SecondLife
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The VR successor to 'Second Life' is now in public beta
Sansar, the VR platform by Second Life creator Linden Lab, is now available for everyone to explore. The public "creator beta" follows a private "creator preview," which allowed developers and aspiring level designers to try Sansar's building tools. That period was crucial given, like Second Life, Linden Lab is banking on the community to populate Sansar with interesting experiences. Today, there are "hundreds" of places to explore, including museums, theaters and tropical temples. Some are virtual postcards, while others have games and stories inside them. Everything is free to try too, whether you're playing on a PC, Oculus Rift or HTC Vive.
Second Life's creator is building a 'WordPress for social VR'
None of this is real. The rocks, the stars, the enormous transmitter standing upright like a needle. It's all a mixture of pixels presented by the Oculus Rift. As I stand on Mars, I urge my senses to surrender to the illusion. I long to be Matt Damon, growing potatoes in a makeshift greenhouse. In reality, I'm standing in a "scene" created by Linden Lab for Sansar, a new virtual-reality platform. A few feet to my left is chief executive Ebbe Altberg, standing in a dinosaur outfit. His avatar waves goofily, breaking my dream within a dream. I can't help but sigh, accepting once more that I'm just a virtual sightseer.
'Second Life' removes support for Oculus Rift
When Second Life patched in support for the Oculus Rift, Linden Lab was cautious to pitch its online world as a haven for virtual reality. "We're trying not to make too big of a deal out of it," Linden Lab CEO Ebbe Altberg said in 2014. "It's still early." That beta support went through several iterations over the years -- but now it's gone. Earlier this month, Linden Lab removed VR support from Second Life, and the company can't say when or if it will be back. The problem? It just wasn't good enough.
Engadget Daily: the evolution of Second Life, taxi-hailing apps and more!
Today, we take an in-depth look at taxi-hailing apps like Uber and Lyft, explore the world of Android Wear, ponder the evolution of Second Life and investigate Aaron Swartz's path from internet activist to martyr. Read on for Engadget's news highlights from the last 24 hours.
Second Life's second act will be a social network for virtual reality
Eight years ago, I was slouching through my college's required mass-media course and silently groaning while my professor excitedly mapped out the promises of Second Life. That online virtual world, where players create items, clothes, buildings and more for actual sale, would replace the internet, she told us, and render the humble web page as outmoded as the Xerox machine. Her enthusiasm wasn't unwarranted for the time: The first user to earn a million dollars on Second Life had just been featured in Businessweek, and Reuters had assigned a full-time reporter to cover that digital frontier. Ebbe Altberg, CEO of Second Life-maker Linden Lab, admits the press' overblown expectations didn't match up with the early realities of the service. "There was this impression that it under-delivered," he says, speaking from the company's San Francisco office. "It was sort of unfairly overhyped and then got the backlash of the under-hype."
NSA reportedly infiltrated Xbox Live and World of Warcraft in hunt for terrorists
According to documents leaked by Edward Snowden and brought to light today by The Guardian, the NSA has been monitoring online gaming communities since 2008 and has even been sending real-life agents into online RPGs posing as players. Xbox Live was apparently one of the biggest services to be targeted, while World of Warcraft and Second Life also came under some degree of scrutiny. It's not totally clear why the NSA, along with its UK equivalent the GCHQ, thought such operations were necessary, but there seems to have been a general sense that online games could be used as communication hubs by evil-doers, as well as some evidence that Hezbollah had developed its own game for the purpose of recruitment. None of the leaked files suggest that the agent-avatars caught any terrorists, even though undercover operations were apparently so numerous that, at one point, an NSA analyst called for a "deconfliction group" to be set up to prevent the agency's personnel from inadvertently spying on each other. Meanwhile, Microsoft and Linden Labs have refused to comment, but Blizzard Entertainment has said it was unaware of any surveillance taking place in World of Warcraft and certainly has never granted any permission for its players to be observed. The Guardian says it'll publish the relevant files later today, in partnership with the New York Times and ProPublica. Update: We asked Microsoft how this happened, and a spokesperson told us that Redmond wasn't aware of any surveillance activity. "If it occurred as has been reported, it certainly wasn't done with our consent."
South Korea plans trial run of robot prison guards
This isn't the first time we've seen a prison turn to robots for a little assistance, but South Korea looks to be going a bit further than most with its latest robotic endeavor. The country's Ministry of Justice has announced that it will be conducting a one-month trial run of robot guards at a prison in the city of Pohang starting in March -- a project that's expected to cost one billion won (or about $863,000). "The robots are not terminators," as the university professor in charge of the endeavor told The Wall Street Journal, but rather monitors that will patrol the corridors of the jail and alert the human guards if they detect any unusual activity. Inmates will also be able to use the robots to communicate with the guards, and the folks behind the bots are apparently doing their best to keep things from turning into too much of a dystopian future -- they're now said to working on making the robots appear more "humane and friendly."
G-Tec Intendix brain-computer interface ready for consumers (video)
If you've seen G-Tec's thought control cap being used to control a Second Life avatar, play a game of Pong, or make music in an orchestral setting, you probably wondered when the thing would become available for less frivolous pursuits (to help the disabled communicate, for starters). Well, it looks like that day is close at hand: With the brand name Intendix, the €9000 (about $12,250) brain-computer interface gives you everything you need to send text messages with brain activity alone via EEG cap. According to the company, most people achieve five to ten characters per minute the first time they use the thing, with some folks eventually typing as fast as 1 character per second. In addition to text messages, the system can also be used to trigger an alarm, send email, or send commands to external devices. There's no word on a shipping date yet, but we did thoughtfully provide that Second Life demo for you after the break.
PlayStation Home full of immature jokers, unlike other virtual communities
It's not been a good month for Sony. Layoffs, poor holiday sales for the PS3 and a wee bit of hacking over at PlayStation Home surely have the electronics giant hungry for some good press, which has made the newest PR kerfuffle over at the nascent online service quite unfortunate. According to Ars Technica, Home has become something akin to the nightmare futurescape of The Warriors, a service "incredibly unwelcoming to women, with female players quickly mobbed as players dance around them or type sexual come-ons... a disturbing look at the worst part of human nature." This is heady stuff, but as the company is quick to point out, the thing is still in Beta, and it's still evolving -- hopefully, as it becomes more popular the free service will move itself out of the adolescent ghetto. In the mean time, they've been rocking a bit of good old fashioned censorship, banning words like "gay," "Jew," and "Hell" -- perfectly understandishable if you've ever spent a minute on any online gaming service, but highly uncool if you're trying to build any sort of inclusive social network. In the meantime, what's a homosexual Jewish Satanist to do? There's always Second Life...
Google goes MMO-ish with Lively
Google's takeover of every corner of the Web continues today with a public beta of Lively, an MMO-style social networking browser plug-in. Users create a personalized avatar and gather in custom-designed rooms to walk around, chat and perform scripted animations. It's not a game per se, but users have already started turning their rooms into virtual versions of games like chess and various role-playing scenarios.As the community evolves, you can expect Lively to evolve into a sort of Second Life-style do-anything space, with a wide array of self-styled gaming areas. The question remains: Is Google staking its claim to the future of social gaming, or is it just another Johnny-come-lately in the newest social networking fad?[Via Massively]
Intel wastes our time and yours with SL and WoW clients for MIDs
Don't get ahead of us here, Intel isn't building full-featured Second Life and World of Warcraft apps for handheld Mobile Internet Devices. Instead they're using a new "Interactive 3D Streaming" tech to control and view the game remotely -- similar to some to that Telekinesis app we saw playing WoW on the iPhone last year, but Intel seems to be much further along. Their Xeon 5400 server can handle 14 clients simultaneously, but we're guessing this won't be cost effective for Blizzard anytime soon -- though we can imagine quite a few addicts rigging up similar systems for themselves. The sad news here is that Intel might've just discovered the best use for a MID yet.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
TurpsterVision: Why do we fall, sir?
Every Wednesday think "That is a day late!" and take the "T" from "That" for Turpster and take the "a" in "day", capitalise it, remove the little bit in the middle, turn it upside down and you get a "V". Put the two together and you'll have TV for TurpsterVision -- the best Internet video podcast on Massively! (Never mind that business about it being the only video podcast on Massively...)In answer to the title of this week's episode, apparently it isn't so that we might better learn to pick ourselves up, it's because it is crazy fun! (Ed: Simple things Turpster, simple things.) After last week's trouncing I decided I would have to find a friendlier bunch of gamers to have a laugh with and try to have an insight on what playing their game is like. What I found surprised me. I wasn't expecting to see what I saw, the love and affection that these people give out, to complete strangers half the time, of all different shapes and cup sizes, it really warms the heart.Sure they get a lot of grief from gamers, mostly for it being a game, or for the amount of adults-only content continually poked at by the media. But I am not here to judge, I am here to review (Ed: Turpster, judge is a synonym for review.) On with the video! (Ed: Turpster, who is Ed? Aren't you just typing in brackets completely off topic?)
Linden Lab honored as top democratic workplace
The face of business is changing daily. Long past are the days of the ego-driven business model, as organizational democracy rises up through the ashes of the last five years in business. So WorldBlu, Inc., an Atlanta-based business specializing in organizational democracy and freedom-centered leadership, recently compiled an unranked list of the "Top 25 Most Democratic Workplaces". Among those on this list is Second Life's Linden Lab.It is reported that employees of Linden Lab are encouraged to choose their own work based on company objectives, which can be changed weekly. In addition, employees can show appreciation for each other by "sending love" through their Love Machine software application. Important company data is openly shared among all employees throughout the company in real-time, allowing a more open environment for sharing ideas and concepts.
Hands Free 3D enables your movements to control Second Life avatar
Using 3D cameras in order to let humans control interfaces by simply moving about is old hat, but for those sick and tired of being strapped to a mouse / keyboard in Second Life, take a glance at this. Hands Free 3D is a prototypical system that gives addicts members of the virtual realm the ability to walk, jump, fly and interact by simply gesturing in front of a PC-connected camera designed by 3DV Systems. Currently, it doesn't seem like this solution is on the fast track to release or anything, but we have a sneaking suspicion they aren't demoing this stuff for kicks and giggles. Peek the video right after the break.
The future of VastPark looks bright
Sandbox virtual worlds are becoming the newest thing these days following the success of Second Life and the anticipated success of Metaplace, but VastPark has recently announced a partnership with a few companies that will serve to improve their spot among the ranks. First there was the agreement they signed with NICTA, Australia's Information and Communications Technology Research Center, and now they've formed a relationship with TurboSquid to access their catalog of over 195,000 3D models. This combined with the announcement that they'll be running their virtual economy through Twofish's economic Element engine.What's this mean for the players? It means a much more flexible economic system where you are in control of your own currencies, the value of your goods and the management of your markets. This basically means that each player-created world will have it's own economy. VastPark founder and CEO Bruce Joy explained, "This is a new step in bringing economic power to the masses. We also see it as a fundamental way for us to build value in our platform, as it allows for the creation of realistic, responsive and highly customizable virtual worlds."
Samsung brings Second Life to smartphones
For every story we post about Second Life's various troubles, there's always another story about one company or another arriving late to the SL bandwagon. So, following up our news of Phillip Rosedale's resignation as CEO, we have word that Samsung will be including technology to run Second Life on its line of smartphones.The technology is being shown off at the CTIA wireless event this week in Las Vegas, and will allow users to access the 3D world of Second Life, as well as communicate with in-game avatars via text and SMS. The application is due to launch on Samsung phones running Softboard software in the second half of this year. Huzzah?[Via GayGamer]
Second Life CEO stepping down, remaining active in development
Linden Lab's CEO Philip Rosedale, the man behind Second Life, told Reuters today that he'll be stepping down from his position and the company will seek someone with more management expertise to replace him. Rosedale will become chairman of the Linden Lab board when a successor is found and he'll stay active at the company in product development and strategy.Rosedale's replacement will be tasked with regaining the momentum that Second Life once had when it was the hip thing for academics and business journalists to write and talk about. Although nothing is expected to be announced in the next year, Bill Gurley of Bechmark Capital believes the company could go public "at some point in the future."[Via Massively, GameDaily]
WeGame records their way into my heart
Having to find quality Machinima for two blog posts daily can be torture. Most people won't spring for a paid copy of Fraps or gamecam, so I'm stuck looking at watermarks. That's almost an instant disqualification for consideration.Enter WeGame, which would be just like any other video sharing site if it didn't have one major difference. They offer free, easy to use recording software to their users. As a matter of fact, it's so simple that I was able to record six quick videos, review them, and choose one to upload within 30 minutes of downloading the program. I'm getting ahead of myself, though.Read on after the jump to find out more about WeGame ...
Emmy awards given to Nintendo DS, Wii and ... Atari Lynx?
Last year's inexplicable granting of an Emmy Award to practically every game system ever invented apparently went so well that the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS) decided to dip its toes into gaming again this year. Last night's Engineering Emmy Awards ceremony at CES included a bevy of awards for "Engineering & Technology for Creation and Implementation of Video Games and Platforms." Just trips off the tongue, doesn't it?The most notable winner was Nintendo, which got a coveted "game controller innovation" Emmy for its Wii and DS systems (because, really, why narrow it down to one? Since when have awards been about exclusivity?). Nintendo won a similar award for the NES d-pad last year, and used the repeat performance to talk up "even more exciting control innovations from Nintendo in 2008," such as Wii Balance Board and the Wii Wheel, in a press release. Color us skeptical that either of these will have the impact of the d-pad, but still ...The other game-related awards given were notable mainly for their expansive view of video game history. Recent games like Second Life and World of Warcraft shared billing in their wins with classics like Quake and Pinball Construction Set in this year's awards. That's cool and all, but ATAS really showed its old-school gamer cred by giving a "Handheld Game Device Display Screen Innovation" award to the Atari Lynx, of all things. Way to keep up with the times, TV industry. Hey, how about, at our next awards show, we return the favor by giving special awards to All in The Family and "Color TV," the latter for "outstanding use of color in a cathode ray tube device." Wouldn't you all feel special then?We'd also like to call out "The Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Advanced Media Technology for Best Use of Commercial Advertising on Stand-Alone Broadband Devices (Personal Computers)," which should win its own award for "most amazingly specific award category in the history of mankind."A complete list of 2007's game-related Emmy's below the break.
Cinemassively: NooB - Episode 01
When a new resident arrives in Second Life, he meets an equally clueless girl. Together, they figure out how to fly, but when he loses her in the sky, he begins to worry. His adventures take him to a club, where he is tricked into looking stupid, then to the home of a griefer, where he is imprisoned. Will he be able to escape? Who is that strange lady and what does she want with him? What happened to the girl he first met? I really hope that there's an episode 02 to answer these questions!NooB is the SL Machinima that I've been waiting for. It's smart, witty, and informative. They even manage to fit in advertising! While I can tell that the UI is on, but covered up, it's not as obvious as many others. I do have to warn you that there is some strong language on occasion, however it's not that bad. My only actual complaint is that they used the word "first" to describe it.
