to me in... [Link]
Often in mainstream media interviews I'm asked if the typical Second Life user is an anti-social housebound dweller who only logs into SL because they don't have a first life. The assumption has always seemed strange to me, because while... [Link]
Filed under: Opinion, Second Life, Virtual worldsSo, you think Linden Lab's work on inter-grid teleportation is for the benefit of third-party Second Life simulators like Opensim and its ilk? That's hardly likely, in the current climate. Actually, the ideal beneficiary ... [Link]
- Iris Ophelia breaks down the construction of avatar beauty. - The Making of Second Life-- now in Japanese. - The Second Life of Sierra Leone: Impoverished nation becomes best candidate for registering metaverse domain names. - Blues Traveling: The... [Link]
“I will not abuse report residents solely based on them saying they’re less than 18 years old, as long as I can not prove this to be true.” Blog post. Who Runs Virtual Worlds I was mulling over the issue ... [Link]
Stonewall Learning Center
The Stonewall Learning Center opened Sunday, August 10th, on the west
side of Info Island just east of the Jazz Cat Club. Stonewall’s goal is to promote understanding and awareness among
lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgendered folk and ... [Link]
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Joseph Jaffe to early Second Life marketers: fail
Joseph Jaffe runs a marketing company called crayon and in the lead up to a visit to Australia Marketing Magazine have completed an...
Kzero: 7 Point Plan for Marketing in Virtual WorldsKzero have released an updated version of their 7 Point Plan for marketing in virtual worlds. It’s a free publication that can...
Google Lively’s creator scores keynote at VW LondonAs mentioned previously, we’re a media partner for the Virtual Worlds London conference. They’ve just announced that the...

Introducing: Metaverse Health
I’m really pleased to introduce a new sister site to The Metaverse Journal: Metaverse Health. It’s a completed site now but...
What looks like addiction, but is not - Virtual Addiction, Part 3I spend hours with my computer. It is my favorite tool. I spend time in and out of virtual worlds; I spend time on and off the Internet,...
Second Life - Relay for Life 2008Second Life’s Relay for Life is well underway - it’s hard to believe it’s been a year since the last one. Check...
Editorial
Future freedom loss creeps up unawares?Above and beyond Second Life’s many attractions, many residents prize the ability to make and enjoy user-created content. It...
Linden Lab zones out.Jack Linden has made a heads-up post about new policies to be implemented concerning zoning and advertising on the Mainland sims in...
Second Life immaturity – bell curve bungling.Second Life is going through a troubling phase. It has entered young adulthood, but is still acting like a teenager - occasionally...
Profiles
Interview - Nathan Organ (AUGrid)Back in February this year we interviewed Steve Sima, founder of the Openlife grid. Since then another Australian has set up a grid...
Interview: David Rolston, Forterra CEOForterra Inc is a private virtual world provider with a focus on health care, education and homeland security / disaster preparedness....
Interview - Skribe FortiSkribe Forti is an Australian Second Life resident who’s got an established track record in machinima that we’ve covered...
Politics
Linden Lab’s CEO to testify before CongressAt 9.30am on the 1st April US Eastern Time, Linden Lab CEO Philip Rosedale will testify before the US Congress. I don’t have...
The Mike Huckabee Center for the Liberation and Housing of Spermatazoan-AmericansWe reported recently on some excellent political satire occurring in Second Life focused on Hilary Clinton. Republican Mike Huckabee...
Does Second Life need a Republic?The Metaverse Republic is a new site that states its purpose clearly: “The Metaverse Republic, currently work in progress, will...
Virtual Worlds in the Real World Media
The Watch - virtual worlds in the news1. Newstrack India - Stardoll.com is Brit kids’ most popular site. “Britain’s most popular website for under-12s...
The Watch - virtual worlds in the news1. 7thSpace - TORC at UH turns to virtual world of Second Life for new study. “The University of Houston department of health...
The Watch - virtual worlds in the news1. News.com.au - Virtual spend making real money. “Spending $26,500 on an imaginary island might sound outlandish, but it’s...









