Your source of news about the people, places, things, and events across Second Life.
Today, Netera Landar reports on her trip to Second Life's London area, which started out as a trip to the Second Life Eighth Birthday celebrations. Talking with one of the people, she was given a tour of the sims there.
It was a normal day at the Podex Exchange. The tellers were chatting a little about the yearly celebrations held by Linden Labs, a few whom couldn’t wait to go when off duty, and a few whom didn’t like the idea of fighting the crowds. They also talked about going to beach parties, or possibly some of the new areas which had been developed.
The pony went to a teller, and asked what was needed to get a loan. The teller answered that they did not make loans, but were an exchange service. They would exchange a number of currencies for Lindens, and vice versa. The pony thought for a moment, then told the teller it had a few Euros. A deal was worked out, and the pony soon had some Lindens.
The pony then began to walk out. But before it got to the door, a woman waiting at the chairs nearby got it’s attention, “Aww, aren’t you cute. I have something for you.” She offered the small filly an apple, and the pony happily ate it, “Thank you, nice lady.” “You’re welcome little friend.” The pony smiled, “Friendship is magic.” And with that, the little pony left the exchange and went on her way.
Dropping by the 1920's Berlin exhibit in the SL8B event, a German chef dropped by, holding one of his sausages. Those who know me will recognize a familiar pun.
Sunday the 26th saw the end of an admired classic sim, "The Lost Gardens of Apollo." Before it faded into history, many stopped by to see the place one last time, or finally see it before it was too late. For those who couldn't make it, here are a number of screenshots.
The Second Life Eighth Birthday is gone, but the exhibits are still up until July 2. For those who want an event with plenty of people, there's still plenty to do around the Grid with it's usual dances, live music, and game shows. But on Tuesday is the special "Arabian Nights" Relay for Life event. Plus next week the Fourth of July and it's parties, including the Guardians For Life Beach Party.
Today, Xymbers Slade looks at the popular inworld game Tiny Empires. It's possible you may have come across people talking about "free acre" or "the trader." They were players of this game, sometimes called TE for short. Around for some time in Second Life, the game continues to be popular, and Xymbers gave it a try to see what makes it tick.
The Second Life Eighth Birthday event is officially over, but there are still stories to tell. Among the people Grey Lupindo met at the event was Mikati Slade, an artist from Japan whom had an exhibit up for the celebration, and whose art can also be found elsewhere on the Grid.
Today, we welcome our new writer Netera Landar to Second Life Newser, and have for you her first article for us. She took a trip to Monarch Motorcars, to look at the finely-crafted models, and have a few words with owner and builder Yorba Naidoo.
It has been great fun being a greeter at the SL8B. People arrive at the Welcome Center and we say hello and give out some gifts. We recommend areas to visit and where to attend the parties going on at the moment. Roaming is wonderful too. We stop and visit exploring avatars and give them gifts too. The stages are good places to meet new friends and see some wonderful shows. I witnessed a wonderful musical performance the other day about Beethoven. Wow!
The other day I went to a live concert with a wonderful singer performing. There were some obnoxious griefers there annoying everyone. But the veteran performer advised everyone to just enjoy the music and ignore it, and on she went with her music. Amazing how some people come with the purpose of interfering rather than enjoying. So many people put so much time into the preparations for these events, scheduling, advertizing, advising, and being available to assist . Instead of entering into the joy of the moment certain visitors try to disrupt and destroy. It causes wonder as to their motive.
There are diverse activites going on everyday. Thursday morning I found a writing group working on poetry and quick words. The best thing I have done so far was to join the Yokohama Marching Band as we marched through the air over the sims! My first time!
On Thursday June 23, I heard there would be a few Lindens about in the SL8B event. I never did find Rodvik, but I did find one other Linden, as well as a number of others out to have fun at the Cake Stage during "The Birthday," as well as checking out a few exhibits.
A week ago, SL Newser reported on the "Crooked House" build, whose owner could no longer justify the sim payments. Unless this unusual structure found a new owner, it would vanish.
Fortunetly, others took a number of shots. Among them was this "Sands of Creation" by Perefum Cao, taken by IcaruS. You never know what someone's going to make at a sandbox.
With all the hype about SL8B, it was easy to miss the news of the latest version of the official viewer being released. What do the Lindens have to say about it?
Second Life Newser was recently in contact with one of the managers of ZZ Studios, an exotic adult-themed media company and social hangout, whose owner we interviewed in April. As of Monday June 20th, “the studio is going Age Verified officially.” The parcel the place is on will be for all effective purposes Adult-ranked.
This week, Second Life officially celebrates it's eighth anniversary. Twenty sims packed with exhibits, and events. But for those who want a break from the hustle & bustle (ie lag), there's plenty else to see.
During the press preview of the SL8B regions, Grey Lupindo took advantage to scout the sims. She "saw so many great exhibits over the weekend that it was hard to pick which ones to write about first." But she picked a few, which she described in detail.
The "Bid Me Human" event held by the Passionate Redheads was highly successful, raising 50,000 Lindens. But it was an event filled with unexpected twists and turns, including one donor with a special request.
Gemma Cleanslate was recently invited to take a preview trip to the Second Life Eighth Birthday area. What she found was "magnificent," both the sims and the builders involved whom took full opportunity to show what the residents of the Grid could do
This Sunday, the "Passionate Redheads" Relay for Life group will be hosting a "Bid me Human" event, with DJ "Naughty" Nydia Tungsten as the volunteer.
Today, we look at a fascinating place created by the mathematical mind of Seifert Surface, the "Crooked House." Based on house transformed into a four-dimensional structure in a science fiction short, this build seemingly does the impossible of sending visitors in an endless loop of twisted rooms. Unfortunately, this great build is in danger of fading away from the Grid.
In the midst of this, I had a notice to come to a meeting for Burn2, 2011! Wow.. I thought that was a long way off. Well, it is not until October, however work is beginning. Emcee Widget filled everyone in on the plans for this year's Burn2 Rites of Passage. It will be held October 1 through 9. There will be 8 sims to begin. However there is a plan this year to ask for “donation” of sims for 90 days. They will be moved to the 8 sims and then returned to the donors.
Grey Lupindo reports on the "Feed a Smile" charity at Lavender Field. Representing a real-life charity based in Kenya, Brique Topaz runs both the organization and the location on the Grid, which offers both a nature area one can relax in, and a concert area for raising money during events. 
The Second Life Eighth Birthday is still over a week away, but there are plenty of things to see and do in the meantime. Among the dance parties and talk shows is a Relay for Life event. Nydia Tungsten herself will put her fur on the line for a "Bid me Human" event.
It's been a few weeks since the "Bid me Human" event in which I went from being a foxboy to a human appearance. So what's happened since then? Have people reacted to me differently, or has nothing changed?
This weekend was the "Back to the 50's" event for Relay for Life as people in the sim for the occasion had a number of events to go to, from the "Sock Hop" to the drive-in theater. But there was also one event that required a team effort, the "jail and bail," in which people would get arrested, and need their friends to help bail them out.
It is a sad day in Second Life for those who love the exquisite art of Feathers Boa. There was a going away party today at her gallery in Esterhal. Feathers is one of the most proficient artists in interactive art in SL. Her pieces are stunning and and many of them have deep personal meaning from her life. She is retiring from SL art and will be mostly inactive for a while.
Beladona Memorial said to her “You have had a unique voice here ... and utilized the interactive qualities of SL to create art that was not possible elsewhere. Thank you for being here.” and Feathers wish to all, “ I hope my heart comes through.” Some of her work is in a few galleries in SL and will remain.
Feathers real life has become very busy with a move to the west coast and a new job in graphics, and she must concentrate on those for now. It is my sincere hope that in a year or so perhaps she will have a show in Retrospect. For the time being if you know her art and want to experience its dimensions again, or, if you have never had that pleasure, this show will be in Feathers Bay Gallery in Esterhal until June 29.
Don't miss it! Her pieces are all on sale for that time.
We love you Feathers.
Esterhal (215, 211, 790)
The show was not at the Big Tree, but in a building in the eastern part of the Perry sim with a huge wooden carving of a Lusk head on the roof. Inside, one could find 80's icons around, from the Rubiks Cube and Atari joystick on the floor near the door, to pictures various 80's shows, both cartoons such as "He-Man," and sit-coms like "Punky Brewster." A few of the people dressed up as 80's icons themselves, such as one man in his "Ghostbusters" uniform, and Luskwood's Dougal dancing on the stage in his "Thriller" garb. DJ Zorin was in a "brony" avatar, which is based on the 80's toy "My Little Pony."
The party was scheduled only to go from 7-9 PM SL time. But like many events at Luskwood, it went late into the night as people showed up late from other events, or perhaps had trouble getting in, as the number of residents in the sim kept hovering at 49 late in the night. Or perhaps people wanted to take advantage of the party atmosphere at the area while they could. Unlike some residential areas which hold parties weekly or a few times a week. Lusk doesn't have this kind of party more than once a month, at times not more than once every few months.
Second Life has had problems over intellectual property before. Last November, the Lindens cracked down on Battlestar Galactica roleplay groups after Universal Studios, which owns the copyright to the TV show, complained. Although one can already reproduce copyrighted items in Second Life, Mesh with it’s promise to revolutionize content creation would presumably make it much easier. And there are some hints of such potential. One of Second Life’s readers sent us a screenshot of what was presumably the Mesh grid. The picture shows likenesses of World of Warcraft characters Deathwing, the Lich King, and others. Pictures like this would certainly make Linden Lab’s lawyers nervous.
One year ago, Second Life's residents were shocked to find out a third of the Lindens had been dismissed from the Lab, their avatars deleted. Residents expressed their thoughts in many ways. Codebastard Redgrave expressed them by building a memorial. A year later, she has a more lasting memorial to the laid-off Lindens up.
JessicaBelle Dayafter is noted for two things in Second Life. One is being a top pilot in the New Bastogne WW2 combat RP. The second is for being a designer of planes designed for use in this and similar combat RP areas, as well as fun for casual flight. Her German FW190 is her best known plane, but also developed a rendition of the US Navy Grumman Hellcat.
Later on, I had a few words with Jessica. She gave me a few screenshots, “ I took the pics near the Flying Tigers sim, ‘cause the sim owner has my planes on display. She loved them so much.” She told me she had gotten in contact with Kikas and they met up. Kikias was given the choice between the FW190 and the Hellcat, and chose the FW190. There was one small complication, “It was her first time flying in Second Life. So I was trying to teach her.”
