Life

"Listen with an open mind, but don't try to remember this stuff. There's no quiz at the end." Jack Kornfield







Friday, January 28, 2011

Men, Women, & Civil Frogs...

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Recently I did a post on civility and how the anonymity of the Internet provides a platform for many to do and say things on line that they wouldn't likely do face to face. That post got a comment from Paisley Beebe... and that in turn got me to reading a blog co written by she and Bliss Windlow, " Women That Dance With Frogs". Our revolving comments soon turned to another kind of civility... and that was how women, and men, act in virtual worlds. Basically, in many ways, we act out the much of the same scenarios in virtual worlds that we do offline, except.... those civil inhibitions are missing. Men, particularly new comers to virtual worlds tend to choose avatar shapes that look more like the Incredible Hulk than Woody Allen. They tend to be very forward and blunt about asking for sexual favors... my suspicion is that the embarrassment of rejection is mitigated by simply logging off as well as the danger of a physical confrontation with a boyfriend, father, husband, brother is missing.

Women have struggled for millennia to achieve being recognized as equals... to be recognised for achievements rather than looks or what sexual favor that could be provided. And yet in virtual worlds, particularly newcomers seem to allow promiscuity free rein. I suppose it's a form of role play... the chance to do some of those things that would be terribly unsafe in real life. It is rather odd that given a chance to achieve so much of the respect that is often difficult to attain in the life where we sleep, so many women simply perpetuate the status quo.

This last couple of weeks I've been trying something a little different, I'm mentoring a couple of new guys. These last three years I've primarily worked with women, but it's occurred to me that if I was successful in dealing not only with men during my last twenty working years, but military officers, I should be just as successful here. My philosophy? Simple... act responsibly, set distinct boundaries, say what you mean, mean what you say, and don't say it mean.

And so it goes

My love to you all, brinda

Namaste

नमस्ते

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Living every day as though it were our last...

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I was turned onto a blog earlier this evening where the author was making some seemingly valid arguments as to the direction Secondlife life was heading, as well as whether the coming prime mover of Secondlife will be market driven or role play driven. Now my immediate thought was to link to that blog.... and then after a few moments I thought, why? Absolutely no one can be prescient as to the direction Secondlife is headed in a future immediate enough to matter. Actually the blog writers last comment was that they didn't expect Secondlife to last another ten years... whoopee... I'm willing to bet a substancial amount of money that I won't live another fifty years either. We are constantly surrounded by those seeing doom and gloom around every corner {Lions, and tigers, and bears! Oh, my!}, sometimes I too am guilty of a part of that. Nothing in Secondlife really exists... save in our imaginations. I know I'm not the only one that has had people in the everyday world where we sleep say to me, "You actually pay real money for land that doesn't exist!"? Where in a scenario like that could anyone believe that a dream, a dream of a place that existed only in peoples imaginations, would encourage wealthy people to invest several millions of dollars and to continue that dream for nine years. Yes, I complain loud and long about how things work in Secondlife or how they don't work. I could easily complain about the cost... both in hardware good enough to really enjoy our world {I do} and in the cost to maintain all those fictional objects that give me great joy {most of the time}. The bottom line is.. we don't know... no one does. For me the choice then becomes easy...in the life where I sleep, I attempt to live every day as if it were my last... because one day it will be. So I guess it's a given that I live everyday in our imaginary world the same way, someday the servers will go off.
And so it goes

I love you all, brinda

Namaste

नमस्ते

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Benares Yearbook, Community, and whiners...

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I did write a post some days ago that I never got around to doing anything with since a few other ideas seemed a little more important {as if any of this is important!}. The post was to start out about my trials and tribulations with the yearbook I do every year for Benares. This year I think I finally made something reasonably professional looking... down to about thirty page turns... partners on facing pages... text on each page to identify who or what it was. Obviously I am very proud of the book, I know from comments over the years that many see it as just one more facet of our community. BTW, IM me in world if you'ed like a free copy of yearbook.

Speaking of community... I have had a few residents shuffle parcels recently. The ability to do that easily is enhanced by the way Benares "sells" parcels for zero, that allows residents land owner controls... one can leave at any time without trying to sell their land before tier eats it's value, and it saves me policing prims.

Other news... Smithy returned after a few months absence, two new women have joined us... Bonnie and Trinity... and a few have changed their houses around. One thing that does seem to return often... that's those that want to tell me that my prices are too high, and/or our prims are too low. When I first started Benares I went for a long enough time that I almost believed that. Keep in mind that I was one of that group in early 2008 that experienced The Benevolent Monarchy's bait and switch, they raised island prices from 1000USD to 1695USD......and a couple months later went back to 1000. [And no they didn't refund the additional money] I persevered, Benares cost me nearly six thousand dollars that first year... but I have stayed and our prices remained. My comment to all those that complain is, "You can buy pixel sand anywhere... we have a community"... just before I tell them goodbye. =^..^=

I love what I have had a part in creating...

And so it goes

My love to you all, brinda

Namaste

नमस्ते

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Civilty... a vested interest in Secondlife?

*******************************Where we come from*************************** **************************************************************************** I came across a story a day or so ago that kinda dovetails into my recent post on civility and rudeness. My personal experience in Secondlife likely parallels most others... I found my first crude, rude person on day two. I suspect many of us understand at some level the thought that "Where there's no police car.. there's no speed limit", meaning that one can be crude and rude and when they log off there are no repercussions for their actions. Well...........Jeff Pearlman, a columnist for Sports Illustrated decided to confront at least one of his rude, crude critics... his is an interesting story. I think readers of this blog understand how I feel about those members of Secondlife who choose to never leave the "welcome areas or info hubs"... {yes, it's their Secondlife program and if they are having fun I need to shut my pixel mouth.} But in order for Secondlife to grow (and things that don't grow end up dieing) I feel we need to be more than a three D chat room. It would seem that those of us that have a vested interest in Secondlife would do well to encourage a more civil environment. I guess that perhaps one way to do that is for each of us to gently confront those who are rude. When I say confront... what I have found that has had the best response so far is I try and contact the rude individual in IM, state my feelings clearly and leave. I know, I'm still a dreamer. And so it goes My love to you all, brinda Namaste नमस्ते

Saturday, January 22, 2011

The Art of Disappearing... a poem

******************************Where we come from**************************** **************************************************************************** Another of those days when I have had the time to sit down and print out a post I took time to write at work......... and then I see something that just grabs at me and says 'write this!'.

I had a IM conversation with a fellow last evening... it's perhaps the third time we've spoken, and he laughed about me being a "power user" here in Secondlife, meaning that I guess every time he logs on...there I am. During our chat he said something about me proselytizing about Buddhism {jokingly}... and of course my standard response is that as a Buddhist I don't get too excited about any one else's spiritual path......or lack thereof.

But when I came home today and picked up my mail I saw the poem below. It's printed in the February issue of The Shambala Sun magazine and reading it I had to laugh because I instantly knew I had to "proselytize" if that's what it is and reprint it.

The Art of Disappearing by Naomi Shihab Nye

When they say Don’t I know you? say no. When they invite you to the party remember what parties are like before answering.... Someone telling you in a loud voice they once wrote a poem. Greasy sausage balls on a paper plate. Then reply. If they say we should get together. say why? It’s not that you don’t love them any more. You’re trying to remember something too important to forget. Trees. The monastery bell at twilight. Tell them you have a new project. It will never be finished. When someone recognizes you in a grocery store nod briefly and become a cabbage. When someone you haven’t seen in ten years appears at the door, don’t start singing him all your new songs. You will never catch up. Walk around feeling like a leaf. Know you could tumble any second. Then decide what to do with your time. I hope you can understand how and why this spoke so gently to me And so it goes I love you all, brinda Namaste नमस्ते

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Are We Dancer... or Are We Human?

******************************Where we come from***************************** *************************************************************************** I guess it has been a couple of years since my Secondlife daughter Lala turned me onto the song below. Keep in mind that at age 68 seeing a groups name is, "The Killers" isn't likely to make me run to a site and either buy..or listen. In this case I did... and I'm glad. So often the lyrics to a song just all run together for me, and while I had listened to the words of this song, perhaps it has taken me all this time to hear something different. This time last year I was just about finished with preparations for my pilgrimage to India's four holiest Buddhist sites. That trip was a life changing experience for me and the way I think. So today when I listened to this song I heard something very different. "Are we dancer... or are we human?" Depending on ones view of life... most of us likely want to say we are human. As a Buddhist, this current body is merely a dancer through another incarnation... for me. BTW... in the grand scheme of things, being human is doing really well too. =^..^= And so it goes My love to you all, brinda Namaste नमस्ते

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Things that make me go.......Hmmmmmm

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There was a comedian some years ago in the USA that had a line that went like this: "You know, it's one of those things that make you go ..hmmm". I've had a lot of those moments this past year certainly. Think about this if you will, how often have you seen a Linden in world this past year? Now don't count those Lindens that come in world for office hours. And don't count those Lindens that have showed up in world to either welcome Prince Phillip or wish him goodbye {again}. I mean Lindens that actually show up in world on their own time? I know of one... now surely there must be others.... if you've seen them, comment...please.

The Linden I speak of that does come in world was one that I had met last year at the brief memorial to the one hundred that were fired. We had a brief chat recently and I commented on how great it felt to see her online, and we agreed that perhaps things would be different if more Lindens would come in world and mingle. Now I won't give up her name... will say she isn't privy to executive decisions, but she full well understands that all the reading, all the videos, all the talk, is no substitute for spending time in world. Time... not a log in and spend 5 minutes... Time. Log in as my friend does.. go explore, go near a so called "welcome area" and cam in from a distance, sit there and listen, watch. Try to go to a sandbox or Linden land and actually build something. Go and try to do all those things us mere mortals do. After all if spewer 2.ought oh is so cool... all of those activities will be easy!

And so it goes

I love you all, brinda

Namaste

नमस्ते

Monday, January 17, 2011

Just crude & rude...

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Been thinking about the subject of this blog post since yesterday. I've decided about 3 times to just forget it.... and for all the good this post will do... I likely should. But being old and stubborn...........

I saw a post yesterday on a blog about a cool place to visit and so went. Where isn't important, now I'm always quite concious of who is around and I love to read profiles. Too bad I didn't read Daktari Ducatillon's profile more completely before I saw and commented on his rezz date. As I'm sure most know, those of us that have been around for awhile are becoming fewer and fewer as the years go by, so when I see a rezz date just one day older than mine.........well I just have to say hello. The story now goes downhill from there, first the IM history:

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This is what he sent... perhaps I'm a little old fashioned. I wonder if he would address his Mother or grandmother or a stranger at the grocery store with something like this. Those who know me know I dress conservatively and rarely ever say anything that couldn't be said in front of either my elders or a child. I'm so spoiled... of the three male residents of Benares as well as one that's left... I have never ever heard a single out of place word... to me or anyone else.

For what it's worth... "Common courtesy is a very uncommon virtue", said Voltaire.

And so it goes

I do love you all, brinda

Namaste

नमस्ते

Blue Mars isn't our future...

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There's a lot of buzz in the blogosphere and on the forums about the reported changes in Blue Mars, it's future, and what if any, impact the decisions made in that world would affect Secondlife and our future.

Before I get too far... it's considered bad form to just re post what others have written as your own so while I will include a couple of links, I think most of you will recognise that some of the material in those links represents positions I've taken in the past.

I joined Blue Mars when it went to open beta and on my first log in I wasn't that impressed. The first thing almost all of us did when we first logged into Secondlife was to start tweaking our avatars and in Blue Mars that tweaking was sadly limited... we all seemed to just be clones wearing different clothes. The Blue Mars world was so finite as well... your exploring was very limited, and the world was often empty, all of those limitations and others are well covered in the links below.

Secondlife has it's share of problems... there's no disputing that, but I continue to be amazed daily at what really makes Secondlife different. For me it is the content as well as the sense of community... I know I seem to find constant fault with those who's major contribution to Secondlife is standing at welcome area/infohubs and chatting, but those people do have a sense of community. Further amazement, I don't believe it's possible to explore all of Secondlife... there just isn't time before the content changes in our nearly thirty thousand regions. Inworldz is as close as any platform has ever come to doing what Secondlife does so well and today Inz is still small enough that the very thing that the oldbies in Secondlife found, that feeling of being a pioneer, of "We're all in this together", is one of the things that drives it so well. (Never mind Inz being a content creators paradise)

All in all what makes any virtual world work is imagination and imagination seems to be a lot more rare than I thought. Just maybe what one of those links says so well is true... that there never will be 0ne hundred million of us. In any world most of us are too busy looking out for number one and I think all of you know my feelings about how that doesn't seem to be a success story in our Secondlife world.

And so it goes

My love to you all, brinda

Namaste

नमस्ते

References: Honour McMillan http://honour-mcmillan.blogspot.com/2011/01/dear-blue-mars-its-community-stupid.html

Gwyneth Llewelyn http://gwynethllewelyn.net/2011/01/17/mars-attacks-mobile-platforms/

Friday, January 14, 2011

Angels... Blackbirds... & Tears...

******************************Where we come from**************************** ***************************************************************************** Sometimes I make great plans for a post subject...... and then something I read and/or see makes me feel so small. Please take a look at Wagner James Au's New World Notes link. Btw, I think I know the opening scenes are Essex California... I first saw Essex as a child in 1948. http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2011/01/sarah-mclachlan-second-life.html *************************************************************************** **************************************************************************** This is specially for a dear friend... She knows who she is. For what it's worth And so it goes I love you all, brinda Namaste नमस्ते

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

What is "Live Music" here in Secondlife?-part two

More about the live music scene....or, part two.

Just to make it easy...first a comment from a musician posted yesterday to part one , bornagainpagans said... "Ah yes, the 'live' versus 'karaoke' thing. Pops up a couple of times a year, usually combined with all kinds of silly ideas to make music a profitable business in SL. Dust in the wind, that's what it is. Music, as well as running a venue for that matter, will never be profitable in SL. And as far as the live/karaoke thing is concerned: the music fans in SL couldn't care less. They just want to be entertained - for the most part by tunes they can sing along with. The SL music scene is a lot like the RL music scene. Including all the egotripping about who's better than who.Personally, I'm very happy with the couple of venues and artists that have a nice vibe to groove along with."

Now Leogans article in Scruples Magazine:

DON'T CALL IT KARAOKE by Loegan Magic The Second Life music scene is an ever changing component to to an already complex virtual world, filled with it's own politics and unwritten rules. It has become a thriving independent global music scene unaltered by the corporations that have pretty much gobbled up the airways and watered down the music being put out in the “real world”. Sure some of it is pretty amateurish, but even that has it's charm. What's better then then a kindergarten teacher by day who is a SL rock star by night? The musicians here are all on various levels, some are just having fun, some are trying to make it big, and some are just playing for a much needed outlet or release. Whatever the reason, Secondlife is full of music and we the fans have tons of choices. I have been involved in this scene on various levels for almost two years now and I've seen a lot (keep in mind SL years are like dog years). Most of what I've seen has been good, some of it wondrous and amazing and yes some of it not so good. I have met a lot of great people, venue owners, musicians, managers and fans. However, one aspect has troubled me, and that is the blatant disrespect, by some in the scene, for singers who use tracks. For those of you who don't know, “track singers” use pre-recorded music to sing live to. This has labeled them by some as Karaoke singers or being dismissed as not live music. I disagree. Even the term track singer, I have an issue with; why don't we use the term vocalist? First off karaoke is an activity. You go to karaoke with your friends to drink and have a good time. And getting up in front of your friends in a supportive environment and singing badly is just that - fun. If you don't believe me ask yourself what happens when the one person in the room that can sing gets up and does it? No one wants to follow them, its no longer fun. It is completely different than listening to a trained professional singer putting on a show and entertaining a crowd. Now, does that mean that there are people using tracks who can't sing and should not be labeled vocalists – yes it sure does and a lot of them. Does that mean they shouldn't sing – no! It means I might not book them at my venue or go see their next show, but that is the great thing about Second Life music, someone else will. The point is, I can think of countless people who strum guitars and sing that aren't any better. Does that mean I dismiss everyone who strums a guitar – no. So why are we dismissing everyone who uses tracks? The truth is some music can not be reproduced with just a guitar or a piano. So why limit the music in second life to someone playing one instrument? Many track singers sing jazz, blues, soul, funk and more, giving a much needed kick to a music scene saturated with people strumming guitars. I welcome the variety. Now most fans don't care, they just want to hear good music and be entertained, it's mostly other musicians, venue owners, and managers, that have issue. It just seems sad to me to declare, that you only have 100% life music at your venue when what you are really saying is we don't let people sing with tracks here. As a venue owner I want the best, most talented people I can find. Personally, I don't care if you are banging on a bucket, scratching a record, or strumming a guitar...art is art and good art should be seen and heard. Music is an art form and I can't think of another art form that I would dismiss due to the tools used. Singing is actually the most pure form of music I can think of and while we all do it, it doesn't mean we do it well (or should). So if someone is using a pre recorded track it doesn't matter to me as long as they are singing well over it. I've heard some amazing vocalists in second life, trained professional singers with successful real life music careers that should not be missed. And to not book them because they don't strum a guitar seems absurd to me. Second Life is an amazing place, it is literally what we make it. Just think how music will be experienced twenty or even ten years from now in whatever Secondlife will evolve to. We are experiencing something that is in its infancy and we are the ones who will say, "remember when". So if you are a musician, venue, owner, manager, or fan who dismisses vocalists who use tracks in second life, I urge you to reconsider. We are all in this together, pioneers in a new world, but whatever world you are in, real or virtual, one thing that does not change is talent... talent is talent. So open your ears and mind to some amazing music, you might be surprised what you discover. ***************************************************************************** For what it's worth And so it goes My love to you all, brinda

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

What is "Live Music" here in Secondlife?-part one

******************************Where we come from**************************** **************************************************************************** A little something different from me... well, it seems a little different anyway. First, keep in mind that although I do stream music to estate land it's not unusual for me to have audio turned off on my PC. I went for my first couple of years in Secondlife without attending any of the live music acts here until I started following Crap Mariners involvement with Live and Kickin' events. I have posted before of my belief that to remain in Secondlife one needs to find a passion, and for many that passion is music. Nearly a year ago Porter Paquot came to stay at Benares... it turned out she was a professional vocalist in her other life, and she wasted no time in getting into the music scene here, I was amazed.

Earlier today I received a note from one of the owners of two live music venues here in Secondlife... I would like to paste Loegans open comment to a group that has a vested interest in live Secondlife music. In the interest of transparency, I will say that both Loegan Magic and the above mentioned Porter are current residents of mine... and that status has exactly zero influence in my choosing to do this post. Sometimes it's important to do things because they are right. This post will see part two tomorrow when I post Loegans article to Scruplz Magazine . What follows is Loegan Magics response to a contact from a new group called Live Music Review, It speaks for its self.*********************************************************

My venue was recently approached to join a group for venue owners called Live Music Review. I would encourage the SL music community to not join this group. They have set down guidelines for what they feel is a quality venue. After a heated discussion with one of the groups founders, I was still unable to determine what the purpose of the group was – needless to say he no longer wanted my venues in the group (which is fine by me). One of the standards of what makes a venue, “high quality” according to the group is “no karaoke acts." I own two live music venues with Porter Paquot, The Mill and The Kasbah. We do not book karaoke acts, we book high quality vocalists who use tracks, live musicians, and DJ’s. We have original music night and do our best to support the live music scene and art community in Second Life. I have worked for almost two years trying to bring people together and book quality music at my venues. I feel that my venues can stand on the reputations they have made for themselves over the last year and half. In my opinion, reputation is what a makes a good venue not an arbitrary checklist. It frustrates and angers me when someone makes blanket statements like this group is doing. If a venue does not want to book vocalists who use tracks, that is their choice, It does not make them a higher quality venue. This attitude is what is wrong with an otherwise amazing Secondlife music scene. It is time to put a stop to this. This is a debate among musicians, managers, and venue owners. The fans don’t care they just want to hear good music. Let’s stop creating divisions and work together. If we as venue owners just book the best people out there and run our venues the way we want, then the people going to the shows will decide who runs a quality venue and who doesn’t. It’s simple. Groups like this that see things as black and white are what is wrong with the Secondlife music scene. I also encourage musicians to not support venues with this attitude. This debate is getting old. I have attached an article I have written for Scruplz Magazine that is coming out this month about this issue. I wrote it before I had this incident with Live Music Review. As you can see, this is a hot button issue with me and it's about time that we as a community stop making divisions and work together. Good music is good music. I hope you take the time to read the attached article􀀀 Thank you for your time, Loegan Magic

And so it goes

I love you all, brinda

Namaste

नमस्ते

Monday, January 10, 2011

Was the Money Right?

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Honest..I've not been flaking off here. After working three graveyard shifts in a row..........and sleeping twenty hours today I will post stuff I wrote while at work a day or so ago.

The thing about publicly owned companies is that their balance sheets are available for inspection. Now I'm sure there are creative ways to massage the bottom line in a public company but at least one can get a feeling for a companies viability, whereas with a privately owned company such as Linden Lab we can only go by what they choose to tell us. If memory serves me right, Phillip Rosedale has indicated that Linden Lab showed a profit of 78 million dollars last year and that the company was healthy. OK, assuming those figures to be correct... I'm very interested in why the company fired 100 employees a few months ago.What were those employees working on? What kind of hold does the company have on those former workers that we don't hear what they were working on? No leaks? I'm surprised... loyalty rarely exceeds the Andy Warhol thing about everyone's famous for 15 minutes......unless the moneys right.

Many years ago a loan shark friend of mine told me that one cannot say what they will or will not do until it's 3 am in a very private place and there's just you, one other person, a case with 10 kilos of one hundred dollar bills ($1 million)...........and no one is going to know. Then you choose. Has The Benevolent Monarchy offered enough money for total silence? And if so... why? Just asking.

And so it goes

My love to you all, brinda

Namaste

नमस्ते

Friday, January 7, 2011

Time... It isn't a sacrifice is it?

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Regular readers of this blog know I love Secondlife. Coming up on four years here I'm more in love with this world than I was at year one. I've owned an eighth of a private island... a quarter of a mainland region, and for the last three years an estate of my own that now includes two homesteads.... I have invested in Secondlife. In this last year or so we have seen a dramatic shift in the direction that Secondlife seems to be heading. From a walled garden where either very bright people or very stubborn ones came and learned this world, and how to create content, to one where we seem to be headed to a fast, easy, fun direction... more of a three D chatroom setting where low end equipment can rule. One of the complaints over the years has been that Secondlife runs best on high end equipment.

The Secondlife I love will never be easy.. or fast. It can be a complicated world at first, with a new user retention of around fifteen percent. I know there's a way to improve that retention rate, and I can prove it. To improve that rate will entail what many, if not most older residents will see as sacrifice. They likely perceive time as a sacrifice. Taking time to actively contact new avatars, taking the time to answer their questions, taking time to show the new people how our world works. For me the time I've taken with new people has never been seen as a sacrifice.. I have always seen it as my contribution to our world.

As far as my statement about proving it? I could today provide a list of people that will tell you that the reason they have remained in Secondlife...sometimes for years.... is because I, or another like me took that time.

And so it goes

I love you all, brinda

Namaste

नमस्ते

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Courtesy..& Is It OK Too Be Wrong, Even About 2.0

*****************************Where we come from***************************** **************************************************************************** I saw some postings by Iris Ophelia on New World Notes today concerning what is best described as common courtesy. If you are over say forty... or your parents are/were like mine you understand that Voltaire was correct when he reportedly said that common sense is an uncommon virtue. Courtesy is primarily common sense mixed with a few specifics and sadly lacking in all worlds... and really lacking in Secondlife. You can read what Ms. Ophelia has to say or drop by any welcome area or most info hubs in our virtual world. Courtesy is a lubricant for good social interaction, courtesy is one of the several things that differentiate humans from our lower life form companions on this planet. I try very hard to always spell out thank you and you're welcome, as well as limit my use of Internet shorthand when around those that perhaps aren't English first speakers... just seemed like common courtesy to me. OK... Viewer 2.ought oh. and no, I'm not done about it. As one of the older members of Secondlife I realise that much of what I think as well as how I act comes from both life experiences as well as parental actions. One of the precious things I have learned in life is an ability to acknowledge when I'm wrong. Two days ago I met Yallaby, she was three days old and standing kinda off to one side of and infohub. I've learned to recognise that particular situation... it so often means a new account is confused and close to logging off permanently. After a few minutes conversation with Yallaby she confided that she was frustrated with her viewer... {yup, 2.ought oh...} cause she wasn't able to find out how to do things. I offered her a link to the Secondlife wiki page where both 1.23.5 as well as all the Third Party Viewers are listed.... a few minutes later her response? Why isn't this the regular viewer? Assuming The Benevolent Monarchy is staffed by adults, one wonders why they don't offer both viewers and do a survey of nooblets as to which viewer they find easier... after all the original premise of 2.ought oh was it would aid the 15% retention rate for new users... or would allowing that choice force said Monarchy to admit 2.ought oh was a mistake? Please guys... grow up! And so it goes My love to all, brinda Namaste नमस्ते

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Memories of a time long ago...

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Every now and then I've looked for this video ... and thought about a life I lived so many years ago. I wonder why I so much miss those days... you see, I was never going to see thirty... and then there was forty and now seventy isn't far away. I look at those of you that see me as old and helpless and very "unwith it"... and I smile inside at a secret you would never believe. That was another time and another world just as sure as my Secondlife world is.

Those of you who are very young.... don't automatically think the old "don't know"....some of us do know. And so it goes Today I can love me as well as you, brinda Namaste नमस्ते

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Disparate Talent...Let's try to not screw this up.

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*************************************************************************** Happy New Year!

I want to post a few words today about how Secondlife has changed my life and possibly yours as well. A word ahead of time... I am going to include a couple of names and links to sites that I believe demonstrate some of the technical skills that I find so amazing. And I want to also say ahead of time that these virtual worlds have tens of thousands of people with skills equal to the two or three below. With millions of us on this planet there may likely be some or many that will find fault with the three I chose... keep in mind, in the past I have only spoken to one of these three and I don't intend for this post to be a popularity contest.

I won't include those of you that create art, content, those that write great informative blogs, or those pioneers that came to virtual worlds long before I knew such places existed.... I won't include because let's face it...I have to stop somewhere.

I read somewhere that computing power doubles every eighteen months... and I suspect that as it does the complexity of what we can do also increases. A few years ago it was pointed out to me that the total volume of information in the United States Library of Congress was something like 80 terabytes while the volume of the Secondlife asset servers was in excess of 100 terabytes and growing. I stand on my west homestead and watch Benares main island as I restart that region... it is a fascinating thing to watch as all 15,000 primitive objects return to exactly where they were before. Multiply that by the 30,000 regions in Secondlife... It's mind boggling. Like everyone I find fault with decisions made by Linden Lab and yet the complexity is really beyond my comprehension. As with all sim owners, I fight a constant battle to keep my regions up and running as lag free as I can. Looking through my inventory last evening I came across a notecard I had saved from sometime ago with link to a post by the first of those I'm going to use as examples of just how bright so many of you are, Ann Otoole . Included in her post there was a further link to a post by Gwyneth Llewelyn, when I read these posts I begin to understand just how complex any world is, virtual or not. The last in my short list is Angela Talamasca. Angela has been writing code for 30 years, I suspect that's longer than most of the users of virtual worlds have been alive.

Never in the life of humans on the planet we call earth has it been possible for so many of us with such disparate talents to come together so easily.... we are truly pioneers. It would be great if we didn't screw this up!

And so it goes

My love to you all, brinda

Namaste

नमस्ते