A Day in the Second Life of a Grid Explorer

Blue Galaxy (moderate)

You probably didn't notice but, no, I did not post here yesterday.  I was inworld and it was one of those visits where I encountered many aspects of the "charm" of Second Life that make you either laugh or grab the nearest weapon and aim it at your computer.  I'll explain in a bit.

First let me tell you that today's photos are of Blue Galaxy - a really cool "open role play" island with some of the best terrain and landscape I've seen.  Instead of suggesting one windlight setting, the owner provides multiples and assigns them to different times of day - all of them are worth trying.  The settings are available from Torley Linden if you don't already have them.

The sim has a pretty high traffic count and I saw a  few groups of happy role players while I was there - it's a very evocative design and lends itself to lots of different stories.  The number one rule is "Don't Be A Dick".  I fell in love with it. :)

Blue Galaxy (moderate)

My primary goal yesterday was to go see the inworld screening of My Avatar and Me - a film that has been mentioned by a few people lately.

Seeing that the screening was at the top of the Destination Guide I decided I should get there early.  I relogged a few times first though to try and get rid of my ongoing problems teleporting - getting logged out every time you click on a tp is not fun if you're trying to explore, never mind aiming for something specific.  Second Life finally decided to cooperate with me on changing locations however the price I had to pay was an absence of names for anybody in chat or profiles and I had no ability to initiate im's.  "Fine" I thought, "how much trouble could that cause?"

Blue Galaxy (moderate)

I met a brand new resident when I arrived.   Nice guy and I started to help him with a few things when suddenly some large pink boxes started knocking people around.  It's been a long time since I had experienced a griefer.  A short green troll avatar was having a lovely time messing with everybody so I AR'd him.  Then he pulled out a machine gun and started shooting the survivors as they managed to crawl back onto the patio where they'd been chatting before his arrival.  I AR'd him again and said something to that effect in chat - then I had to assure another guy that I hadn't reported him and that's not why he was pushed into the ocean.  If you're confused believe me I was too.  Remember, I couldn't see any names in chat so I didn't know who was accusing me except I was pretty sure it wasn't the troll.

I tried telling the newbie that it wasn't always this dramatic on the grid.  I think he believed me.

The troll then did something really strange - he sent me a friend request and sat down next to us.  Huh?  He kept insisting he didn't realize his actions were bad but somebody had made him wear something and he was innocent.  Right.  I had to go run errands and told him to behave (I sound more and more like my grandmother everyday).  When I came back he was running around with pink boxes and guns of course. Puberty is very hard on the young.

Izzy Linden appeared and (after removing a number of transparent boxes the troll was using as shields) got rid of the little brat.  Thanks Izzy! :)

Blue Galaxy (moderate)

We all finally found the place where we were going to watch the movie - there was a main theatre for the VIP's and some mirror sites for the rest of us.  Bryn Oh sent over popcorn, which was nice, and we all took our seats.  Then the movie started.

I've never had any trouble with streaming media before but, of course, it wouldn't work for me on this occasion.  I tried logging off and on and even reinstalled QuickTime.  That worked for one person but not me.  About half of us could see the film perfectly.  The rest of us did without sound and video that was like a series of random still photographs.  The good news is that the movie had subtitles so I could sort of follow the plot through them and the comments of the other audience members.  Based on what I did see I recommend you try and watch it yourself.  I know I'm going to look for another opportunity - maybe when my run of glitches is over. :)

Today I have 4 things I really need/want to do in Second Life.  Unfortunately they overlap and so my life from 2 til 10 slt could be a little crazy.  It would be helpful, oh Technology Gods, if I could tp and im and if I had any idea who it was I was talking to.  Work on that will you?

Don't forget I need your help with my SL8B project.  I'll sacrifice a troll for you!

Blue Galaxy (moderate)