My cat Mole Negro just turned one year old. He’s a wonderful companion, friendly, playful and well behaved with strangers. One of my main motivations for getting him was to deal with our little mouse problem. Mole is a terrific mouser, patrolling the kitchen and front door, where the little vermin tend to enter and…
Second Life travel guide in WIRED mag
The october issue of WIRED Magazine has a pretty sweet spread on Second Life, including a brief history of the virtual world, its economy, where to shop, how to have sex, what games you can play, and even some profiles on some of the criminal element that have been banned from SL. I like the…
Uncovering an old 9/11 online discussion
During 9/11, many people turned to their families and friends for comfort and security in those frightening first hours and days after the attacks. And many many people turned to the internet. On the swing dance website I moderate called Yehoodi.com, many people in the swing community gathered in our discussion boards to share what…
Knight Foundation announces $5 million grant for “community journalism in cyberspace”
The Knight Foundation recently announced that they are launching a new $5 million fund for innovative community journalism in cyberspace called the ‘Knight Brothers 21st Century News Challenge.’ The grant program will provide funding for "new ideas, prototypes, products and leadership initiatives that use innovative news methods to help citizens better connect within their communities."…
Slider hair is for dorks
Just got a new ‘do, to replace my super-newb "slider hair" that I’ve been sporting for way too long. I’ve always wanted white hair actually, although perhaps not with enormous antennae. More exciting self-portraiture after the jump…
On TV, the Old Boy’s Club is alive and well
Derek Turner of the media reform group Free Press has just released a study that shows that the television industry is still largely dominated by white men, even as other industries in the country diversify their ownership demographics. Entitled "Out of the Picture," the report cites a number alarming statistics on television station ownership: Women…
Star Wars Transformers!?!? What fresh hell is this?
I would have liked to have been at this brainstorming session at Hasbro: Okay, what do kids like? They like Star Wars toys! But we’ve thrown at them every possible Boba Fett plush pillow and Luke Skywalker cereal product we can think of. The whole Star Wars schtick has needed a boost of energy for…
All your Starbase are belong to us
Master SL builder Hiro Pendragon sends out word about a cool simultaneous "multi-verse" release of Starbase C3. It’s a lot to grok, so pay attention: There’s a ten year old virtual world called "Starbase C3" which exists as kind of a collective fantasy of thousands of fans who perpetuate the world via 3D models, fanfic,…
Correlation between griefing and violent game play?
The excellent Game Politics blog recently did a little investigating of claims by Louisiana attorney general Jack Johnson and other anti-game violence politicians. Apparently Johnson has been touting an American Psychological Association study that he said had found that violent video game play causes real world violent acts. I happen to know the current chair…
I see gray people: second class surfing in Second Life
It hit me tonight what was so deja vu about hanging out in Second Life on my pre-Intel iBook: it’s like surfing the web on dial-up. Tonight I wanted to visit some parties, maybe get some new hair, and change my walking animation. Instead I spent almost the entire time waiting for images to render….