Cathy's distance education, photography

This blog has moved #CMC11

2011-12-03T12:57:00.001-08:00

I have moved my blog to a more permanent spot:

www.cathylanderson.com

#CMC11 thoughts on some reading I have been doing, creativity and photos

2011-11-24T16:33:00.000-08:00

I have been reading and thinking a lot about creativity. I read Hugh MacLeod’s book Ignore Everybody and 39 other Keys to Creativity. In summary, he is telling the reader to listen to their own voice, work hard, hone your craft and have your priorities in order, (don’t quit your day job). Hugh MacLeod blogs at Gapingvoid.com
I was checking out comments on the book in Good Reads and some of the reviewers hated it and others loved it and the simplistic witty observations presented by Hugh MacLeod. As was noted if you were expecting a witty book that will spark you creativity this is not the book to read, instead his focus seems to be on how to work hard to achieve success based upon you creativity. It is a business book for those wo want to succeed by putting their creative talent to work for them. Work hard, stay positivity, focused ..umm work hard. That is common advice..that is why you should ignore everybody..those well meaning friends and colleagues who will give you constructive criticism and feedback ..they really are not qualified to do that ..they don’t know your art.
I took from this book that you have to figure out what your “creative crayons” are and push your creativity beyond what is normal and acceptable and define what makes you unique and stand out. My creative crayons are the photographs that I write about here, Photoshop, and what I write. This is my life, taking flat objects or images; photographs, and making them multidimensional via my crayon toolbox, writing and digital images an design via Photoshop.
On this project I have read a great deal about others who have conducted similar research. However, for the most part, I have found that their projects are closely defined, I feel what I am doing is loose with the project unfolding ahead of me as I work through my collection. One part of Hugh MacLeod’s book that I definitely will take away is the following…”The idea doesn’t have to be big. It just has to be yours.”
I have also been reading Susan Sontag’s On Photography. Susan Sontag’s book was somewhat maddening for me; I am a collector and studying these photographs for meaning. Yet it seemed to me she disparaged both at times. However there were some great observations that I will share from this book:
Sontag often referred to the concept that some cultures avoid having photos taken because they felt that photos steal a little of their souls. With that she also observed that to photograph is to appropriate the thing photographed ..it means putting oneself into a certain relation to the world that feels like knowledge.
My favorite line, “..having an aptitude for discovering beauty in what everybody sees but seeing neglects as too arduous.”
Photographed images do not seem to be statements about the world so much as pieces of it, miniature of reality that anyone can make or acquire.”
Regarding collecting photographs she said: To collect photographs is to collect the world. Movies and television programs light up walls, flicker and go out but with still photographs the image is also an object, lightweight, cheap to produce, easy to carry about…
Sontag also stated that photographs really are experiences captured….photographs have multiple meanings, indeed to see something in the form of a photograph is to encounter a statement or object of fascination.
Here are some photographs I have collected:

These 8 are what I call a “family” these photos were taken in the same place at Christmas time:
What do I see in this picture? Well I think the girl in this picture received a very pretty pink robe for Christmas. I cannot help but note the wall paper on the wall, the lamp and the throw on the couch! Remember those? That couch will look new ..you will never see it but it will forever look new.

The patriarch?

You have to appreciate this photo. This woman reminds me so much of my grandmother and other women of her time.

Now it probably had to be something special to get these four in suits. Wedding or funeral?

Traveling to other countries. Capture what surprises ..capturing a moment.

What do I like here? The dress, the purse and the hair. An obvious travel photo ..

I am sure it was surprising and interesting to capture this young man on a little donkey.

And you really have to appreciate this picture. I like it! Camels waiting for the tourist to come along for a desert ride.

What I am learning #CMC11

2011-11-13T16:53:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite participation opportunities in #CMC11 is getting to hangout in the Google Hangout..it has been great. The conversation groups though small, Google Hangout only allows up to 10 participants at a time have been interesting, with different points of view freely shared.

As you may have guessed right now I have amassed a collection of photos, slides, and negatives from the late 1800’s to today. This is what John Collier says about individual photos versus collections of photos: I know, being one of the few specialists of non-verbal evidence that this is the way it goes. It’s the way it goes in every anthropologist’s photographic file. The individual pictures are not every important. All the pictures together in like categories become extremely important, because they have an extra authority to them.It is Collier who suggests that when photographs are studied it is a search for meaning based on the entire visual record so that details from the structural analysis can be placed in a context that defines their significance. Collier defined photo elicitation, where participants give their responses to and define an understanding of the images.

Richard Chalfen can be credited with taking a lead in recognizing the need to study the family snapshot. He defines that the study should be undertaken which can examine the snapshot’s “construction, organization and consumption of photos from a sociological perspective.” Chalfen has developed a grid which can be used to define or give a study a framework. This grid consists of five communication events and vie components. Studying the photos using this grid establishes a pattern of activity and behavior.
Planning event
Shooting Event
Editing event
Exhibition event
Can it be determined who participated in the photo; who took it, who was in it, the background and setting, the topic or precipitating even for the photo, and the composition.

Gabrielle Greenberg states, in her article on Pictorial Semantics, November 2010, that “Humans are able to reliably extract complex information from pictures they have never seen before, with remarkable speed and facility, but in ways which vary among communities of viewers. Because such interpretation can be carried out on novel pictures, these facts cannot be explained by simple memorization…she further states that “the content of a picture is not merely what it happens to communicate; rather it is what the picture depicts independent of what is communicated.”

Eventually I hope this blog generates enough interest that I elicit comments on the photos from readers. This is called photo elicitation a method of studying and researching photographs defined by John Collier and others This is defined as follows:
Photo elicitation is another technique of data gathering. This methodological tool is a combination of photography as the visual equivalent of a tape recorder, and ethnography or other qualitative methods. Photo elicitation techniques involve using photographs or film as part of the interview—in essence asking research subjects to discuss the meaning of photographs, films or videos. In this case the images can be taken specially by the researcher with the idea of using them to elicit information, they can belong to the subject, for example family photographs or movies, or they can be gathered from other sources including archives, newspaper and television morgues, or corporate collections. Typically the interviewee's comments or analysis of the visual material is itself recorded, either on audio tape or video, etc

Therefore, in keeping with previous blog posting I present the following photos for your consideration:

The family car seems to be ubiquitous in pictures. I really liked this one and I am wondering if the one boy is pretending to be driving!

This little girl does not seem to be particularly happy about being on a horse. I liked the background scene here as well, especially the old barn style roof on the one house in the background. A really great scene.

As you can tell I do little to retouch my photos. This one is fuzzy and blurry, but I really like these two girls with their little bouquets of flowers

A great picture that makes me wonder where they are traveling to or from. I like cars in pictures and this one is no exception.

This picture makes me question the context in which is was taken and ask..does anyone smoke a pipe anymore? A great pic..is he posing for serious or is this all in jest? I just find something humorous about this picture.

A great wedding scene, the bridesmaids and flower girls? Or attendants.

And maybe she didn’t want her picture taken!

One of my favorite pictures. I really like this scene of these three people on this diving board.

Multiculturalism, Photographs and Creativity #cmc11

2011-11-06T16:13:00.000-08:00

What is Multiculturalism: or cultural pluralism, a term describing the coexistence of many cultures in a locality, without any one culture dominating the region. By making the broadest range of human differences acceptable to the largest number of people, multiculturalism seeks to overcome racism, sexism, and other forms of discrimination.

In contemporary society, different understandings of multiculturalism have resulted in two different and seemingly inconsistent strategies:

The first focuses on interaction and communication between different cultures. Interactions of cultures provide opportunities for the cultural differences to communicate and interact to create multiculturalism.
The second centers on diversity and cultural uniqueness. Cultural isolation can protect the uniqueness of the local culture of a nation or area and also contribute to global cultural diversity. The concept of “Cultural exception” proposed by France in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) negotiations in 1993 was an example of a measure aimed at protecting local cultures.

(retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiculturalism)
1. Of, relating to, or including several cultures.
2. Of or relating to a social or educational theory that encourages interest in many cultures within a society rather than in only a mainstream culture.

The question in my mind was how does my proposed project relate to Multiculturalism..how does culture reveal itself in amateur or vernacular photographs? It may be helpful to explain how I got into collecting amateur and vintage photographs in the first place.   Several years ago..almost five! I became very interested in learning about digital art and the use of Photoshop. At that point, when I learned that elements can be extracted from scanned images I started to collect old photographs, slides, and negatives, buying them by the hundreds, for a very low price, from ebay and other online sites. Eventually, due to my interest in the history of the area I live in I started to collect photos of places like Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons and photos of homesteads, ranches and other sites in the area.

Initially I was not interested in the people in the picture, but interested in cars, houses, and things like bridges and landmarks. Over time though my focus has shifted to an interest in the people…there are thousand of photos each with a story, a theme, and people holding to their cultures, their traditions and that which defined them a heritage passed on generation after generation.   As always I encourage your input, comments and observations on the photos I provide.

I am going to provide you with some pictures all of which seem to focus on summer.   Summer work, summer fun and summer friends and family:

One of my favorite all time pictures …it evokes fun, camaraderie…what is the story on this barren stretch of highway?

A lot of great detail and interesting things in this picture. Makes you wonder what is being pointed at, why the one person declined to sit up for his photo. I was also interested in the people walking along the fence in the back. Just a lovely day at the beach.

I really like this photo, especially because these two women did not seem to be all that pleased with having their photo taken or being in a row boat on a lake!

“Inner tubing” is the hallmark for fun if you live along a river or a creek!

And is fun for all ages!

Of course I don’t know if the below double exposure was deliberate or mistake ..but I think it’s fabulous!

Another great family tradition..are they getting ready for church? A wedding an outing of some sort. A sunny family on a sunny summer’s day!

I am guessing this picture was taken on a summer’s day and I am wondering what is in the bottle? Is it her first bottle of root beer? Probably!   What would be better on a summer’s day?

In this particular picture I love the sun glasses and the crispness of the summer dresses. They just seem so comfortable. There is a slight contrast between the two women..I think the woman on the right might be fun!

This picture, below, makes me smile in so many ways. I think it may have been taken in Deadwood South Dakota. It is sometimes easy to tell this if the photos are marked or taken from a certain batch of photos.

I have a variety of photos from other countries illustrating tradition, traditional dress, and cultural traits:

I love the face that this photo captured:

Summer Migrant workers in California:

#CMC11 Visual Ethnography

2011-10-30T09:21:00.000-07:00

I remarked to a friend, just this morning, that I wanted to become a leading researcher in Visual Ethnography; studying vernacular photographs for traditions. He didn’t respond for a while, then without missing a beat changed the subject.

I can only surmise what he was thinking, it was a virtual IM discussion, I didn’t ask though either. I think he was thinking..you already do too much why do more? Because I love these photos, slides, and negatives I have collected over the years. I love the stories they tell, the lives they depict, and the history they silently capture. It is my challenge to bring all of that to life.

I am not a seasoned researcher. I have completed my Ph. D. , yet, that does make me an expert in this field. I retrieved our copy of Denzin and Lincoln’s Handbook of Qualitative Research from my husband’s bookshelf. I know I am going to have to research how to research this archive so I can set into my mind a plan for going forward.
On page 703 begins the essay by Ian Hodder on The Interpretation of Documents and Material Culture, in that he writes of “how to interpret mute evidence …even though separated from the author, producer, or user…” .
Photographs are, in my opinion, a part of the material culture that Hodder defines. He states that, “Material culture, including written texts, poses a challenge for interpretive approaches that often stress the importance of dialogue with and spoken critical comment from participants. Material culture evidence, on the other hand, may have no living participants who can respond to its interpretation.” Hodder is answering the questions I have..can I conduct a research of these snapshots, a frozen moment in time in a way that will provide some meaningful insight into the experience of being human? The answer to that is easy, I think so. Will this research have some premise in being credible, I believe so, but even beyond my observations of studying these photos I welcome your comments and observations, lending even more credibility to this study.

I can provide even more credibility to this study if I can provide you with some context, dates, times, place and event behind these photos. I can do that for some, but not all. So how do we comment and observe on those photos that I do not have this type of information? We can do that only within the context of our own experience, and that is what makes this interesting.

We do this within the context of cultural studies. Culture Studies can be defined as: approaches subjects holistically, combining feminist theory, social theory, political theory, history, philosophy, literary theory, media theory, film/video studies, communication studies, political economy, translation studies, museum studies and art history/criticism to study cultural phenomena in various societies. Thus, cultural studies seeks to understand the ways in which meaning is generated, disseminated, and produced through various practices, beliefs, institutions, and political, economic, or social structures within a given culture. (retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_studies)

As you can see I am laying the groundwork for my study. If I were writing a dissertation I would conduct my study within the context of one of the theories above, perhaps feminist theory or social theory to narrow the scope of my study. This is a personal mission for me though, by the end of this study I may have reviewed all of these photographs within the context of the theories presented above. I am almost five years into building this collection, it is difficult to know where this journey will take me in five years, ten years or a lifetime.

As I go along sharing these photos with you I want to present a disclaimer to you. I have purchased these photos outright via online auctions, these are photos I have taken myself, etc. In these terms I am the copyright owner, I have no means to research the original owner of these photos. These photos are not used for materials or commercial gain by myself and are used only in research and for educational purposes.

Normally I try to study or will present photos from the 1800’s – 1950 the first photos below are from a wedding in the 1980’s:

Older wedding pictures:

Family pictures, family traditions.

And don’t you love the fact that they included the family dog front and center?

And the cars often make the family photo too:

Note the hood of the care in the foreground of this photo taken of these four lovely women.

I love this one taken in front of the family vehicles. Were they leaving and someone said,"Let me get a picture real quick…” Could be…

When I saw the picture below I wondered who is sitting at the kiddy table? And for most of you who celebrate big family dinners for Thanksgiving, Christmas or whatever your traditions are you will know what I am talking about.

This picture answers that question (oops I should have flipped the one above)

Every family has one right? The clown, the goof, and the one who stands out..who is that in the picture below?
A really great picture to study. Check out the drapes, the lamp, and the table cloth on the gate legged table. Good stuff!

A different sort of family shot. Brothers? Probably.

A vintage wedding photo:

A great shot of a more “modern’ couple:

What I would consider a family travel shot:

From the shots I have from Russia:

Kids:

Sharing

2011-10-25T18:28:00.000-07:00

I was sharing with my friend Michael Wells my love for photography, etc., and what it means for me and he shared this with me.. Great Synergy ..thanks Mic! Please check out the below link.

http://www.mrmulti.com/houses/

Virtual Pioneers #VPCON10

2011-10-23T17:12:00.000-07:00

It is indeed an honor to be a part of the Virtual Pioneers group in Second Life. This great group allows me the opportunity to explore history and culture with others.
On January 20th, 2012 Virtual Pioneers will be hosting their second History Conference in Second Life. The details are available on the Virtual Pioneers websiteand their facebook page .
Why all this excitement about virtual worlds and learning history? Well Second Life and other virtual worlds provide an easy to access, cost effective environment in which to role play, explore and experience living history. If you know of any history sites or activities to recommend in Second Life please let me know either via Twitter or in the comments in my blog.

Below are some sites I am highlighting for this week’s blog about Virtual Pioneers and the upcoming conference:

Stone Henge
http ://slurl .com /secondlife /CSW %20 Island /91/127/22

Chateau De Versaille in Second Life
http ://slurl .com /secondlife /Chateau %20 de %20 Versailles 2/222/129/29

#CMC11 Visual Culture

2011-10-22T08:03:00.000-07:00

With somewhat of a researchers background I am motivated to try to define the study of the photographs and other images that I possess. It seems to me that being able to define such a study in acceptable research terms would give it more credibility.   With that aim in mind I came across the term “visual culture.”

Visual culture is defined in various ways:
According to Nicholas Mirzoeff' is perhaps best understood as a tactic for studying the functions of a world addressed through pictures, images, and visualizations, rather than through texts and words. Here is a link to an article by Mirzoeff on visual culture.

Another term that came up during my search for meaning is semiotics: According to Daniel Chandler in his online book on the subject: Semiotics represents a range of studies in art, literature, anthropology and the mass media rather than an independent academic discipline. Those involved in semiotics include linguists, philosophers, psychologists, sociologists, anthropologists, literary, aesthetic and media theorists, psychoanalysts and educationalists. Beyond the most basic definition, there is considerable variation amongst leading semioticians as to what semiotics involves. It is not only concerned with (intentional) communication but also with our ascription of significance to anything in the world.

I questioned whether this is the appropriate method as it seems that semiotics would be more the study of language and text however it is also defined as follows:   Semiotics provides us with a potentially unifying conceptual framework and a set of methods and terms for use across the full range of signifying practices, which include gesture, posture, dress, writing, speech, photography, film, television and radio. Semiotics may not itself be a discipline but it is at least a focus of enquiry, with a central concern for meaning-making practices which conventional academic disciplines treat as peripheral. Here is a link to an article by Irit Krygier, that provides photography with a definiton in todays digital age.

One could argue that I cannot do an adequate study of the photographs I possess unless I understand the intent of the photographer. What is the context of the photo being taken? Was it vacation, for a study, for a business reason…this anonymous collection of photographs may not provide worthwhile data in that regard.   These photos are an expression of human life, the way we live, and how we capture on film and what we deem important. Reviewing hundreds if not thousands of photos of home life, vacations, landscapes, and celebrations provides a rich in-depth study of life in the United States but through travels abroad.

I am currently review several photographs of a travelers experience in Russia. These photos were probably taken in the 1950’s and are actually slides:

Not sure where these photos were taken:

I can put pictures that other people take and study them in the context of what motivates or inspires me to take pictures:

I love to take pictures of old farm buildings, abandoned farms and capture these symbols of a fading way of life.

The above photo was taken in Silverton, CO at the Durango/Silverton Train.

The above is a photo of ruins in Mesa Verde. To me this is somewhat symbolic of how we capture other cultures through photography.

Another abandoned farm picture.

Sinclair, WY I believe..a semi abandoned town with an interesting history.

We spent the night in a Hostel in Grand Junction. I thought I would be uncomfortable in the postage stamp sized room but I immediately fell asleep. The picture above is of the lobby, lounge space at the hostel.

On the Durango/Silverton train.

If I were to do a post like this every week for the next five years I doubt that I would get through my collection of photos, one which I continue to add to either via scanning or my own photos. It is a fascinating study for me. I am struggling with how to define or frame this study and analysis. Knowing that will help me a great deal to identify the context in which to place this analysis.

#CMC Cultural Studies

2011-10-16T08:38:00.000-07:00

As a sometimes researcher and “studier” of people I have to give a name to the study of photographs that I am proposing, in essense this is a cultural study. This means, according to Wikipedia;
Cultural studies is an academic field grounded in critical theory and literary criticism. It generally concerns the political nature of contemporary culture, as well as its historical foundations, conflicts, and defining traits. It is, to this extent, largely distinguished from cultural anthropology and ethnic studies in both objective and methodology. Researchers concentrate on how a particular medium or message relates to matters of ideology, social class, nationality, ethnicity, sexuality, and/or gender.^[1]
Cultural studies approaches subjects holistically, combining feminist theory, social theory, political theory, history, philosophy, literary theory, media theory, film/video studies, communication studies, political economy, translation studies, museum studies and art history/criticism to study cultural phenomena in various societies. Thus, cultural studies seeks to understand the ways in which meaning is generated, disseminated, and produced through various practices, beliefs, institutions, and political, economic, or social structures within a given culture

Furthermore the study of the photographs that I possess is actually defined as:

Visual anthropology is a subfield of cultural anthropology that is concerned, in part, with the study and production of ethnographic photography, film and, since the mid-1990s, new media. While the term is sometimes used interchangeably with ethnographic film, visual anthropology also encompasses the anthropological study of visual representation, including areas such as performance, museums, art, and the production and reception of mass media. Visual representations from all cultures, such as sandpaintings, tattoos, sculptures and reliefs, cave paintings, scrimshaw, jewelry, hieroglyphics, paintings and photographs are included in the focus of visual anthropology. Human vision, its physiology, the properties of various media, the relationship of form to function, the evolution of visual representations within a culture are all within the province of visual anthropology. Since anthropology is a holistic science, the ways in which visual representation are connected to the rest of culture and society are central topics.^{[citation needed]}

To further summarize Banks and Morphy state that visual anthropology state that the focus is on recording visual or visible phenomena and obtaining visual data. They caution that this broad term may be ambiguous and too broad. The further go on to state that visual anthropology services that much can be learned from a culture through photography. Morphy and Banks provide a cautionary note in that we should not over look photography by not considering this medium in it’s totality as a contribution to the study of cultures and that researchers must understand the medium within the context of data itself. (1999, Rethinking visual anthropology. Yale University Press. Banks, Marcus and Morphy, Howard)

Visual anthropology may give some sort of framework to what I am trying to address and it does seem to recognize photos as data, which ultimately I am trying to state..that photos and vintage photos are data to be studied as sources for determining cultural traditions, life, and activities of people. Sandra S. Lee, Ph. D. conducted an “ethnographic study of old Italian neighborhoods from the 1880's to the 1950's, she interviewed and collected vintage photographs from individuals and families.” Unfortunately I have the photographs but not he people to interview for a similar ethnographic study. In order to conduct a study of the photos I must have knowledge of the history of the time period when the photos were taken, a knowledge to be able to judge the time period of the photos, if not dated, and the ability to analyze the photos to extract the period in which they were taken.
I can also solicit comments from people on the web to engage in a discussion or dialogue regarding the photos that I post. To gain their analysis, knowledge and expertise on providing an analysis of the photos that I post. I propose to present different photographs to study in the areas of dress, hair styles, jewelry, expression, architecture, cars, and machinery. As this study evolves there will be different details to study, I will present photos that I feel are most illustrative of the topic. Please join me on this study! Your in put will be valuable. I will continue to define the context of this study as I learn more about the research methodologies.

My photos for your consideration today are below and are differing styles of architecture:

From Russia photos:

Our churches, our towns and how we have lived:

This actually is a picture of Boy's Town/home?

You will note that these are buildings being moved:

To contrast a city scape (circa 1950 or 60’s):

An auditorium or arena..I am sure state of the art for it’s time. Sorry about the dirty photos these are actually slides that are speckled with dust and dirt. Normally I clean them using Photoshop, depending on the nature of the photo and how I am going to use it:

Another city skyline..very dirty:

Another city view:

I welcome comments, thoughts and ideas! As always more to come!

#CMC11 My creative journey

2011-10-11T20:57:00.001-07:00

I have been wondering what this MOOC would mean to me and I think what I would like to do is give definition to the reason why I have amassed a large collection of pictures, images and artifacts of people lives. This collection come primarily in the form of photographs. Photographs from all sorts of people at all stages in their lives. My collection is large I gather these photos from online auctions, thrift stores, antique shops and garage sales. There is a term for this..they are called vernacular photos. Some are taken professionally others are taken by friends, family members, and even strangers. After all who hasn’t been on a trip when you haven’t been asked to take someone’s photo with their spouse or you haven’t asked someone to do so for you. I saw this frequently on my trip to China.
At heart I am a researcher of people. I love they way they chronicle their lives through their photos, it is indeed art, illustrative storytelling.

This picture totally captures this woman’s life. Her face tells her story. A widow, yes, note the dark garb, the plain ribbon. A wit, a captured sparkle in her eye, I think it is there.   A spirit and a dream and high standards they are all there in her face, her eyes and her hint of a smile. It is a fascinating story behind this photo.

The photo above of the three children also came from the same collection as the one of the woman. I can’t help but wonder ..are they somehow related? Grandchildren perhaps. You have to love those tense frozen faces..I hope they had a lot to smile about in their lives. Think about the contributions they may have made to this country, having families themselves..maybe they were YOUR relatives.

Having such a vast collection of photos, unplanned, unstaged and perhaps a bit wonky lets you see the world through a different lens than the glossy touched up photos in magazine. I recently acquired an old set of slides of Russian buildings and other things: (at least I think this is Russian all too often these slides or photos are unmarked)

Sometimes I look at a picture and I wonder what they saw, what was the picture takers story when he/she showed the picture to friends: (this photo actually did come from a box of photos marked Russia)

Photos are like brilliant flashes of one line quotes, frozen in time, with meaning and a story. We rush through our lives capturing moments in our minds, and now so freely,
digitally. We flash these vignettes around the world, telling our story.

I understand the story behind the picture below.   I know this man yet I do not know him. But I understand that he was probably a cowboy, that this horse was part of his life and his livelihood, perhaps something he took a lot of pride in showing and riding.

Here is my story, or part of I feel this photo illustrates the world from which I came..

So far on this journey of sifting through these artifacts of the lives and stories and people I have been alone, with the thousands of pieces that make up my collection, a collection I started several years ago and fascinates me today. Only through the context of my experience have I been able to make define the meaning of it, what does it mean to me ..what would it mean to you?

Some of these are of recent experiences:

Examples of a past that is still relevant to our lives today. The farm machinery above exist as a tribute to the time when machinery that was needed was simple and functioned much upon the strength and hard work of the people who owned the land.

This photo below is a mystery to me ..the Bell in the background is fascinating.. any ideas? These slides are dirty, it’s going to take some retouching to restore them..I am just starting to dive into this collection.   (the great thing about the web is if you do a google search you will find this is Ivan’s bell in Moscow)…

I visited Mesa Verde this past summer so you can imagine my delight when I found photos such as this one below in my collection:

You may be scratching you head and wondering..don’t I know what is in my collection and the answer to that is no, my collection is not catalogued or sorted according to any rhyme or reason, it is vast though.   The photo above was scanned into my collection in July of 2007. Initially I started just focusing on Wyoming and in particular on Yellowstone, wanting to chronicle the changes in that area via amateur photographs. I have acquired hundreds of photos of the area:

At first I shunned pictures of people, however over time I began to study them, becoming fascinated with them and the storyteller in me started to come out. Questioning and wondering over the lives of the people who came before me to this area, to live their lives, and the contest of their lives.

I love thinking of the surprise of where this road will take me and I hope you as well. Let’s write this story together. I welcome your comments, your insight and your guidance as I being to share my collection of photos with you. I hope this fulfills the purpose of CMC#. Through this we all learn.

#cmc11 Creativity Videos I love!

2011-10-09T10:49:00.000-07:00

I did not get a lot of reading done today but these videos are awesome !

Fast Company's top 100 most creative people in business

Some interesting and maybe controversial videos on creativity:

Merlin Mann:

Merlin Mann's Bio

Marlin Mann's 43 Folders website

Discusses Patterns and design patterns ! Fascinating

John Jay!

John Jay's Bio:

BREAK DOWN THOSE SILOS!

Tom Peters Bio

Educate for a Creative Society

Joe Rogan

Joe Rogan Bio

#CMC11 I am so stealing this!

2011-10-09T10:02:00.001-07:00

Came across this on Carol Yeager's blog and decided I am so stealing it!

http://youtu.be/1Daj4x6XnpU

Thanks for sharing!

just a little music

2011-09-24T15:39:00.001-07:00

I so enjoy this!
A super video

My MOOC overload #CMC11

2011-09-17T06:34:00.001-07:00

Ok I am doing it again! I thought maybe I had lost my enthusiasm for learning new things in different ways. I don’t think I lost that I think I just couldn’t carve out the time to keep track of all the opportunities. I am turning into a junky with the latest education initiative and that is a MOOC. So far I know of at least four interesting MOOCs going on ..two of which I am trying to participate in and two others I am considering participating in at some point. Right now I am in Change11 and Creativity, Multicultural Communication. You will find my posts for Creativity and Multicultural Communication on this blog and my posts for #Change11 on www.cathyandersonblog.com and posts of the other classes, if I decide to participate on other blog sites.
This course covers how to communicate in a social networked world, the emphasis for this course is on creativity..and also how we can solve problems creatively in a social networked world. According to the blog about this course we will be learning about how to utilize the concepts of connectivism and connecting with others globally.
From Wikipedia:

In contemporary society, different understandings of multiculturalism have resulted in two different and seemingly inconsistent strategies:

The first focuses on interaction and communication between different cultures. Interactions of cultures provide opportunities for the cultural differences to communicate and interact to create multiculturalism.
The second centers on diversity and cultural uniqueness. Cultural isolation can protect the uniqueness of the local culture of a nation or area and also contribute to global cultural diversity. The concept of “Cultural exception” proposed by France in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) negotiations in 1993 was an example of a measure aimed at protecting local cultures.

Our communication, observations and reactions to other cultures should generate creativity and inspire us as individuals in our thought, actions and artistic activities. Other cultures have an indelible influence on us as individuals, it creates synergy when we work together.

Kate Davies, in her article, Sustainable Minds in the Alternative Journal identified the following tenets that I believe are pertinent to this initiative:

Creating Learning Communities
First developed in higher education, there are now many examples of collaborations for learning, including spiritual, professional, online and neighbourhood communities. World Cafés, for example, can bring a diverse range of participants together to share perspectives on sustainability issues. Involvement in practical shared tasks, such as creating community gardens or building a transition town, can further stimulate active learning.

Fostering a New Cultural Worldview
A learning society for sustainability could foster the development of a new cultural worldview - one that is based on respect for the Earth and the great diversity of life on which humans depend. With its presumption of human superiority, the dominant Western worldview assumes humankind has the inherent right to over-exploit other species and exhaust the planet's resources. Developing values and beliefs consistent with sustainability will require a shared understanding of the destructive consequences of this worldview, as well as a widely-held desire to create a respectful, long-term relationship with the Earth.

.Embracing Diversity
A learning society would embrace diversity - not only different cultures and ethnicities, but also different ideas, beliefs and ways of knowing. We can learn from people who do not think like us because they challenge our assumptions, beliefs and expectations. We can learn from the wisdom of peoples and communities around the world that have proved their sustainability over hundreds or thousands of years. In the same way that the health of an ecosystem depends on its biodiversity, the sustainability of human systems depends on cultural diversity and a diversity of ideas and practices.
(Davies, K.. (2010). Sustainable Minds. Alternatives Journal, 36(5), 8,10-11. Retrieved September 17, 2011, from Research Library. (Document ID: 2125349971).

I decided to do some research on the term “World Café” and this is what I found, I hope to explore World Cafes further throughout this term:

World Cafe : http://www.theworldcafe.com/
The Co-Intelligence Institute: http://www.co-intelligence.org/P-worldcafe.html

World Café Community of Practice: http://www.theworldcafecommunity.org/
The World Café on Second Life: The World Café is a conversational process based on a set of integrated design principles. Simple yet powerful, World Cafés can evoke and make visible the collective intelligence of any group, thus increasing people's capacity for effective action in pursuit of common aims. It is particularly effective when people come together across organizational, social or cultural boundaries to foster collaboration.
World Café Community Blog: http://conversationsthatmatter.typepad.com/world_cafe_community/
I can’t wait to find and share more with you. The World Café is a model of connecting either physically or virtually and exploring our world together.

Reflections

2011-09-11T18:11:00.000-07:00

I tend to not get too personal in my blogs but today I have spent sometime reflecting back on the past few years and how pivotal they have been. I can say with certainty that these three years will define the rest of my life as I go forward in my future.

I have lost both of my parents in the last three years, changed jobs twice, and moved three or four times ..I have lost track and not sure what would count so .. let’s just say that. I have sold two house and bought one ---settled my parent’s estate and moved on.    In all honesty at some point I lost all emotion..I did not react I just did what needed done. At the time it all seemed right and now I can’t look back I cannot change the past.

I have learned alot .. alot about myself and some of you helped me along the way..some of you know it and some of you may not. Some things I learned were surprising and still continue to surprise me today.. but what it all comes down to is I love the experiences of life and my interactions with all of you.

I have gone halfway around the world, something I never would have thought possible! My trip to China was phenomenal .. here is some of the food and other things:
I also had a great vacation with summer with my husband through Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and home again. We both agreed it was the best vacation ever..now we are planning the next one.

I have learned a great deal about the career I have chosen in education, my experiences have allowed me to improve my interactions with others.   I have learned a great deal about the philosophical tenets behind Open Education, the strong foundation and spirit behind People’s University and P2P, and traditional education.   I feel very fortunate right now doing some extraordinary things with some great people in education…always thinking about how we can improve.

I am never bored, time never stands still and I am happy in the present but looking forward to the future. I am happy to be able to see others succeed through education by the work that I do to help them achieve their goals. I am still interested in virtual worlds for education, online education, and spend some time chatting with friends in Second Life and experimenting in there to see what will happen next. My latest adventure has been to ramp up my efforts in art and digital art..here is some of my work:

Does the below look familiar?

I have read a book or two. Top of my list is Speed of Trust and Cold Comfort Farms..a little serious reading and a little fun! I have   written a few blogs .. but my writing motivation has dwindled lately..hopefully that will pick up soon as I am starting anew class with Stephen Downes, etc.

Just something different

2011-07-04T14:55:00.000-07:00

Roy Orbison Video

Never Stop Learning

2011-07-04T14:32:00.000-07:00

Several years ago I was a real Photoshop nut … Now I am finding that I have the time and the means to start dabbling in it again. Having just purchased Photoshop CS5 I am once again totally blown away by how much improved it is over CS3, the first version of this software that I purchased.

I am also amazed at how much I have to learn. Just this morning, only half awake and before my coffee, I was watching YouTube tutorial on the improvements in selection using CS5.. and yes the Content Aware feature looks like a powerful one..I can’t wait until I really am able to start applying it to some digital artwork.
There are many things that I want to work on right now … I have been out taking pictures and it is a beautiful time of year to be doing that… here are some of my favorites:

Right now these may seem kind of static ..however with the right software you can do much to improve the interest in a photo. I use my photos for many things, not only as a history of my life but to see into a future or a world that is on the edge.. in other words I like to create digital art.
One such example is this “mixed media” picture that I created using an image of my Second Life avatar and a photo that I took in the Buffalo, WY area and another of a 35mm slide I picked up on Ebay sometime ago:

I feel like a novice starting all over with Photoshop again! I love it …

My next adventure in this digital world is Camtasia Studio. Again I am just learning. I did make two attempts at doing some Second Life videos:
My first attempt here:
Thistle Hill, Caledon
By my second attempt I had learned how to remove the annoying clicks from the audio:

Steam Sky City, Caledon .. Second Life

There are still some real “herky jerky” elements I do not care for..but I am ok with my first efforts and now will step back and learn how to fine tune and pay attention to the details.

I really didn’t see You Tube as a part of my Social Networking ..but there is always that chance!

Beijing Hutong and Cricket Liu

2011-06-04T08:59:00.000-07:00

One of the lunch stops on our tour included a luncheon prepared by and with a local resident of Beijing Hutong..this was really one of the highlights of the trip for me. We were taken by cycle rickshaw through the narrow alleyways of Hutong to the house of Chicken Liu.
The house was one of many connected together within the heart of Hutong. It consisted of an entry, kitchen, and two rooms (I couldn’t help but note that on the wall of one of the rooms as a flatscreen tv, in the other room someone noted two computers. )

There was no bathroom in the home, there are various public toilets here and throughout the Hutong. Apparently, according to this Wikipedia article, the hutong are disappearing as communities, this is not surprising because it does not appear that they have the infrastructure to meet the needs of today’s modern society. However this is a critical piece of China’s culture, history and society so I hope that some piece of this will be preserved.

Below are some of the pictures I took of Cricket Liu, his wife,their Hutong Home, and a Youtube video I found of him.

The Second and Third pictures show Cricket Liu and our interpreter for the lunch. She did a great job of telling his story!

The flatscreen tv in the first picture:

The cricket’s “home”

Cricket Liu’s wife in the kitchen preparing our meal..I am not sure if they had running water in the home or not:

Cricket Liu is quite an expressive story teller:

Our meal was ready and on the table waiting for us when we arrived:

Cricket Liu also had some very impressive looking grasshoppers:

Holding his cricket house:

He really loves his dog who he called a “movie star”

Cricket Liu:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pfurk2-Q6AA

Visiting an Emperor’s Tomb

2011-05-30T07:59:00.000-07:00

While in China we had the opportunity to stop at a Ming Tomb. According to Wikipedia these are:

The Ming Dynasty Tombs (Chinese: 明十三陵; pinyin: Míng shísān líng; lit. Thirteen Tombs of the Ming Dynasty) are located some 50 kilometers due north of urban Beijing, in the People's Republic of China at a specially selected site. The site was chosen by the third Ming Dynasty emperor Yongle (1402–1424), who moved the capital of China from Nanjing to the present location of Beijing. He is credited with envisioning the layout of the ancient city of Beijing as well as a number of landmarks and monuments located therein. After the construction of the Imperial Palace (the Forbidden City) in 1420, the Yongle Emperor selected his burial site and created his own mausoleum. The Ming tombs of the 13 emperors of the Ming Dynasty were located on the southern slope of Tianshou Mountain (originally Mount Huangtu).’

This was one of my favorite stops on our tour. I feel that the pictures I took there better illustrate our experiences at the
Tombs.

The People of China

2011-05-28T05:22:00.000-07:00

I am not sure what to write about the people of China ..for sure there are a lot of people in this country. Here is some demographics information, from the Issues and Trends in China’s History on the population of China:

The world's population surpassed 6 billion (6,000,000,000) in October 1999, China's population represented more than 1/5 of this total (20.8%) — one out of every five people in the world lives in China. Today, China's population exceeds 1.25 billion (1,250,000,000), a number that continues to increase minute-by-minute on Beijing's official Ticking Population Clock. China's population increases each year by approximately 12-13 million people, a number that exceeds the total population of individual countries such as Belgium, Greece, Cambodia, or Ecuador. Annual population growth in China actually exceeds the current population of Ohio, Illinois, or Pennsylvania.

On the day that we arrived in China it was Tomb Sweeping day. A holiday for the Chinese that sounded much like our Memorial Day.

Tomb Sweeping day is defined by Wikipedia as:

Qingming Festival is when Chinese people visit the graves or burial grounds of their ancestors. Traditionally, people brought a whole rooster with them to the graves visited but the occasion has become less formal over time. The festival originated from Hanshi Day (寒食节, literally, Day with cold food only), a memorial day for Jie Zitui (介子推, or Jie Zhitui, 介子推). Jie Zitui died in 636 BC in the Spring and Autumn Period.

As this is a day of holiday in China Tianamen Square and the Forbidden Palace in Beijing, our first two stops after arriving there, were filled with thousands of people. Most of these people were there to see Chairman Mao’s Tomb. Thousands of people had come in from the country to pass by the tomb of Mao.

As is stated on the Issues and Trends website; China's population is at once its greatest asset as well as its most significant challenge, the greatest resource of this country is it’s people. It seems that they are always on the move, everyone works, they all seem to love their country, and it is their people which is their greatest asset. In addition to this these people know hardship, they can cope with it and they can make fabulous things out of nothing.
Below are the photos that I took while in China that I wish to share with you:

Grand Canal Marketplace Suzhou

2011-05-22T13:19:00.001-07:00

Without a doubt one of the most fascinating places, full of unique sights, sounds and smells was the market off the Grand Canal in Suzhou China. Unfortunately this was also one of the places, including the Great Wall, where my camera(s) batteries decided to die. However I did get several good pictures that illustrate this fabulous place.

In my opinion it is the market place(s) in China that illustrate their adherence to the old traditional way of life in a blend with much of the modern lifestyle that is in evidence in so many ways in the country. I will say this I have never seen so much and such a variety of fresh food and vegetables. One of these pictures also illustrates their version of a simple department store, Wal Mart on a miniature scale. Do they have Wal Marts? Yes they do there is one in Suzhou which I did not see but I heard was very similar to our Wal Mart. China has been very fast to change however they have not yet embraced the concept of shopping in that way. I wonder if that is because of their mode of transportation is still centered upon the use of bicycles and scooters. However I did see an entire household of furnishings being hauled on a bicycle.

So here are my pictures from the Market on the Grand Canal in Suzhous. Spoiler Alert: you may see some pictures here of animal parts and such that you may find distasteful.

Grand Canal Suzhou

2011-05-19T04:12:00.001-07:00

One of the highlights of my trip to China was our tour of the Grand Canal in Suzhou. For those of you who are not familiar with the history of the Grand Canal it is here: (Wikipedia)

The Grand Canal in China (simplified Chinese: 大运河; traditional Chinese: 大運河; pinyin: Dà Yùnhé), also known as the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal (simplified Chinese: 京杭大运河; traditional Chinese: 京杭大運河; pinyin: Jīng Háng Dà Yùnhé) is the longest canal or artificial river in the world.[1] Starting at Beijing, it passes through Tianjin and the provinces of Hebei, Shandong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang to the city of Hangzhou. The oldest parts of the canal date back to the 5th century BC, although the various sections were finally combined during the Sui Dynasty (581–618 CE).

The total length of the Grand Canal is 1,776 km (1,103 miles). Its greatest height is reached in the mountains of Shandong, at a summit of 42 m (138 ft).[2] Ships in Chinese canals did not have trouble reaching higher elevations after the pound lock was invented in the 10th century (during the Song Dynasty).[3] The canal's size and grandeur won it the admiration of many throughout history, including the Japanese monk Ennin (794–864), the Persian historian Rashid al-Din (1247–1318), the Korean official Choe Bu (1454–1504) and the Italian missionary Matteo Ricci (1552–1610).[4][5]

Historically, periodic flooding of the adjacent Yellow River threatened the safety and functioning of the canal. During wartime the high dikes of the Yellow River were sometimes deliberately broken in order to flood advancing enemy troops. This caused disaster and prolonged economic hardships. Despite temporary periods of desolation and disuse, the Grand Canal furthered an indigenous and growing economic market in China's urban centers through all the ages since the Sui period.

Being able to experience the sights and sounds along the canal was unique, one that I shall never forget. However the “old” canal life may be changing rapidly as living along the canal becomes a target for the rich who desire this waterfront property, therefore some of the things one sees along the canal today, the older building with their character and charm may be replaced with modern China.

Here are some of my photos from the Grand Canal Tour in Suzhou:

China Part 1

2011-04-29T21:34:00.001-07:00

On April 3, 2011 I headed off to China ..the filght from LA is a long one but the destination makes it all worth while. We stayed at Beijing’s City Wall Marriott.

The city wall of Beijing was a fortification built around 1435. It was 23.5 km long. The thickness at ground level was 20m and the top 12m. The wall was 15m high, and it had nine gates. This wall stood for nearly 530 years, but in 1965 it was removed to give way to 2nd Ring Road and the loop line subway of Beijing. Only in the southeast, just south of Beijing Railway Station, stands one part of the wall.

The climate is very similar to what we have in the US however I did find some flowers in bloom around the hotel.

After that plane ride your first thought might be to crawl into bed and not move for 24 hours but we didn’t have that luxury..which maybe was a good thing. Instead we hit the ground running, loaded onto the bus and headed to Tiannamen Square and the Forbidden Palace.

Our first glimpses of the people and the way of life in Beijing..

A light pole in Tiananmen Square: (I just liked it so snap snap)

A guard in Tiananmen Square:

Marching at the Forbidden Palace:

Inside the Forbidden city:

Some of the ornate “adornment” on the buildings in the Forbidden City.

It was very hazy and overcast..so I am pretty impressed with the quality of my pictures:

When I looked at this picture allI could remember how exhausted I was by the time we reached this point! The Forbidden City is huge and we did a lot of walking:

Many of their valuable pieces are housed in the various buildings throughout the Forbidden City. We couldn’t go in so squeezed around people to get a picture of interesting stuff like this throne for the emperor I am sure:

We also visited the Summer Palace:

The Summer Palace (simplified Chinese: 颐和园; traditional Chinese: 頤和園; pinyin: Yíhé Yuán; literally "Gardens of Nurtured Harmony") is a palace in Beijing, China. The Summer Palace is mainly dominated by Longevity Hill (60 meters high) and the Kunming Lake. It covers an expanse of 2.9 square kilometers, three quarters of which is water. The central Kunming Lake covering 2.2 square kilometers was entirely man made and the excavated soil was used to build Longevity Hill. In the Summer Palace, one finds a variety of palaces, gardens, and other classical-style architectural structures.

What really fascinated me about China though was the people here are some pictures!

No matter where we went it seemed someone was always trying to sell us something, note the postcards the lady in the picture above has ready to sell to us. I really did like this gentlemen selling flutes! He was very good, loved what he was selling and was really a charmer!

Another fine musician. China is full of sensations; sights, sounds and smells!

Below:

Bronze Qilin statue inside the Summer Palace

Second LIfe ramblings

2011-04-17T08:32:00.000-07:00

This is a bit of a ramble based upon Edem Williams, Bassey Eyo, Stephen Akpan’’ s article “ “Linden Labs Second Life: Understanding the Business Model and Sources of Commercial and Social Success or Decline of Second Life,” published on line at this website.

I can only speculate the impetus behind the creation of Second Life, in part it was the book Snowcrash, as well as created to be an online virtual utopia providing the platform necessary to bring together people from across the globe. Part of this would require the collaboration of these diverse people to develop the content for this virtual world.

I have been in Second Life for almost two and half years now exploring, participating and developing some of my own content as well. During that time I have experienced various levels of satisfaction with the environment. In spite of that, after exploring other virtual worlds, open sims, and participated in other social networks...I have always returned to Second Life. It is the rich social network, the imersive environment and the connections with others that kind of suck you into Second Life. Even though the feeling of “Second Life Euphoria or Utopia” isn’t as strong for me as it once was.

I am not going to predict the demise of Second Life however after reading the above article I can only offer some speculation on what it does well and what it can do better. I think sometimes, as consumers we want the instant solution to problems, once that Second Life experience becomes routine we want to recapture that feeling of Second Life Euphoria that we first experienced in the environment.

If I am not experiencing that I can attribute the change in my feelings regarding Second Life to changes in my real life, a change in job, a few moves and new priorities in my life. All of these have distracted me from Second Life and those I have met in Second Life, even though those who are most important to me are now friends on Facebook.

The observation that Second Life’s demise in imminent is a personal and individual experience I believe. The ideas, thoughts and feedback to improve Second Life should be considered and taken into consideration or discarded if they don’t seem possible or useful. End user input should always be considered in providing directions for making improvements...however in the case of technology in general and Second Life specifically the in put can vary greatly due to the users level of experience and comfort level in the use of technology.

That being said I have some opinions of my own. It seems to me Second Life is at the point where its future could go in one direction or the other. I believe that if they cannot find the answer to the new user’s question upon arriving in Second Life, “What do I do now,” then they will fail to bring that user back to Second Life.

There have been a lot of issues with Second Life through the years. In many ways the users’ real life issues parallels the virtual. These are related to property rights, human social interaction, and frustration with a less than stable technology. It is the technology issues that sometimes provide the greatest frustration ..however this is, I believe, an issue with the infrastructure not keeping pace with the technology, aged equipment of the end user, and lack of experience by the end user and even support at Second Life.

The interaction by users in Second Life, at least initially, seems intensified. For myself and for many Second Life users this seems magnified by the environment and the social networking tools used for communication and perhaps even the sense of presence..sense of presence in a virtual world is what you aim to achieve, it is not a bad thing but it is startling to a new user. Over time this feeling does seem to level off as one adapts to the direct communication of text chat and instant messaging as well as the fact that if you don’t like someone you can mute them or teleport away from them. You also learn how to communicate, if someone says something you don’t like you can ask them to clarify or you can clarify and give further feedback.

In my opinion Second Life lost out when they discontinued the discount for education and education institutions. This could still be remedied if they provided incentives and assistance to individual educators who which to bring their educational programs into Second Life. I feel that their support and communication to new educators who entered Second Life was inconsistent and sloppy. They lost any potential of tapping into these students as growing their base users..if those educators were dissatisfied..who do you think they complained to! Second Life lost any potential market and any other marketing approach has been, at best scattered and without focus. In fact marketing of Second Life has been non existent relying instead on press coverage of individuals, campuses and corporate project in the virtual world. The problem with this is that Second Life does not control the marketing that does occur.

In a nutshell it is interesting to me that Second Life has yet to take advantage of the marketing pipeline that was and still is available to them by having large scale educational institutions in Second Life. I have learned from experience that if you do something right students can be your best channel for marketing … like alumni they speak for your product via word of mouth ..in fact look at the University of Phoenix!

Of course Facebook trounced Second Life as a social networking platform. I would not be surprised if in the future they also swallow up Second LIfe as a virtual world or 3Dimensional environment. And why not? They have the critical mass and the social networking tools in place to connect users. I feel this is a shame, really, as I like the social networking features in Second Life much better.

I read another interesting article on learning in immersive environments by William Ryan and Marin Siegel “Evaluating Interactive Entertainment using Breakdown: Understanding Embodied Learning in Video Games,” found here at this website.
I learned some new terms in my reading of this article one of which was the methodology they used in their research; breakdown analysis a technique for analyzing user interaction sequences which looks at times when users are focused on figuring out how to use the system (a “breakdown”) versus times when users are performing their intended tasks.

Another term they used was domain of experience: basically this is the knowledge, past experience that a user brings to, in this case the game or technology that contributes to user satisfaction.

The authors of the article identify these four domains as Perceiving Environment, Developing Strategy, Taking Action, and Meaning Making. Under each of these domains they identified breakdowns which may impact the users experience in using the technology. These are:

Perceiving environment: Cues and affordance, Cut Scene Transition, Depth, Camera and navigation.

Developing strategy: task order, task delivery, discerning importance, events triggering, and task frequency.

Taking action: spatial layouts, controller mapping and scaffolding

Meaning making: Map schema, object schema, avatar schema, character role, and schema familiarity

I took a look at some Second Life Blogs yesterday and here is a bit of what I found:

The Alphaville Herald: I liked the article on the top three sites in Second Life. You will have to check this out..in fact I will be writing more on one site they mentioned in the article The Forgotten City a Steampunk Sim in Second Life..looks like a good article for Steampunk Adventures.

Check out Botgirl’s Second Life Diary too. I did spend sometime thinking this blog posting may fall under her Micro Rants...oh well!

Stop blathering on about the future of Second Life. I'm much more correct in my under-informed pretentious speculation than you are. It's natural and beneficial to discuss our collective future through social networks, blogs and other public forums. But it's delusional to believe we absolutely know the one right way to proceed or can predict how the future will unfold.

Daniel Livinstone wrote a thought provoking article on Second Life which is posted on Educause...All I have to say is that it is ironic that Linden Labs which relied greatly upon their users to create content, attract new users, and developers has treated those very same contributors so poorly.

I also checked out Skoolaborate this week. If you are a K-12 educator and you are interested you should check them out as well. From their website they are:

Skoolaborate is a global initiative uses a blend of technologies including, blogs, online learning, wiki's and ‘virtual worlds’ to transform learning. We aim to use these tools to provide engaging collaborative learning experiences for students aged between 13 and 18 years of age.

Ultimately if Second Life is facing a “demise” it is due to their own early successes! They can no longer rest upon that but instead must earn new users..sometimes the hard way .. not the “if we build it they will come,” mantra.

Blog spot wiped out all my links..grrrrr:

http://www.ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/cis/article/view/9806

http://www.digra.org/dl/db/09287.38300.pdf

http://www.usabilityfirst.com/glossary/breakdown-analysis/

http://alphavilleherald.com/

http://steampunkadventuressl.wordpress.com/

http://botgirl.blogspot.com/

http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE+Review/EDUCAUSEReviewMagazineVolume46/SecondLifeIsDeadLongLiveSecond/226180

Second Life Art Tour of the Day

2011-01-16T15:55:00.001-08:00

Art in Second Life can vary from uploading and displaying your favorite images from “real life,” or using the environment in Second Life to develop and create a new kind of art.   This Second Life art goes beyond twisting prims but using “scripts,” to code a pieced of art to illustrate new visual effects. I have listed some examples I found on my Second Life surfing today. These include University of Western Australia, Raw Art Gallery, Star Journey and The Art Thing. Slurls, photos and information below:
University of Western Australia
http://slurl.com/secondlife/UWA/61/178/248
Saint Basil’s Cathedral at UWA:

I am not an expert of art and/or art in Second LIfe but I know what I like. Second Life provides 3D builders and creators with a platform to express themselves in new and unique ways.   The University of Western Australia has been a leader in promoting Second LIfe for students to express themselves via scripting, digital images, and in 3D. More information can be found on their blog..I hate to say my pictures don’t do this region justice!

Landscaping in Second Life doesn’t always have to mimic real life (boring in this virtual environment) but can be a vision that stretches our imaginations:

The student artists of the University of Western Australia can participate in monthly competitions:

The Art Thing
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Norf%20Haven/100/244/22
You never know where you will find an interesting art site hidden away..The Art Thing is just one example of that:

One of my favorite places in Second Life was the Raw Art Gallery, I learned as I was researching this blog that it has now moved to a much smaller sim.   If you have a favorite Second Life place be sure and document it before it, too, disappears.   Another favorite of mine is Star Journey.   However you can find pictures of it here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/gigiroffo/2903496516/in/pool-sl#/photos/gigiroffo/2903496516/in/pool-364356@N21/
Here are the pictures I took at the new site:

Star Journey is, from information at the site, “If you seek answers to life's questions, they can be found here. Why are we here? What is our purpose? What direction shall I take next? Follow the arrows to begin your adventure.”
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Star%20Journey/78/130/25

Predictions, Ahem Wish List 2011 for Second Life

2011-01-01T12:41:00.001-08:00

I can’t really make predictions on virtual worlds or Second Life for 2011, I am not expert. Sure I spend some time in there, have tried selling stuff, done some education related activities and gone to some events and held a few. Second Life seems to provide a perfect virtual environment for those sorts of things.
So while I am not going to make some predictions I am going to say that I hope a few things happen that will allow us, end users, to capitalize on the potential of Second Life. One would be that I hope that Linden Labs recognizes the potential of the SL platform for Social Networking. The opportunity here is huge. Showing users how to build community, use groups, and improving on the text and voice chat will be huge improvements for Second Life. The first time or two that you, as a resident of Second Life meets someone from Russia or China you maybe hooked..that is the power of networking in Second Life!
Second Life has a tremendous resource in their users who offer classes on all of the above and more. I have suggested before and I will suggest again that if I could immediately build my network based upon my profile, that I complete before going in to Second Life, and immediately start networking after joining would greatly improve the user experience from the start. So if, for example my profile indicates that I am an educator with an interest in writing and Steampunk I am immediately connected with those groups and communities would hold great potential for improvement.
In my opinion Second Life is events driven. It is probably events that first draw users into Second Life. If you are an educator it was probably a conference, a class, or exploring the potential of Second Life for education. Right now it is, in my opinion very difficult to search events for something that relates to your interest, or as one person complains you go to an event and there is no one there.
On any given day you will find events such as discussions on various topics from religion, to politics, to relationships, science or education. You will also find live music with performers in pop, country, folk, and new age. Many of these performers are seasoned real life artists who are wanting off the real life road but still want to perform and with Second Life they can right from the comfort of their home.
Would it make sense for Second Life to enhance how they assist residents in promoting and putting on events, in my opinion it would. The future of Second Life depends upon people in world activity doing things, not just showing up and hanging out..heck we can just as easily do that in front of our televisions and with a lot less lag.
Second Life provides a great platform for role play. I mention that and have in the past as being a key benefit for Second Life in education, creative writing, and experience history. I visited some role play sims one of which is described as: “Friendly medieval fantasy roleplay community open to all levels of roleplay experience. Focus on story development
Medieval Role play Medieval RPG Fantasy roleplay Medieval Market Medieval Fantasy Market Shops for Rent Cottage Rentals Cottages for rent.” http://world.secondlife.com/place/fd941958-bad8-8bc8-8875-9c9f5808e8b0
One of the cool things I came across when I visited Dubhan is the Herb Hunt noted below (what a great way to learn about herbs..): \
Herb Hunt
------------
Throughout the lands of Dubhan grow wild herbs that can be used in a variety of different ways. Be forewarned that you may have to venture in dangerous parts of Dubhan if you wish to find all of them.
The role play on Dubhan is as follows:

The realm of Dubhan dates back to before man knew of time and space. The large island sits far off the coast of Ireland and has been protected by an ancient elven spell which hides it from sight. Only those with knowledge of it's exact location are able to find it's shores.

For years Dubhan remained untouched by outsiders and only it's native races (Elves, Fae, and Satyrs) could claim it as home, but war broke out among the races, causing the magic barrier to weaken and reveal the island to a group of human knights who were sailing in search of a place to hide away an ancient relic. These knights hid their relic deep within the land, hoping that the natural magic would keep it hidden from those who would seek to use it for evil.

After 20 years, The Elven Wars finally ended. The Light Elves were able to defeat their darker cousins, with the help of the other native races, but the lands had been ravaged and all had surmounted great losses. Most of the them receeded back into their woods and mountains, remaining in hiding. ….There is more check out the Dubhan sim in Second Life to learn more. A few pictures below:

The Alexandria Egyptian Empire Role Play Sim:

Neo Victoria
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/NeoVictoria/16/118/700
The Machinima tutorial area which I thought was great!

Wulin, a Chinese Martial Arts Role Play sim:

Renaissance Island Role Play Sim:

Linden Labs cut many employees in 2010, but what about adding employees who can help build up the potential of Second Life in social networking, developing events, role play, and education? The potential is there I believe and if I were to do my 2011 predictions for Second Life it would be more a wish list and it would look like that!

Libraries are Alive and Thriving in Second Life

2010-12-20T16:33:00.001-08:00

I have always appreciated the fact that there are libraries in Second Life, this seems to be a good fit for libraries, patrons and lovers of books. Oh sure we can all access the same resource they do directly from the web without going in to Second Life, however the immersive environment in Second Live provides for a “realistic” library experience.
This photo was taken at the Cybrary in Second Life as you can see here they provide links to Guttenberg books for their patrons.

The bookcase below holds Cook Books from the Caledon Library:

Cybrary has been around for a while, in Second Life terms, based upon this article on the Second Life based library.
A list of libraries from the Cybrary City 1 and 2 in Second Life:

Bibliotheek Amsterdam OBA (Amsterdam, Netherlands)

Glenview Public Library (Illinois, USA)

Olathe Public Library (Kansas, USA)

Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library

Totally Virtual Public Libraries with sites in Second Life

Alexandrian Free Library Consortium

Bibliotheque Francophone

CALEDON LIBRARIES

Genesis City Public Library

The Lbrary @ Driftwood Beach

Library @ Insight Virtual College

R.F. Burton Memorial Library

Sustainable Living Library

San Jose State University maintains a Wiki of library sites.

Belos is an example of exhibits held at the Caledon Library. From the Steampunk Wiki you will learn that the Caledon Libraries are managed by JJ Drinkwater. These libraries are the hub of information, Victorian culture and information in Second Life. As stated in the wiki, “The collecting policies of the Caledon Library have two main foci: the 19th century and Caledon's defining literary genres, Steampunk and Alternate History.” As you can see from their calendar, the library and the surrounding area of Caledon, maintains a very active events list. Check out the blog for regular updates from JJ Drinkwater.

The virtual learning library is more of a specialized library focused on the learning needs for residents of Second Life. This library provides resources on building, scripting to skills just as navigating the Second Life environment.

A second life sculpt map:

Information for new residents to Second Life:

Steel City
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife//116/121/40

State of Kansas Library This library site provides links to state, regional and local websites of interest.
http://skyways.lib.ks.us/orgs/kcfb/

The Community for Virtual Libary’ website:
http://infoisland.org/calendar/
McGill University Library also provides links to it’s web pages of specialized libraries:

One unique feature of the McGill LIbrary is teleporting to their virtual university which makes it seem as if your avatar is actually in the library:

Libraries are alive and thriving in Second LIfe

2010-12-20T16:30:00.000-08:00

Building Your Portfolio: Build it Early, and Often By Jameson Carney

2010-12-09T22:44:00.000-08:00

Building Your Portfolio: Build it Early, and Often

A portfolio is to an artist as a resume is to a business man and should be the culmination of all of your achievements as an artist. A portfolio is required to get pretty much any job as an artist and how you implement the building of your portfolio can have a direct effect on your attractiveness to potential clients, agents, gallery owners and customers.

Don't Wait To Begin

Many artists make the mistake of waiting until they get their first break to start a portfolio with the misunderstanding that the only work that should go into a portfolio are pieces you were paid for. Your portfolio should be a representation of you as an artist and not just a record of your professional career. Feel free to put in any pieces you feel best show your skills and the type of work you can produce for clients. If you feel that you absolutely have to have professional work in your portfolio you can always do some free work for friends and family and use them for your references.

An Electronic Portfolio is Necessary

Don't get caught up on the idea of a portfolio being a tangible object when the best way for an artist to show off his or her talents is through electronic means. These days an artist absolutely must have an electronic portfolio on a professional looking website in order to easily show clients what you are capable of doing. Not to mention it's much easier to carry around a few business cards with a website address on them than lugging all your best work around wherever you go.

A Portfolio is Never Finished

Even if you've gotten your portfolio to a certain level it doesn't mean you should be completely finished adding work to it. As you continue to perform work you grow as an artist and it is important to reflect that in your portfolio. Be sure to evaluate your portfolio after every few projects and decide which pieces best represent you as an artist. That's not to say you should get rid of all of your older work, just that you should always consider your best work and consider that your newer pieces may fit into that category.

A Few of Your Favorites, Not Everything and the Kitchen Sink

Although an updated portfolio is a healthy portfolio it doesn't mean you should weigh it down with every single piece you do. A portfolio is like an artist's resume and should get to the point while still including everything that's relevant to paint the best picture of your skills and talents. Seek a second opinion from someone who's opinion you trust because you may find your favorite pieces aren't always necessarily your strongest ones.

Find New Ways to Add Value to Your Portfolio

The more experience you gain as an artist, the more you can add to your portfolio, but it can be hard to find experience to add to your portfolio when you don't have much of a portfolio to begin with. You may wish to consider going to school or consider online fine art schoolsonline fine art schools because a degree in art can help add a little punch to your portfolio. If you have received any art awards or honors, be sure to mention so in your portfolio. You should also consider other avenues such as volunteer work to add more proof of experience and art examples to your portfolio.

The most important factor of a portfolio is that is represents you and who you are as an artist. The pieces you choose to display in your portfolio should reflect your best work and your highest quality.

Jameson Carney is a 20-something, artist and culture fanatic from the mid-west. In his free time you will find him traveling the world and advocating for online educationonline education.

How to choose an accredited online school

2010-11-21T19:23:00.000-08:00

How to Choose an Accredited Online School

Online education has grown by leaps and bounds over the past decade or so. Gone are the days when people looked at this form of learning with disdain; today, it’s safe to say that these courses have gained in both popularity and respectability. They offer many advantages – they help you save on tuition, commuting and boarding costs, they allow you to learn and earn simultaneously so you don’t have to quit your job, and they make you dedicated learners and good managers of time because you must schedule your day properly if you want to taste success.

Online education provides you with the opportunity to further your education and boost your academic credentials no matter where you are and how old you are. However, all your efforts are bound to go down the drain if you don’t take care to ensure that the school you choose is accredited by the proper agency. When it’s online, it’s always wise to check the reputation of the school before you sign up. Here’s what you need to do to make sure that you choose an accredited online school to earn your degree:

Decide what you want to study – choose your major first before you choose your college. If you’re not too particular about your degree, then opt for one from the best online college.

Check out the options available for the degree of your choice; make a list of all the colleges that offer them.

Run a search of these names and pick out the top ten.

Choose the best option from this list based on convenience (if you need to attend practical sessions, it’s best to choose a college close to where you live so you don’t mess up your schedule) and cost (check to see if you can afford tuition and other costs).

Check to see if your choice is accredited by the right agency, one that is recognized by the US Department of Education. The best known and widely accepted accrediting agencies are the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU), Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (MSCHE), Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC), North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA) and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).

If none of the above are listed as the accrediting agency, check with the Department of Education to see if they approve of the agency that has approved of the online school.

Check to see if the school is capable of issuing federally funded financial aid – if so, it is accredited by a credible agency.

And finally, before you choose to study online, check if the credits you’ll earn are transferable and accepted by other schools or employers. If the world at large (or your small world in particular) does not accept your credit, your efforts are in vain and your money is wasted.

By-line:
This guest post is contributed by Carrie Oakley, who writes on the topic of online college . Carrie welcomes your comments at her email id: carrie.oakley1983(AT)gmail(DOT)com.

How Good is Online Education in Photography

2010-11-03T03:33:00.001-07:00

How Good is Online Education in Photography?

It’s not a discipline that demands a formal education, however, more and more people prefer to earn a degree in photography because it gives them an edge when it comes to finding suitable employment. Some people take the traditional route – they choose an arts degree that allows them to specialize in photography or visual communication straight out of high school and prepare for a career as a photographer during the four years they spend in college.

Others become photographers because they’re passionate about their craft – they see their cameras as an extension of their hands and as instruments to bring their creativity to life; and because of this, they choose to turn their passion into their profession. They gain employment through their expertise and experience and don’t accord much importance to formal education. However, there may come a time when a degree could come in handy, especially if it means a promotion or a change to a better job. The question that needs answering then is if an online degree will suffice or if you have to go back to school to study photography from an academic point of view.

While the choice is personal and depends on factors that vary according to each individual, most people find that they prefer to take the online route if:

· They don’t want to give up their regular job in exchange for a degree

· They cannot afford to take time off work and go back to school full-time

· They don’t have the money to finance a regular degree at a private art school

· They are able to find a good online school and degree that meets their needs and is affordable

Some people do go back to a full-time degree even though they have a good job and are well set in their profession if they gain admission to prestigious institutions and popular courses. They know that their degree, once completed, will open more professional doors to them than ever before. Also, the schools they join offer golden opportunities to work with masters in photography and learn firsthand from them techniques and skills that cannot be learned or picked up elsewhere.

Any education in photography, online or traditional, is worth it only when augmented with skills in and a passion for photography. A degree only adds to what you already know; it cannot teach you to be a photographer if you don’t have creativity running through your veins. And the only way to boost your creative instincts and perfect your skill is through practice – when you continue to hone your craft and practice even though you’re at the top of your profession, you grow and become a better photographer and artist.

By-line:

This guest post is contributed by Becky Patterson, who writes on the topic of Become a Photographer . She can be reached at beckypatterson89[@]gmail[.]com.

Second Life Hunts

2010-10-03T05:50:00.001-07:00

There are a lot of fun Second Life hunts going on right now that provide the participant with the opportunity to get to know Second Life and get some fabulous merchandise for free. Rumor is that as of September 1st there were over 100 hunts going on ..why so many? Well this popular activity is one way of marketing your store and a way for Second Life residents to get free merchandise from their favorite merchants and get acquainted with new ones.
It’s also a way to meet up with new friends and get reacquainted with with old ones. Because most hunts are themed this is a good way to connect with others who have similar interests. So how do you get started on the hunt? Well one way is to find a blog, website or information on the Second Life website to get started.
One of the most popular hunts right now is the Steam Hunt which bills itself as: STEAM: Steampunk Travelers' Event, Adventure & Megahunt.   This is the third time for this popular hunt which takes place September 1-30th, 2010. The trick is with this hunt as with any is to find all 135 of the Steampunk-themed gifts which are hidden in the participating vendors parcel or store.   The participants generally start the hunt at one point receiving the landmark for the next site when they find the prize. Steam the Hunt maintains a blog with updates and hunt information to keep the participant informed and updated. Steampunk Adventures store is participating in the STEAM hunt as well as the Mushroom hunt. Since starting in this hunt we have seen our traffic increase 3 to 4 times as many visitors prior to the hunts.   We hope that hunters are taking this opportunity to landmark our store for a return visit as well as making a note of our participating vendors in order to visit them.
Here are some pictures of me at the launch point in Mieville for the STEAM hunt.
Me with another hunter at the launch site for the Steam hunt
The hunt board at the second site for the Steam hunt:

Information on hunts and other events at Avatar Bizarre a stop on the STEAM hunt:

The MadPea Mushroom Hunt started September 1st and bills itself as: 100 locations, 100 mushrooms, 100 prizes and 100L$ for everyone to complete the hunt - starting on September 1st at the MadPea Circus. There is a website for the MadPea Mushroom Hunt with information on participants, prices, locations and other information.
The MadPea Mushroom Hunt provides much more than just a simple hunt according to the website participants can:
1. STORY
- Write an original story about your adventures as a mushroom hunter. English only, please.
Your style can be anything you wish. Let your mind go wild and your imagination bloom.
There is NO limitation on the length of your piece.
2. COMIC STRIP:
- Create a short story with the aid of photos.
Use the images to tell us your favourite/most horrible encounters during your hunt.
Maximum of 20 image per one comic.
3. VIDEO:
- Create a video about the best parts of your hunt. Show locations. Show people.
Show us the emotions and the feeling of being a mushroom hunter.
Make it fun, make it crazy, challenge your imagination.
NO limitation on the length of the piece.
I have participated in a few hunts. I have visited at least 15 stores on the current Steam Hunt, completed The Thrifty Gother hunt, Pot of Gold Hunt, and last spring’s Steam Hunt. On a regular hunt though the question may be asked regarding what you expect to get as prizes.l.this could be anything from furniture, clothing, airships, buildings, to shoes. Here are some examples of things I have gotten:
Fashions from LnL Design in last spring’s Steam Hunt:

A beautiful Victorian gown from Papillon:

A hot tub in the Pot of Gold Hunt:

Another example of the gifts I received on the hunts I have been on. A biplane from the Shiny Shop! and another outfit from The Traveler:

Another fashion shot:

I have received a lot of great things so far on this fall’s STEAM Hunt, photos below:
Tophat: Destiny Designs:
Steampunk Wings from Avatar Bizarre:

Fabulous Steampunk Skybox from Gianfor Peaks (interior):

Exterior of the Steampunk Skybox from Gianfor Peaks:

A fabulous fashion selection from Steam Bound:
Is your interest piqued? Are hunts worthwhile? Well I think so! As I mentioned previously there are over 100 hunts going on right now in Second Life. What are these hunts and what are the themes?
The Back to School Hunt: Which started September 1st-30th. The theme of this hunt is , students , anything and everything about going back to school. There are only 30 stores participating in this hunt.
The Birthday Blitz Hunt, no real theme noted runs from September 1-30th and is sponsored by Sour Pickles Group.
Hunt for (role players) RP! Runs from September 1-30th, information can be found on the Hunt for RP blog.   The theme or intent of the hunt is as follows: With the growing number of RP's on Second Life, we have attempted to combine RP needs, shopping, and advertisement into one package.
The details of the Zombie Raid Hunt are noted on a blog. This hunt started August 20th and lasts to October 1st.
Websites with information on Second Life hunts:
The most popular via google search SLHUNTS
‘Second Life 24H
From the events listings at the Second Life Website I found the following:
Twisted Hunt: The Twisted Hunt returns with new prizes and new challenges. The theme for this round is "spooky," so you'll seek and find dark, creepy and scary items across Second Life. Event held through Sept. 30.
For fun, fabulous prizes, and if you are new to Second Life hunts provide the participant with an opportunity to get high quality merchandise, fashion, and to make connections with others. Take advantage of all of these hunts today! (Now that I am done with this article guess what I am going to do!!)

2010-10-03T05:43:00.001-07:00

Improving the new user experience in Second Life

2010-09-12T08:40:00.000-07:00

Much has been written, said, hashed over out and sliced and diced on how the Second Life viewer and how that contributes to the lack of retaining and attracting new residents to Second Life, I contend that has little or nothing to do with it. In fact I assert that there is a need in Second Life to come up with an innovative way to connect new residents with other residents in a meaningful way.

I am not a techie so I can only assert that this needs to occur in the registration process where not only do I pick a name, a gender, etc., I also complete profile that details my interests, connects me to a community, such as Caledon, role play interests, and perhaps even occupation interests before I even go in world.

This could be done before I even go in world. I complete my profile based upon a series of questions (all optional) such as:

1. Demographics information
2. I wish to connect with others who have an interest in:

Live music,
History by era
Role play by genre/era/history/etc
Education
Art
etc., etc.,
3. When I get in world options for joining groups, communities, etc., are all immediately made available to me.
4. I want to learn more about
Building in second life
Coding in Second Life
Other cultures in Second Life

Why do I think this is important? Because over the last two years seeing people come and go those who I have seen go have those who seemingly did not make connections with other in Second Life. Part of the fun of this environment is meeting with and engaging with others who you would never have had that opportunity to otherwise.

While the information on the website is fabulous and getting better everyday..it would simplify things greatly if new users would (voluntarily) complete a profile that would allow them to immediately identify others, in world, who share their interests, this would help with the initial first hours in Second Life. Do this would by no means lock a new resident into a scripted Second Life for the long term, but would help them connect with others who share similar interests.

What are your thoughts..putting the choice of viewer aside how can the new user experience in Second Life be improved?

10 Little Known Facts About Second Life

2010-08-23T12:09:00.000-07:00

Ten Lesser Known Facts About Second Life

The obsession to escape one's own life via addicting technologic-alternate realities is growing at a staggering rate. Back in the day, myself and my middle school posse would plop down in front of the computer for hours, completely engrossed in a game called TheSIMS. We built our dream homes, added completely unnecessary accessories, and made our SIMS character everything we were not or might never be. We tried to figure out--unsuccessfully, I might add--how to make our SIMS have sex with one another, but we could only get them to first base each time. I hear that one of the newer versions requires its buyers to be of legal age, which shows me the creators finally went to the next level.

Take TheSIMS and give it some really intense steroids--the kind baseball players get in trouble for--and you get Second Life. TheSIMS made adult life seem like a picnic; everything was free, no one had to work, and there was no limit to how big your house could be or how many toys with which you could fill your garage. And when your garage got full, you could just build a bigger one. Second Life adds the ability to turn a profit for its users, taking the pretend-to-be-whoever-you-want idea and allowing users to follow their dreams and make money (for some) doing what they always wanted; perhaps not what they're doing in non-virtual life. Some Second Life "Residents" have been reported to make over $1 million in US currency.

It's shiny, it's somewhat new, and the idea intrigues many. The perks of possible economic success on the site, however, are also accompanied by some annoying disadvantages. A list of little-known (maybe, maybe not) facts about Second Life follows:

Second Life FunFacts

1. Users' online self-representations are called Avatars. I was under the impression that was a movie that was only worth seeing at an IMAX or at the regular theater...now it's my cartoon self.

2. In the Second Life economy, there exists no taxes, low "government" regulations, and low production costs. It's as if they're paying you to invent something that could turn a profit in US dollars.

3. Real money: the Linden dollar (L$) is convertible to the US dollar. Exchange rate: L$309:US$1.

4. Real money, take two: users cannot use L$ in the US market. For example, you cannot go to a Linden Lab ATM (because they don't exist) withdraw from your L$ balance. How convenient for LL, eh?

5. Real money, take three: L$1.93 billion in monthly transactions. The virtual economy is booming while the real one continues to flounder. Awesome.

6. Despite its heavy volume of users (518,524, growing by 36 percent a month), only a small fraction of them upgrade past the basic account. Accounts past the basic level have more financial freedom and thus, can make more money at a more efficient rate. Second Life is about buying and selling, marketing and advertising. If users don't want to get bored, they should be sure they're interested in logging some non-billable business hours, contrasting the paid hours one records during...say..."Real, Original Life?"

7. Second Life "Residents" can market anything from a character's walk to facial expressions, outfits and accessories, and all kinds of services or merchandise --including a vivid sex simulator, complete with free updates for life, at a steal of a deal: L$219. That's less than a US$1. I am now starting to understand why people immerse themselves in a virtual reality; it's cheaper, you can be anyone you want to be, and you can get a sex simulation machine for less than a buck that will last you a lifetime!

8. On the same subject line as sex, a favorite of most people in the world, the social scene in Second Life mimics "Real, Original Life," with the most popular hang outs being places with names like Club Arsheba: Hot Sexy Girls, and ELEMENTS at Goddess of Love 2.

9. The Second Life network is apparently a little slow. I'm an avid Guitar Hero player, and I can't imagine the frustration I would feel if the screen or response to the guitar were delayed. Second Life's creators actually issued a warning/apology statement for the influx of signups that resulted from a Yahoo! advertisement. So, the network is slow, the creators know about it, and...

10. Linden Labs is for sale! Any takers?

Virtual reality is taking a turn towards an all-inclusive alternate lifestyle that could only lead to an increase in the obsession with escape. Escape your shitty job. Escape your socially unacceptable physique and create a new one, without even moving from your couch! Linden Lab's idea of a virtual world that can resemble almost completely the world we already live in is an intriguing one at the very least, but why not change your original life first? Build your own escape and live in it instead of logging in to it?

Anna Forge is a guest blogger for My Dog Ate My Blog and a writer on online schools for Guide to Online Schools.

Funding a Gaming Career

2010-08-03T19:59:00.000-07:00

Funding a Gaming Career

There are dozens of careers in the gaming industry that can lead to big money. Did you know that a game artist earns an average of $61,000 per year? And a game designer with one year of experience makes an average of $52,000 per year with the highest salary documented at $300,000! Game development, design, testing, audio, production, support and programming are just a few of the types of jobs in the game world that are available. Depending on what field of study interests you the most, degrees in areas like computer programming and advertising are great degrees to have when trying to get your foot in the video game world.

Diverse Degrees

Just because you receive a degree in gaming development doesn't always mean that you will be working with video games. Graduating with degrees in majors such as art, multimedia or program development can take you in all sorts of directions and although it can be used in gaming, these degrees are versatile enough to be used in many other fields.

Scholarship

There are multiple scholarships for serious gamers. A few examples are:

1. Emagination Game Design which is a program designed for high school students who show interest in gaming and are given the opportunity to attend camp for gamers, the chance to show off their creations to game developers and the ability to apply for scholarships to cover tuition.

2. Rochester Institute of Technology created a Masters of Science in Game Design and Development that offers several scholarships.

3. The International Game Developers Association offers annual scholarships for those that attend the Game Developers Conference.

The list of available scholarships for serious gamers goes on and on. So the days of mom yelling at kids to stop playing games are over, it's those same games that just might get their kids into college one day!

Bio: Alexis Bonari is a freelance writer and blog junkie. She is currently a resident blogger at College Scholarships.org. In her spare time, she enjoys square-foot gardening, swimming, and avoiding her laptop.

Public Domain Photo:
http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/Toys_And_Games_g80-Computer_Games_p17241.html

#secondlife art tour Saturday

2010-07-31T17:22:00.000-07:00

Real life may change for some however Second Life continues to provide a platform for presenting the work of artists, authors and educators. While I have not been able to maintain my previious level of writing about and exploring Second Life I have found that creativity remains strong in Second Life as I have demonstrated below.

If you enjoy seeing innovations in art, presentation of art, and mixed media I highly recommend a journey into Second Life. Today I visited the University of TX in San Antonio and got a new perspective into art in Second Life.

The work of Bryn Oh, I retrieved the information below from a notecard retrieved at the University of TX site where this build is located. Please watch the machinima:

Opening the door allows the viewer to cam into a bunker type enclosure. The first element encountered is an old radio playing the music of Vera Lynn. Vera Lynn was born at the end of WWI and sang music for the troops in WWII. Her music offered hope to the common soldier. In addition to the radio the viewer will also find two types of flying robotic insects symbolizing war technology and the dog fights of WWII.

The viewer proceeds down a narrow tunnel into a new room whose main focus is a tiny robot in a test jar. The robot is in the process of being handed a cable which will allow them both to be connected. They are the expendable creations of the Scientists. Experiments viewed dispassionately by humans, yet who contain deep emotions of fear and lonliness. Perhaps moreso than their keepers. They symbolize soldiers as game pieces for war leaders. Left clicking the tiny robot will show the machinima for this build.

To learn more about artist Bryn Oh I would suggest visiting his blog, his in world sites, and viewing his mahcinima. Below are some photos I took of his work in Second Life:

Utopia 04:

Immersive/Immersiva:

Immersiva on midnight settings:

Here I am sitting atop a mushroom in Immersiva:

The work of Second Life resident, Ragamuffin Kips is also featured at the University of Tx San Antonio build. The background information below was retrieved from a note-card in Second Life.

Bio

Ragamuffin Kips is the alterego of Texas-based artist Anthony Jacob. His current fascination lies in merging SL elements with pastel and charcoal drawings to create works with a foot in both "worlds." A life-long artist, holding a master's degree in Communication Arts, Anthony has a passion for both the theory and practice of art in virtual space, and their future implications for the human endeavor of creation.

Statement

My new work continues with themes of organic form, but seeks to merge my real life experiences with this new world of virtual sensations. Stepping back from it as viewer, I'm often surprised by some of the imagery it conjures. These images appear, to me, deeply personal but also universally human.

In addition to the University of TX build Ragamuffin also has a a gallery in Second Life.

From the University of TX art notecard:
by Gary Kohime

When we are united as a collective we are able to accomplish many things. Especially when it comes to Humanitarian endeavors or causes.

My Piece represents, at its base, the source that brings us together in Unity as a spiritual rose.

In the center of the rose is a cocoon. The cocoon represents the many various factors that need to come together to give birth to all our efforts, as a collective, in order to make a difference; its also being protected inside the rose. The cocoon strings are all of us, as individuals, not only coming together, but also as the glue to staying the course for a particular cause.

As it matures inside the cocoon then it breaks through as a process of realization that has us reach out our hands to those in need.

After all is said and done, the Red Tipped rose represents the budding of an even greater Unity with those that were served. This will ultimately be a cause to some future blossoming into those that received help will or may assist with some need to come.

In closing;

I sincerely hope, that when the occasion arises, that we step up as brothers, and sisters and do the right thing.

Thank you

Gary

Gary’s art:

Igor Ballyhoo:

My work on this exibit is appology to person who you see infront of you in name of all human kind and in the name of humanity...
If you dissagree with me, kiss my ass!
Igor Ballyhoo

Field of Scissors:

I would like to thank every person that was interested in seeing it, my special thanks to all of you that even filmed it...
I must admitt that I find some of machinimas that were made in my forest even more interesting then forest itself:

ColeMarie Soleil
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDY-nBVQCAs

Osprey Therian
http://www.youtube.com/user/OspreyTherian#p/u/0/K1DSMsTh6OY

Nur Moo
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nurmoo/4688269482/

Welcome to the HeartSeed
[13:14] HeartSeed: Plant the Seed and Nurture it.
[13:14] HeartSeed: It Will grow....
[13:14] HeartSeed: Reach for The Stars!.
[13:14] HeartSeed: Put your hands in the Earth!.
[13:14] HeartSeed: For many years.
[13:14] HeartSeed: We have been together.. linked through the etheric plane,...
[13:15] HeartSeed: ..we are the seven spirits of celestial light, and love of our creator.
[13:15] HeartSeed: We meet like brothers and sisters to honour our link within the etheric plane.
[13:15] HeartSeed: We are of the earth yet of the stars.
[13:15] HeartSeed: Children of the forest seek and you shall find my brothers and sisters.
[13:15] HeartSeed: For We are All Children of the Light.

There are many fascinating places in Second Life such as Patron Art decor and Gallery, owned by Eliza Wierwright in Second Life:

Raul Crimson wrote about Patron in December 2009 at this blog: http://raulcrimson.com/2009/12/20/patron-by-eliza-weirwight/

Music in Second Life

2010-06-19T11:02:00.000-07:00

Second Life does provide plenty of opporutnities for musicians to gain a following, allbeit somewhat small..but then you get to get this audience sitting in front of your computer, in the comfort of your own home or studio if you wish.

I decided to venture out today, and wander around and listen to various musicians, take some pictures and review the music scene in education from an educators perspective. Is there a chance that college level music programs can use Second Life as a learning opportunity for students?

It's 8 am (SLT) and I am sitting in the comfort of my living room when I log in to go on this venture. I find that musician Russell Eponym is playing at the Drunken Dow in Second Life. Russell plays regularly at the Drunken Dow at this time every Saturday morning. He has a soothing voice and focuses on folk songs. Based upon a review of his calendar you can see that this talented singer is actively involved in bringing his music to an audience in Second Life.

According to his real life bio he is:

Russell Taylor Ashby

Quintessentially British living in North Wales
- musician/singer/songwriter
- artist
- writer
- teacher
For free downloads go to: http://www.thesixtyone.com/ukcowboysinger
For photos go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/25411664@N02/

While these events are held virtually it is important to remember that these events are experiential can be experienced as if they are real, and quite enjoyable.

It is hard to judge how much these artists make in Second Life. If 10 people are there and they each tip around 100L the artist gets 1000L for that performance which lasts an hour. 1000L is a little less than $4.00 (USD), if they also charge a fee to the venue to perform they may get anywhere from 3000L - ..well I suppose up to what the venue is willing to pay.

I could listen to the amazing russell Eponym all day, his music, his story, and his voice are amazing.

Musicians in Second Life are more than happy to promote and sing for fundraisers. Today I attended a fund raiser for Virtual Helping Hands Helen Keller Day celebration in Second Life at Club Accessible. This morning Jordan Reyne was playing..and I found her to be amazing artist.

As a visitor to Second Life you should be impressed by the level of fundraising that occurs across the grid, the willingness of talented musicians to give of their time to support these efforts, as well as the level of talent involved.

By 9:46 am I was wandering over to Avillon Mist to listen to Shannon Oherlihy, in my opinion, one of the best singers in Second Life. Her voice evokes memories of Joan Baez or Judy Collins.

I then wandered over to Guthries in Second Life to listen to davecorbett Darwin. He has this wonderfully gravelly voice that really resonates with the blues lover.

Second Life Musicians have a variety of ways to promote themselves. The venue owner who books an artist who has a good following really has a gem as these people come with the artist to visit your sim and perhaps even tip your venue. If you have shops on your sim perhaps they will shop for some virtual goods.

Below is a picture of Guthries which shows how signs, group joiners and other boards are used to get tips and have people join your group so they return to your venue:

I next found Remy Farman at Club Falling Water's Back Up Club. I found his web tab and reviewed his schedule of events. As you can see his event run through the morning, 10 am SLT and 12 PM SLT. Remy like Russell is also from Wales according to his bio.

One of my favorites is the superb singer, Tone Uriza in Second Life. He is pure blues singer and is simply amazing. His Second Life information is also on this website. I see that Tone only has a couple of shows lined up in Second Life, I hope this doesn't mean he is backing off on his events in SL.

This is what I am finding, that at this time of the day most of the artists are from the UK or other countries. This is a wonderful thing, Second Life is truly a 24 / 7 venue for events, to see and hear artists from all over the world, and to be entertained at all times of the day or night.

Second Life provides a means of communication via instant messaging, groups, notecards, and the guides associated with Second Life. In addition to this many artists make use of websites, Livestreaming and Ustreaming.

What can students gain from this? A way of gaining an audience, getting feedback on their singing, and a motivation to practice. They can also link up with other artists all over the world. In addition they can also learn a little about entrepreneurship through promoting themselves and/or their own venues.

Of course I can't close this out without mentioning one of my favorite venues in Caledon..that of the Empress of the Aethers on Thistle Hill. I have watched this from the start and there are exciting things going on there as Mr. Plutonian slow grows the following of this fine venue for musicians. These musicians include Mrmulti Writer, Shannon Oherlihy, Geos Copperfield, Strum Diesel, and DJ Lucien Brentano. If you are looking for a venue drop Andy Riverstone, manager, a note or one to Onyx Plutonian, owner, to get the details on scheduling your event there.

The interior of the beautiful Empress of the Aethers:

Another shot of the stage:

I include Empress of the Aethers here not only because it is owned by a friend but because it is also one of the most aesthetically pleasing venues I have visited, musicians and the audience all seem to love it. This is a key point if your venue is hard to find, if you don't promote your event using the events feature of Second Life, subscribo matics, groups,etc you just aren't going to have a good draw to your events..and a good audience means good tips.

Have a successful venue for music in Second Life just takes persistence. I have heard a rule of thumb that establishing a small business in real life may take a year or longer, it may take at least that long in Second Life if not longer.

Science in Second Life

2010-05-08T17:12:00.001-07:00

Opportunities abound to access science related sites in Second Life. Of course the largest and most complex of these is SciLands in Second Life. Beyond that a list of science related sites in Second Life is also maintained. Zazen Manbi (Second Life avatar name) can be credited with creating the Science School and has a passion for the opportunities for Science education in the virtual world. You Tube videos abound on the use of Second Life in science education. In fact in August of 2007 the Science School was featured in an article in Inside Higher Education.

Despite the fact that many still predict the demise of Second Life, I found that the use of Second Life for science education is very much alive. I decided to tour some sites to see exactly what is going one and I found that the Science School is still as vibrant as it was almost three years ago when featured by Inside Higher Education.

The Science School is part of a larger group of sims known as SciLands. The leadership of Scilands maintains a blog that keeps those interested in science education in Second Life

The Science School

Ohio State University maintains a site in Second Life which includes a tour of the male testis. The photos illustrate the dynamic nature of this presentation:

The Tech Virtual Museum

BACKGROUND
The Tech Virtual is a not only a museum in Second Life, it is also a collaborative design platform for science and technology museums worldwide. The purpose of this platform is to generate concepts and content for use in museum exhibits.

Curators can select from content that includes broad concepts, exhibit models, and media.
International teams can collaborate virtually to produce exhibits or model an entire exhibition.
All content created here is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license. This means that participating curators and designers can utilize content from this resource by citing authorship credit in the resulting creation.

The photos below illustrate the variety of projects in The Tech Virtual Museum:

A variety of displays demonstrating social networking:

Nanotechnology

According to their website this sim in Second Life:

"from the National Physical Laboratory launched NanoLands in the virtual world of Second Life – a place where nano science and technology communities come together to exchange ideas and knowledge. NanoLands is part of NPL’s Nanotechnology Island, which offers regular events and opportunities for people to attend presentations, meet, network and influence others in envisioning and defining the future of Nanotechnology."

Pharmacology Lab designed to provide students to participate in a variety of acitvities in a Pharmacology Lab this site provide this experience 24/7.

Space Destiny

Elcuian Islands;

http://www.nature.com/secondnature/index.html

Explorer island

http://www.spacetoday.org/NASA/SecondLife/NASA_SecondLife.html

Welcome to Explorer Island, home of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Second Life. The island is presently under construction, but please feel free to look around while we build.

EXPLORER ISLAND LOCATIONS:
HERE - ISM Entry Point and Entrance to the JPL Mall Area
EAST - The "Probe Garden" of robotic space missions
NORTHEAST - Delta II Launch for Phoenix and Dawn events
NORTH - Von Karman Meeting Area & JPL Mall
SOUTHWEST- Mars Mountain Area with the following displays:

MARS AIRBAG DISPLAY
To the south part of the island you will find a mountain with a platform. From the platform you can launch a Mars Airbag and it will roll down the mountain in a direction based on forces from the wind, terrain and initial random speed. If you are quick, you can ride the airbag down the hill but the route will change based upon your riding of the airbag.

MARS ROVERS - MER and Sojourner
There are two rovers in the Mars Mountain Area. The Mars Exploration Rover (MER) and the Sojourner from the Mars Pathfinder Mission. It's possible to ride Sojourner but only one at a time, it's a small rover.

MARS DUST DEVILS
Once in a while, a dust devil on Mars will blow by the Mars Exploration Rovers. These dust devils are the same as those on Earth except on Mars, they can be 3 times larger than a full tornado on Earth. In Second Life, you and two other friends can ride them around Mars Mountain.

Some photos from Second Nature are below:

With some innovation and creativity virtual labs can be created in Second Life. Information provided at the site is as follows: GEM Calgary's project in Second Life, an educational region about synthetic biology. For more, see: http://2009.igem.org/Team:Calgary/Second_Life

Examples of this are are the virtual synthetic biology lab from the University of Calgary illustrated in the photos below:

About MICA:

For more information and the schedule of events, please visit http://mica-vw.org

From their website:

We have a series of public lectures, technical seminars and discussions, and informal discussions; please see the website for more details.

You can join the MICA - VW Astrophysics group in SL, and email paradox.olbers@gmail.com to be added to the email list for event announcements, etc.

The Meta Institute for Computational Astrophysics (MICA) is the first professional scientific organization based entirely in virtual worlds. Whereas it is focused on computational astrophysics and related fields, we welcome and support other areas of scholarly inquiry.

The goals of MICA include:

* Exploration, development and promotion of VWs and virtual reality [VR] technologies for professional research in astronomy and related fields.

* Providing and developing novel social networking venues and mechanisms for scientific collaboration and communications, including professional meetings, effective telepresence, etc.

* Use of VWs and VR technologies for education and public outreach.

* Exchange of ideas and joint efforts with other scientific disciplines in promoting these goals for science and scholarship in general.

A variety of sites provide a view from space, aeronatics, NASA's jet propulsion, etc:

NASA's Jet propulsion site:

If you review the list of science education sites in Second Life you can see that I have barely scratched the surface with what is available to explore and possibly even replicate at your site. The bottom line is that Second Life can have a positive impact on your bottom line in providing a cost effective alternative to the real life facility.

Galleries in Caledon..Second Life

2010-04-18T16:15:00.000-07:00

So many things have happened both personally and professionally that my focus has been taken away from researching and working in Second Life that I really feel out of touch with the community and the network that I have built in there. One thing that has changed my Second Life activities has been my exploration of using Second Life as a platform for presenting the many photos and other digital art in Caledon. If you are in Second Life and your are not taking advantage of using it as a medium for creative expression then I think you are truly missing out on the potential of it for you and what you can experience in Second Life. Here are the slurls to my galleries in Caledon in Second Life:

Victorian House Slurl

The Victorian House Gallery has vintage photos from the Victorian era to the 1950's. These are some personal photos, venacular photos I have acquired and digital art. This could be defined as a museum of sorts.

Slurl to the Castle Gallery

I also recently acquired the Qork Memorial Gallery in Caledon Downs from Kitsuko Pelazzi with the promise that I would keep with the original plans for the gallery which was to make this a place where Caledon Residents could place real pictures of their homes. This Gallery is certainly open for that purpose, however I do intend to add some of my photos and art as well.

I am still interested in education in Second Life and looking around to see what is available for educators in virtual worlds, however an up coming job change may shift my focus from distance education to more traditional education delivery methods. In somewhat of a nostalgic mood I toured a few university sites last night and I am finding more interactive builds being developed than I saw last fall as I toured these sites.

I revisited St. Leo University:

Much can be said for a university which has online or distance education and the potential use of Second Life as social meeting or gathering place in addition to the learning activities of a course.

Elon University:

Both of the above photos illustrate art and creative design in Second Life through the activities of university students.

In my opinion university and business should partner in Second Life to provide enhanced learning opportunities for students and internships in working in a business.

Art presentation at Bowling Green State University:

A game at BGSU, an example of an activity which would engage students or other visitors at the site:

While I was at Elon University I came to the site where Science Friday holds their Second Life presentation:

I also visited a couple of Mexico Sims Last night. Being able to visit these in Second Life is the next best thing to being there:

Finally I took a few minutes to check out the fabulous College of DuPage Build ..I spent a few quick looking around an love this fabulous ship:

The changes in my life may or may not impact my activities in Second Life, however I am committed and enjoy the galleries in Caledon..that is one thing that won't change.