2020 BURN2 2020: The Multiverse Oct 9-18, In Second Life.

BURN2 2020: The Multiverse Oct 9-18, In Second Life.

Burn2 rose up from the dust in 2007, became a virtual Regional in 2010 and is the oldest of the recognized universes in the Multiverse of Burning Man in Real Life. 

This year's theme, The Multiverse, presents interesting interpretation opportunities within the framework of the Ten Principles of Burning Man and the builder guidelines. Visit our Frequently Asked Questions page for participant guidelines.

• SLURL: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Burning%20Man-%20Deep%20Hole/174/32/25 
• See the (continuously updated) BURN2 Calendar at https://www.burn2.org/event-calendar/ for the week’s event schedule.
• Burning man
• Burn2
• It’s not too late to get your own plot! 
• The Plottery
• Create a Small Art Display 
• Suggest an Artist to Be Invited 

• Update 9/24/2020 OpenSim land area up. Virtual Worlds Teaching Manual.

2020 #VWEDU: #DTA: Educational field trips in the browser. Parental supervision as needed. No travel cost, no travel time, no school responsibility.

Educational field trips to virtual worlds.  
Parental supervision as needed.  
No travel cost, no travel time, no school responsibility.

Educational field trips are probably out for now.  But safe field trips to virtual places are increasingly available.  Here are reports on a few. 

• Watch on YouTube
• A field trip to Mars.

Digital places

• A 3d place in your browser. As easy as going to a web page because it is a web page. Live music, writers, videos, meetings, comedy.
• A plan for a field trip to CybaLOUNGE. Getting in is too easy. It would also be quick if I didn't talk so much.
• Museums on your lap. Going places in your laptop. An online presence extends the reach of a museum and gives new meaning to the idea of a field trip.
• Journal of Virtual Studies
• Web-worlds for education. Cybalounge, 3DWebWorldz
• You could give live lectures on a virtual campus. But why would you?
• "The Superhero's Journey Digital Storytelling: Project with Zinnia Zauber/Professor Renne Emiko Brock at Peninsula College Field Trip Part 1"

Browser-based or installed

Browser-based

• Go there in the browser, works on Chromebooks and tablets.
• Nothing to install
• Easy access.  Tradeoff: limited capabilities.

Installed

• Works on laptops above the cheapest, needs app installed.
• Extensive capabilities.  Tradeoff: More effort to access.

Student field trips in browser-based virtual places

• Can be reached in Chromebooks
• Can work with a learning management system such as Canvas
• Can supplement digital textbooks to enrich teaching.
• Can provide an environment for project-based learning.
• Or for Quest-based learning
• Can have matching lesson plans.

• Update 9/24/2020 OpenSim land area up. Virtual Worlds Teaching Manual.

2020 #VWEDU: Residential construction: Signature Safety: Training in digital worlds And comments about unbundling.

Residential construction: 

Signature Safety:  

Training in digital worlds

And comments about unbundling.

A fourth video interview with people in a safety consulting firm showing the advantages offered by scene simulations in a virtual world, such as Kitely.  Consideration of how career-oriented training in virtual worlds might be interconnected with colleges, community colleges, and high school.

• Watch on YouTube

Signature Safety is a full-service environmental, health and safety (EHS) consulting firm with offices located in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Our clients span the spectrum of industries, from warehousing and distribution facilities to construction managers; from manufacturing to maintenance contractors; from municipal governments to construction subcontractors.

• Web page
• Kitely page
• Trenching and excavation safety
• Hypergrid address:
• grid.kitely.com:8002:Signature Safety LLC

• Update 9/24/2020 OpenSim land area up. Virtual Worlds Teaching Manual.

2020 #VWEDU: Rezmela: Smart blocks, art, images, text, brainstorms, mind maps

Rezmela: 

Smart blocks,  art, images, text, brainstorm, mind map

RezMela is a development platform for Opensim.  This clip shows how to create high resolution image displays and educational displays such as mind maps.

• Watch on YouTube
• RezMela: Apps for Virtual Worlds

Points of interest with times (minutes)

• 7 Min Breugel (Art)
• 7:30 Text quality
• 8  Level of detail
• 9:30 Meetings: brainstorming or Kanban Board 
• 12  Periodic Table
• 15:15  Mind map

More

• Demo versions of the apps: First Look @ RezMela.
• Examples of scenes at .Apps@RezMela
• Melablocks
• User Guide for Melablocks

• Update 9/24/2020 OpenSim land area up. Virtual Worlds Teaching Manual.

2020 WW: James Olmos sings his original, "Oxygen," in 3DWEBWORLDZ. Small, intimate group, more like a night club than a concert. Dancing avatars

James Olmos sings his original, "Oxygen," in 3DWEBWORLDZ. 

Small, intimate group, more like a night club than a concert. Dancing avatars

A sample of a performance in a virtual world in a browser.  A regular Friday get-together.  A new way for independent musicians to promote their art.

• Watch on YouTube

• James Olmos Music (Facebook)
• James Olmos Music (Twitter)
• James Olmos (Home)

*****

• 3DWEBWORLDZ
• 3DWebWorldz News & Support
• FAQ
• 3dWebWorldz (YouTube)
• 3DWebWorldz (Facebook)
• 3DWebWorldz (Twitter)
• 3DWebWorldz (Patreon) 
• A 3d place in your browser. As easy as going to a web page because it is a web page. Live music, writers, videos, meetings, comedy.

• Update 9/24/2020 OpenSim land area up. Virtual Worlds Teaching Manual.

2020 #VWEDU: Inspiration Island: Virtual Worlds are about people. A visit and some featured activities.

Inspiration Island:
Virtual Worlds are about people.
A visit and some featured activities.

A report about a digital place that is all about people.  A place to make friends and perhaps to understand yourself better.  A few of the many activities are listed.

A group from the Nonprofit Commons is visiting

On the web

• Inspiration Island (Facebook)
• Nonprofit commons community (Facebook)
• Nonprofit commons (LinkedIn)

Go there in Second Life

• In SL, paste the line below into the top line of the viewer, press enter:
• http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Inspiration%20Island/151/229/38

• Update 9/17/2020  OpenSim land area up. Virtual Worlds Teaching Manual. OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept.

2020 Biz: Trade show: could that be done online? A digital place could duplicate the look and feel of a trade show

Trade show: could that be done online?  

A digital place could replicate the look and feel of a trade show.

Trade shows are difficult in a pandemic.  Online trade shows can be done in digital places at lower cost and with no health risk. How would they work?

 

• 80 Bots in Kitely Welcome Center
• Vendors would love to see their area of a trade show that busy.  
• You could add an audio of crowd sound if you wanted.  
• Conveniently, the area manager could adjust the sound as needed.

A vendor gets more than just a table and chairs

• As a vendor you probably get you own private display room.
• You could simulate the place where the product is used.  
• Perhaps have a bot actively simulate the use of the product.
• Small products might be enlarged for clarity of the demonstration.
• A room has 4 walls for displaying things:
• People teleport to your display room from the welcome area and other key spots
• Posters and marketing videos of the product in use. 
• You have the entire company web site available with a click.
• And video conferences with company representatives who are not onsite. 

• Onboarding support after the break

• Update 9/17/2020  OpenSim land area up. Virtual Worlds Teaching Manual. OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept.

2020 #VWEDU: "Virtual Learning Village" Actually a virtual village for real learning in a collaborative and interactive environment.

"Virtual Learning Village" 

Actually a virtual village for real learning 

in a collaborative and interactive environment.

A virtual world grid with focus on education. First, teach new people how to use the place. Don't expect the teachers to do what you can do with software.

• Watch on YouTube
• Grid Website 
• Tutorials

Behind the project:

• Virtual Learning Village is one of the online arms of the Ageless Mind Project.
• Maximillian Merlin  (Thomas Hofmeister) Germany  
• Buildwerk Website (global Building team):

Features of this grid

• 3D digital world.
• Starter instructional path available 
• Collaboration and social interaction.
• Interactive environments:objects can teach.
• G-rated environment: Family friendly.
• Programs available to support educational activities and games.
• Programming and building help available by qualified persons.
• (This may cost, but the workers will be experienced.)
• Attention to enabling features for disabilities.
• Available on the internet, so 24/7 anywhere with internet service.

• Update 9/17/2020  OpenSim land area up. Virtual Worlds Teaching Manual. OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept.

2020 #VWEDU: Fall safety (2): Signature Safety: Training in digital worlds

Fall safety (2): 

Signature Safety: 

Training in digital worlds

A third video interview with people in a safety consulting firm showing the advantages offered by scene simulations in a virtual world, such as Kitely.  Simulated environments offer high potential for students to learn about careers and to begin learning the skills that they will need to enter that career.   

• Watch on YouTube

Signature Safety is a full-service environmental, health and safety (EHS) consulting firm with offices located in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Our clients span the spectrum of industries, from warehousing and distribution facilities to construction managers; from manufacturing to maintenance contractors; from municipal governments to construction subcontractors.

• Web page
• Kitely page
• Trenching and excavation safety
• Hypergrid address:
• grid.kitely.com:8002:Signature Safety LLC

• Update 9/17/2020  OpenSim land area up. Virtual Worlds Teaching Manual. OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept.

2020 BIZ: #VWEDU: Project management meeting or teaching in a virtual world. Agile or Kanban: Rezmela Smart blocks can support them. 3 use cases.

Project management meeting or teaching in a virtual world.

Agile or Kanban: 

Rezmela Smart blocks can support them.  3 use cases.

Project management:  Agile or Kanban.  Or any other system.  They all have parts and people working on the parts.  Management calls for organizing the parts and tracking progress till all parts are done.  

• Watch on YouTube
• [RezMela] Melablocks [Smartblocks] (Kitly market)
• Using Smartblocks

Project management

• The project management use cases for Melablocks. 
• Melablocks is an application built using the RezMela platform. 
• This demonstration shows how Melablocks can be used to implement Kanban. 

Use cases

• Business: Project management
• Training: Introduction to project management
• Education: Project-based learning (PBL)
• (Surely no teacher would use team PBL without teaching project management.)
• To see examples of Melablocks in use,go to First Look @ RezMela
• The periodic table illustrates Smartblocks,

• Update 9/17/2020  OpenSim land area up. Virtual Worlds Teaching Manual. OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept.

2020 #VWEDU: VID: How to make videos in virtual worlds for illustrated instruction or for project-based learning

How to make videos in virtual worlds 

for illustrated instruction

or for project-based learning 

Instructions on making videos in virtual worlds for educational purposes.

• Watch on YouTube

• Case study of a chemical splash accident in a process plant 
• In support of PPT 151 Process Plant Safety at Montana State University Billings.
• Process plant

Use cases

• Teacher creates an illustrated lecture.
• Teacher creates an illustrated instructional unit.
• Project-based learning:  Student(s) create an illustrated project report.

Needed tech

• You need a reasonably capable computer for this.
• At least one step above the cheapest, preferably two.
• And you will not like the speed if you don't have good bandwidth

Software

• Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) is free and opensource for capture.
• Shotcut is free and opensource for editing

You need to know

• How to capture and edit video from a virtual world.
• In badge language, a VR capture badge and a VR editor badge.
• You can start these at the apprentice level.  
• The way you get to journeyman is by practice.

2020 #VWEDU: VWBPE: Virtual Worlds and Social Justice: An Impact and Civic Engagement Agenda.

Virtual Worlds and Social Justice: 
An Impact and Civic Engagement Agenda

Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Eduction

The current public health crisis has  brought about a rapid ‘revolution’ that many commentators have been evangelising about for some time. In many cases however it has resulted in a form of ‘remote teaching’, not online pedagogy. Indeed, a key question for all of us in education once this crisis is ‘over’, what will be the legacy of this ‘exodus to online education?’ 

• Watch on YouTube
• Speaker: Dr. Michael Thomas / Haruki Dean

Introduction: Heike Philp / Gwen Gwasi

Michael Thomas is a Professor of Education with a focus on digital learning, social justice, social mobility and the student experience. I’m a Principal Fellow of the HEA and hold two PhDs, one from the Newcastle University and a second from Lancaster University. He has studied for an MBA in Educational Management at the University of Leicester, M.Ed at Manchester University, an MA at Newcastle University and change leadership at Cornell University. He has worked at eight universities in Germany, Japan and the UK, from ancient, to Russell Group to modern, and led large, multinational research groups and project teams.

Cited topics

• Camelot project
• Guenevere project
• Project-based learning
• Sustainable development goals
• Castronova talked of an ‘exodus’ 

• Virtual Worlds Teaching Manual. OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept. Virtual Reload grids closing OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept

2020 #VWEDU: The coming of the virtual campus: Online schools need an online campus. "Stanford University Students Flock to a Virtual Campus"

The coming of the virtual campus: 
Online schools need an online campus. 
"Stanford University Students Flock to a Virtual Campus" 

A pandemic moves schools to think about an online campus.  Actually, some were thinking that way before the pandemic.   

Universal campus (Kitely)

• Stanford University Students Flock to a Virtual Campus
• A new digital platform allows students to explore campus and connect in Zoom rooms during the school’s Covid-19 shutdown
• Watch on YouTube
• Club Cardinal

• Virtual campus (Wikipedia)
• Virtual campus (search)
• Virtual Campus (the company)

Advantages of the online campus

• Serve students over a wider area.
• Support adult learners who already hold jobs.
• Increase enrollments without increasing facilities.
• Draw on adjunct faculty from a much wider area.
• Share resources among schools.
• Bring in potential students on field trips
• Use the educational resources of the web.

• Virtual Worlds Teaching Manual. OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept. Virtual Reload grids closing OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept

2020 #VWEDU: Fall safety (1) : Signature Safety: Training and teaching in digital worlds

Fall safety (1): 

Signature Safety: 

Training in digital worlds

A video interview with people in a safety consulting firm showing the advantages offered by scene simulations in a virtual world, such as Kitely.  Simulated environments offer high potential for students to learn about careers and to begin learning the skills that they will need to enter that career.       

• Watch on YouTube

Signature Safety is a full-service environmental, health and safety (EHS) consulting firm with offices located in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Our clients span the spectrum of industries, from warehousing and distribution facilities to construction managers; from manufacturing to maintenance contractors; from municipal governments to construction subcontractors.

• Web page
• Kitely page
• Trenching and excavation safety
• Hypergrid address:
• grid.kitely.com:8002:Signature Safety LLC

A digital facility like this could also be used for teaching

• Heavy industry: Big equipment: Operator errors can be costly and dangerous. 
• Case study in support of a course on process plant safety. Video made safely and at low cost in a user-built virtual world 
• OSHA Certificate and Degree Programs By Degree Level
• College programs in heavy industry (search)

Related

• Training in digital worlds: Signature Safety: in the trenches
• Virtual Laboratory Training and Career Center: BioHazard
• Heavy industry: Big equipment: Operator errors can be costly and dangerous. 
• Case study in support of a course on process plant safety. Video made safely and at low cost in a user-built virtual world 
• Simulation offers safe learning. And for teams, too
• Virtual Laboratory Training and Career Center: Training, SARS testing
• Virtual Laboratory Training and Career Center: Virus model
• Demonstration oil rig: Conversation with an imaginary TA (Teaching Assistant)

2020 #VWEDU: OpenSim Fest: Exhibits

OpenSim Fest:  Exhibits

A few samples of exhibits at OpenSim Fest

OpenSim Fest opening ceremonies

Bill Blight and the ribbon

• Landing Region: HG: opensimfest.org:80
• The merchant and exhibitor regions will stay open until Wednesday, Sept. 30.
• Exhibits: https://web.opensimfest.org/exhibits

2020 #VWEDU: V1 CVL Podcast help: How to get the audio (mp3) from a video (mp4) using Shotcut

CVL Podcast help:  

How to get the audio (mp3) 

from a video (mp4) using Shotcut

Community Virtual Library (CVL) has started a podcast project in virtual worlds with focus on educational podcasts.  This article tells how to get mp3 audio from a video clip (mp4).  

Annotated Shotcut screen

Click image to enlarge

Why do it this way?

• Virtual worlders are already familiar with making videos in virtual worlds.  
• And we are familiar with editing those videos in Shotcut. 
• We will make our podcasts in virtual worlds, since we are familiar with meeting there.
• And we already know educators who will collaborate with us on the project.
• Collaboration is the secret sauce for educators in virtual worlds.

• Update 9/3/2020 Cambium Learning Group adds Rosetta Stone to its portfolio of digital-centric learning brands Virtuality, Virtual Reload grids closing OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept

2020 #VWEDU Starting in digital (virtual) "worlds": Instructions for the casual user. Use-case planning. Design thinking

Starting in digital (virtual) "worlds":  
Instructions for the casual user. 
Use-case planning.  Design thinking

Getting users started in a digital place does not have to be hard.  It just has to be planned.

A digital meeting

• We don't just sit around in a digital meeting

What is a casual user?  

• Someone visiting the place for an objective not related to digital worlds:
• Students attending a class.
• People attending  a business meeting.
• People attending a convention, conference, or trade show.  
• This is potentially the largest market for digital places.

What is wrong with a manual?

• Instructions are part of the product. They can make the product easy or hard to use. A critical issue for education, where there are always new students using those instructions
• The Secret of the Instruction Manual  If you want to keep a secret, put it in the instruction manual

• Update 9/3/2020 Cambium Learning Group adds Rosetta Stone to its portfolio of digital-centric learning brands Virtuality, Virtual Reload grids closing OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept

2020 OpenSim Fest: Merchants: Art gallery, space craft, sailing equipment, fashion

OpenSim Fest: Merchants:
Art gallery, space craft, 

sailing equipment, fashion

A look at some of the merchant exhibits at OpenSim Fest.

Lunaria Gallery

• Landing Region: HG: opensimfest.org:80
• The merchant and exhibitor regions will stay open until Wednesday, Sept. 30.
• Merchants: https://web.opensimfest.org/merchants

• Update 9/3/2020 Cambium Learning Group adds Rosetta Stone to its portfolio of digital-centric learning brands Virtuality, Virtual Reload grids closing OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept

2020 #VWEDU: #DTA: Virtual Laboratory Training and Career Center: Networking

Virtual Laboratory Training and Career Center: 
Networking 

Online networking

• Watch on YouTube
• Virtual Laboratory Training and Career Center
• Virtual Laboratory Training & Career (VLTC) Project (web page)
• Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA)
• Facebook 

The overall mission of the VLTC Project

• integrate clinical laboratory training; 
• showcase medical laboratory resources; 
• share laboratory and public health information;  
• promote medical laboratory careers within 3D immersive virtual worlds.
• Virtual Laboratory Training and Career Center: Training, SARS testing
• Virtual Laboratory Training and Career Center: Virus model

Go there

• Kitely page: Virtual Laboratory Training and Career Center (VLTCC)

Creator

• Sally Cherry (45 years as ASCP-certified Medical Technologist)
• Kitely Market products by Sally Cherry

• Update 9/3/2020 Cambium Learning Group adds Rosetta Stone to its portfolio of digital-centric learning brands Virtuality, Virtual Reload grids closing OpenSIm Fest exhibits and merchant areas stay open thru Sept

2020 TKR: Lessons Learned From Failure, with Elizabeth Day

Lessons Learned From Failure,

with Elizabeth Day

The public part of success is only the last act.  The way to avoid failure is to attempt nothing.   If failure were fatal, we'd all be dead.   

• Watch on YouTube
• Watch Elizabeth Day in our latest RSA Spotlight - the edits which take you straight to the heart of the event!
• Award-winning author and journalist Elizabeth Day explains how failure can teach us lessons we would never otherwise have understood.

Related

• Use your head! They always tell you that. They never tell you how
• Quick Quotes about Planning
• Quick Quotes about confidence
• Quick Quotes about risk
• Perfection is not success. Success is achieving what you set out to do
• The surprising habits of original thinkers.
• Nara Nook on the benefits of failure in a virtual world

2020 #VWEDU: The Virtual Peale Museum on your laptop. Disabilities are left behind when you travel on your laptop

The Virtual Peale Museum on your laptop.

Disabilities are left behind when you travel on your laptop

The opening of the Virtual Peale Museum.  A replica of the physical museum in Baltimore. Here the group looks at some of the exhibits and hears a panel discussion about the work to make the virtual museum accessible to  many with limitations in the physical world.

A crowd gathers at the entrance to the Peale

Click image to enlarge

"Celebrating our Founder’s Day! Opened in downtown Baltimore on August 15, 1814, Rembrandt Peale’s Museum and Gallery of the Fine Arts was the first purpose-built museum in the United States."

• The Peale Center
• Nearly 50 people at times
• Video capture of the event
• Built with the aid of Virtual Ability, Inc.

Go there

• Paste the line below in the top bar of your viewer, press enter:
• http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Peale%20Museum/128/100/22

• Update 8/27/2020 Opensim Fest 2020 coming August 28-30