I got a chance to read over the interesting but sobering Virtual Worlds Management Industry Forecast 2009 which came out earlier this week. This report collected responses from over 60 industry executives, analysts, observers, and "thought leaders" on what the coming year holds for the virtual worlds industry. (Notable companies not represented in this survey…
Category: Virtual Worlds
Speaking on Global Kids approach and nonprofit services today
I got an opportunity to speak about Global Kids's approach to youth development and the kinds of services we offer other institutions at "Nonprofit Week" on Orange Island in Second Life today. It was neat being among the 150 or so avatars who rezzed in for the talks today by my friends Coughran Mayo and…
Should Linden Lab integrate the Teen and Adult Second Life Grids?
There's been a flurry of debates going on within the Second Life blogosphere, in-world, and elsewhere about the possibility of Linden Lab integrating the Teen and Adults-only spaces in the virtual world of Second Life. This all erupted after Philip Linden, founder and chairman of Linden Lab, revealled in a recent Metanomics show that a…
Global Kids at Education Faire, Metanomics, Orange Island this week
Global Kids is all over the Second Life grid this coming week, with appearances at three high-profile events. Come by if you want to find out what we've been up to, our views on Teen / Main Grid integration, and how you can support youth development using virtual worlds. Here's the breakdown: Second Life Education…
Second Lifers gather to view Obama Inauguration (video)
While I was in DC for the real thing, apparently there were several virtual gatherings of people from around the world to watch the Inauguration of Barack Obama yesterday. My friends at Ill Clan Studios provided this excellent video coverage of one such event from NetRoots Nation in Second Life. There were definite advantages to…
Preparing youth for our rapidly changing times
Such a cool little video dramatizing how quickly our world is changing. My takeaway from this video is that educating youth to be effective citizens in the 21st century is less about cramming knowledge in their brains as much as preparing them with the right disposition to absorb new information, learn new skills, and effectively…
Swinging into the Metaverse: the “Slindy Hop” dance animation
From my friends at SLCN.tv: SLindy Hop is a Second Life couples' dance animation by Maar Auer. It was released July 2008 in SLCN.TV's Live Tonight Show by Paisley Beebe. You can watch the entire episode here. This is just a cut from that show, showing only the SLindy Hop. Dancer's outfits were generously sponsored…
Tweet of the Day: Global Kids wins the Linden Prize!
The spoof posts by Twitter user "Second Lie" are consistently hilarious and spot on (at least if you are a Second Life resident.) Today Global Kids got a very funny mention in the "Second Lie" Twitter feed, referring to the "Linden Prize" being offered by Linden Labs for the most innovative new application of Second…
Teen Grid registration STILL borked for non-US residents for over a year!
I am just shocked to learn that registration on the Second Life Teen Grid for teens outside of the US and Canada has not been working for more than a year, according to renowned teen Second Life developer Katherine Berry. Katherine you might recall is the creator of the SL-to-web tool Ajaxlife and vocal gadfly…
Virtual worlds and civic engagement: Obama’s health care policy discussed in Second Life
Draxtor Despres's latest dispatch from the virtual world examines how people are using Second Life to speak this country's health care policy, as part of Obama's online policy dialogues. Here's organizer Siri Vita (sp?) describing why a Second Life consultation works: One of the most amazing things was how people were willing to open up…