Moo Money
Waco, TX - http://moomoney.wordpress.com
moo Money works in Second Life full-time as a Machinimist for hire, and virtual journalist.
I'm going to miss Second Life Insider
I'd been a reader of Second Life Insider for quite some time when I heard that Akela Talamasca was looking for me. I couldn't quite understand why he'd want ME to write for this blog. I'm still not sure what he saw in me, but now I feel like I'm part of the family.These last nine months have been so enriching for me, but like Akela, it's time to move on. I promised myself that I wouldn't cry, but I'm just so sad to go. I wish I could tell you more, but that's for another post. For now, just know that I'll be taking this massive opportunity to provide you with even better coverage of the things that you love. I'm pouring some liquor out for you, SLI.
Resident Opinion Survey - How would you answer?
I've been reading about the resident survey that Linden Lab has been randomly sending to Second Life residents via their client. I was surprised to find it on my screen the other day. It asked the question, "Is your Second Life experience getting better or worse?"The brown noser in me immediately wanted to answer "better", but when I thought about it, it hasn't gotten any better. As you can see by my answer on the right, I chose the simple response that the grid seems to be buckling under the large amount of logins. I don't know if this is the real cause of the problems, but we've had more inventory loss, texture issues, and transfer problems than ever.
Did you receive the survey? How did you/would you answer? Leave a comment!
Encoding video can be scary, but it doesn't have to be
While it's Halloween and we're embracing our fears, I'd like to chat about encoding video. When you look at all the setting choices that you have, it can be downright intimidating. I recently had the chance to speak with the wonderful Machinimist extraordinaire, Paul Marino, about this very topic and he set me straight.There are a couple of programs that you can use to encode SL-friendly Machinima. The first being Quicktime Pro. It runs roughly 30 USD and gives you some quick and easy options. Since I'm running the Ed Wood Festival this year, I'm using it to re-encode every video in Quicktime MOV H.264 compression with AAC 48khz, Stereo, 160kbps audio.
Another handy program is something that Frank Dellario, ILLBixby Cerveau of the ILL Clan, recommend. It's called Super C, because it has the copyright symbol after Super. It's totally free, but can be daunting because of the sheer amount of options in it. It also has a hard to find download link, so keep your eye out for it.
Do you have a program you'd like to recommend, or specific settings that you like to use? Leave a comment!
Halloween freebies and cheapies
I love holidays. So many awesome designers release freebies. I've collected the locations and info of some of them for you. Most are available through the end of today, so get busy!Freebies:
- Refuge - Freebie Halloween tee and Radiant Ruthie costume
- The Body Politik - Freebie Sculptie Witches Hat
- Little Rebel - Freebie Halloween tee
- Skin 2.0 - Freebie skin
- Canimal - Free Halloween HUD frames. To get them, join the Canimal group and it will be in the notices.
- Stellar Designs - Free Halloween layered tee
- AQUA - Free Pumpkin Pie Schoolgirl costume as part of a pumpkin hunt.
- Violet Voltaire - Free Spider Cameo Set
- Battered Boudoir - Free Halloween Lingerie
- Sae Luan - 12 Limited Edition freebies in Haunted House
- DEKA Designs - Free Halloween Outfit
- Sinistyle - Undead Inside tee
- Adam n Eve - Free Halloween eyes
- Port Seraphine - Pumpkins stuffed with goodies are hidden around the sim.
- Minnu Model Skins - Free male and female Halloween-themed skins
Cheapies:
- Nicky Ree - 50L Halloween Web Dress
- Alienbear Gupte - 25L per pumpkin, each containing a piece of jewelry, with 20 pumpkins in all. This is a scavenger hunt.
- Here Comes Trouble - 50% off of all costumes today.
- Catalyst - 10L Ribbed Vertigo dress in orange.
- Caliente Express - Halloween sale
- Total Betty's - 1L Trick or Treat Nightie Set
- Gritty Kitty - 1L Witch Hat & Scarf
- Tete a Pied - 50% off of the Drow, Gothique, and Marie skins
- Corduroy - 1L each Halloween leggings (Haver, Sera, and Mina)
- Lico Lico - There's an entire section with kickass freebies and cheapies!
- artilleri - Halloween Hunt - Each skull is 1L and contains a variety of artilleri items in orange.
Fashion quad closed for several days
You'll have to wait a few days to get your fashion fix from the quad. Canimal Zephyr, Ginny Talamasca, Elikapeka Tiramisu, and Starley Thereian recently announced that they have closed their islands for several days, citing personal reasons. The islands affected are Canimal, Dazzle, ETD Isle, and Celestial City.The announcements all came in at the same time, so I hope that everything is okay. They have asked that you respect their decision. Come back to us soon, guys.
An evening of beauty at Tete a Pied
I'm slightly late in getting this out, but there's still time for you to participate! Roslin Petion, of Tete a Pied, is hosting a special group-only event tonight, October 30th, at 7pm PDT/SLT. If you're a reader of the Second Style blog, you'll have noticed that Grazia Horwitz has been flaunting her custom skin from Tete for the last few days!Now you can have your very own custom skin from Tete. Have you ever liked the eyes, cheeks, and lips on different skins? Tonight only, if you're wearing your group tag, you can mix and match components, or add freckles and beauty marks, for the low price of 1200L per skin.
On another awesome note, TaP marked down some of their skins for Halloween. Their Drow, Gothique, and Marie skins are 50% off until November 1st
Secondcast is no more
Back when I was a wee newblet (the second time around), Secondcast was the Second Life podcast to listen to. Since that time, almost two years ago, they've recorded 63 total episodes, of which only about 13 of them were in the last nine months. One fifth of the cast, Lordfly Digeridoo, recently pronounced Secondcast dead, after months of inactivity.While I can't speak for them, I can speak as someone who has been on the show four or five times, with the latest being an episode that never aired in July. I heard the tone of the program change before me. What was once a fun project ended up taking a backseat to their own personal projects. Walker Spaight wrote a book, Johnny Ming and Torrid Midnight went to work for the Electric Sheep Company, Lordfly Digeridoo for Millions of Us, among others, and Cristiano Midnight busy as ever with SL Universe.
Instead of focusing on the fact that it's gone, though, I'd rather relate a happy memory I have from the show. After having been on a couple of times, Johnny asked me to make an episode into a Machinima. It turned into a total disaster. The rest of the cast was really bored and did not hide that fact. They goofed off when I needed screenshots, then got cranky before they were to watch all the Machinima.
Read on for the rest of the story ...
CNN coming to Second Life
According to MEDIAWEEK, during the week of November 5th, CNN will be putting a new spin on an old idea. Instead of embedding a reporter in Second Life, they will be having the residents do all of the work. However, instead of submitting tips to existing blogs, the news will actually come from the residents.In order to prepare our fair citizens for their duties, they will be handing out kits, allowing them to send stories and photos. In addition, they will be offering weekly "news meetings" and training sessions, led by CNN.com staffs, and even Larry King himself! Furthermore, you'll be able to read the news on kiosks throughout the grid.
I wonder if it will consist more of real life or Second Life news? I guess we'll find out next week!
UPDATE: I just spoke with a Director of Public Relations at CNN Worldwide and she clarified some things for me. While it's a possibility that Larry King and other on-air personalities will be in SL, plans have not been finalized in this matter. She also stated that the reports will be 100% user-generated in-world i-Reports.
Exclusive preview of Real Life game
In all seriousness, I think "Log off now!" is a catchphrase that's here to stay for a long time. While I thought that CSI:NY and Electric Sheep Company did a great job with the episode, it was hard to resist mocking them in a fun way. Just remember that if SL becomes too much for you, you can always give RL a go!
A tiny showdown of epic proportions
It was a day like any other when Kyro Kilian, proprietor of Tardimals, decided to finally meet his competitor, Wynx Whiplash, of Extrovirtual. Only it wasn't just any day. It was her birthday.Having seen Wynx as online, he decided to head to Raglan Shire, home of the tinies, to "size" up her business. When his group arrived, they were greeted by birthday cake, a DJ, and many dancing critters. After reading her his sales pitch and giving her an avatar, there was nothing left to do but dance.
Surprisingly, she took it all in stride. Much fun was had by all. Happy Birthday, Wynx!
Gallery: Tiny Showdown
California wildfires - Is everyone okay?
As a former resident of three of the seven counties burning in Southern California, I have been worried sick about my real life friends. Then a disturbing thought crossed my mind. There are Second Lifers in Socal too.I only know of a few Second Life residents in the area, but I'm sure there are many more than that. Was your area evacuated? Were you allowed to return? More importantly, are you OKAY? Please leave a comment to let your virtual friends and family know that you're alright. I'll bet I'm not the only one worried for your safety.
Teen Grid College Fair a huge success
Machinima Guru, my Teen Grid alter ego, stopped by the College Fair on Sunday. It brought me back to the days when I had to wander around the smelly gym of my rival high school picking up pamphlets as I went along. Technology sure has come far! Storm Basiat, the dedicated teen manager for Eye4You, was waiting to send me a port as soon as I logged in.When I arrived, I was greeted by two of the most adorable astronauts I've ever seen! I was able to listen to a few speeches before I had to log off. One of them, as presented by Daniel Voyager, was for TSL Greeters. When asked for comment, attendee Reallife Orca, of Digital Refinery, noted that "It was interesting to see all of the colleges who showed up, I was just a bit let down that no trade schools came out."
I grabbed pictures of everything I saw, but was really dismayed to find that I was unable to donate to the TG College Fund for some reason. If you would like to help, you can send your donations to Bluewings Hayek on the Main Grid. For a full write-up of the Fair from Storm, check out SLNN.
Gallery: Teen Grid College Fair
Chopsaw sculpted furniture is modulated furniture at it's finest
When I first stumbled onto this furniture, I couldn't believe how realistic it looked. It comes in 13 "flavors" - Apple, Lettuce, Marshmallow, Blueberry, Grape, Wine, Cherry, Licorice, Chocolate, Robotfood, Nougat, CottonCandy, and Skyberry - that correspond to their color. I'm not sure what skyberry or robotfood tastes like, but I'm sure they're fantastic!
Chopsaw, named after the mainland sim it's located at, is the collaboration of sculptie master, Aminom Marvin, and skin goddess, Gala Phoenix. Their current offering, modular furniture, has three components to it - a 3-prim couch for L$500, a 3-prim loveseat for L$400, and a two-prim armchair for L$250. All items are no mod/no copy/transfer.
One of the features that makes this furniture unique is that you can change the sit pose for each individual seat. The main feature that sets it apart from the rest, though, is the ability to configure your furniture with a couple of mouse clicks. The armchair becomes an ottoman, the couch sprouts a corner piece that lets you put another couch or loveseat next to it. The possibilities are almost endless!
BloodSpell Launch Party in Second Life 10/21 11am PDT
Hugh Hancock, coiner of the term "machinima", sent me this tidbit about his production company, Strange Company, premiering their feature film cut of their BloodSpell series. BloodSpell is a punk fantasy action-adventure movie filmed in NeverWinter Nights that has been written up by the BBC, the Guardian, Suicide Girls, Boing Boing, USA Today, and a slew of others. For those of you keeping tabs on machinima, there aren't many feature-length films produced in this medium.That's why he's inviting everyone to be a part of the screening that will take place on Hathead Island on Sunday, October 21st, at 11am PDT, or 7pm GMT. There will be interviews, a special intro, and tons of awesome extras. After the screening, keep your eyes peeled for an interview here on Second Life Insider! Hope to see you there.
* I almost forgot to include a disclaimer about the violence that appears in this film. When I premiered the final episode of the series some time ago, many in the audience complained of the gore. Keep in mind that it's just pixels. If you have a strong stomach, come on over!
Gallery: BloodSpell Launch Party
Lost & Found - Asset server gives wrong snapshot
Dear Second Life Resident,While out and about shopping today, I came upon a product that I wanted to show my friend. Unfortunately, they were unable to come to the store at that very moment. Thinking quickly, I took a photo of the ad and fired it off to them. Imagine my surprise when it loaded and it wasn't mine at all!
The funny thing is, it says that I took it. It also shows the exact location that I am standing as the area of origin. Judging from your picture, it was obviously framed very nicely, so I'm sure you'll want it back. I propose a trade. Let me know if this works for you!
Sincerely,
moo Money
Are you the girl from this photo? Did you take the photo of this girl? Please leave a comment or contact me in-world if you have any details.
