Virtual Learning, Inworld Support and Kool New Water!!

The virtual university
SAN JOSE STATE JOINS INTERNET-BASED WORLD OF SECOND LIFE
By Kara Andrade


One day Professor Jeremy Kemp entered his classroom and found himself next to a student dressed as a gigantic monarch butterfly.

But Kemp was not startled in the least that one of his students had sprouted wings. Since he started teaching at the virtual campus of San Jose State University's School of Library and Information Science, students have also appeared as robots and giant bowls of Jell-O.

"I am looking at representations that they create, and that's just as valid as real life," said Kemp, assistant director of the virtual campus, which opened in May. "I have a sense of being there and being with the person."

San Jose State is one of a skyrocketing number of colleges and universities across the country to make the leap into the virtual frontier using Second Life, the Internet-based world created by Linden Lab of San Francisco.......(read more)

"Next fall, Main said, the department is going to make it a requirement for students to include a Second Life component."

Awesome!! As ususal Second life is growing around us by leaps and bounds

Transgender Day Of Remembrance Observed in SL
by Penny Sautereau

Every year thousands of innocent people are murdered around the world for their beliefs, for who they are. Hatred kills people every day somewhere. Muslims are murdered for being Muslims. Jews for being jewish. Gays and lesbians for being gay and lesbian.



Every year a few hundred of those are Transgendered people, and of those only a handful get reported or noticed. Transsexuals, crossdressers, hermaphrodites. To the haters it doesn't matter. You're different, and to them that's enough. The transgender umbrella holds a lot of different kinds of people under it, but to those who murder them, they all have one thing in common; They blur gender lines in ways that make many people uncomfortable. In the last 12 months alone, 17 TG murders have been reported in North America and Europe. Imagine how many weren't........(read more)

YYYAAYYY GWEN!!!! Its great work you all do!! although I have been personally guilty of some rather non-groupish behavior just last night I was proud of our group as they rallied and stood behind a member with a greifer/stalker problem. So don't tell the girls and guys I said so but KUDOS to them all and to you too Gwen....love ya baby!!

WindLight First Look Viewer update!Wednesday, November 21st, 2007 at 5:07 PM PST by: Pastrami Linden
Download It Here!!!
Hello all! As a last minute treat before Thanksgiving (also known as Thursday and Friday to the rest of the world :)), we’ve managed to get in an update to the newly released WindLight First Look!

Issues fixed in this release (r74061):


Torley.....You are sooooo kool!!! I fall in love every time i see ya!! Love those eyes!!!
OK........peace and Turkey to all from RPI second life!!! Use your flight feathers to stay above the drama and I'll see Y'all in world!!

/me scampers off to download windlight with fingers crossed it will run for hir!!

Tolerant

Zoe Hana writes.....

"I have been a child avi for over a year now, and i am REALLY REALLY glad that LL have put their foot down about those who are not appropriate with this. For one, because of those people, I am discriminated against. Thats like me saying all adult avis are having sex… thats just not true lol.

What i would like to see next, is the side of having a child avi on sl, that is innocent. Normal semi realistic families. I would really like some light shed on that side. So People can see not all of us are pervs, or pedos. In fact when i run into someone who has wrong things on their mind and choose to share them with me, they are reported and muted within seconds and banned from my land. We all know about the side thats wrong.

And I have to disagree with the person who said ageplay has to do with submission…. lol ask anyone that knows me, i am FAR from submissive. And most of my child avi friends are far from submissive as well.

LL knows us innocent ones are out there, which is why they are not ridding sl of us, and for that i am grateful. Thanks for everything LL!"

......and this is why I must learn to be tolerant. Thank you Zoe.

Clarification......of one issue.

Today Linden labs posted a Clarification of Policy Disallowing “Ageplay”

I hate child avatars.
I don't even need to see them engaged in questionable behavior to hate them.

That makes me pause to think a moment.
That makes me intolerant.
I am, and freely admit I am intolerant to child avatars.

as an experiment.....if you haven't already.....type these words into your second life search engine.....
Rape
Murder
Kill
Blood

I have seen tables soaked in blood to strap victims on.....white aprons covered in blood for that uber real serial killer look. knives.....hatchets.....you name it.
I hate these things too.
These are the evil elements of our society following us into our virtual world.
But then who decides what is evil and what isn't.....
And can we really define evil.....put a label on it and ban it as well.
If me and 'Avatar A' go to my payed for sim and have go at the pose balls I feel its my business and my right.
If I tie 'Avatar A' to the bed, with consent mind you......I still feel I am within my rights.
If 'Avatar A" is a furry does that mean i dabble in bestiality?
When 'Avatar A" discovers I am not a biological female will there be a "second life beareu of gender authenticity" to report me to?

lets face it...
yes .....second life is an incredible teaching platform that can change the way we learn on a global and unprecedented scale.
yes....second life stands to change the way we do business and shop online in that same global capacity.
But what has hooked the vast majority of us is the social aspect we experience. The people we meet.....fall in love with.....have sex with.
We are pioneers in a new frontier.
There are no laws to govern this new frontier. Like the wild west of the 1800s we learn and make the rules as we go along.
Who decides what is acceptable and what is not in this new world?

It is us....the pioneers.

It must fall to us to decide what is wrong and what is right.
which fetishes (and intolerances to fetishes) we allow to follow us into that frontier.

Kudos To the Lindens for attempting to tackle this emotionally charged issue.
They do their part in trying to clear the ethics of this new world.
Its up to us to be tolerant and strong on our convictions and our neighbors.

The future of our second lives demands it.

Second life Ethics and Ideologies..........

Ren Reynolds writes.......
Do virtual worlds liberate us?

"Lastly when we look at something like Second Life and There what we seem to see are endlessly reproduced norms of body type etc that look like the products of an internalisation and then self production of dominant types. While there are many ‘fake’ versions of brands, they are still versions of brands so still operate in the same world of assumed values. What’s more we can no longer gamble in Second Life the reason being because of US laws – hence many virtual worlds seem simply to act as a way of expanding US cultural and legal norms, even if the virtual world is not in-fact based in the US as it will probably have a tendency to norm towards its values. As virtual worlds come out of China I expect that we will see a spreading of its cultural assumptions too.

eeeeeeeesh....dominant ideologies being re-enforced by online virtual worlds. Well I certainly hope not. I rather see second life as a meeting ground for people from all over the world and the mixing of different ideologies moving toward a more globalized culture. But the point is taken that second life is American based....and I can see how that makes second life appear to be a capitalist construct. And if you are seeking out those malls and money mills in world then yes that is what you are going to find. I suggest visiting the beautiful dragon sims or some of the lavish gardens to see it can also reflect a place of exploration and quiet meditation.
I found this wonderful list for all you SL Casanovas out there.I suggest taking a look guys....please. And Kudos Lash....awesome post!

At the Reuters site I found these little gems.
Study finds sex, gambling not major Second Life drawsThu Nov 8, 2007 1:11pm PST
By Eric Reuters

If there’s no “goal” to Second Life, no monsters to kill or experience points to collect, why do so many people log on and spend so much time there? Everyone has their theories, but a new academic study suggests cybersex and gambling are less of a lure than is often assumed........(read more)

I've often thought that what was more important was the fact of meeting new people and sharing thoughts and feelings. Nice to hear some one went and documented it. I always tell the newbies i get at the library..."Its not in the pose balls....the magic is in the chat window" (as a close freind often said)"and when the novalty wears off in a month come back so we can have a real discussion."
Not that a good pose ball isnt a wonderful thing......;P


UK to investigate pedophilia in virtual worlds
Tue Oct 30, 2007 8:10am PDT
By Eric Reuters

British cops will be going undercover in Second Life to investigate depictions of adult-child sex and track down pedophiles, according to a report by Channel Five News set to air on Tuesday.

But the UK’s Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) said Second Life isn’t being specifically targeted. “Our interest is wherever on the Internet children are,” a spokeswoman told Reuters. “We place officers into a number of virtual worlds.”

The spokeswoman confirmed the agency has “covert investigational ability” and is aware of Second Life.......(read more)


I said a year ago child Avs should go......but surrounding this issue they also mention BDSM parlors which cater to "sick" people with torture fantasies. So it makes me wonder when they will Try and close those as well. Or how about the transgender sims......I'm guessing this will eventually fall into the "need to be eradicated" category too.
And this opens up a serious ethical debate. concerning consenting adults and online behaviour......and where we draw the lines between what is acceptable and what isnt.
I strongly have felt child avatars should just simply be banned. But I have heard the point...(from a linden, no less)...that some people who can not have children, benefit from this online experience. But my inner "ethics needle" spins like a compass out of control when i see one.
Every day some kid in middle America warms up his PlayStation or Xbox and goes into a "virtual" experience where, just for example, he will steal cars...shoot at police...and burn down city blocks (remember vice city?). And for every one of these kids there is someone who says we should not allow them the chance to even do this even in a virtual world as it will only entice them into real life violence. That debate is still bouncing around out there but I think this may fall under the same ethical blanket.
Now I am no perfect little avatar myself.....and will readily concede my second life is about 75-80% fantasy driven.......yes I am a biological male in real life.....but meeting in world You will soon discover I am anything but male. And I hold dear my "little piece of heaven" where I can interact and be accepted as I am.
But I completely abore violence and abuse against children. It makes my blood boil as well.........and I would be the first one in line to oust them from SL.
My only fear is when do the "moral majority" find what I do online as sick and offensive and come to oust me as well.
So where is the line between what is acceptable and what isn't? We need to clearly define it.