It seems that Second Life is reaching a critical mass. There are more and more rumblings in the museosphere about second life and what museums and non-profits are doing inside it. Most institutions seem to be in the evaluation phase, and that is precisely where we are within the Walker. So far Robin and I are the only people with accounts. I’m Newme Nozaki, Robin is Arty Moody. I hope to post some of the things I find in my other life as I explore it, so I have added a new category to the NMI blog, appropriately titled “Second Life.”
As a roundup, here are some things I’ve found useful or funny while getting my bearings in the metaverse:
- Beth has been blogging quite extensively about Second Life, and her online communities category has a wealth of resources I’m still sifting through.
- Infoisland is a blog discussing Museum and Library topics in Second Life.
- Second Life Art News is a whole blog centered around art created in SL.
- The Sundance Festival even had a film screening in SL, which the NYTimes wrote up. You’ll want to bugmenot. [Thanks Megan]
- The Sundance Channel has an island in SL. They blogged the whole process of setting it up, building, etc. Very useful.
- Museums and the Web is going to have a session, A Second Life for your Museum: The use of 3D collaborative virtual environments by museums, which I am very much looking forward to.
I would post an image of my avatar here, except the grid is down at the moment. This is one of the other things about second life you must get used to. Like real life, sometimes, you need a little maintenance. Maybe I should work on getting a first life.