Over 50 people attended a great program on Info Island tonight presented by Jeff Barr, Amazon Technology Evangelist. He talked about web services offered by Amazon and their activities in Second Life.
October 2006
Monthly Archive
Tue 10 Oct 2006
Great program on Info Island by Jeff Barr, Amazon Technology Evangelist
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Sun 8 Oct 2006
Congratulations to photographer Bucky Barkley on a fantastic art show on Info Island on Saturday, October 7! Almost 80 people attended the elegant event held from 6-8 pm sl at the Library Gallery. The show was called “Blurred Realities” and featured photographs by Bucky Barkley. This has been the most well-attended event at Info island and was a terrific kickoff for our grand opening week. Bucky’s artwork was the first to be displayed on Info Island. For more information on Info Island art shows, contact Abbey Zenith.
Fri 6 Oct 2006
Damek Tretiak in SL and Patrick Ward in RL has created a special search HUD(heads-up display) which can also reside on the user’s screen for Second Life Library. Library users can ask a question via Question Point via chat or via email, search world-cat, wikipedia, google, view a map of the library, Amazon, Findarticles.com, and Second Life itself. According to Damek, this is only the beginning. Currently in Second Life, the only ways we are aware of to search the web is through other search mechanisms created by Hugo Dalgleigh and a 411 search engine. When finished searching, the user can minimize the small search screen on their Second Life screen. Users can get one of these free of charge in front of the library in the Second Life Library kiosk. If you have further suggestions for the HUD, contact Damek Tretiak or Lorelei Junot. The search engine is powered by slquery.com.
In real life, Damek is the CTO for a small, international company called TransWorld. He works with several European auto makers managing port operations and other activities related to the United States market. He also has several associated companies such as a marketing group and a new restaurant management group. Damek has been in the software industry for around 10 years now, building everything from real-time inventory management systems to e-commerce sites on the Internet. He joined Second Life mainly because he was curious about what the fuss was about, but quickly realized its potential. His mission soon became to find new ways to be creative with the information we have available in RL, and of course have a little fun! Again, the Search HUD is just the beginning. The library is thankful to Damek for creating such a wonderful tool which should help library users.
In real life, Damek is the CTO for a small, international company called TransWorld. He works with several European auto makers managing port operations and other activities related to the United States market. He also has several associated companies such as a marketing group and a new restaurant management group. Damek has been in the software industry for around 10 years now, building everything from real-time inventory management systems to e-commerce sites on the Internet. He joined Second Life mainly because he was curious about what the fuss was about, but quickly realized its potential. His mission soon became to find new ways to be creative with the information we have available in RL, and of course have a little fun! Again, the Search HUD is just the beginning. The library is thankful to Damek for creating such a wonderful tool which should help library users.
Fri 6 Oct 2006
PLCMC partners with Alliance Library system to open cultural/creative space in virtual world
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PLCMC partners with Alliance Library system to open cultural/creative space in virtual world
Charlotte, NC - Oct. 6, 2006 - The Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County (PLCMC) and the Alliance Library System are pleased to announce a partnership to collaborate on the “Eye4You Alliance,” an island in Teen Second Life that will offer virtual library services to teens.
Teen Second Life is a 3-D, international gathering place on the Internet where teens 13-17 can make friends, play, learn and create. Teens create a digital version of themselves, called an avatar, that they use to travel around the “virtual world,” meet new people and participate in a variety of activities.
The goal of “Eye4You Alliance” is to create an interactive and informative space for young adults within the Teen Second Life virtual world and to collaborate with other educators who serve youth and are already present in Teen Second Life and in real life.
“At a time when many libraries are offering collaborative spaces through social tools, a 3-D immersive environment is the next logical step to libraries remaining relevant to teenagers,” said Helene Blowers, director of Information Technology at PLCMC. “This project is an opportunity to engage teens in services and activities that will excite them in a place they already are.”
The project hopes to build teen developmental assets, encourage collaboration and promote active learning that will prepare teens for future learning. PLCMC and Alliance Library System leaders believe this environment has significant learning potential by being a Web interface that can challenge teen users to figure things out for themselves.
“We see this as an important service our libraries can collaborate on, and we are proud to team up with the library in Charlotte,” said Kitty Pope, executive director of the Alliance Library System in Peoria, Ill. “We are excited to be offering new outreach programs, events and services to teens who might not otherwise come to the library.”
Both library systems will provide the leadership and expertise in extending their outstanding real-life programs and services to the virtual world.
Founded in 1903 as a Carnegie Free Library, PLCMC has become one of the premiere libraries in the country with 24 locations, 1.6 million volumes, and 28,000 videos, DVDs and CDs. The library sponsors a variety of community-based programs - from computer- and Internet-education workshops to the award-winning Novello Festival of Reading, a celebration that accentuates the fun of reading and learning. As a public library, we are dedicated to our mission of expanding minds, empowering individuals and enriching our community.
Alliance Library System is one of the most innovative regional library systems in North America and is the lead agency on the Second Life Library project on Info Island in the adult version of Second Life. It is located in East Peoria, Illinois with 253 library members of all types. Alliance offers continuing education, consulting, resource sharing, and delivery service to members
For more information, contact Teen Second Life Project
Leaders Matt Gullett, mgullett@plcmc.org or Kelly Czarnecki,
kczarnecki@plcmc.org
Thu 5 Oct 2006
*On Tuesday, October 10, Jeff Barr (Jeff Batra in Second Life), Web Services Evangelist at Amazon.com, will discuss the
full line of Amazon’s web services from a technical and business
perspective on Tuesday October 11 at 5 pm s. The presentation will
include a review of developer activity within Second Life and there
will be ample time for discussion and Q&A. Open air auditorium, Info island, 141,
81, 33
NMC library programs
i *On Wednesday,October 11 at 5 pm sl, Henry VIII will visit the NMC library to talk about his life and how biographers have villified him. Come and heckle Henry during his one hour program.
*On Monday, October 16 at 7 pm SLT/PST, Lorelei Junot and Maxito Ricardo will host an informal discussion in the NMC library on “Digital Media and how it is Affecting Libraries.” There are now downloadable audio books, ebooks, and video. Libraries are stretching their budgets on new media to keep students engaged. Lorelei and Maxito will discuss current trends and open up the topic for discussion. The program will last approximately one hour and will be held at the NMC library.
*On Saturday October 21 at 12 noon sl, Troy McLuham, from the International Space and Flight Museum will present a program on “Life on Mars?” at the NMC library which begins with a 14-slide presentation, including prepared notes (chat text). He encourages interruptions for questions, comments, and discussion… that’s what makes it fun and interesting! It’s a historical overview of humanity’s knowledge about life existing on Mars, now or in the past. he usually allow san hour for it… the exact duration depends on the size of the audience and how much discussion arises. Come and catch a surprise!
Wed 4 Oct 2006
As of October 11, this blog is moving to the Info Island website at http://www.infoisland.org. (The new RSS feed is at http://infoisland.org/feed/) Check it out. Between now and then posts will be made at both sites.