Red Rocket Cola

 

In real life, temperatures are rising in much of the world as the late spring arrives and summer is around the corner. And in many places nothing quenches the thirst quite like a good ice-cold soda. In Second Life, avatars don't exactly get thirsty, but it can look better if you get something to drink. While there's a few venting machines inworld, they're often just props or have limited interactivity or are "spammy." Recently at Montecito Bay, a new one was introduced made by someone who thought they could be much better: "Red Rocket Cola." It was a fun party with lots of music, plenty of games and prizes, and lots of virtual soda. The Newser was there, and had a word with Eliwood407 Resident, the maker of the dispenser.

Read the story in Design. 
 

Announcement: This Saturday at The Science Circle - "Understanding Science: How Computers Work"

  

Saturday May 22

10 to 11 AM

The last two presentations in this series explored particle physics, the world of the very small, and our solar system, the much larger space that surrounds our more familiar world.   In this episode we will explore one area of how science is applied to create technology by examining how the very small, and relatively simple, world of computer electronics is employed to create the more familiar and complex worlds we represent on devices we can carry around with us.

First, we will briefly look at how transistors, the components that create the ‘1s and 0s’ used to store and transmit everything, are made so small that billions can fit into the chips that form the ‘brains’ and ‘memory’ of every computer.

Then we will step through how transistors and other circuitry work together to create the logic of an electronic calculator.

Finally, we will step through how the processor, the ‘brain’ behind operations, works with memory and peripheral units to process a computer program (commonly called an application or app) that instructs your computer to do all the wondrous things we do with them these days.

Presentation by Dr. Phil Youngblood
 
For more information, Click Here. 

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Science%20Circle/67/129/32 
 

A New Computer

It's probably as inevitable as death and taxes to any Second Life user. Eventually your computer is no longer able to handle going about the Grid as well as it used to, or it breaks beyond repair. So this means getting a new machine. Yours truly just had to make this decision for the third time recently. So what happened and what computer is now being used to update the Newser?

Read the story in Extra.

Emilin Nakamori’s Physical Machines (2008)

Sansar has certainly put the spotlight on what's new from Linden Lab. But what about what people could do with Second Life in the past? In late summer 2008, I met up again with a girl I had met at the SL5B: Emilin Nakamori. She was a builder who made machines with moving parts geared to work with Second Life physics. Interested in how far she she could push the limits, she began to make really big machines.

Read the September 2008 article in the SL Newspaper Archives.

SL Video: Nemo II

(Click here if the video fails to play)

From May 2010 by Sextant Shepard, the builder of the Nemo sim, "Nemo II is the continuation of Nemo, the Steampunk Suibmarine city in Secondlife. You will be offered to visit some amazing places such as the Orichalcum Mine, the mighty Nautilus submarine, the village "Northelia" and the observatory."

SL Newser would write about Nemo in it's last days before the place closed in October 2010 here and here. The reprint of the March 2010 article SL Newspaper did is here.

Video: FTB Minecraft - "Jazmine's Ultimate Mining Machine"

(Click here if the video fails to load)

From Nydia Tungsten on the "Furry Gamers Channel" - "Jamzine's Ultimate FTB Mining machine This is her creation and as you can see it can chew it's way through anything, Jaz is a very talented builder and the Kodos go to her."

Commentary: "Second Rife"

Across Second Life, hundreds of volunteers are raising funds for cancer research for the Relay for Life. This includes Second Life Newser's editor, along with many of his neighbors in the Sunweaver community and friends from the Steelheaders. For Becky Shamen however, her path on the subject is a different one than most other residents, touching on alternative treatments that mainstream medicine cautions will not work.

Becky's article can be found in Extra.

A New Computer

It was shortly before yours truly began going on Second Life on a regular basis in which he got the computer that would be used to write his stories as a reporter for JamesT Juno's SLN, and then the first few years as editor of Second Life Newser. But eventually, one needs to update their equipment, either through the old wearing out or breaking down, or there's something new that is worth the money spent. And after more than six years, it was time to get a new machine.

Read more in Extra.

Cartoon of the Day

In the computer age, people have become extra-busy, and sleeping less. So to keep sleepiness at bay, caffeine and energy drinks have become a must for people in real life. Reflected in Second Life, the machines are mainly for decoration, the cans they dispense for show.

But just suppose someone in the Grid came up with a vending machine that dispensed cans of which holding one cut down on one's lag-time. He'd make a killing.

Bixyl Shuftan

Contemplating Turing

Gemma Cleanslate this weekend attended to opening of the Turning Gallery in Extropia. An exhibition of works by Oberon Ommura, the artist made it a tribute to computer pionner Allen Turning. How does one describe the "infinite output" of the mix of science and art? Not easily.

Read about the gallery in Design.

Images of Nemo

Before the Nemo sim closed last Friday October 29th, SL Newser went there to get a few pictures while this magnificent build was still up. Here's some of the images of the now gone popular Steampunk place.

See the pictures in Places.

Nemo Sim to Close

In the SL Universe forums, Sextan Shepherd, the owner of the noted Nemo area would soon be closing. It is due to shut down October 29th.

“It was a great fun to create this place,” he posted, “but now it's time for me to "move" on another SIM project. ... I have learnt a lot while building this place and I consider Nemo as a training course for something more improved.”

The reaction on the thread was unaminous. The people there were sad the sim was going, and wished him well with whatever his next project was.

Nemo, also known as the Nemo Trilogy, was a much praised place in Second Life that was considered among the best built in recent months, built on March 23rd. It got the attenton of Linden Labs, and was featured on their Destination Guide as a place to go to. The place you start at is the entrance to a Steampunk style submarine city. From there, you can take a train that leads to a reproduction of Captain Nemo’s submarine the “Natulis.” There is also an ariel city, with an ariel museum and an observatory.



Nemo is at the FRANCE3D Futuna sim (91, 148, 21) In April, Second Life Newspaper did an article on the submarine base.

“Prims to prims, pixels to pixels.”

Sources: Second Life Universe Forums, Daniel Voyager's Blog

Bixyl Shuftan