Valentines Day Is Approaching...Are you Ready? Jaded Exonar Reporting....

Valentine's day.  Romance, roses, chocolates, music, and moonlight...But in Second life, we have the chance to  really  express ourselves.  Why not give something just a little different to your loved one this year?  After all, I've been searching the darkest, most secluded parts of SL to find  a few gems that might just surprise you!

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New In 2013 Designer Hunt! Jaded Exonar Reporting....

2013 - A new year, and a fresh start!  What better way to celebrate than to join me (and every other fashion fanatic out there!) for the 'New In 2013 Hunt?  It began on December 20th and will run until January 20th - But what makes  this  hunt stand out from the crowd?

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A Festive Look At This Christmas In Second Life - Jaded Exonar Reporting...

 

 Calas

 

With so much happening in Second life this Christmas, it's easy to lose track of everything! So please sit back, put your feet up, and take a sip of hot chocolate, as we gently take a short tour of some of the very best this Season has to offer!

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I just love dancing don't you? Jaded Exonar reporting ....

With the holiday season upon us, and parties waiting around every corner, this is the perfect time to pull out your very best dance moves!  This is often harder than it might seem in Second Life!  

Remember the days when you had to click on a dance ball and hold your breath as your gorgeous avatar jolted and jiggled across the floor like an anathematized patient?  Or perhaps when you clicked your shiny new chimera, only to watch yourself dancing a little robotically, or even just a bit unrealistically?  Well, I certainly do!  Recently there has been a dance revolution, with the new advances and availability of motion capture technology, moves are more fluid and natural then ever - And from the very crème of this new delicious breakthrough, comes  'Humanoid'.  The Humanoid team not only use the latest in motion capture technology to bring us those smooth moves, but have taken it a step further.  Using a team of real life dancers, Markus Adkins represents this amazing breakthrough brand.

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Hanukkah 2012 ~ Jaded Exonar Reporting From Israel ....

Hanukkah falls from the 8^th of December until the 16^th this year – It celebrates what the Jewish traditions tell was a miracle, but is this all we have to remember this year?

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Pitsch Parx Continues To Inspire With The New Winter 2012/Spring 2013 Interior Design Catalog.... Jaded Exonar Reporting....

For those of us who love design, Pitsch Parx is of course a household name.  As the man behind the 'Inspiration Blog', he has amassed a huge number of followers, with this month seeing the release of  the new ' Inspiration Book Volume 2 '.....

" This new inspiration book will be devoted to SL interior design, and we intend to release forecast books four times a year.

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Machinima Expo Awards Results - Jaded Exonar Reporting....

Watch live streaming video from themachinimaexpo at livestream.com

This week saw the end of the Machinima Expo - The famous and highly renowned 3 day virtual film festival. The ceremony took place in Secondlife, and featured over 12 hours of groundbreaking film screenings, all created using virtual reality.

Pooky Amsterdam was asked to be this years Programming Chair, explaining on her website that...

"....This year we took a theme for the Expo that would reflect what is important as we move forward. In this decade of increased awareness on all levels of the Entertainment industry on the value and validity of games, "Let's Get Real" is what we chose. Let's Get Real means, in game engine film making, a celebration of the craft of machinima film making (which is something the Expo has been doing since 2008 by the way) and the exploration of where, how, what and why we are getting better and bigger all the time. "

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SL Ethics? Jaded Exonar Reporting...

Ethics. We all live by them, using them as a guide to help us negotiate our actions and responses in life - But how do they apply to our Second Life? Do they even have a place there, or do we simply render them as inappropriate or unhelpful in SL?




The Oxford English Dictionary defines ethics as 'moral principles that govern a person’s behavior or the conducting of an activity'. If we use this as our definition, they should be an integral part of our Second Life experience; but are they really the same as in RL?

There are a few very general guides of conduct that the long term SL community at large tends to adhere to as rule. These include -

# Changing your avatar's appearance or clothes in private

# Using private voice chat to talk about personal issues

# Not asking strangers for Lindens

# Talking to child avatars as though they were children (Until you are asked otherwise!)

# Keeping conversations as purely Second Life until you know it is Ok to discuss RL (From someone's profile, or if they tell you they don't mind)

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'Art Of Protest' Exhibition Underway At Art India Gallery -Jaded Exonar Reporting....

Last week saw the Official opening of the new 'Art Of Protest Contest' at Art India Gallery. With such a varied selection of artwork surrounding you upon landing, it's easy to lose yourself immediately in this beautiful exhibit. Each piece is unique, conveying its own individual protest, personality and world view. Alongside each is the option to receive a notecard providing context about the work in the artists own words, and the option to vote (With a select few available to buy). Visitors can vote on as many pieces as they wish, which is fortunate for us as the quality of both build and concept are beautifully high throughout the exhibition.

 

 

 

 

 

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Taking A Second Look At Graphics – Jaded Exonar Reporting.....

 

As technology and demand increases, the graphic standards in Secondlife just keep going from strength to strength. With enhanced capabilities, our vast (and often incredibly beautiful) virtual surroundings are more immersive than ever – But what we see is ultimately up to us.




    

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‘Virtual Ability’ and disabilities within Second Life – Jaded Exonar Reporting......

For many of us, Second Life is a virtual playground of possibilities, a light-hearted virtual holiday from reality - But for some, it’s a lifeline.

In the United States alone, according to the Congressional Committee findings for the Americans with Disability Act (ADA), 43 million citizens out of the total population of about 250 million are disabled. That’s 17%, (one in five) who have some type of disability. This makes disabled people the largest minority group in the U.S.  In the same way that real life poses challenges to anyone with disabilities, Second Life does too.  How would your first day in SL have been if you had control of only one finger to type, or were using voice recognition software to control your computer? 

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Thanksgiving in SL? Jaded Exonar Reporting.....

November 22nd 2012 - A time for reflection, appreciation, and time in the company of loved ones.  Whatever your Nationality, this is a Season worth enjoying....But will anyone be celebrating in SL?

Evola Courtois:- " I have no idea - I might dress up as a turkey!  I'm thankful for all the creative outlets in SL, all the great people - And of course for Cali here! "

Cali Courtois:-  " Well I work on Thanksgiving, but I come online at night so I can celebrate in both worlds.  I'm thankful for Evola here - We've been together for three years now -  And for all the amazing things we can do in SL together!  "

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The Dead Cool Fashion Event - Are You Ready ? Jaded Exonar Reporting...

Halloween is fast approaching

It's calling out your name,

Shrieking from the shadows,

It's found us once again......

Are you feeling the tingle of Halloween yet? Neither was I....Until I found myself at the 'Dead Cool Fashion Event'.....

The lightening shoots through the mists to reveal the large courtyard, filled with many top featured vendors displaying the season specials. It's nearly that time of year again, and the perfect opportunity to start thinking of costumes and sink into the exciting darkness of the season. Where better to begin than SL's 'Halloween' Sim? It's just begun hosting the 'Dead Cool Fashion Event' from September 30th - October 31st. Vinyl Cafe, House Of London, Halloween Boutique, Valentina E. and House Of Rfyre are featured, to name but a few, with some real gems on offer, and many available only here for a limited time. I myself just couldn't resist Valentia E.'s 'Damned Dress' in mesh to get into the spirit of all things spooky....

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The Official Announcement Of The New Steam Portal To Sl...Jaded Exonar Reporting...

Statement from Linden Labs, on their official blog. 08-16-2012

“......We’re going to make Second Life available on Steam in the next month or so. You’ll still be able to access Second Life just as you can today; there won’t be any change to that. But, the more than 40 million people who use Steam will also be able to get Second Life as easily as they can get games like Portal. We’ll make an announcement on the blog when Second Life is actually available on Steam....”

Well, the whispers have finally become assured confirmations across the grid. Steam is coming! Though the exact date is not set, it is finally official, and we can move on from asking ‘Is it going to happen...?’,and begin taking a closer look at the now imminent future portal into SL.

What is ‘Steam’?

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Drama - The Good The bad And The Necessary? Jaded Exonar Reporting....

 

 

Even the most recent of SL residents can’t escape the reality we label ‘drama’ – But what is it, and why is it there at all? Perhaps most importantly, can we really avoid it?

 

Second Life is saturated with this phenomenon of ‘drama’,and at times it seems impossible to avoid, even without any personal involvement at all! Confused? I used to be. I can remember very clearly bobbing through a welcome area as a noob, all dressed in my very best (and only) pink dotty dress, my hair tied neatly back into a pony tail, fresh pale skin blinding people in the sunlight. The virtual world was opening up before me, and there it was. BAM. A couple were shouting in Local Chat, and everyone around me slowly began taking sides. That was the moment I began to hobble swiftly and uncomfortably down the road I still try to walk today – The one that leads away from the problem. Has this always worked? In a word, no. But why?

 

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Arkansas State University's Johnny Cash Sim & Official Festival! October 5, 2012 -Jaded Exonar Reporting .....

 

 

 

Arkansas State University (ASU) has created a working masterpiece. As true testament to their diverse skills and creativity, they have recreated Dyess, Arkansas, the boyhood home of Johnny Cash, in preparation for the Official RL Johnny Cash Festival...

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Linden Endowment Of The Arts Features Mary Wickentower’s, ‘Cinema!’ – Jaded Exonar Reporting...

The new art installation supported by ‘Linden Endowment Of The Arts’, is a sim wide piece by Mary Wickentower. Using her extensive background in design, she has created an elegant and nostalgic window into the past....

 

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Using Our Virtual Environment To Enhance Nature's -Jaded Exonar Reporting

Second Life has had over 10 million residents since first release in 2003, with 40 thousand currently inworld as I write this -But is it possible to change, improve, even to save our world from within SL?

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William Weaver's New Phototools For Firestorm 4 - Jaded Exonar Reporting...

 

 

 Second Life © has long been recognised as a unique platform for artistic enterprise and development, and now William Weaver (Paperwork Resident) has developed a photographic tool to enhance its visual capabilities...

 

 

 

 

 

 

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An Introduction to Mesh Clothing...Jaded Exonar Reporting...

 If you are a new fan of mesh clothing, you may have received the dreaded I.M, ‘You do know you’re naked, right?’. No! Well, to some, I’m afraid we are!

“My first mesh dress was beautiful. I had chosen the size, ensured it fitted perfectly to my shape, and walked confidently into a party in a PG zone. I can’t recall how many messages I was sent, but they began to ping only seconds after my ‘glamorous’ entrance. One kindonlooker even sent me a screenshot – I hang my head with pure embarrassment to admit that I was indeed, not only naked, but waving a huge coloured ball around in my hand like a drunken party crasher! “ Rhiana (Who would prefer to be mentioned by her first name only) laughs as she shares this with me, immaculately dressed in a mesh business suit, I might add!
The truth is, despite this happening some time ago, it is still a concern to many in SL. There are no requirements regarding the modesty layers, if any, to be included with mesh items, so it is up to us to guard against it! There are a few ways to do this. First, we need to know why this is happening to us!

Why am I naked?
Well, different viewers have different levels of features on offer. Some have the ability to see mesh, and others simply do not. I’ve created a fairly comprehensive list of mesh enabled viewers here, along with some useful features.

 

 

 

Another thing to remember is that some viewers will not view the alpha layers either! So perhaps adding a layer of underwear to your outfit is advisable!

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