Via the 3pointD weblog (Link) which was apparently aware of it but didn’t blog it until Micro Persuasion mentioned it (Link), I learned about Starwood’s project to have the Electric Sheep build a virtual hotel inside Second Life. You can visit the development blog and follow along with the process if you want – Link.

When I read about it yesterday the first thing that came to my mind was an earlier entry I posted (reLink) discussing Starwood and the way they were realigning their business thinking. That entry includes a link to a video interview with Starwood’s CEO, so you might want to hear what he has to say. Consequently, it’s no surprise to me that it’s Starwood breaking this virtual ground. You can almost see the lines of connection between user experience-focused companies, mass-customization technologies and virtual development. Some companies are going to leap ahead (like Starwood, imo) and some are going to continue on their old paths… to their detriment.

{Update: C|Net has a gallery of images for this project (Link)}

{Image Copyright © 2006 Electric Sheep Company}

I’ve wanted to post this link to an entry on the Mass Custom blog for over a week now. The entry caught my attention because it reports that the crowd-sourcing model of Threadless has been modified by Look-Zippy in a way that reminded me of an earlier post of mine (reLink) which, for anyone who missed it, is one of the more popular entries I’ve written. So if you’re into mass-customization of products, virtual product development and the intriguing business possibilities that are beginning to emerge, I suggest you head over and read the entry on the Mass Custom blog (Link).

I caught a post last night on Brands in Games (Link) that made me smile. Apparently some modders have embedded the original DOOM videogame into the more recent Doom3 game using some embedded interactive surfaces stuff (don’t ask me, I’ve only looked at the pretty pictures… for now).

Of course games inside games isn’t new. The guy apparently most responsible for this effort, Bernd Kreimeier, admits this. Tringo was actually coded “inside” the Second Life virtual world, so it’s actually gone beyond this already. But this latest effort reminded me of a previous thread of mine on the Core77 forum suggesting designers should be using videogames for real world interactive design problem-solving (reLink).

Imagine creating a virtual office and in it a virtual computer. On that computer is some software like the open source vCrib application I mentioned earlier (reLink). Good so far. Okay, so while inside that virtual space using the virtual computer to run the embedded vCrib app, the real world is affected by the subvirtual application. Sounds like a way for a designer to put him/herself into the role of a typical office worker running vCrib to manage devices at home (because, of course, the designer sees the real world effects).

Maybe the idea will catch on as people doing these sorts of things get more exposure and attention. One thing for sure: seeing these images makes me want to go back to modeling high-rez objects.

{Image Copyright © 2005 Bernd Kreimeier}

I caught this over the weekend: New Scientist reports (Link) on Lockheed Martin’s “Skunk Works” group developing a rapid-prototyped parts unmanned aircraft. Needless to say this couldn’t be more at the center of what I blog here – UCAV’s are a big component in some defense department transreality work (see one of my earlier posts on this: reLink).

From the article:

The Skunk Works thinks a technique called 3D rapid prototyping, or “3D printing”, is the best way to lower costs.
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The technique is widely used in industry to make prototype parts – to see if, for instance, they are the right shape and thickness for the job in hand. Now the strength of parts printed this way has improved so much that they can be used as working components.

About 90 per cent of Polecat is made of composite materials with much of that material made by rapid prototyping.
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The Polecat is also a test bed for autonomous guidance technology, which allows it to do everything from take-off to reconnaissance and landing without the remote guidance of a ground pilot.

Interesting (and maybe scary) stuff.

Here’s an interesting bit from the WorldCAD blog (Link). It appears that thoughts are turning toward creating a bridge between Google spreadsheets and SketchUp. For the few of you who caught some comments of mine over on Clickable Culture explaining PLM (Link) some time ago, this should turn on some lightbulbs. This is worth keeping an eye on. I imagine Google would like nothing more than to be at the core of a new entry into the PLM market.