Currently open at Glinka Gallery, operated and curated by Wolfgang Glinka, are two very different but equally attractive exhibitions, one featuring paintings and images, and the other focused on words and poetry.
Combined Technique presents a selection of art by Serbian painter and digital artist, Lash VV. Having opened on March 22nd, 2021, it is another enticing series of pieces the combine traditional painting and digital techniques that bring together elements of abstraction and impressionism and motifs that incorporate a range of themes in a brilliant mix of colour and line, offered is a setting suggestive of a primal forest with effects by Boris Twist.
Glinka Gallery: Lash VV – Combined Technique
There is something of a divide in styles presented here: those pieces centred on abstraction are clearly so; their form frequently wild or suggesting a certain frenzy. There is a deep and almost primal sense of emotion to them in the predominant use of lauder colours. The one apparent exception to this is Remembering Blue, a piece using the calming influence of blue shades that evokes a sense of anchor and balance amidst the more vibrant emotive splashes of the pieces around it.
Mixed with these are pieces that offer impressionist views that are equally as captivating and offer some unique commentary on human history and our relationship with nature. Take Marsh as an example, as it carries within it a primal memory of humanity’s origins as a hunter-gatherer and times when hunts and the animals encountered were recorded through painting on rock walls, or Caravan, capturing that period of time – notably in the American west – when meat came to humanity’s growing towns and cities by means of the cattle drive.
Glinka Gallery: Lash VV – Combined Technique
Meanwhile, Torn perhaps offers a link between the impressionist and the emotional tones of the more abstracted pieces, the bull within it clearly evocative of ideas or emotional responses (being bull headed, charging in like a bull, etc.), whilst Shadowlands offers a narrative of freedom and spiritual escape.
Intriguing in form, Combined Technique is an engaging visual display of art, a unique combination of technique and form.
Glinka Gallery: Wolfgang Glinka – Wolfie Tells Fibs
A short walk from Combined Technique is Wolfie Tells Fibs an exhibition of poetry by Fibonacci poetry penned by Wolfgang Glinka under his physical world name, Colin Bell.
For those unfamiliar with it, Fibonacci Poetry – or Fibs – plays on the Fibonacci sequence. The typical Fib is a six line, 20 syllable poem with a syllable count by line of 1/1/2/3/5/8 – with as many syllables per line as the line’s corresponding place in the Fibonacci sequence. Gregory K. Pincus is credited with bringing this 6-line form to widespread recognition; however, as a broader poetical form, “Fibs” can be said to date back to Sanskrit prosody, with a similar stress on long and short syllables.
Glinka Gallery: Wolfgang Glinka – Wolfie Tells Fibs
As a poetic form, Fibonacci Poetry has become an expression in art not only for the mathematical progression of syllables, but for the fact poems can be shaped by rules – such as ascending from a single syllable to a set number of syllables at the mid-point in the poem, before descending once more back to a single syllable, or running in reverse, or forming mirrored forms in line / syllable counts. Much of this is in evidence in the poems displayed with the Glinka Gallery space, the poems themselves rich in imagery that encompasses a range of themes and narratives.
Utilising the Fib to present multi-stanza poems and well as single stanza pieces, and even reference classical poetry forms – do check out Three Fibonacci Poems AfterOvid’s Metamorphosis – Wolfgang presents a rich and engaging display of Fibonacci Poems.
Glinka Gallery: Wolfgang Glinka – Wolfie Tells Fibs
Drune Diesel, March 2021 – click any image for full size
I’ve been a fan of the region designs by Hera (zee9) ever since I visited 2019XS before it morphed into what has been perhaps her most poplar series of region builds, the Drune series. I’ve not written about every single iteration, but they have been something of a theme in this blog down the years for their marvellous cyberpunk vibes edged with a touch of bohemian dystopia.
However, with Drune Diesel, I think Hera has created one of the most engaging, intriguing and layered region designs it has been my pleasure to visit – and one I really do urge folk to hop over and witness for themselves, particularly if, like me, you are a film and cultural buff. Rather than keeping to the broadly cyberpunk theme of previous design, with this iteration, Hera has turned towards the oft-overlooked dieselpunk genre.
Drune Diesel, March 2021
I was sent the LM for the region by my ever-vigilant region sleuth, Shawn Shakespeare, and it arrived somewhat serendipitously. Earlier in March I had visited Isabel Hermano’s art exhibition at the Janus II Gallery entitled Living in a Steampunk World (see here for more). Whilst steampunk oriented, two pieces within it – Radio City Music Hall, and The Sisters – incorporated very distinct deco and dieselpunk vibes and seeing these pictures set me to wondering if anyone in SL had actually stepped away from the more common steampunk and cyberpunk themes to present something more rooted in dieselpunk – and then just a few days later, Shawn drops Hera’s LM on me!
For other unfamiliar with the genre, dieselpunk (and it’s sub-genre of decopunk) is based on the aesthetics popular in the interwar period of the 1920s/30s and extending through to the end of World War II, with some exponents also including the early 1950s. It is broadly defined as the era in which the diesel engine replaced the steam engine as the focus of technology. Within it, decopunk centres the aesthetic of art deco and streamline moderne art styles particularly prevalent to design and architecture in the same overall period.
Drune Diesel, March 2021
Within Drune’s familiar city setting, compete with its tall buildings, canyon-like streets and split-level roadways, Hera has created a setting that encapsulates the heart of dieselpunk/decopunk to present something that will be instantly recognisable to those who have visited Drune’s earlier iterations – but which is also utterly unique. It’s a place where the richness of detail, large and small, is truly staggering and the cultural and film references sublime in their placement and presentation.
The initial sense of familiarity comes not only from the lie of the city and its streets, but also in the display of lighting and signage that adorns the sides of building and lines the railings of overpasses. But whereas past iterations this lighting and signage has been a mix of bright neons, flickering LED screens and brash images, now we have a richer mix: spotlights illuminating billboards, softer-toned neons, traditional banners, and fluorescent lighting that follows the lines and curves of building façades or sits within parking metres and so on.
Drune Diesel, March 2021
Another change is with the cars on the roads. While many of these (again in keeping with past iterations of Drune) may well hover, they are not the seek Blade Runner-esque designs visitors may recall. Instead, they are entirely of the era, encompassing bulky Cadillac-like beasts to smaller open-topped Mercedes and pencil-like single seaters. They are held aloft over tracks that line each side of the road by great round conduction coils that replace their wheels and which are presumably powered by the diesel engines sitting under their hoods. They share the roads with cars that retain their wheels, perhaps because their owners cannot afford the hover update or perhaps simply because they want to be fashionably different.
A number of the buildings include interiors that have been made over to match the theme. The Black Pussy nightclub goes full-on deco in its interior styling that could have you out on the dance floor like the most carefree flapper, whilst the Cortez Hotel’s lobby has more grandiose deco setting, complete with stained glass windows and vaulted ceiling (as a set of four themed bedrooms). Those seeking a meal can always drop into the Shanghai Dragon, a restaurant that is truly delightful in its own suggestions oriental decadence.
Drune Diesel, March 2021
The cultural and film references I mentioned are to be found everywhere. Some are mentioned in the note card offered at the airship landing point, others are awaiting discovery as you explore. Some are large and obvious, some either small and/or not quite so direct. Many reference the era represented by the the setting, others draw on references that may not at first appear to be connected, but on examination are not so anachronistic as they might first appear.
Take the P51D fighter sitting on the airstrip below the city, for example. Loaded for a ground attack role and bearing D-Day markings, it hardly looks dieselpunk in nature. However, it immediately brings to mind Kerry Conran’s 2004 box-office-flop-turned-cult-classic, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Angelina Jolie), one of the first attempts to encapsulate diselpunk in modern film after game designer Lewis Pollak coined the term in 2001.
Drune Diesel, March 2021
Similarly, the city’s movie theatre boasts showings Blood and Sand, starring Rudolph Valentino and released at the start of the dieselpunk era, together with Fritz Lang’s Metropolis (1927), arguably the first film to depict dieselpunk long before the term was ever coined. Indeed, Drune Diesel reflects something of Metropolis: whilst the workers are all down on the lower levels of the city, living in basic conditions and with the muck and sweat and fumes of the city, the elite live up in the towers, where halls are lined with marble and grand statues hold aloft light fittings or strike heroic poses.
Other references are more subtle but are bound to bring a smile to the lips when recognised, from the SS Venture alongside the wharf and being prepared for the voyage that will see her bring home King Kong (1933), to the U-boat sitting in its pen and carrying something of an Indiana Jones vibe. One of my favourites is the billboard reference to Karel Čapek’s 1921 film Rossumovi Univerzální Roboti (Rossum’s Universal Robots). Not only does it fit the period, it is the film that first brought us the term “robot” (although those in the film were closer androids than robots); it has also been cleverly paired with an indirect reference to Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy through its tag-line – even if the Sirius Cybernetics Corp might want to have a few words about it!
Drune Diesel, March 2021
As indicated in the introductory notes, the city also contains references to the BBC Television series Peaky Blinders, the fictionalised tale of one of England’s most notorious crime gangs that was based in the city of Birmingham. These range the The Garrison pub, inspired by the pub seen in the series and rumoured to have been used by the real Peaky Blinders, to the wharfside chalk advert featuring a racing horse and the words “Shelby, est. 1920”, a reference to both the family leading the fictional Peaky Blinders and to the illegal bookmaking both the fictional and real gangs ran. There’s even billboard advertising Cadbury’s products providing further references to the Midlands origins of the gang.
Drune is also a setting that encompasses so much more as well. There is a very Gotham-esque vibe in places that goes far beyond the Batmobile awaiting discovery, whilst the streets and atmosphere lend themselves to thoughts of a dieselpunk Philip Marlowe trudging the glistening footpaths (It was raining in the City — a hard rain — almost hard enough to wash the slime from the streets. But it never does.), and more besides.
Drune Diesel, March 2021 – a touch of Angel Heart, as well?
This is a place that deserves time to appreciate all of the detail that has gone into it, from the way the building rise from worn brickwork to fine, faced stone with carved motifs and proud banners to the crafted rotary engines that pump clean air into their refined interiors from their tops and cough it used and dirty, onto the streets below. Much of this detailing, all created by Hera, both adds depth to the setting and offers up more in the way of cultural references, particularly for central Europe in the inter-war period.
Magnificent, engaging and deserving to be witnessed, Drune Diesel is simply superb – when visiting, do make sure you are running with Advanced Lighting Model active (Shadows not required).
Logos representative only and should not be seen as an endorsement / preference / recommendation
Updates from the week ending Sunday, March 21st
This summary is generally published every Monday, and is a list of SL viewer / client releases (official and TPV) made during the previous week. When reading it, please note:
It is based on my Current Viewer Releases Page, a list of all Second Life viewers and clients that are in popular use (and of which I am aware), and which are recognised as adhering to the TPV Policy. This page includes comprehensive links to download pages, blog notes, release notes, etc., as well as links to any / all reviews of specific viewers / clients made within this blog.
By its nature, this summary presented here will always be in arrears, please refer to the Current Viewer Release Page for more up-to-date information.
Note that for purposes of length, TPV test viewers, preview / beta viewers / nightly builds are generally not recorded in these summaries.
Official LL Viewers
Current release viewer: Project Jelly viewer (Jellydoll updates), version 6.4.13.555567 and dated February 5th, 2021, promoted February 17th – No change.
Release channel cohorts:
Custom Key Mappings project viewer updated to version 6.4.17.556726, dated March 15th.
A CGI model of the Mars 2020 rover Perseverance on the surface of Mars. Credit; NASA
NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover has passed its first month on Mars, an event marked by the science and engineering teams continuing to check out the rover’s systems and instruments as the rover continues its initial drive within Jezero Crater.
So far, all of this has been going exceedingly well. We’ve had no major technical issues. We’ve had no major technical issues.
– Ken Farley, Perseverance project scientist
Currently, the mission team are preparing to deploy the Ingenuity drone helicopter ahead of for a series of proof-of-concept flights. This has involved driving the rover short distances to locate a suitable area in which to deployed the helicopter, which is stored under the rover.
So a location was found during the past week, and on Sunday, March 21st, Sol 30 for the rover on Mars, the command was sent to eject the cover that projected the delicate helicopter during the rover’s arrival on Mars. The release of the cover was filmed by the WATSON imager on the rover’s robot arm, with raw colour and black and white images issued by NASA a few hours after the cover had been dropped.
Two images of captured by the WATSON imager on the Mars 2020 rover robot arm show fore-and-after views, one in black-and-white and the other in colour, of the detached protective cover for the Ingenuity helicopter droner. The helicopter can be seen stowed and attached to the rover’s belly at the top of each image. Credit: NASA/JPL
The next stage will be for the rover to move clear of the cover so the helicopter itself can be deployed, before the rover backs away even further to expose the drone to clear air. It’s not clear when this deployment will take place, but NASA will be holding a special briefing on Tuesday, March 23rd at 17:30 UTC at which members of the helicopter and rover team will discuss progress with the mission and what will be involved in the helicopter deployed and flight operations commence. The briefing will by available on NASA TV and YouTube, with questions being accepted via social media using #MarsHelicopter.
The first flight won’t be made any earlier than the first week of April, but it will be filmed by the rover using its high-resolution Mastcam-Z systems, and an attempt will be made to record the sound of the drone flying. In all, five flights of the helicopter are anticipated, after which Perseverance will commence its own science mission.
As things stand, this will be a two-phase mission, the first being an exploration of the inflow delta created by the water that once flowed into the crater to form a lake. In particular, the rover will be looking for evidence of past life in the sediments and rocks. Along the way, it sell select a spot to deposit up to 10 samples it has gathered during its studies, which my be collected by a future sample-return mission.
The second phase will see Perseverance may its way out of the crater to examine the crater rim and the plains beyond. Here again, it will select a location to deposit up to 28 samples that may be gathered by a future sample-return mission.In all, both phases of the mission – which will be subject to change depending on discoveries made along the way – are expected to take around 7 years to complete and will see the rover cover some 35 km.
In the meantime, the rover’s microphones have been busy; as I reported in my last Space Sunday, one has recorded the sound of the Martian wind. More recently, NASA has released a recording on the rover’s EDL (Entry, Descent. Landing) microphone capture of sounds of the rover driving on Mars.
Those expecting some high-tech sound of purring electrical motors and so on as depicted in sci-fi films are liable to be disappointed by the strange mix of bangs,clunks and thuds recorded as the rover’s aluminium wheels and its spring suspension deal with the uneven terrain. Two recordings were released, one at 16 minutes in length, and a 90-second “cleaned up” recording, that is embedded below.
If I heard these sounds driving my car, I’d pull over and call for a tow. But if you take a minute to consider what you’re hearing and where it was recorded, it makes perfect sense.
– Dave Gruel, lead engineer for Mars 2020’s EDL Camera and Microphone subsystem.
One of the reasons the sounds seem to be odd is because the EDL microphone isn’t designed to record the the sound of the mobility system directly, rather it is picking the sounds up through the body of the rover.
Glynn Lunney
Glynn Stephen Lunney may not be a name familiar to many interested in human space flight, but he was one of the legends of NASA, and who sadly passed away at the age of 84 on March 19th, 2021.
Born in November 1936 in the coal city of Old Forge, Pennsylvania, Lunney was encouraged by his parents to seek a career away from the mines. An early interest in flight and model aeroplanes led him to engineering in college, form where he enrolled at the Lewis Research Centre in Cleveland, Ohio, to study aerospace engineering, the centre at that time forming part of the US National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics.
Graduating in 1958 with a Bachelor of Science degree, Lunney remained with the NACA as a researcher in aerospace dynamics at Lewis. He was thus one of NASA’s very first employees when on July 29th, 1958 President Eisenhower signed it into existence, subsuming the NACA into it in the process.
Lunney’s prowess in the fledgling field of space flight was immediately recognised, and he was transferred to Langley Research Centre, Virginia, where in September 1959, and aged just 21, he became the youngest member of the Space Task Group, the body given responsibility for the creation of NASA’s human space flight programme.
Glynn Lunney “in the trenches” (as the rows of consoles at mission control were called at the time) of the mission simulation centre, 1966. Credit: NASAAs a member of the Flight Operations Division, Lunney was one of the engineers responsible for planning and creating procedures for Project Mercury, America’s first manned space programme. Here he was a major part of the team that wrote the first set of mission rules by which both flight controllers and astronauts operated, and he also became the second man to serve as the Flight Dynamics Officer (FIDO), responsible for controlling the trajectory of the Mercury spacecraft and planning adjustments to it.
Such was Lunney’s quiet assurance, professionalism and engineering skill, he was one of three men selected by Christopher C. Kraft, the hands-on head of mission operations, to join him in becoming the first generation of Flight Directors responsible for managing all of NASA’s space flights, the other two being John Hodge and the legendary Gene Kranz. Together, these for men did much to establish the protocol and procedures required for human space flight at that time, and they also oversaw the design and implementation of the first two Mission Operations Control Rooms which were to become famous as “mission control” in the Apollo era.
Lunney (seated, foreground) walking his team through the process of transferring guidance and navigation data from the Apollo 13 command module to the lunar module, 1970. Credit: NASA
Although only 29 when selected by Kraft, Lunney was, in addition to his responsibilities as a Flight Director, charged with overseeing the testing of core elements of Apollo flight hardware, including the launch escape system, and the first uncrewed flight test of the the Saturn V launch vehicle.
Lunney was particularly respected for his ability to absorb and retain information, running through scenarios and options much faster than any of his colleagues. This was especially important in the wake of the Apollo 13 explosion in 1970, with the vehicle en-route to the Moon.
While Genz Kranz and his White flight team tend to get all of the credit for successfully guiding the astronauts through the crisis and getting them back to Earth, it was actually Lunney who orchestrated the entire process of powering-up the lunar module, transferring the flight guidance and navigation data to its computer and getting the Apollo 13 crew and critical equipment into the module within a very short time frame, whilst also leaving the command module in a condition whereby it could hopefully be powered up later. In doing so, he largely steered his team by using his own innate knowledge of systems aboard both craft.
On Saturday, March 20th, 2021, the final of three sessions featuring Linden Lab staff took place at the 2021 Virtual Worlds Best Practice in Education (VWBPE) conference. Whilst the the third session overall, this was actually the second of a double series entitled Reconnaissance with the Lab, and featured Grumpity Linden, VP of Product and Brett Linden, VP of Marketing, the first having been held on Friday, March 19th, which saw Patch Linden, VP of Product Operations and Madori Linden, Product Specialist (Land Operations) joining Grumpity and Brett.
The following is a summary of the session covering the core topics raised. The notes provided have been taken directly from the official video of the session. however, as some discussion points followed directly on from the Friday March 19th, discussion, it should be read in reference to my summary of that meeting as well.
As always, time stamps are also provided to the relevant points in the video for those who wish to listen to specific comments.
The Attendees
Grumpity Linden
Grumpity Linden heads up Second Life Product, where she has overseen a shift to growth, a stronger, more balanced economy, movement towards better community cohesion, and an overall forward-looking approach.
Prior to working for Linden Lab (first joining as a contractor in 2009 and then full-time in 2014), she was involved in a number of industries, including technology, higher education, and oil & gas. She enjoys exploring worlds both virtual and physical and takes pride in building bridges – personal and professional.
Grumpity holds a Master’s in Computer Science and a Bachelor’s from same in Computer Science & Psychology, both from Johns Hopkins University. She finds leading the Second Life product a joy because it allows her to draw on both areas of study.
As VP of marketing, Brett Linden manages the team responsible for developing media campaigns and strategic content partnerships for Second Life. Together they focus on both the acquisition of new users and the retention of existing users for the virtual world.
Brett Linden
In the past decade, he has produced numerous virtual and “mixed reality” events and panels on various academic topics with an emphasis on legitimising and better surfacing the many cultures and communities within virtual environments.
From Rolling Stone to Billboard, Brett has also written for major publications and managed multimedia initiatives for Amazon.com and RealNetworks. He has co-founded numerous media sites on-line, including the Second Life Destination Guide and Rolling Stone Radio. As a co-founding editor at Billboard.com, he interviewed Stevie Wonder, David Bowie, Peter Gabriel, Shania Twain, and Bjork.
The Governance User Group offers a monthly forum in-world for region / estate holders (and general users) to discuss matters of security, griefing, abuse reporting, etc. Meetings are held monthly on the third Tuesday of the month at 13:00 SLT (at the time of writing).
Specific issues can also be raised through the Support channel, or can be passed to Madori Linden, who will in turn pass them on to the Governance and Land teams.
For specialised environments, such as regions operated by educators, non-profits, business organisations, etc., the best way to secure a region or estate is via the RegAPI [see below for more on this].
With regards to griefing via voice – specifically things like voice channel hijacking – LL has worked extensively with the Voice API provider, Vivox, to prevent / eliminate such issues a lot more readily.
RegAPI is a means for organisations that need to to provide dedicated, controlled access to Second Life to their users.
Organisations are assigned a keycode by the Lab. This can used in conjunction with the Second Life registration form (web page) the organisation designs to connect to the Second Life account registration process and then, and as required:
Define: the group new-sign-ups are assigned to.
Limit created accounts to only accessing the defined region / estate, and block them from teleporting away from it.
Control the avatar options available to new-sign-ups.
Control access to associated services within the viewer such as the voice stream.
The sign-up form can be hosted directly by the organisation concerned within their own environment (thus controlling access to it).
The process can also lock access to the defined region / estate from being accessed by accounts not created using the organisation’s dedicated key.
Linden Lab does not directly provide turnkey registration forms for clients, but can provide more general assistance where required.
Accessibility – Those with Disabilities & for whom English is a Second Language
Now the majority of the work in moving SL to AWS has been completed, there is potential scope to further address accessibility, including looking at some of the available third-party tools that can be integrated into the SL product – previously, the Lab has attempted to provide dedicated solutions for some issues, but then maintenance and upkeep became problematic, so third-party tools are now seen a preferable way forward.
There is no definitive road map as to what may be tried / addressed at present, but the Product team is now far better placed to look at potential options in discussion with involved communities within SL (e.g. educators, Virtual Ability, etc.).
In general, LL are very aware that there are many different uses and needs that can be addressed by Second Life by many different individuals and communities, many of who may have specific access requirements, so accessibility is very much a part of thinking at the lab.
The Lab is working on a new on-boarding experience, but it is not yet ready for deployment.
This has been developed not only as a means of updating the new user experience, but also looking at what people actually need to have a successful initial experience with Second Life.
So rather than focusing on the basics, like avatar movement, which most people with even a basic exposure to playing games can likely work out for themselves, the focus is more on social interactions – starting a conversation, for example.
Connected to this new on-boarding experience are:
A cleaning-up the viewer UI, allowing the more essential elements to be better identified and more logical.
An overhauling the avatar customisation process to make it easier for incoming users to create a basic look they are happy with.
An overall aim of all of this work is to reduce some of the multiple ways in which certain common tasks can be completed, in order to help flatten the curve of Second Life being “complicated” to learn.
There is also the Community Gateway programme as well, which provides an important means of bringing users into SL Life, and which Linden Lab monitors and takes lessons from, as well as carrying out testing within their own on-boarding process.
Questions Arising
Is there effort to create a browser-capable grid to flatten the learning curve?
Grumpity:
LL is working towards a possible partnership that will allow for a streaming solution for Second Life. This is not something that can be discussed in detail at present, but would love to talk more about it Soon™.
In terms of mobile devices, the nature of SL means than any dedicated experience via a ‘phone is going to be less than ideal – ideally a keyboard and mouse are required, but it is being explored. [Again, the Lab has an active project to bring Second Life to both iOS and Android, initially as a basic communications tool.]
Brett: streaming is an area that has expanded over the last 12+ months, with multiple companies moving into the space, allowing dialogues to take place. Among other things, the Lab recognises the need to be on more lightweight client systems (such as Chromebook) when addressing areas such as education.
Why are there no up-to-date videos on how to do things in Second Life and on the communities, etc?
Brett: there is a series of New User tutorials by Strawberry Linden that are just over a year old, and which are available in multiple languages. These will likely be refreshed every 18-24 months.
How Can the Education Community Help with Marketing SL?
Anyone with ideas, comments or constructive critique about SL marketing are invited to contact the Marketing team.
There is also the potential for in-world meetings between community leaders and members of the Marketing team to discuss ideas and options, etc.
There is a lot going on in marketing: this year will see a new general consumer campaign to reinvigorate the SL brand. Some of this has started to roll out, such as developing new social media partnerships and other outreach efforts.
Further community exposure can be obtained by being a part of stories the Lab either pitch to the media, or are approached about by the media to provide. In particularly, success stories about how SL is being used, innovative or novel ways in which the platform is made use of, are of particular interest.
Now is actually a good time for such stories, as the pandemic has lead to and increased / renewed media interest in the platform and its potential.
In terms of marketing within SL, there are multiple options to help promote work / use / events, from the Destination Guide through to the Lab Gab live stream sessions.
Grumpity [49:40-50:10]: in terms of general liaison between the Lab and the educational community, there has been discussion about establishing a dedicated Discord channel, and feedback from educators (via Madori Linden) is sought.
It was “misguided” to have removed the non-profit / educational discount [June 2011], and equally very important to see it returned [in 2013] as soon as the Lab could do so.
In March 2020, a flat monthly fee of $99 was introduced for educational and non-profit organisations, and the Lab has no plans to increase this.
However, the narrative that has circulated that costs to the Lab would be reduced as a result of the move to AWS, isn’t accurate; while it removes the high level of capital expenditure LL must make in new hardware every several years, it does not reduce the basic operating costs for the service as a whole. Ergo, there are no plans to reduce prices.
It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home in Nowhereville, unless otherwise indicated. Note that the schedule below may be subject to change during the week, please refer to the Seanchai Library website for the latest information through the week.
Seanchai staff gather to share stories that look back and forward, celebrating thirteen years of stories and poems presented live. Join us in The Glen.
Seanchai celebrates 13 years
Monday, March 22nd: 19:00 Leviathan
In 1914, the world is divided into Darwinists and Clankers. The Darwinists have evolved genetics to make animals more useful to humans. The Clankers have built their society on machinery technology.
Prince Aleksandar Ferdinand, the would-be heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne and part of the Clankers, has spent his life facing an uncertain future: because his mother was of common blood, he has been barred from taking his father’s title in the fullness of time.
But when his father and mother survive Gavrilo Princip’s assassination attempt in Sarajevo only to be poisoned later the same day, Aleksandar finds himself the centre of intrigue. Despite the fact that he has no legitimate claim to the throne, the Germans are intent on neutralising him, fearful that he might nevertheless unite the people behind him, possibly fracturing the alliance of nations forming the Clankers.
Forced on the run aboard a battle-torn war machine crewed by a handful of men loyal to his late father, Aleks encounters Deryn Sharp, a young woman who has disguised herself as a boy to serve aboard British Air Service Leviathan, a living whale flying ship.
Despite their differences, and with the inevitability of war darkening every horizon, Aleks and Deryn embark on a fantastical, around-the-world adventure that will change both their lives forever.
Join Gyro Muggins as he dives into Scott Westerfield’s 2009 novel of an alternate past.
When the Jones family move into a Victorian house that has been converted into a set of flats, and her parents always busy and wrapped in their work, young Coraline sets out to discover all she can about her new home.
Along the way, she meets a pair of retired actress sisters, an old man trying to train a mouse orchestra, and a door that, unlike all the others that lead somewhere, oddly opens onto a brick wall.
Until the day it doesn’t, and instead opens onto a hallway leading to another world.
It’s a world just like her own, but also very different. The flat she enters looks just like her own, the neighbours are just like those she has met – but oddly younger – and the mother and father she finds within her home dote on her: marvellous toys, magical books and wonderful food.
This other home and the parents within it are all that Coraline has ever wanted – until her other mother tells her she can stay and live forever – if she will have buttons sewn into her eyes. Scared by the request, Coraline returns to her real home, only to find her parents now gone. Realising they have been taken by her “other mother”, she realises she must return along the hallway and risk her future in order to rescue them.
With Willow Moonfire.
Wednesday, March 24th, 19:00: The Guns of Avalon
Across the worlds of Shadow, Corwin, prince of blood royal, heir to the throne of Amber, gathers his forces for an assault that will yield up to him the crown that is rightfully his.
But, a growing darkness of his own doing threatens his plans, an evil that stretches to the heart of the perfect kingdom itself where the demonic forces of Chaos mass to annihilate Amber and all who would rule there.
One of the most revered names in sf and fantasy, the incomparable Roger Zelazny was honoured with numerous prizes—including six Hugo and three Nebula Awards—over the course of his legendary career. Among his more than fifty books, arguably Zelazny’s most popular literary creations were his extraordinary Amber novels. The Guns of Avalon is the second book of The Chronicles of Amber.
With Corwyn Allen.
Thursday, March 25th:
19:00: The Adventures of Luke Skywalker
So, where were you in 1977? Do you remember the first time you saw the first film? The first 25 times you saw the first film? Maybe you have never seen it at all. Join Shandon Loring and Caledonia Skytower to enjoy for the first time (or re-live the joy) of those first adventures from an edition penned by Director George Lucas himself!
21:00 Seanchai Late Night
Finn Zeddmore presents contemporary Sci-Fi-Fantasy from such on-line sources as Light Speed, Escape Pod, Clarkesworld Magazine, and more.
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 