Category: Second Life

This Weekend in Second Life Dance

Posted on by R.

Dance with a monkey

Hi there. R. Crap Mariner, your friendly neighborhood dance correspondent.

I’ll be posting dance performance schedules, similar to Inara’s posts about Seanchai Library readings. We’ll start with the weekend events for now.

Let’s get started, here’s the events that I had on the calendar as of press time…

(All times SLT)

Friday, April 6 2018

6:00PM – Elysium Cabaret

Welcome to the Weekend!

If it’s Friday, it’s Elysium Cabaret! Fancy some imagination? In The Empire Room at Copperhead Road, every Friday at 6pm SLT the dynamic performers of Elysium Cabaret take the stage to bring you a solid hour of entertainment!

Featuring elaborate sets and choreography sequenced to an eclectic genre of music, Elysium Cabaret offers something for everyone. Grab your friends and get their early because the sim fills. Come celebrate Friday! Welcome to the weekend!

https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Copperhead%20Road/74/64/2754

Elysium Cabaret - March 23 2018//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Saturday, April 7 2018

1:00PM – DQ Challenge Show

Poetry In Motion

These Dance Queens showcases are a good sampler pack of performers and troupes around the grid. I’d highly recommend going to this one if you feel overwhelmed by the number of groups out there to see.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/This%20Sim/174/178/3505

3:00PM – Gypsy Rose Theatre

April 7th 3PM Burlesque Dolls at the Gypsy Rose Theatre

Join us at the Gypsy Rose Theater for the revival of the Burlesque Dolls. Now under the direction of Melina Aurotharius

Come on up and see us sometime!

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/SkyBeam%20Stowaway/23/40/2000

5:00PM – Phoenix Dance Team

Please join us, Saturday, April 21st @ 5pm at the Phoenix Dance Theatre where our choreographers and dancers amaze you with their creations. Our lovely babbling DJ Cara will be there to provide some wonderful music before our show and during. Also tonight, we will have for you Fafir, Bianka, Immy, JP, Vanity, Ame & Zach, Seb & SoCo.. our special guests this week will be Nara & Denyaii. So grab your friends, your family, everyone and we will see you tonight at 5pm!

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/SkyBeam%20Stowaway/27/151/1303

Club Image - April 1 2018

7:00PM – Paramount Grand Theatre

1990’s Music Evolution. Paramount Grand Theatre’s brand new show for April. Come join us for an evening of classy but sassy entertainment as we the Paramount Players dance for you, April 7th & 14th at 7pm SLT.

The Players are bringing you back to the 90’s! 1990’s that is. Decade of music changes, revolutions and madness!

Come join us at Paramount!

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Hell%20Lust/77/83/22

Sunday, April 8 2018

7:00AM – Club IMAGE

It’s Sunday at Club Image, and it’s going to be special!!! We’re very excited to have you here at our theater!!! Hope to see you all!!!

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Laem%20Singh/193/28/2021

1:00PM – Debauche

Debauche make their first appearance at the beautiful BlueMood Mansion this week in a truly outstanding theatre. You have to see it to believe it.

We are so happy to be performing here and hope you can all come join us for what promises to be a wonderful show in a wonderful place.

We may get a little raunchy. We may even get a little naughty. We might even get a little……risque. But we will ALWAYS be classy.

Debauche – you know you wanna!

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Saudade/150/191/3564

Debauche - March 18 2018

2:00PM – Virtuoso

VIRTUOSO

Another chance to enjoy the Easter Showcase – Sunday 8th April at 2pm SLT.

No seat reservation required. All welcome. Audience Limited

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/VIRTUOSO/130/81/4036

5:00PM – Winds of the Sahara

Each Sunday we have a shiny, new show at Winds of the Sahara Theatre. Our dances range from burlesque to performance art and you are sure to be amazed at all of the wonder that sets, costumes and music can create. We’ll put sparkles in your eyes and leave sequins on your shirt collars.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Aladona/124/193/2001

7:00PM – Art Factory

The Art Factory presents: The Greatest Showman! A show about Phineas T Barnum’s start with the circus we know today! This show will leave you inspired to be yourself! We promise to leave you stunned with razzle dazzle and songs that will make you dance in your seat! The show starts at 7pm SLT but you may want to come a little early for a seat.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Josina/188/161/22

The Art Factory - March 21 2018

I assume there will be a few more shows this week… folks are just taking their time getting the notices in, finishing up their routines… that sort of thing. I’d prefer to error on the side of caution and just post the ones confirmed at press time.

Check with the Dance Queens event calendar for updates and additions to the weekend’s schedule, as well as the many events that happen during the week. And then, next weekend… something extra-special is happening: The Festival of Saint Put Up Or Shut Up!

So, folks, is this useful? Let me know. Drop me an IM when you get to a show and that you enjoyed it.

Guerilla Burlesque - Cirque de Nuit - March 28 2018

Kultivate 2018 Spring Art Show in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Kultivate Spring Art Show 2018

The Kultivate Magazine 2018 Spring Art Show officially opens on Friday, April 6th, and runs through until Saturday, April 14th. This celebration of 3D and 2D art features more than 40 participating artists, with both juried and non-juried art competitions, with those participating in the juried event competing to win a shared prize pot, gift cards, and more.

The event – which is taking place on a specially constructed show area at Kultivate Magazine’s home region of Water Haven – will also feature live performers, two hunts, a photo contest and learning opportunities.

The juried 2D and 3D artists are: AJ, CalystiaMoonShadow, Maaddi, Carly Afterthought, Wintergeist, Wild Alchemi, Sheba Blitz, Chanasitsayo, Eucalyptus Carroll, Avalon Chrome, Erkek DeCuir, Bellissa Dion, Slatan Dryke, Gwen Enchanted, Bri Graycloud, Syphera Inaka, Lala Lightfoot, Aquarius Lowtide,  Dakota Lavarock, Sabine Mortenwold, Pipit Peacedream, FiordiligiDaPonte Resident, KodyMeyers Resident, M8ty Resident, SecondHandTutti Resident, Jamee Sandalwood, Elle Thorkveld, Lucia Tophat,  Silverwind Tzedek, FreeDom Voix,  and Myra Wildmist.

Kultivate Spring Art Show 2018

The non-juried artists are: Eleseren Brianna, Jasmin Currier, Bellissa Dion, GlitterPrincess Destiny, Slatan Dryke, Hana Hoobinoo, aht1981 resident, Johannes1977 Resident, Kimblecoles Resident, M8ty Resident, Mangrovejane Resident, Eviana Robbiani (La Robbiani), Catalina Staheli, iSkye Silverweb, and Veruca Tammas.

Event Schedule

All times SLT.

  • Friday, April 6th, 2018:
    • 08:00: Art Show opens and hunt, quest and photo contest begin.
    • 16:00-17:00: Live Performer Parker Static
  • Saturday, April 7th, 2018:
    • 13:00-14:00: Coffee-house Learning Hour – Beginners or Refresher’s SL Photography with Kaijah Chrome.
    • 16:00-17:00: Coffee-house Learning Hour – Marketing Yourself as an Artist with John Brianna.
  • Sunday, April 8th, 2018:
    • 13:00-14:00: Coffee-house Learning Hour – Using Flickr to the Max with John Brianna.
    • 16:00-17:00: Coffee-house Learning Hour – Basic Photo Editing with John Brianna.
  • Monday, April 9th, 2018:
    • 16:00-17:00: Live Performer Nina Bing.
  • Tuesday, April 10th, 2018:
    • 16:00-17:00: Live Performer Wolfie Starfire.
  • Wednesday, April 11th:
    • 12:00-13:00: Coffee-house Learning Hour – Useful Stuff For Making Art with Eleseren Brianna.
    • 16:00-17:00: Live Performer Lark Bowen.
  • Thursday, April 12th, 2018:
    • 16:00-17:00: Live Performer Melenda Mikael.
  • Friday, April 13th, 2018:
    • 16:00-17:00: Live Performer Dimivan Ludwig.
    • 20:00: Photo contests ends.
  • Saturday, April 14th, 2018:
  • 13:00-14:00: Coffee-house Learning Hour – Copyright & Creative Commons in Photography with Veruca Tammas.
  • 15:00-16:00: Seanchai Library.
  • 16:00-17:00: Awards Event & Closing Party.
  • 20:00: hunt and quest end, photo contest winners announced.

For details on the hunt, quest and photo contest, please refer to the information boards at the event.

Kultivate Spring Art Show 2018

SLurl Details

 

A Green Story of two halves in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey

Green Story; Inara Pey, April 2018, on FlickrGreen Story – click any image for full size

Green Story is a homestead region design by Dior (Rich Canis), who states to those visiting, “You have to relax here. You have to think here.” The twin ideals of relaxing and thinking somewhat reflect the matter in which this is a region largely of two halves.

A visit commences up in the sky, where a night scene awaits to capture eyes and thoughts. Perhaps a little dark for some, the rain adding to the atmosphere, this is a place that takes careful exploration, as not everything is immediately visible. As the landing point is on a wooden dock, be careful where you tread until things have rezzed.

Green Story; Inara Pey, April 2018, on FlickrGreen Story

Off to the left, a semi-ruined tower rises, reached by what appears to be charcoal sands – be careful on crossing them, as they’ve been set to phantom. A staircase rises from the seaward side of the tower, offering a way up to the first level, where a swing and poses can be found. Above, on the roof, is another place to sit, and a dance machine – but how you get up there is a matter of personal preference.

Across the landscape from the tower, a plateau rises, a path switch-backing up one side. It’s top forms what appears to be a place of worship, partially walled, a folly forming the centre of contemplation as the rain falls outside. A statue stands in the lee of an old watchtower, while behind the plateau a steep hill rises. It is not connected to the plateau in any way, so again, finding your way up to the trees houses crowning it is up to you.

Green Story; Inara Pey, April 2018, on FlickrGreen Story

Scattered across the low-lying lands are more places to sit, indoors and out, and bric-a-brac of all kinds lies scattered around, while lights are strung from the trees to provide some additional illumination. This is a quiet, contemplative place, one that encourages thinking, and perhaps a little romance in the rain. But, for those who prefer to continue their explorations, there is a teleport board close to the landing point – not always easy to see, but it leads the way down to ground level.

Here is a very different setting: two sandy islands sit under a bright sky from which snow falls to dust the sands. A great light-house points a white finger to the clouds on the south-east side of the region, a strange board-walk extending outwards from near the top, held up by long stilts. Below this are various places to sit and relax – a hut, and broken railway car, a deck and – out on the little island, another dock, with chairs and fire, sitting close to an empty shack.

Green Story; Inara Pey, April 2018, on FlickrGreen Story

There are one or two rough areas in the sky build – the aforementioned phantom sand, plus a couple of points where the mesh land forms don’t quite marry up. However, these don’t really detract from the ethereal sitting in the sky.  The ground-level island present a simple setting, carrying with it a reminder of winter. Deer wander the dunes and a windmill turns in the wind. This is a place where people are free to sit and relax. However, there is one more place to visit in the region for those so-minded.

A small skybox environment offers a small backstreet setting, surrounded by the glowing lights of a city. There’s not actually a lot to see here – but it does offer a curious contrast to the other settings – and if auto-return were set to 10 or 15 minutes, it could be a handy backdrop for photographers.

Green Story; Inara Pey, April 2018, on FlickrGreen Story

Green Story is a little different to the places we usually visit, but it is nevertheless photogenic and makes for an interesting exploration.

SLurl Details

2018 SL UG updates #14/1: Simulator User Group

Posted on by Inara Pey

Bay of Dreams; Inara Pey, February 2018, on FlickrBay of Dreams – blog post

Server Deployments

As always, please refer to the server deployment thread for the latest updates.

  • The Main (SLS) channel was updated on Tuesday, April 3rd  to server release 18#18.03.27.513831, containing internal fixes and updates the new off-line IM and Abuse Report capabilities (see below).
  • On Wednesday, April 4th, the BlueSteel and LeTigre release candidate channels should receive server maintenance package 18#18.03.29.513939, containing internal fixes; the Magnum RC has no planned deployment, and remains on 18#18.03.27.513831.

SL Viewer

There have been no changes to the viewer pipelines at the start of the week, leaving them as:

  • Current Release version 5.1.2.512803, dated February 23, promoted March 1 – formerly the Nalewka Maintenance RC – No change
  • Release channel cohorts:
  • Project viewers:
    • Bakes on Mesh project viewer, version 5.1.3.513936, March 30 (note this version of the viewer does not support applying bakes to mesh bodies / heads).
    • Animesh project viewer, version 5.1.3.513013, March 7 – project overview.
    • 360 snapshot viewer, version 5.1.3.513006,  March 6 (this version can have significant rendering issues, see my hand-on update).
  • Linux Spur viewer, version 5.0.9.329906, dated November 17, 2017 and promoted to release status 29 November – offered pending a Linux version of the Alex Ivy viewer code.
  • Obsolete platform viewer, version 3.7.28.300847, May 8, 2015 – provided for users on Windows XP and OS X versions below 10.7. This viewer will remain available for as long as reasonable, but will not be updated with new features or bug fixes.

Region Crossings

As I’ve reported in recent Simulator User Group meetings, Joe Magarac (animats) working on a scripted workaround to improve region crossings (“partial unsits, etc.) – see BUG-214653. The Lab is also working on crossings on the simulator side. While no time frames for the work were given, Oz Linen did observe, “How successful we’ll be remains to be seen, but we’re optimistic that we can make significant improvements.”

Decisions and memories in Second Life

Posted on by Inara Pey
Wintergeist – Decisions

Now open at the Artists In Residence gallery in the InterstellART, curated by Asmita Duranjaya, is a new exhibition of physical world photography by Fuyuko Amano (Wintergeist). Entitled Entscheidungen (decisions), it is dedicated to her father, who recently passed away, and so forms something of a personal exhibition of art.

A further dedication to her father sits alongside the landing point for the exhibit, which reads:

One morning you do not wake up. The birds sing as they sang yesterday. Nothing changes this new daily routine. Only you left. You are free now and our tears wish you luck.

Wintergeist – Decisions

Inside the gallery space, a dozen photographs are offered for viewing. They at first appear to be a curious mix: a building, an autumn leaf, a deliberately blurred night scene, an empty corridor, and so on. They seem to be random – and perhaps they are; yet, a considered look at them, taken with their titles (just right-click and edit to view), and perhaps something more is revealed.

When we lose someone, the mind becomes a waterfall of memories and mood, thoughts and feelings. The closer that person was to us, then the more tumultuous the thoughts. We can feel alone, caught between places and feelings – sometimes happy, others sad; places we can go to and remember, places that remind us, unbidden by conscious thought. Our moods become complex, layered; the familiar seems emptier, stranger, and it’s hard  – at first – not to count the passing of time when they are no longer there, doing what we know was part of their life.

Wintergeist – Decisions

This is this cascade of thoughts and feelings that might be reflected in the images offered here: rather than being a study of leaves turning red with the passage of the seasons, Herbst (Autumn)  becomes a reminder of what has now come to an end; Night City personifies the way the once familiar can seem suddenly strange to our eyes after the loss of a loved one; Here and There captures that sense of being capture between moods and memories; while In the City of Ghosts, Allein (Alone) and Don’t lose Your Way, speak powerfully and clearly without the need for translation here.

This is – as I noted – something of a personal display of photography, both in the way it is dedicated to the passing of a family member, and because of the manner in which Wintergeist appears to be opening her heart and feelings to use, allowing us a glimpse inside. Artistically speaking, it is also a visually captivating set of images; each beautifully framed and cleanly presented without the distraction of framing.

SLurl Details

Fantasy Faire 2018: supporting the KNH Hope Hostel

Posted on by Inara Pey
via Fantasy Faire

2018 marks the start of a new chapter in the American Cancer Society’s (ACS) work. For the first time, fund-raisers are allowed to earmark donations for a special project they have chosen to support – and Fantasy Faire is going to do precisely that, supporting the Kenyatta National Hospital Hope Hostel, with all proceeds from this year Faire going towards this ground-breaking international project.

Since the 1970s, ACS has built and managed more than 30 Hope Lodge facilities across the United States and in Puerto Rico. These provide free accommodations for cancer patients and their caregivers during treatment. More than a place to stay, a Hope Lodge can be an essential part of cancer care for many. In 2014, for example, over 44,000 cancer patients and caregivers stayed at a Hope Lodge for a total of over 276,000 free nights of accommodation and a range of facilities such as a social centre, library, and laundry. For some of these people, it saved them from facing the impossible choice between receiving treatment and paying the bills at home.

Now ACS has decided to broaden the project and establish Hope Lodges internationally – and the first is being created in Kenya, where cancer is the third leading cause of death. Approximately 40,000 new cases out of the nation’s 45 million population are diagnosed every year, and some 28,500 Kenyans die from the disease annually. What’s more, while cancer mortality rates in developed nations have fallen as treatment and preventative measures have improved, in Africa they’ve remain unchanged for 30 years.

Currently, the only public comprehensive cancer treatment centre in Kenya is located at the Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) in Nairobi. This means patients must travel from all over the country to KNH to receive treatment. However, accommodation is at a premium – many Kenyans simply cannot afford the US $4 or $5 a night cost of lodging while receiving treatment at the hospital. This leaves many patients sleeping in the hospital’s corridors (for which the KNH has been repeatedly chastised) or worse, outside. Exposed to the elements, without the means to bathe or prepare a proper meal, many of these patients have their chances of survival is greatly compromised.

Hence why Kenya has been chosen to become home to a Hope Lodge, and ACS have decided to partner with the Kenyatta National Hospital to create it.

Located within the campus grounds of the KNH, the Hope Hostel will cost an estimated US $2 million – an amount that will guarantee both the construction of the facilities and cover two years of operating costs. Once operational, the Hope Hostel will serve more than 1,000 cancer patients annually, providing free temporary housing and integrated hospital services, such as post-operative care and pain management. In addition, the Hostel will provide an on-site resource centre where patients and caregivers can obtain cancer information and resources, and offer a place where patients can rest during the day.

The KNH Hope Hostel will not only provide people from around the country a place to stay during treatment, but also a place to heal physically and spiritually.

Lily Koros Tare – CEO, Kenyatta National Hospital

Artist rendering of the Hope Hostel from the Kenyatta National Hospital website

Fantasy Faire is taking on this lead role in both raising funds and awareness of the Kenyatta National Hospital Hope Hostel at the direct request of Stingray Raymaker, known in the physical world as Jeff Montegut, the Director of On-line Revenue at Relay For Life.

Fantasy Faire has raised so much money for RFL in the last nine years, and I know that 2018 will be huge. Big number TEN and all! So, what do you think about the idea that all money raised by Fantasy Faire in 2018 could go to helping us build the Hope Lodge in Kenya?

– Stingray Raymaker

Relay For Life of Second Life is a global fund-raising activity, but it has often been seen as raising money for an American organisation which spends that money only in the United States. This is not an accurate reflection of things – as Da5id Abbot has recently blogged about on the Fantasy Faire website.

By taking on fund-raising for the KNH Hope Hostel, Fantasy Faire is further correcting such misconceptions in a practical and life-saving way. One which further extends the family of Second Life relayers, as the Fantasy Faire management team point out:

The survivors, caregivers and medical staff at Kenyatta National Hospital are every bit as much our brothers and sisters in the fight against cancer as those in our own home towns, and we can’t tell you how proud we are to be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with them … today we welcome the chance to join new friends and colleagues in our global mission to make cancer history …

Fairelanders, let’s show our new friends just what we can do.

Elizabeth Tinsley, Da5id Abbot and Zander Greene.

 

Additional Links