And, It's Trump

 

 

Yesterday was Election Day, and following a long campaign with some historic twists and turns, it was now up to the voters to decide the outcome of the Presidential race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. While it was expected that the outcome would take at least a few days to resolve, to the surprise of many (myself included), late into the night it was becoming increasingly clear Trump was going to be the winner. He gave a speech thanking those who voted for him. As of now, there has been no comment from Harris yet. 

Looking around, Learning Virtualē had a small exhibit on it's ground floor (above). There was also a Harris Campaign HQ in Star Valley. The place was full of American flags and campaign posters, and a globe that had been turned upside down. 

On Discord and Facebook, there were a number of cheers from Trump fans, "tears of joy!" And a number of less than happy comments from Harris supporters, "I'm going to hide in my room until it's over." From both, there were people praying to God, asking that all be well with the country.

Obviously for those interested in politics, there will be a lot of chatter over the next few days, and weeks. But for others, they're just glad it's over and looking forward to when talk will turn to other subjects.

Bixyl Shuftan

Rough Weather On East Coast May Mean Power Outages

 

 

 Hurricane season may be over, but that doesn't mean the threat of storms on the Eastern coasts of America has passed. A huge storm system has been making it's way from Florida to up the East Coast, arriving in the Northeast by Monday today. It is "spreading heavy rain, strong wind gusts, coastal flooding and possibly spawning a few tornadoes." This will likely mean power outages for many in the areas affected. 

So if someone you know who lives in the Eastern US who's usually online but isn't, this may be the reason.

 

Source: weather.com

 

 Bixyl Shuftan

Real-Life News Referencing Second Life in Commenting About Facebook's Metaverse Plans

 
In the Golden Age of Second Life over ten years ago, the virtual world was frequently mentioned in mainstream real-life news. These days, not so much. So it was interesting when in the past few weeks it was mentioned not once but twice.

In BBC News, Joe Tindy wrote an article "Lessons From Second Life," in which he described himself as a user of the virtual world a decade ago, then forgot about it. He was surprised to find out not only was it still around, but had a dedicated userbase. So he checked it out once more. He ran across someone, who didn't like the idea of Facebook getting into virtual worlds, "The entry of a slightly oversized and outsized player into the space seems to signal to people that they are not the owners of it, that someone else is going to be setting the rules and kind of running the show and they will just be the consumers."

In a Time Magazine article by Andrew Chow, that appeared in Yahoo news, "6 Lessons on the Future of the Metaverse From the Creator of Second Life," he compared Facebook's move to the predictions around 2006-2007 that Second Life would be the future of the Internet, which didn't turn out that way. He also felt there were lessons to be learned. (1) "People will stay in virtual worlds, even without an explicit mission." Or as Philip Rosedale was quoted, "the reason why tens of millions of people tried it out was the promise of the ability to be creative and expressive in a realistic, lifelike domain."(2) "People will spend money on digital goods—but very few creators will actually make a living." Tom Boellstorff, an anthropologist whom wrote a book after spending two years in Second Life, compared it to Youtube in which most who used it just browsed, and many of those who do create content, "sort of informally make stuff that they don’t sell to make money."

(3) "Ease of use and technological challenges remain a huge roadblock for mass adoption." Rosedale was quoted, "people don’t want to be a cartoon avatar while wearing a VR headset ... It’s really stressful for people to do that, and most of them won’t.” (4) "Virtual worlds might always struggle to appeal to certain demographics." Rosdale commented that those whom were young, healthy, and had active social lives in free urban environments were going to find virtual worlds less appealing than those with little social contact, disabled, and lived in places they felt they couldn't speak their minds. (5) "Identity is tricky, and so is rule-making." Second Life has had a largely hands-off approach to one's identity in the virtual world, compared to Facebook which encourages people to use their real-life identities. (6) "The metaverse doesn’t need to be ubiquitous. In fact, it shouldn’t be." Boellstorff commented that the hype going on in Second Life's golden age was part of Silicon Valley's business model of attracting big money by presenting oneself as so big, they would change the world as we know it. Still, that Second Life is not just existing but has a healthy community shows there's still a good demand for virtual worlds, “Allowing somebody to be really expressive and creative in an environment that’s lifelike is an incredibly powerful offering. I think that’s why we all tried Second Life,” Rosedale was quoted, “And I think that we will eventually get there—but it’s still a long road because the difficulty of it is considerable.

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/6-lessons-future-metaverse-creator-102405073.html

Sources: BBC News, Yahoo

Bixyl Shuftan
 

China To Restrict Children and Teens' Video Game Time to Three Hours A Week

 

On August 31, it was reported that by order of the national government, Chinese game players under 18 would be limited to playing video games to three hours a week. This time is limited to Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, at one hour each day. This law replaces an earlier one that limited game time for minors to 90 minutes a weekday.

The reasons given for this action by the Chinese Communist government depend on who one asks. State media has reported concerns about videogames being "spiritual opium" harmful to the young. But it's widely believed the law is not so much about protecting the young but controlling what they see and hear, as the Chinese government is increasingly concerned about Western influences on children.

In the recent past, some in the gaming industry have gone through great lengths to appease the Communist government, such as when Activision-Blizzard was quick to ban a Hong Kong gamer who made a brief statement in support of protestors.

Sources: BBC News, foreignpolicy.com, Washington Post, 

Image credit: Kotaku

Bixyl Shuftan
 

800,000 Still Without Power Following Hurricane Ida, 46 Dead In New York As Storm Causes Flooding

 

When Hurricane Ida hit Louisiana on Sunday August 27, it caused a huge amount of damage with over a million losing power in the state and next door Mississippi. But the storm wasn't done yet. It's still powerful remnants moved inland, eventually reaching the northeast US, where it caused major flooding in several states, notably New York City where some were trapped in their basements and drowned. There was video footage of one of the city's subway's choked with floodwaters. The storm has been blamed for 46 deaths, and counting.

Back in Louisiana, power is still out for over 800,000 people, with nine people confirmed dead. Numerous gas stations are described as having long lines of people waiting to get fuel, and some grocery stores are reportedly rationing certain foods and ice as people anticipating gasoline shortages are stocking up to reduce trips by car.

Due to it's level of destruction, "Ida" will be retired as a name for Hurricanes.

Sources: Daily Advent, MSN, Reuters, weather.com,

Bixyl Shuftan
 

Hurricaine Ida Smashes Inland, Knocks Out Power to One Million

 

On Sunday August 29, Hurricane Ida reached Louisiana after quickly strengthening to a Category 4 storm. The result was flooding and damage that brought back memories of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Over a million people lost electric power, including practically everyone in New Orleans. One or two people have been confirmed dead, though more may be found. But for many, it may be some time before they places they evacuated from are safe to return to, and it may be weeks until some places get full electric power, and Internet, again. 

What's left of Ida is continuing to move northeast, and may create flooding and tornadoes along the way.
 
Sources: Weather Channel, CBS News, AP News 

Bixyl Shuftan
 

Hurricane Ida Srengthens to Cat 4, Heading Into Louisiana

 

Residents in Louisiana and Mississippi are facing lots of rain and power outages as Hurricane Ida is not only making a beeline toward them, it is rapidly gaining in strength along the way. 

Ida has been gaining strength very fast. Currently, it is a Categoty Four storm, with winds next to the eye going 130 miles an hour. The storm will make landfall later today, bringing high winds and possible flooding over much of the Louisiana coast, as well as power and Internet outages. As the storm travels inland, while it will lessen in intensity, the still high winds will continue to knock out power over much of Louisiana and Mississippi.

For more information, check out the weather channel: https://weather.com/ .

Source: Weather Channel

Bixyl Shuftan
 

Trump Twitter Ban Raises Questions About Roles and Responsibilities of Social Media

 

It's been about a week since US President Donald Trump was banned from Twitter. Trump has been a controversial figure in American politics, and his takedown from the social media platform was greeted with applause by his opponents and criticism by his supporters. But some, including people whom have been critical of Trump in the past, expressed concerns about him being removed. The head of Twitter himself felt while they did the right thing, the move could have repercussions in the future for free speech online.

Read more in Other Grids, MMOs, and Games.

US Election Results: To Be Continued

 

 

It was Election night last evening in Second Life. And at the Election Simulator (above) and other places last night many people gathered to see the results of the polls as they closed. Over time, the results slowly trickled in, and as the hours went on, the crowds thinned as people realized it would not be over soon and logged off to head to bed. As of 2AM SL time, the Electoral College score of declared states is 225 to 213 in favor of Democrat Biden. Several states have yet to be decided, and there are millions of mail-in ballots to read. President Trump has already declared victory. But the general consensus is figuring out the winner will take time.

To be continued.

Bixyl Shuftan

 

Hurricane Sally Set to Hit Gulf Coast Tonight

Residents whom live on the US Gulf Coast between the vicinity of New Orleans and Pensacola Florida are facing a Hurricane Warning as Hurricane Sally closes in. The storm has become a Category Two hurricane with winds about 90 miles an hour near the eye.

The storm has been slowing down as it approaches the coast, which is allowing it to become stronger. By the time it reaches the coast late tonight or very early tomorrow morning, it is expected to have winds of 105 miles an hour near the eye. Flooding is expected as far inland as Birmingham Alabama with tropical storm force winds about as far. Residents in the path of severe weather may be without power, and Internet, for a few days, possibly several.

Source: weather.com 

Bixyl Shuftan

Hurricane Laura To Hit Gulf Coast, Travel Inland

Residents in Louisiana and much of Texas are bracing for Hurricane Laura. With winds up to 140 miles an hour just outside it's center, it is expected to make landfall tonight near the Texas-Louisiana border.

Major flooding along the coast is expected as the storm surge brings higher than normal tides from Galveston and Freeport Texas to New Orleans and Gulfport Mississippi, and will likely be thirty miles inland from the impact of the center. By Thursday, the storm will be in Arkansas, down to a tropical storm, but still dangerous, and the remnants are expected to travel north then east over the next few days.

Power outages along the storm's path in Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas are expected to last many days, which will also mean no Internet. To Second Life residents in it's path or even nearby, please be careful

Sources: Accuweather, weather.com

Bixyl Shuftan

George Floyd Memorial, Linden Lab Statement on Protests

While things in Second Life headline news have largely been happy between the Relay for Life and upcoming Second Life Birthday, real life news has been troubling. Besides the Coronavirus Crisis, for over two weeks a number of protests have happened across the United States over the death of a man as a result of rough treatment during his arrest, George Floyd. According to Wikipedia, he served four years in prison following a plea deal in which he was originally charged with armed robbery of a home, but following his release became involved in church and found employment. He was 46 and is survived by five children.

High above the Moonsong sim, a memorial to Floyd was set up. Besides the flowers and candles, there are various angry statements, including a quote from George Orwell. There was also a sign for "Stand for Justice," a store in Apple Fall Events that raises money for Black Lives Matter.

https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Moonsong/177/191/4001

A few days ago in the official blog, Linden Lab would comment on the protests, "Social Injustice Has No Place In The Virtual World," announcing they were donating $30,000 to social justice charities, and suggesting residents do the same.

Like many of you, we are feeling a combination of horror and outrage over the history of racism against Black lives. What we continue to witness is deeply disturbing and demanding of immediate social change. 

The killing of George Floyd seen on video around the world is only one in a long and unacceptable series of violent and racist attacks and discriminatory behavior directed against people of color. 
We stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter, all victims of systemic oppression and violence, and with Black communities across the U.S., the globe, and the virtual world in condemning racism and any and all actions that promote division. 

Our mission at Second Life has always been to help build a better world, and in support of Black Lives Matter, we will be donating $10,000 each to three charities that are active in helping to fight oppression and injustice including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). 

How can you help? This weekend, you can participate in the Stand for Justice fundraising effort dedicated to raising funds for Black Lives Matter, Black Visions Collective, Campaign Zero, the National Police Accountability Project, and a Split Bail Fund benefiting 38+ bail funds nationwide. We also highly encourage you to sign petitions, text, call, or donate to show your support, acceptance, tolerance, inclusion, and equal opportunity for all. 

Now is the time for us to come together as a community and to stand up for what is right, just, and decent. We hope that you will stand with us in our fight for a better world and in recognition that Black Lives Matter today and every day. 

The Newser has yet to hear about any actual demonstrations within Second Life, though I have heard a number of comments about events both in Second Life and Discord channels, some supporting the protestors, some supporting the police combating rioting that has followed a number of the protests, and some urging caution and reminding people the rioters are not with the protestors and that most of the police are not troublemakers.

Addition: Linden Lab would also post a video of several supporters of Black Lives Matter. 



(Click here if the video fails to play)

Bixyl Shuftan

Gathering at Notre Dame In Memory of the Original Struck By Fire

It survived for over eight centuries, outlasting revolutions and two world wars, only to go up in flames in a matter of hours. On April 15, the cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris France was hit by a devastating fire. Ironically enough, the building was starting to undergo renovations to repair parts that were deteriorating from age. Some artifacts and art were saved, including several statues which had been taken down from the roof for cleaning. But the building itself was gutted.

In Second Life, people were gathering at the Notre Dame building in Paris 1900. Conversation was a mix of English and French, "I pray for our church. Even though I am not from France, Notre Dame is the heart of Europe." "Truly horrible." "Breaks my heart and for the people in Paris."

The sim would be close to capacity for a while, some looking in from the next sim.

At one point, fires broke out in the building. People thought it was griefers and a couple Lindens came over to invistigate. It turned out the one of the staff had set the fire.

Someone started passing around French flags to those at the club.

An article from a French paper would eventually be posted next to the cathedral.

I would stay for over an hour, but as the place remained full, and presumably remained so for much of the day, I eventually left to let others come by.

The disaster was bad. But thankfully no one was hurt. French leaders have vowed to rebuild the cathedral. Notre Dame will never be quite the same again, and reconstruction will take years. But it will be remade. It's just a question of time, money, and effort.

Third picture from  Lia (Female Winslet)

Bixy Shuftan

April Fools In And Out of Second Life At A Glance

The April Fools joke article that we at the Newser pulled last Monday got a bit of chatter. Some loved it, "Hilarious!" Many just gave a chuckle or "laughing out loud." And some didn't like it, "Bix. Yur courting getting murdered here." Thank you all for the comments. For those who loved it, we'll try to be just as funny next year. For those who didn't like it, well, feel free to offer suggestions.

But this wasn't the only April Fools joke around, even in Second Life. Nydia Tungsten made an announcement that she would soon be doing a special calendar, but instead of her usual 12 pictures of anthro females it would be of the new Yinglet avatars. There were a few chuckles, and there were a few asking what a Yinglet was, but everyone quickly realized it was a joke. Marianne McCann of Bay City told me she'd made a joke announcement of leaving Second Life in a group IM chat. Draxtor Despress posted on his Twitter that he was leaving Sansar, followed later by "April Fool."


In the past, Linden Lab had done a couple jokes such as the "Rick Roll" and their parody of the "Mayhem" insurance commercials. But not this year.

In real life, there were some April Fool joke announcements. Probably the one that got the most chuckles was the one from McDonalds about a burger that was all pickles. One Australian city announced they were getting a drug-sniffing bunny on it's force. Australia's Twitter page made a joke image about a koala being born with leopard spots.

In the world of online comics, two I follow had a couple April Fool strips. In "Freefall," cartoonist Mark Stanley included a number of cameos with characters of several other strips. Those going to "General Protection Fault" found a parody of a default page that basically stated "if you can read this, the webmaster needs to get a clue." "The Belfry," which is a list of online comics, had it's page upside down.

With online games, World of Tanks and World of Warships didn't have the joke games they had in the past. But they did have a couple chuckles. World of Tanks had a joke video about the first tank on the Russian field, the MS-1, with the narrator praising it in ways that a used car salesman would be making notes of. For World of Warships, their April Fool was "Skipper," a matchmaking system to assist in making more compatable teams that was a parody of current dating software, "the socially-alienating swipe-based system behind today's hottest dating apps will be your ticket to the perfect team!" As in previous years, "War Thunder" had another April Fools game: "Earth Thunder." In this special game, players fought air battles in flying saucers shooting energy beams at one another over an abandoned city taken over by the aliens (video). Probably the joke game of War Thunder remembered the most was one of their first, the "My Little Pony" fighters in 2013. Years later, I still hear pony fans say they wish the company would bring it back.

So there's April Fool's 2019 at a glance. Hopefully you the readers had a lot of fun, and we'll be back next year with some

new foolery.

Bixyl Shuftan

More News In Brief

There's a lot going on, but only so much time to write about it. Here's a few things that have been going on.

A Second Life fraternity, Mu Sigma Nu, has been working with an inworld sorority Zeta Nu Chi on a "Facebook Photo Drive" to raise awareness for kidney disease (their page here).

Skywind Kitsune (Gravity Wright) of United Furry Outpost showed me an inworld racing game called AGRA (Anti-Gravity Racing Association) that's been around, and updated for some years. Until the article, you can check it out at Topaz Oasis (104/218/2005).

The Gacha Guild Spring is going on. Among the items there is a small and cute feral avatar known as the Chibi Dragon Noodle which has been quite popular. Dew Drop (112/116/1738). Another recommended to me were the "Curious Critters" avatars by XuXu (Xulael Resident).

With anti-vaxxer misinformation being enough of a problem to help cause a resurgence in measles, Youtube has recently started to remove ad placements on videos that discourage people to get vaccinated or vaccinate their children, saying they fall under it's policy of not making videos with "dangerous and harmful" material monetized, or having ads placed with money going to the producer (link). One computer game, Plague Inc., is getting an anti-vaxxer scenarito thanks to an online petition (link).

Youtube has also been in the news for disabling comments on most videos that feature children due to increasing concerns about pedophiles (link).

Last month, in the video game Fortnite, a virtual DJ named :Marshmello played to a virtual audience of about ten million. While some such as Rolling Stone Magazine (link) and BBC (link) mentioned Second Life when reporting on it, some called it "the first ever live performance in a video game." 

Man Behind Fatal "Swatting" Makes Plea For 20 Years in Prison

In December 2017, online gamer Tyler Barris make a hoax or "swatting" phone call that resulted in a man being shot and killed. On February 25, his attorney made a plea offer in court asking that he get a twenty year prison sentence.

The incident happened on December 28, 2017 when Barris argued with another gamer over a $1.50 wager over a "Call of Duty" game. He made a call from his Los Angeles California home at the police department of what he thought was his rival's address at Wichita Kansas, saying he had shot his father and kidnapped the rest of the family, and had poured gasoline around the house. Police responded by sending officers to the address, which was a house owned by Andrew Thomas Finch. Police shot Finch at his front door when his hand moved to his waist, and the unarmed man was killed. Finch was 28, and survived by three children. The man's family has stated he wasn't a game player.

Barris, whose Twitter address at the time was "@SWAuTistic," initially boasted about the event, "That kids house that I swatted is on the news." But hearing someone was dead as a result, his response was to insist he was blameless, "I DIDNT GET ANYONE KILLED BECAUSE I DIDNT DISCHARGE A WEAPON AND BEING A SWAT MEMBER ISNT MY PROFESSION." He changed his Twitter address, but other gamers had taken pictures and shared it. The call and tweets were soon traced to him, and he was soon arrested by local police.

Given a total of 51 Federal charges, some related to other fake phone calls and threats, Barris pled guilty to all of them as part of a plea agreement in return for the shortest time in prison, which is 20 to 25 years. Two other gamers, Casey Viner of North College Hill Ohio and Shane Gaskill of Wichita Kansas (the city the crime took place), have also been charged in the case. They have pled not guilty and are scheduled to go to trial on March 15.

Barris' defense attorney claimed in court that his client's actions were a product of the gaming community's culture, and that being known as a swatter there "became an intoxicant" to him as he spent most of his time indoors playing computer games. His only family has been his grandmother, and has never held a job. "With no guidance, no structure, school, or employment," his defense attorney argued, video games, "became his salve to social acceptance in a virtual world." The defense attorney claimed Barris was genuinely remorseful for what happened. Barris has also written a letter to the Finch family, saying that he thinks every day about the incident and begged for forgiveness.

In April 2018, a glitch at a jail Internet kiosk set up for the purpose of allowing limited functions such as ordering items from the prison commissary allowed Barris temporary access to the Internet, which he used to access his Twitter, posting messages such as "All right, now who was talking s**t? Your *ss is about to get swatted" and "Y'all should see how much swag I got in here."

Tyler still faces separate state charges, including involuntary manslaughter.

Sources:  CTV News, ArsTechnica

Bixyl Shuftan

Hurricane Michael Makes Landfall On Florida Panhandle Today

A month after Hurricane Florence threatened the East Coast, another storm is threatening to knock out power to thousands: Hurricane Michael. With winds up to 130 mph around it's eye, it was upgraded to Category Three and forecast to go to Category Four. Hurricane warnings are across the Florida panhandle, and tropical storm watches go all the way from the Louisiana border to Tampa. The storm is projected to go northeast, with over half of Georgia having storm warnings, and tropical storm watches extending well into North Carolina.

The storm has the potential to knock out power over a wide area, with the Florida panhandle and southern Georgia hardest hit. But unlike Hurricane Florence, the storm is faster moving and will not linger as long. So power should be restored quicker (though as some friends will tell you, there's always that one block that the power company takes their sweet time). So if you have online friends in this area, they might be offline for a little while.

Bixyl Shuftan

Hurricane Florence Update: Making Landfall

Hurricane Florence is making landfall in North Carolina, at winds of 90 mph around it's eyewall. Already, over 170,000 have lost power, and the number promises to go much higher. There are also over 150 needing rescue in the city of New Bern NC.

The storm is expected to linger in the general area for a few days, crawling westward into North and South Carolina, and causing flooding well inland, with Georgia also being affected. Then the remnants will turn north, dumping large amounts of rain onto eastern Kentucky and Tennessee, West Virginia, and western Virginia.

It has been estimated some places could be out of power for days to weeks.

Source: weather.com

Update: The number of those without power has gone up to over 430,000.

Bixyl Shuftan

Hurricane Florence Update

For those in the American southeast, there's been some changes in the forecast of Hurricane Florence. It's path has shifted somewhat to the south and west. This is good news for people living in Virginia and northern North Carolina, which won't be hit quite as hard. But bad news for South Carolina which will get hit harder, and Georgia which will be more affected by the storm.

Florence has been downgraded to a Category 2 storm. But it is still very dangerous for those directly in it's path as the winds around it's core are expected to blow up to 110 miles an hour as it approaches the North Carolina shore tonight and tomorrow morning. The storm is expected to linger in the area for a few days, with a risk of flooding deep into North and South Carolina. As the illustration shows, much of North and South Carolina, and parts of Georgia and Virginia are likely to lose electric power, and with it Internet connections.

Source: weather.com

Hurricane Florence Update

Hurricane Florence is still making it's way to the American East Coast, heading to North Carolina. As of the writing of this article, it ranks a Category 4 storm  Hurricane warnings and watches cover all of the North Carolina coast and most of the South Carolina coast, with storm warnings in Tidewater Virginia. Unfortunately, the coast is not the only area in danger as the interiors of the states in it's path and nearby face possible flooding as the storm is likely to stall and linger. The result could very well be more widespread and longer power outages.

The storm will be approaching the North Carolina coast on Thursday evening. Stay tuned for more details.

Sources: weather.com, Reuters