All At Once

My sister says that now she understands what Second Life is, but she found my blog more interesting when I talked about running.  On the other hand, she also cautioned me about complaining of my injuries to my running buddies because they didn’t want to hear it. So, for the moment, I’ll settle on another technology related topic.

I used Craigs List for the first time this week.  I sold my spa cover and gave away the broken spa.  What a great deal!  It was so easy. And free.  The response was tremendous!  I had been under the impression it was all about sex.  I can’t imagine ever being in a situation where looking for a partner on Craig’s List would look like an attractive option.  All I know is that it is great for selling stuff. 

Last night The Musician learned how to play the drums.  When I heard him, I honestly thought it was a drum machine.  One of those electronic things where you can push a button and get a recording of someone else playing the drums.  But then I walked into Leslie’s music room and saw him sitting straight up looking and sounding like he had been taking years of lessons and playing drums all of his life.  A skinny Max Weinberg without the big paycheck.  It is tough not to be awed by him.  But I am awed by each of them.

All Eyes on Me

I like using song titles for my blog titles.  Now if only I could figure out an EASY way to have the music playing without worrying about stealing it or paying huge royalties.  Perhaps I should start recording some of my own.  That’s a scary thought!I attended a concert in Second Life the other day.  Johnny99 Gumshoe is very talented!  I need to learn more about the technology that makes that possible.  Right now it feels so unfamiliar and black box.  I would like to lift the lid of the box and figure it out, but it’s all a process in my “spare” time.

When I first got a light saber in Second Life, I was a sitting duck.  As hard as I tried, I was always getting whacked into oblivion.  Then, BetaBob Baobob, aka Cory, gave me a detailed lesson on offensive and defensive moves.  He even showed me a few tricks and the next time I was in a light saber fight, I was able to hold my own.  Since he is only 9, I asked him how he knew so much.  He turned to look me in the eyes and said “Mom.  I read the directions.”

Out Here On My Own

What is this Second Life? Hmm.  Now that it is such second nature to me, that question feels like What is breathing?

Second Life is a virtual world.  That means, it exists only in cyber space.  Technically, it is an MMO - a massively multi-player online game.  That means a lot of people use it at the same time.  Online.  Think about a chat room.  Say what you will about chat rooms – they aren’t all filled with pedophiles and sex.  Second Life has its share of shady characters.  I wouldn’t let my kids loose in there unsupervised just as I wouldn’t let them hang out at Haight-Asbury.  But in this virtual world, there is a lot going on that is totally unrelated to sex.

Consider an online class.  Many online classes are supported by some internet site that has a “course management system” (CMS).  This CMS will ahve a place to store lectures that the students read.  Or, if the instructor is really enlightened, a Podcast, which is a recording that the student can listen to at another time.  There will be a place to store assignments, a discussion among students and faculty, and, of course, grades.  The delivery is primarily text based.  So, forget about appealing to multiple intelligences!  How is Second Life different?

Second Life has the user create an “avatar”, which is a character that represents the user.  Most people in Second Life have human-looking avatars, but some create trolls, gnomes, animals, and whatever else they want.  My avatar is a person named AuntFun Ellison.  She is younger than I am and svelte.  But all human avatars in Second Life, it seems, are younger and slimmer than their real life counterparts.  AuntFun hangs out primarily on a place called imagiLEARNING island which is built for educators.  She has a house there that she uses mostly to change her clothes.  It is an avatar.  It isn’t real.  And yet, some of my human modesty comes through as I don’ want to have my avatar appear to be changing in a virtual world.

My avatar also cannot drink.  She used to throw back margaritas with friends at the Tiki Bar, but in real life that made me uncomfortable.  So, I don’t let her drink anymore.  AuntFun doesn’t seem to mind.  She has just as much fun without it.

This emotional connection between person and avatar is what makes this such a powerful learning medium.  At a distance, courses no longer need to be primarily text based.  Immersive environments can be created to train rescue workers, programmers, healthcare workers…  The list is endless.

I hope that discussion of Second Life and avatars makes more sense to Sissy than the last one.

Falling Down

My sister told me that she couldn’t understand any of my last blog post.  Perhaps changing blogging tools will work, or perhaps I just need to be a little more intelligible.

This morning I got proactive about rehabbing my hip.  Rest was good, but now it’s time to get into action.  I spun on my bike trainer for awhile.  I feel stronger already.   I have two months to get ready for Boston.  I can do it.  I can do it.  I can do it.