2019 #VWEDU: MALET Academic Virtual Showcase, Fall 2019. Graduate Student capstone reports, MALET Empire State College (SUNY)

MALET Academic Virtual Showcase, Fall 2019. 

Graduate Student capstone reports, 

MALET Empire State College (SUNY)

A poster presentation of graduate student projects in the MALET program (Empire State College, SUNY).  MALET= Master of Arts in Learning and Emerging Technologies.

Map of the location

Go there

• Marian web page
• HG address: grid.kitely.com:8002:Marian Island
• Travel tips for the Hypergrid. A DTA content page
• The posters remain indefinitely.
• This could be done also as a job fair in which nobody travels.

• Education builds skills. Skills are assets. Assets are marketable if you can show them. Your portfolio shows your skills.
• MALET Students Virtual Showcase---poster session or presentation for the new century

• Kitely Market Passes $100,000 in Sales. New Dayturn release supports Bakes on Mesh. Dickens project continues

2019 #VWEDU: Dislexia: Educators in virtual worlds must deal with it in the viewer. Fonts and text-to-speech can help

Educators in virtual worlds must 
deal with it in the viewer.   
Fonts and text-to-speech can help

Schools in virtual worlds need to start considering reasonable accommodations for students with dyslexia.  There are some options.

Some cant read this

Click image to enlarge

• Some have dyslexia
• Dyslexia (Wikipedia) 

Dyslexia is a learning disorder that involves difficulty reading due to problems identifying speech sounds and learning how they relate to letters and words (decoding). Also called reading disability, dyslexia affects areas of the brain that process language.-- Mayo Clinic

For virtual worlds to offer educational places 

• We need to consider accommodations for students with disabilities.
• Reasonable Accommodations Explained

• Kitely Market Passes $100,000 in Sales. New Dayturn release supports Bakes on Mesh. Dickens project continues

2019 #VWEDU #DTA: You could give live lectures on a virtual campus. But why would you?

You could give live lectures 
on a virtual campus.  
But why would you? 

If you make a video of a live lecture, you can use the same lecture multiple times.  If you do it in a virtual world, you can do it in scenes relevant to the subject.  You can walk around and point to things in the scene. That may be more interesting than slides with just the names of the things.  The things you are talking about could be animated.  That might beat those pictures you put up on flat screen.  This article is explicitly licensed Public Domain (CC0).

• Watch on YouTube
• 3D WEBSITES A2Z

Why would you give a live lecture in a virtual world?

• Break the lecture
• Because you want to make a video of the lecture?
• Sure, get a video of a lecture so it can be reused. 
• It is easy to make videos in virtual worlds.
• But why do it on campus?  You could lecture in a scene that fits the lecture.
• Visit Stonehenge in your browser: Virtual field trip
• You might bring the class as a field trip.
• Field trips are easy in a virtual world-- just a teleport away
• But if you are going to do all the talking, you can do that in a video.  
• You would not do all the talking, of course.  
• You would stop several times in a long lecture and ask for questions.
• You might also direct some questions to the class.
• To make a video, you might break at that point.  
• Perhaps you would close with thought questions.   
• The good thing about a video is that need not fill an hour.  
• You could present a ten-minute video followed by ten-minutes for questions.
• For a big class you could have multiple sections led by assistants.
• Assistants could handle most of the questions--you would have a FAQ page.
• Much of the FAQ work might be handled by a DTA.
• How many avatars can we get into a meeting?

• Kitely Market Passes $100,000 in Sales. New Dayturn release supports Bakes on Mesh. Dickens project continues

2020 HG: #VWEDU: Hypergridders: Let's think outworld groups to augment inworld groups: Discord, Disboard

Hypergridders:  
Let's think outworld groups to augment inworld groups:  
Discord, Disboard
Updated 12/29/2019

The end of Google+ cut badly into our hypergrid outworld communication.  It also forced us to rethink that strategy.  If we want to interest new people, we need outreach.  We need channels we can depend on.  Here is one we may want to try out. 

Communication

Inworld and beyond

• Inworld groups make good sense for a closed virtual world.
• That may be a short term view, because inworld groups stifle outreach.  
• We virtual worlders long ago turned to Facebook, Google+, and others.
• More recently we have been using Discord. 
• Inviting users to your server in Discord does not seem to be easy.
• And we did not know how to search for Discord groups--until now. 
• I am not yet satisfied with what I know about using Discord, so I may update this post.
• Discord official blog.

• Kitely Market Passes $100,000 in Sales. New Dayturn release supports Bakes on Mesh. Dickens project continues

2019 #VWEDU: WRITE: A Christmas Carol and the times it tells: Dickens project in virtual worlds

A Christmas Carol 
and the times it tells: 
Dickens project in virtual worlds

A presentation about the times represented in the famous story by Charles Dickens.

Dickens Resource Center

Click image to enlarge

• With research information focused on the Victorian era
• By the Community Virtual Library (CVL): 
• Real librarianship in Virtual Worlds
• A tour by the ACRL Virtual World interest group.
• A presentation by Valibrarian Gregg.
• The Dickens Project Returns to Second Life December 1, 2019

Go there

• http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Dickens%20Project/245/65/23

A presentation?

• Well, where is the auditorium?
• This is not an auditorium presentation.
• How can you have a presentation without an auditorium?
• In a virtual word we often have a presentation in a place relevant to the subject.
• How does that work?  Where does the audience sit?  
• The avatars don't sit.  The walk around in the place. 
• That won't work.  They can't see the slides while they are walking.
• We don't present with slides.  The places they walk to do the job of the slides.
• You can't do a power-point presentation without slides.
• We don't usually do power-point presentations.
• Okay, so go on with your story  But you are doing it all wrong.

• update 12/19/2019: Dickens project continues. IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2019 #VWEDU: Can you put a high school next to a porno place? Not even in a virtual world. But there are solutions

Can you put a high school next to a porno place? 
Not even in a virtual world.   
But there are solutions

If you don't control the site, you can't manage the publicity.

The Empty Classroom

• Maybe they are next door

The problem

• Educator: Second Life As A Teaching Tool Would Never Work On "Woke" College Campuses Of Today (Comment Of The Week)
• They don't have to be next door to be a problem.  Just on the same grid.
• Porn gets press.  A parent sees an article: "The porn shop on XYZ grid." 
• "Look, dear." says Mama, "this article is about the grid junior goes to for his history class."
• "My God," the principal gasps. "I had no idea that they had stuff like that on our teaching grid." 
• "But the students are confined to our sim, "explains the history teacher.  "They can't go to the rest of the grid."    
• "Sure.  They registered as students," Papa points out.  "That showed them how to  register as adults.  If you think they won't do that, you don't understand teens."

The cause

• The school doesn't control the grid where it is located.
• It l just leases spaces from the grid operator.
• The grid leases to others with different interests.  
• Publicity may connect the school  to any of these others.
• Solutions after the break.

• update 12/19/2019: Dickens project continues. IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2019 WW: PEOPLE: 3DWebWorldz introduces human-like avatars in its 2020 upgrade.

3DWebWorldz introduces human-like 
avatars in its 2020 upgrade. 
Updated 1/25/2020

3DWebWorldz tests an upgrade version with human-like avatars that users can modify to give them an individualized appearance. 3DWebworldz is a virtual world on the web.  You go there in your browser: no download, not installing, no registration.  (You can try it out now.)   

Evie's avatar

• 3DWebWorldz 
• 3DWebWorldz News & Support
• 3DWW is social VW. How to start
• You can visit as a guest, without registering.
• Web-worlds, 3D virtual worlds running in a browser. Summary

• update 12/19/2019: Dickens project continues. IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2020 ART: BIZ: Sierra Sonnet: Virtual jewelry becomes real . And an explorable island with freebies

Sierra Sonnet:  
Virtual jewelry becomes real. 
And an explorable island with freebies

An island with Jewelry and places to explore.  Places for role-play or story-telling.

Arrival point

In Second Life, a virtual world, an avatar Marianna Monentes was born. With the hopes to further her knowledge in the 3D Arts and Jewelry; a real woman stepped into the unknown world of virtual reality to escape her own reality of a world of Multiple Sclerosis. It is where she learned a new skill, creating jewelry using advanced CAD software, which we bring to you virtually and now in the Real. 

• Virtual jewelry becomes real 
• New styles for sale at the Kitely Market

Go there

• Web page
• Firestorm Hop
• hop://grid.kitely.com:8002/Sierra Sonnet/236/395/28
• HG address:
• grid.kitely.com:8002:Sierra Sonnet
• Travel tips for the Hypergrid. A DTA content page
• Ingrid (within a grid) Travel tips for OpenSimulator . A DTA content page

• update 12/19/2019: Dickens project continues. IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2019 #VWEDU MUVE SceneGate improvements: Starting, voice, vision, performance, grid manager, button groups

SceneGate improvements: Starting, 
voice, vision, performance, 
grid manager, button groups

SceneGate improvements for beginning users and those with disabilities.   This article is explicitly licensed Public Domain (CC0). 

Scenegate full screen
Click image to enlarge

• The SceneGate Viewer open beta: Rationale, documentation, support, roadmap

• Update 12/12/2019: OpenSimulator Community Conference Dec 14, 15 2019; IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2019 #DTA: #VWEDU: What would a virtual campus do with classrooms? They could be a secure home base in a familiar environment.

What would a virtual campus do with classrooms?
They could be a secure home base in a familiar environment.

To serve as home base for students and teachers, providing the services needed for a organized class. 

Not much needed in a digital class

• But digital places cost so little, any class could have one.
• And it would be useful sometimes.

Reasons to have classrooms on a virtual campus

• Provide:
• isolated locations for a class
• a home base for students in a familiar environment 
• a place for students to confer with the teacher.
• a place for students to hold collaborative planning meetings.
• a place for students to deposit completed work and see completed work of others.
• a place for students to pick up class assignments and confer about them.
• a place to confer with the DTA about ongoing activities and upcoming deadlines.
• a place for team teachers too confer with each other or with students

• Update 12/12/2019: OpenSimulator Community Conference Dec 14, 15 2019; IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2019 COMEDY: Nov. 2019: Lauren's place, Tuesdays at 5:00 PM Pacific NSFW*

Nov 2019: Lauren's place,   
Tuesdays at 5:00 PM Pacific NSFW

November collection of comedy from Lauren's place:  Doc Grun, VT,  Neruro, WyNott,  Catboy, HiTech, Amouretta, Randy, Jamie, Synnove

• Watch on YouTube

• At Lauren's Place Tuesdays 5 pm Calif. time (NSFW)
• Place:  http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Cookie/122/242/23
• A one-hour comedy show in voice.
• Tell the MC that you want to do comedy.
• If you can do a good 3-5 min. set with a good close will make a video.
• Our Comedy Channel
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGw_HANVLFY&list=PLmXCeJpxLXokSPNK_UVR1rS9qHSfJJsNM
• JOKE BANK - POPULAR JOKES
• Joke search

• Update 12/12/2019: OpenSimulator Community Conference Dec 14, 15 2019; IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2019 #VWEDU: OpenSimulator Community Conference 2019 Dec. 14-15. Dec 15 events: Selected presentations with emphasis on education and broad interest

OpenSimulator Community Conference 2019 (OSCC) Dec. 14-15.  
Dec 15 events:  Selected presentations with emphasis 
on education and broad interest 

OpenSimulator Community Conference (OSCC) is not all tech.  It is not even mostly tech.  It is mostly about uses of OpenSimpulator, especiallu in education.  And you do have time to catch a presentation--they mostly take 20 minutes.  Here are my suggestions for Sun. Dec. 15.

OpenSimulator Community Conference

Last year

• OSCC conference 2019

The OpenSimulator Community Conference is an annual conference that focuses on the developer and user community creating the OpenSimulator software. The conference features presentations, workshops, keynote sessions, and social events across diverse sectors of the OpenSimulator user base.

Update 12/12/2019: OpenSimulator Community Conference Dec 14, 15 2019; IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2019 #VWEDU: OpenSimulator Community Conference 2019 Dec. 14-15. Dec 14 events: Selected presentations with emphasis on education and broad interest

OpenSimulator Community Conference 2019 (OSCC) Dec. 14-15.  
Dec 14 events:  Selected presentations with emphasis 
on education and broad interest 

OpenSimulator Community Conference (OSCC) is not all tech.  It is not even mostly tech.  It is mostly about uses of OpenSimpulator, especiallu in education.  And you do have time to catch a presentation--they mostly take 20 minutes.  Here are my suggestions for Sat. Dec. 14.

OpenSimulator Community Conference

Last year

• OSCC conference 2019

The OpenSimulator Community Conference is an annual conference that focuses on the developer and user community creating the OpenSimulator software. The conference features presentations, workshops, keynote sessions, and social events across diverse sectors of the OpenSimulator user base.

• Update 12/12/2019: OpenSimulator Community Conference Dec 14, 15 2019; IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2019 #VWEDU: SceneGate has an extended mode for experienced users. Planned developments will offer more reasons for experienced users to want to use it.

SceneGate has an Extended mode for experienced users. 
Planned developments will offer more reasons 
for experienced users to want to use it.

SceneGate starts in the Simple mode, designed to avoid cognitive overload or new users.  It also has an Extended mode providing services that experienced users will want.  This article is explicitly licensed Public Domain (CC0). 

Scenegate full screen
Click image to enlarge

• SceneGate is not just for new users.
• It starts in the simple mode to make starting easy for new users.
• The simple mode only supports the uses that beginners will need. 
• Experienced users will want more.  
• They can get more in the extended mode.
• How to after the break
• Scenegate beginner's instructions: for people coming to a class or meeting in OpenSImulator. DTA content

• Update 12/5/2019: OpenSimulator Community Conference Dec 14, 15 2019; IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2019 #VWEDU: #DTA: Target markets for OpenSimulator: Students, instructors, organizations, presentations, collaborative meetings

Target markets for OpenSimulator:  
Students, instructors, organizations, 
presentations, collaborative meetings 

Consideration of potential markets for OpenSimulator and what Opensim needs to penetrate them.

Virtual classroom

Potential market

• Organizations:  Schools, companies
• Students: Online, on campus, on virtual campus
• Instructors: On campus or at home
• Presentations: Small discussion groups with interest focus.
• Collaboration: Online work groups

What we need

• Simplified onboarding: Specialized learning limited to user needs.
• Scenegate
• Improved security
• Distance from games and porn
• Resources to make scene creation easy
• Object scripting to differentiate a 3D place from a picture (even a 3D one)

• Update 12/5/2019: OpenSimulator Community Conference Dec 14, 15 2019; IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2019 #DTA: #VWEDU: Skill-based learning: Requires evaluated practice. A job for the Digital Teaching Assistant (DTA)

Skill-based learning:
Requires evaluated practice.
A job for the Digital Teaching Assistant (DTA)

Developing a skill requires practice with feedback.  Some of that feedback can be provided by a computer at low cost and with 24/7 availability anywhere the internet can reach.

The Empty Classroom

They are off practicing

What is skill-based learning?

• Skill-based learning (Search)
• Scholarly articles for skills-based learning
• Skill-Based vs Knowledge-Based Online Training
• The learning objective of skill-based learning is competency in a skill set.
• Most skill sets must be fitted to an environment.
• Skill-based objectives help instructional planning by specifying the skills.

Skills fit actions to an environment

• Skill sets for operating equipment are often learned in a simulated environment.
• But that simulation requires a physical environment like that of the equipment.
• Some skill-sets are used in an ordinary environment.
• These may be learned in a simulation of an ordinary environment. 
• Examples: language, planning, collaboration, ideation, managing, etc.
• Many skills require working with others and need others in the learning environment.
• Working with others is often a valuable skill.
• Mastering a skill requires evaluated practice--a job for the DTA
• The Digital Teaching Assistant (DTA) for MUVES (vitrual worlds): Summary

• Update 12/5/2019: OpenSimulator Community Conference Dec 14, 15 2019; IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2020 #VWEDU: #DTA: Gathering educational support in OpenSimulator. Scenegate, RezMela™, Kitely Organizations, DTA

Gathering educational support in OpenSimulator.  
Scenegate, RezMela™, Kitely Organizations, DTA

Four initiatives directed at improving educational support for education and training in OpenSimulator

DTA1 (left)

• We can reduce barriers to educational uptake of virtual worlds. Assessment of the situation

Contents

• Scenegate--easy student entry
• RezMela™--east scene construction
• Kitely Organizations--A school gets a virtual home of its own.
• Digital Teaching Assistant (DTA) --A place programmed to teach

• Update 12/5/2019: OpenSimulator Community Conference Dec 14, 15 2019; IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2020 #DTA: #VWEDU: Design for JIT help: Search on page supports for learning from a computer

Design for JIT help:
Search on page supports
learning from a computer

How to provide just-in-time instruction on web pages.

What is JIT help?

• JIT=Just-In-Time
• JIT help pages are intended to provide quick information on a specific topic.
• Use scenario: User is about to do something and needs quick and complete information on how to do it.
• In a computer-based activity, the capabilities of the browser offer support.
• The help should be easily found with search and should give complete information.
• The help should give no unnecessary information.
• Supplementary information may be given with web links.
• JIT help should be the standard practice for DTA development
• The Digital Teaching Assistant (DTA) for MUVES (virtual worlds): Summary

• update 11/28/2019 New OpenSim release. Virtual classes in a German university. IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2019 3VWEDU: #DTA: Seven educational assumptions you can abandon with DTA-supported instruction in a virtual (digital) world

Seven educational assumptions you can abandon 
with DTA-supported instruction in a virtual (digital) world

Having the Digital Teaching Assistant (DTA) available as a personalized mentor for the student affords big changes in the way schools work.  

Collaborative planning

• The Digital Teaching Assistant (DTA) for MUVES (virtual worlds): Summary
• Computer-supported instruction
• Scholarly articles for computer-supported instruction

Some assumptions 

• All students learn at the same rate.
• Students learn best with a hour or 90 minutes of new information at one time.
• Students have adequate knowledge if they can answer 70% of the questions on the test.
• You just need to tell students what they should do and they will do it.  
• Students know how to study effectively and will devote enough time to do that.
• Students know how to manage their time effectively for study and class assignments.
• Students know how to cooperate to carry out a project on time.
• If you believe these, do you also believe in fairies?  

• update 11/28/2019 New OpenSim release. Virtual classes in a German university. IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer

2019 #VWEDU: #DTA: Rezmela™ supports easy creation of instructional scenes. A demonstration in VWMOOC19

Rezmela™ supports easy creation 
of instructional scenes
A demonstration in VWMOOC19

A demonstration of the RezMela™ system.  The system itself could work with any objects, thus allowing Illustrative layouts, as practice, or arrangements as student products.  

• Watch on YouTube

• Key word: rez
• Rez:  In virtual worlds, cause a virtual object to appear and become available for use
• The virtual object can be a building and its contents
• Education research calls virtual worlds MultiUser Virtual Environments (MUVEs)
• Educational research on MUVEs

Demonstration video

• Rethinking Content Creation in Virtual Environments (Video)
• Video is long--you don't need to watch in all at once.
• Ann von Rhein (avatar in SL) and the Origin team in Open Sim
• New way of creating learning environments without knowledge of building or coding.
• Example apps show how educators can get educational content without building.
• The environments show the application of RezMela™tools across learning domains.
• Created scenes can be saved and recreated later (for other classes).
• Classes and groups of students can meet in the instructional scene.
• Teachers can teach in virtual worlds and rely on builders to build.

• update 11/28/2019 New OpenSim release. Virtual classes in a German university. IMA releases simplified Scenegate viewer