A couple of weeks ago I posted an entry (reLink) regarding Clay Shirky’s rant about the fuzzy numbers being thrown about by both the mainstream media and Linden Lab. While I wasn’t clear about it then, my feeling about his rant was – or should have been – evident in my focus on his example for why something like the “metaverse” will always be the great idea that never materializes (pun intended). It was good to have the hype called out at that level, but the manner and tone of the piece seemed all wrong to me.
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Category Archives: Administrative
Custom Interiors for Three Rings
Check out the above interior design work for videogame development company Three Rings. I found that and other photos on the Because We Can blog (Link), which is maintained by the people who did the work. Cool stuff and worth checking out.
The other thing I found of interest while surfing through was a separate post on the BWC blog (Link) in which they mention using Blender, the open source 3D modeler, for some of their work (not a lot, but some). In particular, I was unaware that a sculpting plug-in ala ZBrush was in the works for Blender. Good to know.
{Image Copyright © Because We Can, LLC }
Year of the Avatar
I recall last year that some people made predictions that 2006 would be the “Year of the Avatar”, and while I considered that a possibility, I wasn’t as comfortable with that prediction as I am with someone saying that 2007 will instead be the year; that 2006 laid the groundwork for mass adoption. The argument is simple: average people are becoming increasingly educated to the term and how it’s being applied, so it’s not a foreign concept to a much larger number of people. There have been magazine covers showing avatars (including the one I sometimes mention: Anshe Chung). In addition, there has been the growth in popularity of most virtual world platforms as broadband continues to penetrate the market. Habbo Hotel is doing well I hear. Second Life has certainly received a significant amount of press. And even regular videogame avatars are now seen as something more than mere game characters and more as extensions of our real life selves (recall the “WoW is the new golf” quote). All that in mind, it’s worth reading a story I caught last week, “Why is Japan crazed over Avatar?” (Link). Here’s one clip from early in the piece: Continue reading
Revver Find: HorrorPops
I’ve mentioned Revver previously (reLink) and how I like the business model that allows content creators/owners to get something for their effort, well I was browsing through the site yesterday and stumbled upon an indie label band that I thought I’d share. The Copenhagen-based outfit, HorrorPops, who are signed to the Epitaph-spawned Hellcat Records, wraps up a number of sounds – from Siouxsie Sioux vocals to Stray Cats rockabilly – in a retro-goth package that reminds me of my visits to B-Ware Video back when I lived in Cleveland.
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VATSIM: More Than Flights of Fancy
Early last week C|Net’s virtual news/real reporter Daniel Terdiman wrote a nice piece on VATSIM, “Into the wild blue virtual yonder” (Link). As I was under a deadline crunch I didn’t post anything about it but also noticed that most other virtual world-centric blogs I frequent didn’t mention it either. However, I did catch that Terra Nova had an entry (Link), and was hoping that it would spark some conversation. Unfortunately only two people (me being one of them) posted a comment on the TN site. I’m unsure why this isn’t getting more attention, the article has plenty of goodies related to hot button topics that get people posting and commenting.
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