One of the debates surrounding virtual worlds is whether or not they decrease people’s "carbon footprint" or environmental impact. On the one hand, some argue that virtual worlds are greener ways for people to meet and collaborate, versus having to travel physically to each other using planes or cars. On the other hand, virtual worlds…
Category: Virtual Worlds
War Child International to organize “largest online protest ever” in Habbo Hotel
I just saw this on the War Child website: War Child and Habbo are teaming up for what promises to be the largest online protest ever. On 21st September, UN International Day of Peace, teens will gather in Habbo hotel to raise awareness about the effects of war. Habbo is a virtual community of millions…
Web 2.0 tools that I use (how you like them apples, Aliza?)
Modified version of awesome CC-licensed image by Stabilo-Boss This is in response to Aliza Sherman’s excellent blog post on Web2.0 tools that she uses in her daily life. Here is my list of Web2.0 tools I use on nearly a daily basis: Typepad.com: That’s the engine that drives this blog. Twitter: Micro-blogging FTW! I tend…
Crossing the Metaversal Divide: Second Life teens exchange text messages with Ugandan girl on her cell phone
The screenshot here is kind of hard to parse so let me describe it. A young person (represented by the green furry) in Teen Second Life is composing a text message to send to another teen in Uganda that she will recieve on her cell phone as an SMS message. Meanwhile my avatar (the purple…
Thanks for the link luv, Gothamist, Kotaku, New York Times, etc!
I didn’t expect such a fuss when I blogged about the 9/11 memorials in Second Life and Madeleine Albright speaking in SL from UT Austin. But I guess others found those topics interesting, because I got several mentions on prominent political, news and gaming sites. Thanks to: Gothamist Kotaku Game Politics The New York Times…
Draxtor’s video report from the Second Life Community Convention
Check out this silly video montage from the 2008 Second Life Community Convention produced by my friend and master machinima journalist Draxtor Dupres. Lots of my friends and colleagues on it it, including Tuna Oddfellow, Nonny de la Peña, Barry and Rhiannon Chatnoir from Global Kids, Frank, Paul and Kerria from Ill Clan, and a…
9/11 Commemoration today in Second Life: Giving virtual voice to those who were lost
Today was a particularly emotional day for lots of people from around the world. However most of us don't have the luxury of sharing those emotions and thoughts in the middle of a workday with our friends and family. So virtual spaces like Second Life serve a potentially important role in providing emotional outlets and…
Madeleine Albright speaking at UT Austin and Second Life (video)
Tonight, the LBJ School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas at Austin hosted an address by former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright. I got to watch and participate in this event at the GSD&M Idea City Island Amphitheatre in Second Life (teleport SLURL). It was a good crowd for a foreign…
Notes from my talk on “Beyond Best Practices: Taking Non-profits to the Next Level in Second Life” at SLCC
For those that weren’t able to be there, here’s a quick rundown of what I spoke about at the Non-profit Commons mini-track at the Second Life Community Convention this past weekend in Tampa, Florida. While this year’s non-profit track had less folks participating than last year, we had some great exchanges with non-profit innovators like…
SLCC Wrap-up: Virtual educators dominate the Second Life Community Convention in Tampa
The three day Second Life Community Convention from September 5-7, 2008 in Tampa, Florida firmly made the case that some of the most vital and innovative work in the virtual world is being done by the education sector. With 400 some real world participants (plus others beaming in virtually) converging on the grand Marriott Waterside…