Sunday, April 6, 2008

Research Paper Outline

Topic: Education in Second Life

What are some of the best examples of Education in Second Life?

I. Introduction: Campus Island

II. Ohio University

a. Russ College of Engineering and Technology

b. College of Fine Arts

III. Harvard

a. Law School

b. Extension school

IV. University of Minnesota

a. Physics

b. Astronomy

V. San Diego State University

a. 3D Animation and Graphic

b. Digital Video Production

VI. Conclusion

Thursday, March 6, 2008

Paper #2 Topic and Thesis

Topic: Architecture in Second Life
Thesis: Architecture in Second Life can be used as a tool for RL architects to show potential clients a virtual model of a structure, educators can pose building challenges to their students for designing and problem solving experience and architecture in Second Life can be an outlet of creativity designing buildings without the RL limiting standards.

Sunday, February 3, 2008

First Short Paper Thesis

Topic: Advertisement, Marketing, Business and Economy
Thesis: The SL economic market functions much like real life in that Lindens are spent and earned for products or services rendered. Linden Labs monitors carefully the cash flow of Lindens in ratio to the number of new residents to curb inflation much like the Federal Reserve does for the US government. Business in SL is centered on the material and emotional needs or wants of the residents. In the SL virtual life spending money can be easy, making real dollars is quite possible and some may experience the feeling of needing to make your avatar bigger and better through buying your way up the social ladder.

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Stargate Adventure

While searching for a location that might interest me I stumbled upon the land of Cass (98, 206, 56). As an aviation enthusiast, this place is particularly fascinating being the home of J&S Aviation. The few times that I have teleported to Cass I have not been fortunate enough to find a local resident to talk, but I did get to experience the airport some. I picked up a free tee shirt in the small town terminal, parachuted from 4000 meters and I flew a small helicopter on an exhilarating demo flight. The terminal is very much like real terminal with a ticket counter and a small diner. The building’s walls are mostly made of glass allowing a perfect view of the activity outside from anywhere inside. The sound of an aircraft engine can be heard as well as the communication of the air traffic controller with other pilots. Outside of the terminal there is one runway lined on either side with aircraft both fixed wing and rotor. The aircraft are a mixture of modern and even concept aircraft with ones that are World War II classics like the P-51 Mustang and Japanese Zero.The skydiving that I tried for free was quite interesting. There is a group of pods located south of the runway that you sit on and they transport you high in the sky until they dump you off your seat to begin your free fall to earth. Right to the side of the pods there is a free parachute that you can take that will open automatically as you enjoy your free falling experience. For $150 linden you can buy a more controllable parachute and try to beat other people’s accuracy scores for landing on targets that are on the ground scattered around the airport. At the east end of the runway there are some helicopters that you can take a flight in and explore the landscape from the air. The experience is pretty exciting especially with the loud sound of the engine when you use the cockpit view. I have not been in communication with any air traffic control, but I suppose if I do fly anywhere close to another airport, I would have to watch out for other aircraft and follow the controller’s instructions. I would encourage anybody who takes an interest in aviation to visit Cass. The landscape is tranquil with rolling hills and evergreen tree lines. One thing that is not very exciting is that there were not many people in Cass while I was visiting it, but that may be because of the time of day I was there. With listening to the air traffic controllers I do not expect it to be hard to find other pilots and aviation enthusiasts.

Monday, January 28, 2008

Let Me Introduce my Second Self...


In the program, Second Life, I have been given the opportunity to represent myself in a three dimensional avatar. The default appearance of the avatar is very plain and impersonal with almost white colored skin, straight tight blue jeans and a tee shirt. I have changed that appearance in an attempt to represent myself in real life, but of course not perfectly.

My avatar’s hair has been changed to the dark brown or black color to match mine. It is longer than in real life, but that is mostly because the virtual simulation of hair seems to leave bald spots if it is too short. My facial hair is mostly a goatee which I do have most of the time in real life, except on my avatar I don’t feel the need to shave it off because it gets scratchy like I do in reality. I darkened my skin color some to match my darker complexion. I added a pair of sunglasses to my avatar because when I am out and about or when I am driving I always prefer to wear sunglasses. Glasses would be something that I would not use all the time though, because I do not feel like that is part of my identity. If I could find a good ball cap, I would most likely add that to my apparel.

My avatar’s clothing is not too fancy as I have not spent any lindens on them. I have however picked up quite a bit of free clothing. I picked up my tee shirt at an airport facility called J&S Aviation. The shirt is black with a great picture of a red bi-plane on the back. My jeans are faded blue and I changed so they are not skin tight. I like my jeans looser fitting, but not so they are falling off. My tennis shoes are the way I like them, fitted and light, like a running pair of shoes. The light blue color is not my first choice, but the price was right.

In general I am happy with my avatar’s appearance, although I do not feel like it is set in stone. As I become more accustomed to the Second Life program and I explore more I will probably change something. I think in everybody’s life, change in appearance happens quite a bit during a span of time. The difference in working on an avatar’s appearance is that you can make those changes instantly and then move on to the next look or fashion.

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Welcome


My name is Mark, welcome to my blog. I am an Avionics Management Major at University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, MO. I am married and have to a two year old daughter and a 4 month old son. I enjoy most any kind of technology or mechanics. I lived in northern Minnesota before moving to Missouri almost three years ago.