Here's a welcome and thorough article reporting on the positive effects SL has had on residents whose RL selves are physically disabled. The piece mentions Fez Rutherford's intriguing work as documented on 2nDisability, where he attempts to understand the limitations of some physical impairments by modeling them in SL.

The article also talks about the experiences of David Wallace and Simon Stevens, in the context of finding an SL wheelchair. If any of you know Simon, please have him contact David to help him procure his own wheelchair!

I'm happy that there are others out there who see the life-augmenting potential of SL, which can only grow in breadth and depth as the platform matures. The previously-posted machinima by Robbie Dingo sums it up rather sweetly.

(Via eurekastreet.com.au)

Last night I attended Enjah Mysterio's opening for her Black Drawing exhibition. As she explains in the accompanying notecard, which is available from a dispenser on the left of the door, she made the drawings in response to a friend's terminal cancer, but the opening and exhibition is in memory of her son Steve, who died about a month ago.

This was the most moving of all the events I have attended in SL. The drawings are interesting and unusual, white pencil on black paper, and illustrate Enjah's beliefs about life and death in a most thought-provoking way. Friends and acquaintances arrived and studied the drawings, exchanged small talk, and renewed friendships, just as at a real opening at a gallery.

This year's Machinima Awards (or 'Mackies', as they're affectionately called) Ceremony will be broadcast simultaneously in SL, on November 4th at 9 PM. It will be held in the Virtual Laguna Beach space, where new episodes of MTV's hit show are broadcast even before the TV version airs.

Machinima has definitely come a long way ... Second Life makes a great space for Machinima creation, where its comparative graphical crudity (alongside more polished worlds such as World of Warcraft) is offset by residents' ability to create any conceivable building, vehicle, or prop the story calls for. Having said that, however, there are only 4 movies from SL nominated for awards:

• Better Life by Robbie Dingo (Best Virtual Performance: Custom Animation)
• Game Over by Pierce Portocarrero (Best Virtual Performance: Custom Animation; Best Visual Design; Best Technical Achievement)
• Machinima Island (Trailer) by Ricard Gras (Best Visual Design)
• Silver Bells and Golden Spurs by Eric Call (Best Technical Achievement; Best Commercial Machinima)

Go check 'em out, and root for your favorites in November!

(Thanks, Christopher!)

Here's a little piece about the range of musical instruments in SL, from a blog called Music Thing. I found the tone of the post to be slightly dismissive, as though the author was unable to reconcile his hopes for finding something awe-inspiring with the reality of what he found in-world. The piece completely skips over the feat of virtual engineering Robbie Dingo utilized simply to create what he has in the first place.

Regardless, it's always nice to see different sources cover SL with a focus on something new. There are a lot of links in the article, too, pointing to some worthwhile content. So, when can I get my Rick Nielsen 5-necked guitar?

(Thanks, Ryan!)

I've just seen Robbie Dingo's genuinely moving Machinima "Better Life" and it made me really think about the world we all get to call our home away from home.

I've posted before about how flying has become commonplace for me, but perhaps that's only because I take so many other things for granted, specifically my ability to walk unaided. This, in turn, makes me wonder about all the other freedoms I enjoy without giving them a second thought. I have excellent vision (20/0, at last checkup). I can hear the full range of sound available to the human ear. I have no loss of sensation in any of my limbs.

However, my sense of smell is sub-par, which in turn affects my sense of taste. Interesting that I should choose to be a wolf in SL, then, innit? Do I consciously revel in the exhilaration that my avatar can do things that I can't do in RL? Sometimes, yes (especially when dancing at the Shelter!), but more often no. As an experiment, I'm going to pay closer attention to the in-world representation of all five senses, and how they compare to my RL experience, then write about them in more depth here. Watch this space!