Implementations
Moodle ( moodle.com ), an open source e-learning platform, has partnered with Second Life in an integration project called Sloodle...
http://sloodle.com
This Adobe file describes Second Life as a new logic and presentation shell over existing data....
Putting a Second Life "Metaverse" Skin on Learning Management Systems
http://www.sloodle.com/whitepaper.pdf
Giving a PowerPoint Presentation in Second Life...
http://www.oreilly.com/pub/h/5239
Videos have been effectively used in Second Life, including full movies and streaming media...
http://secondlife.com/app/help/guides/streamingmedia.php
Requirements
Register for a free account with Second Life to obtain an avatar to interact with this virtual world. Cost occurs if you wish to purchase the virtual currency of Linden dollars or if you desire to be able to purchase or to purchase virtual land...
http://www.secondlife.com/join
The software is free and available for download...
http://secondlife.com/community/downloads.php
It is necessary to use a computer which has the minimum system requirements to use the Second Life software. Video graphic capabilities are especially important...
http://secondlife.com/corporate/sysreqs.php
Firewall configuration is required for Second Life software to function on a network...
http://secondlife.com/knowledgebase/article.php?id=029
Pricing
It is advisable to start small to begin with, starting out with an extra credit course perhaps. Permission to use virtual locations in Second Life on the NMC Campus may be requested from them. For regular use of a virtual location, renting land from NMC is 10 cents per square meter per year. This ranges from just $100 per year to about $800. New Media Consortium offers services to educational institutions...
http://virtualworlds.nmc.org/services
The building of a virtual campus in Second Life is but a small financial an investment for an educational institution. The first step is to purchase the land in Second Life. Cost for a small island of 65,536 square meters, which is approximately 16 acres, is currently $980.00 + $150.00 per month for usage fees. Thus, the cost from Linden Lab® is $2780.00 for the first year. Costs for additional years are less, which are about $1800.00. Please note that costs may be subject to change.
Pricing for land use in Second Life, mentioning discounts for real world educators, may be found on the Second Life website...
http://secondlife.com/community/land-islands.php
There are small, but cumulative, upload and download fees. Virtual items already created may also be purchased in Second Life far less expensively than their real life counterparts.
All pricing is subject to change without notice here.
Development
It will take approximately six weeks to obtain an island. During that time, ideas for the virtual campus may be refined. This is much like building a website. There are the related components of graphics, quality, and content. Costs for development vary depending on the scope of the virtual campus required and what is desired to be built there.
Once the scope for the virtual campus is defined, the project for the building of the virtual campus may be announced through the internet. Bids may be received from those desirous to take the project. There are various experience levels and differing skill sets for such in Second Life. Quality of developers' work may be evaluated by viewing their completed projects in Second Life.
Development costs for a virtual campus on an island usually range from $20,000 to $25,000 if done by a commercial firm. These costs are generally lower if done by a non-profit organization, approximately $15,000 to $20,000. Individual consultants can range dramatically in both skill and rate. Development costs are separate from and in addition to land pricing and usage fees.
It is recommended, therefore, that $25,000 be budgeted for costs to build a virtual campus in Second Life. The popularity of this interactive virtual environment will provide a fertile ground for higher enrollment and will economically justify the expense.
Events
Eye4You Alliance, on October 20th and 21st of 2007, hosted the 1st Annual Second Life Teen Grid College Fair. Colleges and universities received leads from prospective students at this event. Events, such as these, are intended to be scheduled for the future also.
Eye4You Alliance Blog
http://eye4youalliance.youthtech.info
First virtual college fair attracts almost 200 visitors over the weekend
from Second Life Network News
http://www.slnn.com/article/college-fair-followup
Pics of the SL Teen Grid College Fair
http://flickr.com/groups/eye4you/pool
Materials
Out on the Town: Book party for Second Life Herald editors
from SLNN.com
Where is computer technology going?
wellohorld.com
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In my conversation with futurist Jerry Paffendorf (SNOOPYbrown Zamboni in Second Life) at the November 2006 Metaverse meet in Brooklyn, I have come to understand that the future of metaverse may be expressed by the envisioned development and merge of technologies such as Second Life with Google Earth. With the exponential growth of technology, the worldwide virtual web will soon be here. This is referred to as the Metaverse.
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infinitevisionmedia.com
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I also had the privilege to meet Ron Blechner (Hiro Pendragon in Second Life). Ron quit his job as a Cellular Network Technician and started his own business of Out of Bounds Software as a full-time Second Life developer. From Ron, I obtained further insight of the wide scope and depth of real interaction that goes on in the virtual media of Second Life. He also raised the reminder that the one inevitability of the computer world is change.
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There appears to be only a mere hand's breadth yet for the software for Second Life to function also as a browser for the internet. From there, the door to the full rise of 3d virtual operating systems will be opened. This will lead the way to the internet itself to become a 3d virtual environment.
Metaverse Roadmap Overview
by Jamais Cascio, Jerry Paffendorf, and John Smart
http://www.metaverseroadmap.org/MetaverseRoadmapOverview.pdf
A study of developing trends moving to 3-D internet
from http://metaverseroadmap.org
The Future of the OS Wars
Windows? Linux? Mac OS? One day it won't matter.
by Erik Larkin (PC World Magazine, November 2006)
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,126856/article.html
The Future of You
Think the Net has changed your life? Wait until it becomes an immersive 3D environment--and it will.
by Mark Wallace (PC World Magazine, November 2006)
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,126861/article.html
continuing pages...
More Than a Game
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,126861-page,2-c,onlineentertainment/article.html
A New Means of Human Expression
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,126861-page,3-c,onlineentertainment/article.html
The 3PointD World
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,126861-page,4-c,onlineentertainment/article.html
Educators explore 'Second Life' online
http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/11/13/second.life.university/index.html
by Grace Wong (Special to CNN)
In addition to education, there are a rapidly growing number of businesses, news agencies, charities, and a widely-diverse number of interest groups active in Second Life. Virtual campuses are on the rise to face the changing worlds of education and computers. The world of tomorrow has arrived and it is virtual.
-Theodore Wright
Organizer for the New Jersey Metaverse Meetup
( contact e-mail: secondlife -at- dokimos -dot- org ).
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All rights reserved. No infringement is intended.
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