SecondLife Reading Part 2 - Bebop Reality

Update: I just finished Wagner James Au's book. His announcement of it on his blog/news site is here. I was also honored to be the first to comment on his announcement of it. He brings up several amazing insights that I've shared with him, but my internalized thinking hasn't come up with such great terms for it.



The term of his I like best that I'm likely to steal is 'Bebop Reality' likening the virtual reality/metaverse of Second Life to a jazz jam. People building and altering the reality of the world according to what people build around them. This was the essence of early Second Life and the best sandboxes still have this element. I'm sure there are other places do too but they are harder to find or locked down by group, it's not a global experience and maybe it shouldn't be. But the experience of it also takes me back to my geek sci fi roots where reality itself is mutable. Au also points out that this is an entirely new way of thinking for most real life companies to adopt. They try to impose instead of trying to be organic. Second Life is strange in that it is much more a grassroots friendly place. Designers and builders are respected more for being Second Life originals rather then ripoffs of what we can get in physical form. The best example I've seen of a corporate presence is the Greenies, because it's fun just to be there, check it out if you haven't.



This physical vs. virtual dichotomy always becomes a problem when I try to explain to people how I get paid (albeit it very little in real dollars) to build things that don't exist. They do exist. The best example I have come up with is that I'm a digital artist. You don't need the painting on your mantle, it serves no purpose other then your enjoyment to look at, things in Second Life are the same way. They are art pieces, and they can be worth just as much as the Monet. This sounds strange but it's the only analogue that allowed me to explain to my parents what I was doing. But what's even more exciting, and the part of early Second Life (I've been there since 2003) I miss the most, is the organic 'growing' of an installation. It's why I don't choose to work alone, one because more creative people make me more creative, makes our work better, but also because it's a blast to see what you intended changed and grown into something better.



I'm sure I'll have more thoughts on Jame's book in future posts but I'm going to make a step to recovering the part of Second Life I miss the most. I'm going to run a build event called the "Bebop Reality" builds, I'll put some good jazz on the stream and anyone who wants to come riff on building with me at my shop is welcome. I'll learn something, maybe they will too (I love to learn and teach), maybe they'll want to work with IDG in the future, whatever happens, happens, that's the nature of our chosen reality.



Here's to the groove baby.





By the way, you don't have to wait for an event. My shop has 30 minute build permissions for everyone, so if you can build it in 30 minutes you're welcome to do it there, please keep it on the grass and send me a copy when it's done, that's a whole nother challenge and lots of fun to see what you can create that fast. I never plan to turn off that feature but if I get griefed because of it it may have to become a different kind of event.