For the past few weeks I’ve been observing with detached interest the hype – and discussion about the hype – surrounding the Second Life virtual world application. From statistics that have been questionable for many months, to the non-stop “we’re first” publicity announcements by clueless advertising and marketing noobs, there’s a whole lot that’s being missed by people either generating the hype or focusing too much on it. Namely, whether it’s Second Life or Open Croquet or Multiverse or There or a future avatarized Google Earth or MS Virtual Earth or something not yet on our collective radars, the bottom line is that a three-dimensionally rendered interface is extraordinarily compelling and will be the way people access the internet in the near future. Which means that much of the current debate surrounding SL is worthless. And thankfully, someone in the mainstream media is saying as much.
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I’d scanned too quickly over the news of Adidas’ new store on BW (Link), so it was the breakdown on the Mass Customization blog (Link) that got me looking for something like… well… the video above. I was most interested in finding what the Mass Custom blog mentioned in the following:

A large glossy, black cube is the focal point of the center. Here, customers can customize their own “mi adidas”, using now a larger flat-screen configurator to alter the details of the shoes by simply pointing a finger to the screen. Laser and infra-red technology then translate the gestures into commands.

That sounds somewhat like the customization system that Reebok (acquired by and now a part of Adidas) is using inside the Second Life virtual world (reLink). I suppose we should once again be on the lookout for a link between a virtual customization tool and a real one; to my knowledge, the Nike iD-NBA 2k6 one never materialized.

By way of traffic being sent here from a post over on the MIT Advertising Lab blog, I made my way over to a short article on Fortune titled “A factory of one’s own” (Link) which discusses the future of manufacturing and the growth in personal fabrication. Nothing really new, but still worth a read (all news on personal fabrication is good news at this stage). I’d also suggest reading the AdLab post (Link) as it includes a portion of an essay that carries this into areas about which I frequently post: the intersection of this technology with business. I like the way advertising is called out as a layer of meta-data sitting on top of the truly necessary information; and as such how it could be easily discarded. There’s plenty to consider and plenty to discuss. Hopefully we’ll see more coverage in the press and in the blogosphere.

Just caught an interesting little interview with Guni Greenstein (RL name: Guni Graef), husband and business partner of Second Life’s Anshe Chung (RL name: Ailin Graef), over on Reuters/Second Life (Link). The part that most caught my attention was this:

No, we are not worried about tax implications since we fully report our revenues to the local tax authorities.
…
Yes, our business is based in China. We went to a developing area and invest heavily in training. We are also lucky to find an administration that is more experienced with virtual-world economies than in Germany.

I’m curious what the difference is in taxes between China and Germany. I’m also wondering if there are other people starting to consider officially moving their virtual businesses offshore. Good time of year to be visiting some islands.

I’ve been feeling like I could use some off-the-wall inspiration, so coming across an entry on WMMNA about a short film called “Metalosis Maligna” (Link) was just what the doctor ordered. It’s not especially good, but it’s short, kinda quirky, and it reminded me of another flick I really like. So now I need to rent a copy of “Tetsuo, The Iron Man“. It’s been way too long since I’ve seen that crazy-ass flick.

{Update: By accident I came across the introduction to Tetsuo on iFilm. For anyone who’s unfamiliar with this movie, this might give you a sense of why so many people (including myself) find it so interesting. Enjoy… but fair warning. It’s not for the squeemish.