second life
Software
What the iPhone Has Needed All Along is Coming: Sparkle, A 3D Virtual World
1:20AM John Mahoney | A company called Genkii is hoping to rope a chunk of the 40-million worldwide web-connected phones and iTouches into a new 3D avatar-based virtual world, Sparkle. Too bad virtual worlds died around 4 years ago. More »
Online
City of Decatur, Georgia Mulling Virtual World Interface
6:00AM Jack Loftus | Not one to be outdone by the likes of PlayStation Home, World of Warcraft, or even that cesspool of flying dildos Second Life, the city of Decatur, Georgia might be going virtual. More »
Gadgets
Things Virtual Reality China Will Not Prep You For (And What You Can Do Instead)
1:00PM Gizmodo US Edition | The U.S. is injecting a good $US1.25 million into a new “virtual training ground” for American diplomats who plan on working in China called “The Second China Project.” It’s a pretend city in Linden Lab’s Second Life that purportedly will help almost-expatriots get used to the environment in the world’s most populous nation. While some of the training activities sound useful (for instance, what to give as a gift, how to seat guests), as someone who’s lived in this country for years, I can tell you there are things that diplomats should get ready for that the virtual world doesn’t even seem to touch on.
Online
11:08AM Nick Broughall | My personal experiences with Telco’s customer service departments (or any company’s customer service departments, for that matter) aren’t generally positive. I’ve found that I invariably spend at least half an hour waiting on hold (to “music” that narrowly beats the sound of a strangled cat for entertainment value) to talk to someone about a simple problem, and when somebody finally answers the phone, they’re not actually in Australia at all, or have a strong grasp of the English language.
And somehow I don’t think that Telstra’s move to launch a customer service centre in Second Life is going to help the situation. While offering online customer support is admirable, I have to ask the question: Does anybody actually use Second Life anymore?
More »
Telstra Launches Customer Service Kiosk In Second Life
11:08AM Nick Broughall | My personal experiences with Telco’s customer service departments (or any company’s customer service departments, for that matter) aren’t generally positive. I’ve found that I invariably spend at least half an hour waiting on hold (to “music” that narrowly beats the sound of a strangled cat for entertainment value) to talk to someone about a simple problem, and when somebody finally answers the phone, they’re not actually in Australia at all, or have a strong grasp of the English language.
And somehow I don’t think that Telstra’s move to launch a customer service centre in Second Life is going to help the situation. While offering online customer support is admirable, I have to ask the question: Does anybody actually use Second Life anymore?
More »
Games
Sony’s PlayStation Home Expands Beta This Summer, Goes Open Beta Autumn 2008
4:01PM Jason Chen | PlayStation Home, the long-awaited PlayStation 3 social networking app, is finally going to see open beta starting Autumn 2008. Before that, if you’re one of the few lucky users chosen by Sony, you’ll be able to participate in the closed beta expanding some time in Summer 2008. No other real features have been announced lately, but if it’s still kept all the details announced back at GDC 2007, there’s going to be customisable avatars, modifiable living and common spaces, accomplishment galleries and lots of branding/third-party products. It’s basically a Second Life that doesn’t suck, and isn’t full of (as many) weirdos. More »
Online
Apple Patent Filing Hints at Second Life-Style Storefront
9:00AM Gizmodo US Edition | A recent patent filing by Apple Inc. entitled Enhancing Online Shopping Atmosphere indicates that Steve Jobs’ next BOOM could involve a hat tip to virtual worlds like Second Life. According to the filing, Apple is considering a more interactive visual representation of its online store complete with changing weather and avatars. Let the griefer brainstorming session begin. More »
Cameras
3D-Sensing Cameras Bring Second Life One Step Closer To The Metaverse
1:00AM Gizmodo US Edition | Those of you who have always wanted to move around Second Life while actually moving around may be in luck. Linden Lab Chair Mitchell Kapor has teamed up with 3DV Systems to show the Zcam, an inexpensive video camera that can judge when you’re leaning forward and backwards. No news yet on whether it can also sense when you’re thrusting — sorry, Second Life sex fans. More »
Peripherals
SpaceNavigator 3D Mouse Gives Full Range of Motion to Second Life Avatars
7:00PM Wilson Rothman | 3Dconnexion’s SpaceNavigator, a rubber-capped multi-axis metal dial meant mainly for 3D design, has been put to even better use as a pan-dimensional controller for Second Life. The video says it all: watch as Beast, one of the “Lindens” who works at Second Life’s founder company, demos movement of his avatar on both land and in the air, and even use SpaceNavigator side by side with a mouse. It’s perhaps even cooler in build mode, where you can twist, push, pull and tilt—basically have free range of motion—when doing heavy construction. The SpaceNavigator is already available for US$60, and works with Google Earth, Adobe Photoshop and a bunch of CAD and GIS apps. It will be available in Second Life at release 1.20. More detailed info below. More »
Games
Samsung Unveils…Second Life
11:19PM Mark Wilson | Since it’s April 2nd, we guess this news is legit. Samsung has announced that they’ve developed a Second Life client for their mobile phones, allowing their users to jack…in anywhere in the world. And while at least a little technically impressive, we’re wondering what drove Samsung to support a game that’s been noted to have an extremely small user base. While millions have registered, those who actually “play” Second Life are few and far between (only about 250,000 accounts). Samsung, when people said “wow” to your idea, you probably should have double-checked their punctuation. [koreatimes] More »
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