SL Video: "SL23B - Meet the Lindens: Second Life Founder Philip Rosedale"

 

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From Linden Lab on June 23, the Monday June 22 Meet the Lindens event with Philip Linden, "Second Life founder Philip Rosedale (aka Philip Linden) answers community questions in this special "Meet the Lindens" event from Second Life's 23rd Birthday Celebration." 

 

Looking Back At The Newser: The First Years, 2010-2013 (2022)

 

The Second Life Newser is a publication with quite a history, fifteen years. That's quite a lot to look back over. In 2022, Bixyl took a look at the Newser's first few years. Starting from a team of four reporters fresh from the recently closed Second Life Newspaper, the Newser would win the confidence of readers and advertisers alike and soon become a force in journalism covering the people, places, and events in Second Life (with occasional nods to our sponsors). But much of what it covered was a Linden Lab that seemed increasingly unable or unwilling to understand it's virtual world's users.

Read the 2022 overview of 2010 to 2013 in Extra. 

Philip Linden Gives VWBPE Keynote Speech, Takes Questions

 

Yesterday, Thursday March 19 at 12 Noon, The Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Education held it's Keynote. The man giving it was someone familiar to every longtime Second Life resident: Philip Linden, aka Philip Rosedale, the founder of Linden Lab, the company behind this virtual world.

 

Today, we have the distinct honor of hearing from a man who actually made gatherings like this one possible. Our keynote speaker is a physicist turned coder turned visionary,  someone who looked at the early internet and saw not just a network, but a world waiting to be built.
 

 He founded Linden Lab and created Second Life, the virtual world that has been home to educators, artists, researchers, and dreamers for over two decades. He has since explored spatial audio, open-source VR platforms, digital currency, and even the frontiers of machine consciousness. And in October 2024, he returned to Second Life as CTO, bringing fresh energy and new ideas to a platform many of us call home.

Someone was saying close to a hundred people were in the area the event took place, an intersection of four sims, Philip on a small cliff overlooking the crowd, "I feel like a king standing on a high rooftop *laughs* I see people I recognize, it's the magical things about Second Life." He thanked the educators for their work in this virtual world. He would talk about AI and how it was impacting society, saying at one point a comparison could be made to the Industrial area when machines did the work of the muscle power of many men, "Now we have gone much father with replicating how our mind works. ... the progress was very quick lately ... we are living in strange times- there are tremendous risks, there are more bad than good impacts at the moment."

After the keynote, Philip took questions, and there was talk about not just AI, but other topics such as Second Life, "It's interesting to reflect on the fact that SL hasn't grown as rapidly as we thought or liked." One subject was about how people often rely on facial expressions, hand movements, and other cues in real life but that was absent in Second Life and other virtual worlds. It was also brought up that being hired to correct an AI could be a roundabout way to do the job of a programmer for a fraction of the cost. Someone also joked it AI had an alignment, it would be "Chaotic Neutral." It was also brought up that there hasn't been a real-life Second Life Community Convention since 2011. Philip Linden did wonder if the possibility of doing another deserved some thinking about. 

 

The conference was broadcast live, and may be available to see later on the VWBPE Youtube channel later.  

 

*Addition*: It's available now.  

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

"Second Life Community Roundtable with Philip Rosedale"

 

 

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 Earlier this month, the Community Roundtable with Philip Rosedale took place. While we've been trying to watch the whole video to write a review, real-life keeps tapping us on the shoulder, and there's the daily updates. So for now, here is the video, without a review.

 

Philip Linden Speaks About Trump Victory

 

There's been more than a little chatter about the results of Tuesday's Presidential Election in the US, of which former President Trump won. Besides being the first President to serve two separate administrations, he's also the first Republican non-incumbent to win the popular vote since 1988. While every election has brought cheers from the supporters of the winners, and some sadness from those who didn't win, Trump's victory has had many Democrats not just worrying, but in outright despair. 

Among those concerned is Philip Rosedale, who would write a commentary suggesting that Trump's election wasn't the real problem, but a symptom of a much larger one: economic inequality is leading people to make more desperate choices at the voting booth. 

... poorer people at some point no longer believe that wealth will ‘trickle down’ fairly from the richer people, and they become more and more distrusting of each other until eventually they are only willing to back candidates who claim they will somehow restore their seat at the economic table and level the playing field. That is where we are right now - we’ve elected a president, for a second time, who has campaigned on the promise that he will restore economic equality.

Rosedale commented that a Harris administration would have been a "'rip the bandaid off' moment," involving much civil unrest and probably some violence, but there would at least be "some reductions in inequality." With Trump in power, he feels while there will be gains, they will be temporary and only going to the wealthiest Americans, "with overall inequality increasing further until some new breaking point is reached."

One can read Philip's commentary in full (here).

On a final note, one should take care when discussing politics, especially when trying to have a reasonable discussion with someone with a different viewpoint. If you say you've been trying to see why a relative with extreme views thinks that way, if they hear it wrong they may think you agree with those views.

Hat tip: Zada Bury

Bixyl Shuftan

Reminder: Community Roundtable With Philip Linden Today, 10AM

 

Just a reminder for those who didn't see Linden Lab's announcement a few days ago. This morning at 10 AM, Philip Linden will be hosting a Community Roundtable event at 10 AM today.

 

The event will be held at Linden Estate Services3 (26/26/29).  

Philip Linden/Philip Rosedale To Become Lab's Chief Technical Officer, Community Roundtable Friday

 

Yesterday on Tuesday October 29, Linden Lab announced they were appointing Philip Rosedale, better known to SL residents as Philip Linden, to the position of Chief Technical Officer.

 

Philip Rosedale, the visionary who founded Second Life in 1999, is returning to Linden Lab in a full-time role as Chief Technology Officer. Philip will guide technology and product strategy daily alongside Executive Chairman Brad Oberwager and the executive team, and is also joining Linden Lab’s Board of Directors.   

 

Philip’s return comes at a time when advancements in AI and mobile technology are rapidly making virtual worlds more accessible and mainstream than ever before. A pioneer in virtual world development, Philip is uniquely able to drive Second Life forward in new, transformative directions.

Brad Oberwager, the head of Linden Lab, would have this to say, "Over the last four years since the acquisition, Linden Lab has re-focused itself on improving and serving Second Life. We’ve divested ourselves of unnecessary projects, streamlined our operations, increased the quality of customer support, and grown our overall revenues and profitability. We’re now in a unique position to define the future of virtual worlds, and Philip is returning to help myself and the exec team achieve that goal."

Philip Linden would say, "I started Second Life in 1999 – a decade before cloud computing and two decades before AI. We were early, but the success of Second Life to this day shows that we were not wrong. Virtual worlds will play an increasingly important role in the future of human culture, and I’m coming back to help make that happen in a way that has the most positive impact for the largest number of people."

 

It was also announced there would be a Community Roundtable event this Friday, November 1, at 10 AM SL time. 

As part of his return to Second Life, Philip will be actively engaged inworld with our communities and creators to listen, learn, and collaborate on ways to improve our shared virtual world. He will be taking your questions and sharing more of his vision for Second Life this Friday at 10 am SLT as part of our next Community Roundtable series (location to be announced later this week). Here’s your chance to interact directly with Philip inworld to learn more about the past, present and future of our shared virtual world.

People were invited to submit questions to the Lab for the Roundtable, via a Google doc (here), "All feedback and submissions will be reviewed by Philip directly for consideration and discussion at a forthcoming Community Roundtable."

For those who don't know, Philip Rosedale was the founder of Linden Lab, which created Second Life. He would remain as it's CEO for the virtual world's first several years until he stepped down in 2009. He would briefly take charge again as interim CEO for several months in 2010 before once again stepping down. He would depart the Lab for several years, founding High Fidelity. But he would return to Linden Lab in January 2022 as a"strategic advisor."

To read the announcement in full, Click Here.

 

Addition: the event will be at Linden Estate Services3 (26/26/29)

Bixyl Shuftan

SL Video: Third SL21B Town Hall

 

 

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From Vic Morington on Thursday June 27, his live broadcast of the Third Town Hall event at the SL21B, with Linden Lab founder Philip Linden being interviewed.

 

Third SLB Linden "Town Hall" Today, SL Founder Philip Linden Speaking

 

Today is the third of the Town Hall events taking place at the Second Life Birthday. Philip Linden, the founder of Linden Lab, will be interviewed by Brett Linden.

The event will be taking place at 1:30 PM SL time at the Aquatorium. For those who can't make the event, check Vic Morrington's Youtube Livestream (here).

 

https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/SLB%20Mesmerize/88/164/24

 

 

Looking Back At The Newser: The First Years, 2010-2013 (2022)

 

In a few days, the Newser will have an anniversary party to celebrate 14 years of reporting the news across Second Life. But one might ask how did things go when it first started? Well, we hit the ground running. Within a week, we had some BIG stories to report on, and the news kept coming. In 2022, we wrote on how it was for our first few years. Quite a bit had happened.

 

Read the article from 2022 in Extra. 

SL Video: "Second Life's Lab Gab Special Live at SL20B with Philip and Oberwolf Linden"

 

 

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 From Linden Lab on June 28, "Watch a Lab Gab Special Live at SL20B with the Founder of Second Life Philip Linden, and Executive Chairman Oberwolf Linden on Wednesday, June 28th at 1:30pm PT." Both Philip Rosedale and Brad Oberwager talk about how Second Life got it's start, how it came to be acquired, and more, including a few funny stories.

EOTB: Philip and Oberwolf Linden at The SL20B Arboretum Today

 

 

 Wednesday, June 28th at 1:30pm PT - Watch a Lab Gab Special Live at SL20B with the Founder of Second Life Philip Linden, and Executive Chairman Oberwolf Linden. Philip rejoined Second Life in 2022, as Strategic Advisor, focused on helping to shape and build a better metaverse. Brad Oberwager has spent his entire career in technology and consumer focused companies as an entrepreneur and board member. 

 

Watch it on the Second Life YouTube channel or at the SL20B Arboretum.

 

From the Linden Blog .

 

SL Documentary: "Made in Second Life: The Movie"

 

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From Draxtor Despress, which premiered at June 23 at Noon SL time at the SL20B Aboretumn stage, 'Made in SL: The Movie' is a special long-form documentary to celebrate the occasion of Second Life's 20th anniversary. Filmmaker and Linden Lab contractor @Draxtor Despres initially planned to produce a 10-minute short film, stringing together birthday wishes from as many Residents and Lindens as possible within that length. After an initial casting call, 17 Second Life Residents came forward, along with founder Philip Rosedale, as well as QA Engineer Mazidox Linden. Mr. Despres spent 3 months reviewing some 2 TB of personal archival material, searched the web for rare SL footage, and shot brand new footage around the grid. After the first round of interviews, the 10-minute short ballooned to 120 minutes on paper and eventually became a 47-minute film, a very personal love letter to a world that fosters community and creativity like no other. Among many past Second Life Residents visible in historical footage and b-roll, the narrative of the film is based on interviews with the following people: Amber Lyndhurst, Anjelikka, Arietu Kyor,i Ben Dunn, Bollycoco Dallas, Chantal Harvey, Chuu Hikari Akamine, Feorie Frimon, Katheryn Llewellyn, Marianne McCan,n Mazidox Linden, Michely Blogger Moon Adamant Mystic Flower Pearl Hyacinth Peasant Tater Philip Linden/Rosedale Streex Foxtrot Made in SL logo and poster art by Marianne McCann Enjoy a tribute to your world and to YOUR imagination. Can you spot Peter Gabriel, William Gibson, and Ben and Jerry’s Island?"

SL Video: "Made in Second Life: The Movie - Official Trailer"

 

 

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From Draxtor Despres for Linden Lab, "Official trailer to a special long-form documentary for Second Life's 20th anniversary, produced by @Draxtor Despres. 'Made in SL: The Movie' is a lag-free ride through the past, present, and future of Second Life, as told by a whole bunch of residents, a few Lindens, and one Philip 'Prim Hair' Rosedale. 

 

"The full documentary will premiere on Friday, June 23rd at 12pm PT at this link:    • Made in Second Li...   Watch it live with fellow Residents at the SL20B Arboretum: https://secondlife.com/destination/madeinsl-sl20b "

 

Looking Back At The Newser: The First Years, 2010-2013 (2022)

 

The Second Life Newser is a publication with a long history, twelve years. That's quite a lot to look back on. In this article, Editor and head writer Bixyl Shuftan takes a look at the Newser's first few years. Starting from a team of four reporters fresh from the recently closed Second Life Newspaper, the Newser would win the confidence of readers and advertisers alike and soon become a force in journalism covering the people, places, and events in Second Life (with occasional nods to our sponsors). But much of what it covered was a Linden Lab that seemed increasingly unable or unwilling to understand it's virtual world's users.

Read the overview of 2010 to 2013 (written in 2022) in Extra.

Oberwolf And Philip Linden at "Meet The Lindens" Today

 

Tuesday, June 21st at 2pm PT - Meet the Lindens with Executive Chairman, Oberwolf Linden and the Founder of Second Life, Philip Linden. Oberwolf has spent his entire career in technology and consumer focused companies as an entrepreneur and board member. Philip rejoined Second Life in 2022, as Strategic Advisor, focused on helping to shape and build a better metaverse. Watch it on the Second Life YouTube channel or at the SL19B Arboretum.

• SLB Exhilarate
• SLB Wonderous
• SLB Fascinate

 

Looking Back At The Newser: The First Years, 2010-2013

 

The Second Life Newser is a publication with a long history, twelve years. That's quite a lot to look back on. In his article for today, Editor and head writer Bixyl Shuftan will take a look at the Newser's first few years. Starting from a team of four reporters fresh from the recently closed Second Life Newspaper, the Newser would win the confidence of readers and advertisers alike and soon become a force in journalism covering the people, places, and events in Second Life (with occasional nods to our sponsors). But much of what it covered was a Linden Lab that seemed increasingly unable or unwilling to understand it's virtual world's users.

Read the overview of 2010 to 2013 in Extra.
 

News And Commentary: Questions Raised About Horizon Following Zuckerburg's Comments, Announcement of Creator Fees

 

It's no secret that many Second Life users roll their eyes at Linden Lab a lot. But can anyone else do a better job at developing a virtual world. The biggest company gicing it a try is Facebook/Meta, with it's Horizons. This virtual world has already been ridiculed for having avatars with nothing below the waist. But certain comments by the company founder plus how much of a cut it plans to take from content creators is making it look worse.

Read more in Other Grinds, MMOs, and Games.

SL Video: Second Life's Lab Gab With Oberwolf and Philip

 

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Yesterday on Monday January 31, the special episode of Lab Gab with Philip and Oberwolf Linden (Philip Rosedale and Bradford Oberwager), interviewed by Strawberry Linden, aired. The Newser will have an article about the interview soon. For now, check the video out for yourselves.
 

Breaking News: Philip Rosedale Returns to Linden Lab

Good news to fans of Philip Rosedale, the founder of Linden Lab and Second Life. He's back at the Lab. There was an announcement today that High Fidelity, the company Rosedale would found after leaving Linden Lab, had "acquired an interest" in Linden Lab. Some people from High Fidelity will be joining the Lab, including Rosedale, whom is back as a "strategic advisor."

The transaction will help Second Life further scale its operations and strengthen its commitment to growing an innovative, inclusive, and diverse metaverse where its inhabitants’ ingenuity drives real-world value for themselves and others.

"No one has come close to building a virtual world like Second Life," says Second Life founder and High Fidelity co-founder, Philip Rosedale. “Big Tech giving away VR headsets and building a metaverse on their ad-driven, behavior-modification platforms isn’t going to create a magical, single digital utopia for everyone. Second Life has managed to create both a positive, enriching experience for its residents — with room for millions more to join — and built a thriving subscription-based business at the same time. Virtual worlds don’t need to be dystopias.”

“Since Philip started Second Life in 1999, its visionary approach has not only stood the test of time, but positioned it for the future,” says Brad Oberwager, chairman of Linden Lab. “He and the High Fidelity team have unmatched experience and I can’t wait to capitalize on the vast opportunity in front of us.”

The Lab would state both Philip and Overwolf Linden would appear on a special edition of "Lab Gab" in a couple weeks. Residents are invited to submit questions using (this Google doc), but have until Midnight Sunday January 16 to do so.

Click Here to go to the Press Release.

Click Here to go to the announcement in the Linden blog.