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Launching into Second Life
Second Life Community Forum Planning
Here are the notes from a discussion that Aubree and I recently had about planning a public forum to discuss the possibilities of using the virtual world Second Life, here at CCTV:
Overview
Invite CCTV members and Cambridge residents to:
o Learn more about communities in Second Life
o Give input on uses of SL @ CCTV
o Ideally the event is, itself, an example of using the medium to facilitate conversation and inspire new ideas and new approaches
Presentation - June 24, 2008
Very very very basic introduction to SL
o Define avatar (what are we looking 'at'?)
o Movement (teleport/fly)
o Inventory (just so they know where stuff is coming "from")
o Lindens (as briefly as possible)
What role can SL play?
o Broadcast medium
o Production format
o Teaching & learning tool
o Meeting space
Show examples of SL communities
o Political campaigns
o Artist community
o Video/film community
o Machinema
o Education/NMC Campus read more...
- Colin's blog
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- 80 reads
Submitted by Colin on April 29, 2008 - 1:54pm.
Second Life: A Classroom for ESOL
(Left: Ms. Carmichael hangs out at an assessment station on SL English, while (a younger) Ms. Lawrence instructs an ESOL class for BA&CE)
Second Life is has incredible potential as a learning platform. I was excited to read on Forbes.com that an English language school in Germany has launched an island "Second Life English." The island is dedicated to offering FREE (yes, you read that right, FREE) resources for learning English, including virtual ESOL lessons. According to the article, Educator (and island owner) Kip Boahn "feels a new medium calls for a new way of teaching language. Even using the game's English interface gives students a chance to practice what they've learned." I couldn't agree more! I enjoy his approach:
During workshops, he uses a team of teachers to present students with
different linguistic tasks, which could include anything from asking
for directions to bargaining to buy a knickknack. To do those tasks,
Boahn and his colleagues use "holodecks," rooms that can flip through
as many as 40 different scenes at the mere click of a mouse. Want to
practice ordering American fast food? Just switch the holodeck to
Dara's Diner and line up at the counter. read more...
different linguistic tasks, which could include anything from asking
for directions to bargaining to buy a knickknack. To do those tasks,
Boahn and his colleagues use "holodecks," rooms that can flip through
as many as 40 different scenes at the mere click of a mouse. Want to
practice ordering American fast food? Just switch the holodeck to
Dara's Diner and line up at the counter. read more...
What is the meaning of Second Life?
Um, I don’t actually know, I’m still working on figuring out the meaning of my first life... BUT I’d love to know of any other questions you have!
CCTV is planning to do a public presentation later in April to introduce the CCTV Community to Second Life. As part of planning the event I’d love to get feedback on what things members would be interested in seeing during the tour!
I’d like to show everyone the different media distribution methods (see Tuesday’s post) so we can consider CCTV’s options for the Virtual CMC. …I also want to answer questions you may have about Second Life culture, potential for creative expression... anything! What would you like to learn about? Drop me a line in the comments below, and stay tuned for details on the when and where of the presentation!
An overview of Production, Content, and Distribution channels in Second Life
A quick glossary:
SL - Second Life, a virtual world that we are currently exploring to expand CCTV into the virtual realm
RL - This means "Real Life" and refers to actions that happen outside of the SL environment (sort of what it sounds like)
"In-world" - Believe it or not, this mean IN the Second Life world (not in our world)
CCTV - Cambridge Community Television
VCMC - CCTV's Virtual Community Media Center
SLURL: An internet address (url) that will teleport you to a place in SL. You must have SL installed to use this feature.
Got all that? ;)
The Cambridge Community Television Station is looking to capitalize on the emergence of virtual worlds as a new platform for education, production, and distribution. To better understand how other media centers are using Second Life, I investigated the models employed by SL's most popular media outlets. The companies I explored each have a different approach to production, content, and distribution. Understanding these various models may give us insight on how to best approach launching the Virtual CMC. read more...
Window Shopping is Work!
This week I’ve started assembling a budget for the CCTV in Second Life project. This, of course, meant one of my favorite Second Life activities – shopping!
In Second Life, all of the content is user-created. One cannot help but be impressed with the creativity displayed in the objects for sale. The picture was taken in the Kunst Furniture Store, just one of many places to buy office furniture. There are so many choices in just this one store! read more...
CCTV Starts plans to 'virtually' break new grounds!
As part of its 20th Anniversary celebrations, CCTV will be launching it’s presence in Second Life (SL), an online virtual world. The project is an effort to reflect on CCTV’s remarkable history using a medium that will speak to CCTV’s determination to remain a cutting edge leader in cable access programming.
To help get us started, we’ll be looking at other non-profit communities as potential partners who can offer us their experience getting organized in SL, as well as Cambridge community partners who would benefit long term from a SL presence. read more...
- AubreeAnn's blog
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- 255 reads
Submitted by AubreeAnn on February 15, 2008 - 7:43pm.