Virtual world pioneer Randy Farmer loves to mess around with MMO games. As a beta tester for Second Life, Farmer was responsible for one of the first legendary events in the game: the Jessie Massacre. Out of curiosity, he created a weapon of mass destruction and unleashed it on a community of former WWII gamers. The resulting mayhem made him the target of more than a few nasty looks, but to the rest of the community he was thought of as a hero.
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What do sim Albion, ABC Island and Camp Kawabata have in common? They all lost approximately half (or at least that is the term people are using) of their content suddenly in the last several days.
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Linden Lab the creators of the popular virtual world Second Life, has announced the acquisition of technology from Windward Mark Interactive, a graphics technology firm founded in 2003 by five Harvard University students looking for "a better way to create real-time worlds."

As part of the acquisition, Linden Lab adds that it will acquire the developer's atmospheric rendering technology WindLight, and Nimble, a realistic 3D cloud simulator, as well as associated intellectual property and interests. The company further notes that once the acquisition is complete, it plans to make available Windward Mark's graphics technology through open source channels, and integrate it into the Second Life Viewer software, bringing added visual fidelity to the popular MMO.
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Bruce Willis will be promoting his latest movie "Live Free or Die Hard" within the virtual world PC title "Second Life". Fans of the series can get up close and personal with the star in a Q&A where you will not only be able to interact physically with his avatar but can also hear Bruce's responses audibly and in real-time.

For further details please follow the link below.
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BBC News reports: Second Life is being investigated by German police following allegations that some members are trading child abuse images in the online world.

The investigation follows a report by a German TV news program which uncovered the trading group and members who pay for sex with virtual children.
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Playboy magazine is opening up shop in Second Life to everyone's surprise ("Playboy isn't in Second Life?"). Although it's unclear what form the Playboy presence will have in the virtual world, as a brand this is a very modern step for Hugh Heffner and his girls. Unlike most of the companies who have set up shop in SL, Playboy seems like it would fit in with community quite seamlessly and they are getting into the virtual business at the perfect time.

Like it or not, being a centerfold or getting an invite to the Playboy Mansion is a very difficult achievement that some people admire. Having Playboy in Second Life is probably the closest most people will get to the brand, and there is a market for men and women (and men acting as women, and vice versa) who want to be a part of it.
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Mysterious news on the Millions of Us blog this evening: it seems there's now a Microsoft island in the virtual world of Second Life.

At least, that's what the »teleport link« in the blog entry implies. And indeed, Microsoft has a build set up on its island devoted to Visual Studio - though it's not clear what the rest of the island is for. And then there's the blimp, which Millions of Us clearly wants us to be interested in, especially judging from the teaser video. It's a pretty nice blimp, actually - although if you get too close to it, it first gives you a security warning, and then teleports you to your home location!

More will be revealed at a launch event at 6pm SL Time (9pm Eastern) on Thursday, 10 May. Until then, it's interesting to note Microsoft's presence in Second Life.

Various people from Microsoft initiatives like Channel 9 have set up shop in Second Life, and a mad Microsoft marketer chose some interesting spots to make the launch of Vista, but 3pointD think this may be the first big Microsoft presence in SL. Hard to tell what it means coming out of such a sprawling company, but it will be interesting to watch. Especially if there's something good in that blimp.
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It is another of the Internet's most cutting-edge applications outside the Web: the online community of surrogate identities in the 3D realm of Second Life. It's a virtual world supported by real dollars from companies that lease virtual space, providing the service with real revenue. But just how many real users does it have?

In a recent partnership agreement announced with the National Basketball Association, Commissioner David Stern cited what he characterized as Second Life's six million users. A check today of the site's Web home page refer to its 6.16 million "residents," 1.62 million of whom have logged on within the past 60 days.

In a story for InformationWeek published last week, Executive Editor Mitch Wagner asked a representative of Linden Lab for a clarification of Stern's quote. As he describes in a blog post last Friday, the number he received in return was staggering: While the company estimates its own flesh-and-blood user base to have reached 3.2 million at the end of last March, he learned, its actual user retention rate is close to 10%. Based on that formula, Linden Lab's everyday user count is close to 320,000.
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Thanks to a few guys over at Second Life, Midgar is now open to play in Second Life.

You start in the city as either a warrior, a gunner or a caster. You can acquire materia to gain special abilities and you can join either the SOLDIER or AVALANCHE factions in a struggle to save the planet from getting itself sucked dry of Mako energy.

Hopefully no lawsuits will erupt and Midgar will stay in Second Life, and hopefully expand till we get the whole FFVII world going. Anyway, check out the pictures before anything.
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The virtual online PC life simulator, Second Life, which is often compared to Sony's upcoming PS3 Home network, is under investigation by the FBI on the legality of its virtual gambling features. Virtual casinos within Second Life allow gamers to gamble using the game's currency, the Linden Dollar, which is exchanged for real-life US dollars. Linden Labs, the creators of Second Life, have invited FBI agents to poke around these virtual casinos, seeking legal guidance after heavy restrictions ... » Read More

The value of online 'worlds' such as Second Life has passed $1bn in the West - in real money. Who is making it? And how? Rebecca Armstrong reports on a bewildering social phenomenon

Lonely? Ugly? Broke? Don't worry, you can make friends, have a makeover and earn a million from the comfort of your armchair. There is a catch - your friends and looks will only exist online. But, for an increasing number of virtual adventurers, the money made within the games they play is cold, hard cash.

According to a report published by analysts Screen Digest this week, the market for massive multiplayer online games (MMOG) is now worth more than $1bn in the West alone. The report's author, Piers Harding-Rolls, says that, "there are millions of people playing MMOGs. These new games have brought with them many new gamers - and new ways of making money".
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While attending GDC last week, PSU had the chance to stop by the Linden Lab booth, developers behind Second Life, and talk with Jeff Luan about his thoughts on the Phil Harrison keynote and, more importantly, PlayStation Home.

"Mimicry is the greatest form of flattery for us," said Luan.

Luan believes that "Home" will be great for console gamers, but what Sony is doing really won't have an affect on Second Life due to Second Life being on PC and it being targetted whole different market of users.

Perhaps "Home" won't have an affect on Second Life, but how will it affect Xbox Live and the Wii? Bringing almost unlimited options to PlayStation gamers in creating their character, earning trophys, or decking out their pad. I guess only time will tell.
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According to a ZDnet blog, John Edwards is blazing new trails in campaigning... in Second Life. The presidential hopeful has a political HQ set up by Jose Rote, a volunteer. Rote hopes the campaign will help make a difference in the small, tightly knit community of Second Life players.
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An interesting blog entry, with reference links, discussing Sweden's intent to tax people who "gold farm" or buy and sell virtual property and/or goods.
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Virtual world Second Life had to close its doors for a short time on Sunday after a worm attack called grey goo.

The self-replicating worm planted spinning gold rings around the virtual world, which is inhabited by more than a million users.

Players treated the attack with a mixture of mirth and anger.

"Can this game get any more unpredictable and exciting?" asked one user, Loretta Lurra on the official Second Life blog.

As users interacted with the rings they replicated, resulting in a slowdown on the servers used by Second Life's creators Linden Lab, in California.

Second Life has become one of the most talked about developments in cyberspace in recent years.
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All 650,000 players of online game Second Life have been asked to create new passwords, following a serious security breach.
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Last week the Second Life Community Convention was held in San Francisco. If you've had avatar sex in Second Life, you probably have Stroker Serpentine of Strokerz Toys to thank. Stroker, famous for creating avatar genitals and sex animations and other complex in-world sex tech, accepted the microphone in his turn and began simply, "My name is Stroker Serpentine, and I am a pervert." The audience roared its approval.
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