Enter the immersive world of Arcachon Atlantique with Designing Worlds

Now available on the web – our latest episode, as we visut the beautiful – and endangered – region of Arcachon Atlantique.

Arcachon Atlantique is the beautiful Francophone region based on the Languedoc region of France, which has recently come close to closure, despite offering great activities and developing a brilliant immersive language learning programme.

In this show, we explore some of the beauties of the region with Claire Pascale, the owner of Arcachon and with Cybère Placebo, who has been working on developing language courses, as well as Karelia Kondor, a teacher of French in the UK, who has used the region of Arcachon in her teaching.

Arcachon Harbour

We explore the region, discussing the plans to use it as an immersive language resource, and also experience some of the activities it offers, from wine tasting, to a hot air balloon trip, to harvesting (and enjoying!) fresh oysters.

And we’ll be looking at the problems owners face in sustaining such a region.

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Prim Perfect Jigsaw: Return to Arcachon

Windmill at Arcachon

Over the past few weeks, I’ve written several times about Arcachon Atlantique, the beautiful Francophone region based on the Languedoc region of France, and how close it has come to closure, despite offering great activities and developing a brilliant immersive language learning programme.

Today you will have a chance to see the region for yourselves, as Designing Worlds visits Arcachon. And, in honour of that, I thought we’d have an Arcachon jigsaw!

So here is a view of the characteristic windmill at Arcachon Atlantique, captured by Wildstar Beaumont.

Windmill at Arcachon, photograph by Wildstar Beaumont

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Catch up with your Prim Perfect jigsaws (showing images of Second Life and other virtual worlds).

If you’d like to submit a photo of your own to feature as a jigsaw, send it to the Prim Perfect Flickr Group. It should be sized 800w x 600h, or else it will need to be re-sized.

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Join Designing Worlds Unter den Linden as we explore 1920s Berlin

1920s Berlin – looking down Unter den Linden to the Brandenburg Gate – photograph by Wildstar Beaumont

Join us at 2pm SLT today, Monday 28th January, for our new episode of Designing Worlds at our studio in Garden of Dreams as we explore a really fascinating region – a thoughtful and incredibly detailed recreation of 1920s Berlin.

This is a fascinating slice of history. Weimar Germany was a place of immense social deprivations and great wealth; a time of fiery politics, riots, rebellions and the growth of political parties that would dominate the coming decades. But it was also a time of enormous artistic creativity in art, architecture and the comparatively new medium of film. It was also a time of tremendous decadence – a time when all sorts of previously hidden or repressed behaviours were permitted, sometimes encouraged … and often viewed on the stages and in the cabarets.

1920s Berlin – the Alexanderplatz – photograph by Wildstar Beaumont

All of this vibrant life took place in a beautiful European city – a city also teeming with slums and a vibrant working class culture.

Jo Yardley, the creator of 1920s Berlin, talks about all this and more as she gives Designing Worlds viewers a fascinating guided tour of the region with a soundtrack of authentic music of the era.

It’s a show you really won’t want to miss! So do come and join us at 2pm – and see how the Designing Worlds studio has acquired a Bierkeller!

1920s Bierkeller in the Designing Worlds Studio

Or – if you can’t attend in person – tune in at 2pm SLT on Monday for the live show on http://treet.tv/live – where you can now chat with other audience members and even some of the participants during the show – or catch it later in the week on our shows page on the Treet.tv web site at http://treet.tv/shows/designingworlds – our very own version of the iPlayer!

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Prim Perfect Talks at the SL Christmas Expo: Auryn Beorn and Isla Gealach

Today we have two talks at the Christmas Expo – both in the gorgeous Prim Perfect Pavilion. At 3pm, Auryn Beorn will be talking about scripting, education, and her beautiful store Black Rose, while at 5pm, Isla Gealach of Cheelky Pea and The nest will be talking about her work in Second Life.

Prim Perfect Talks: Auryn Beorn

Auryn  will be talking with Cinders about the kind of products she develops =- and, we hope, will be demonstrating some of her amazing works with scripts.  “Many of my products are related to education – the rest gets distributed among tools for builders and furniture,” she says.

Prim Perfect Talks: Isla Gealach

Isla will be talking with Saffia about her own well-know brand, Cheeky Pea, and about The Nest, an entire little town devoted to homes and gardens shopping.

We have a full programme of talks coming up at the Expo – make sure that you don’t miss them!

Come along and learn more at 3pm and 5pm SLT! And we don’t think we are too hard to find …

Christmas Expo 2012, photograph by Wildstar Beaumont

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Designing Worlds visits the Mayo Clinic

Come and explore the work of the Mayo Clinic in Second Life with Designing Worlds, now on the web and see some of the many ways it is using the grid for a variety of different programs from actualization to education and familiarization.

Showing us some of the projects that the Mayo Clinic has undertaken is Brian Kaihoi, known in Second Life as Svea Morane, the Mayo clinic contact who has initiated much of the Mayo Clinic’s presence in virtual worlds. He’ll be explaining the thinking behind many of the designs we see, and explaining how much healthcare can benefit from a virtual presence – both on a professional level for healthcare workers, and on a mutual support level with self-help groups.

The Mayo Clinic in Second Life

This show is a fascinating exploration of how healthcare can benefit from – and bring benefit to – virtual worlds!

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Designing Worlds visits the Mayo Clinic and discovers how healthcare can benefit virtual worlds

The Mayo Clinic in Second Life

Join us at 2pm SLT today, Monday 22nd October, for the new episode of Designing Worlds at our studio in Garden of Dreams as we visit the virtual world presence of a famous real life teaching hospital – the Mayo Clinic – and learn some of the many ways it is using the grid for a variety of different programs from actualization to education and familiarization.

Showing us some of the projects that the Mayo Clinic has undertaken is Brian Kaihoi, known in Second Life as Svea Morane, the Mayo clinic contact who has initiated much of the Mayo Clinic’s presence in virtual worlds. He’ll be explaining the thinking behind many of the designs we see, and explaining how much healthcare can benefit from a virtual presence – both on a professional level for healthcare workers, and on a mutual support level with self-help groups.

The Mayo Clinic Conference Centre – where guest speakers have included the Dalai Lama

It makes for a fascinating show. So do come and join us at 2pm!

Or – if you can’t attend in person – tune in at 2pm SLT on Monday for the live show on http://treet.tv/live – where you can now chat with other audience members and even some of the participants during the show – or catch it later in the week on our shows page on the Treet.tv web site at http://treet.tv/shows/designingworlds – our very own version of the iPlayer!

Relaxing after work at the Mayo Clinic is rather different in Second Life!

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Mesh Day at SL9B!

Today, Wednesday 20th June, we want to celebrate all things meshy at SL9B!

In the Auditorium:

At 11am, Builders Brewery, the fantastic training resource for all Second Life builders, will be giving a presentation on Making Mesh.

At 12 noon, Qarl Fizz (ex Linden) will be talking about his mesh deformer project, designed to make mesh clothing more readily available to different-sized avatars (seen by many as so vital a next step that the project was set up and funded by grid residents).

And at 2pm, four leading Mesh builders: Maxwell Graf of Rustica, Froukje Hoorenbeek of Dutchie, Loz Hyde of Meshworx and Cain Maven of Maven Homes will be talking about their mesh creations – and hopefully showing us some examples of their work!

But we also want to salute builders who are working in Mesh.  Have you created an exhibit that uses mesh at this year’s SL9B?  If so, add details and a slurl in the comments to this post!

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Enter the Virtual Mine with Designing Worlds

Join us today, Monday 21st May at 2pm SLT in our beautiful studio in Garden of Dreams as we visit the Virtual Mine, a fascinating project in Second Life, created by Sand Castles Studios, in association with the Deep Down Mine documentary film.

The town of Maytown – and the polluting power station beyond

We’ll be talking to one of the makers of the documentary – Jen Gilomen, and to Gianna Borgnine of Sand Castle studios, as we explore the background to the creation of this region and the documentary, and then explore the area, looking at the issues it raises about the need for power, the cost of mountaintop mining, and the alternatives that could provide the needed power and employment, with far fewer environmental costs.

It makes for a fascinating show – so do come and join us at 2pm!

Or – if you can’t attend in person – tune in at 2pm SLT on Monday for the live show on http://treet.tv/live – where you can now chat with other audience members and even some of the participants during the show – or catch it later in the week on our shows page on the Treet.tv web site at http://treet.tv/shows/designingworlds – our very own version of the iPlayer!

And you might also like to tackle the Prim Perfect jigsaw, taken from this show, which we posted earlier today!

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Prim Perfect Jigsaw: The Virtual Mine

Power Station at the Virtual Mine

Today’s jigsaw is not a pretty picture.  It shows the pollution that is part of the price we pay for energy – specifically, the offshoot of open cast mountain-top mining, and the effect it has one one small Appalachian town – Maytown, as hungry for power as the rest of us, but perhaps even more acutely aware of the price we pay …

This comes from the Virtual Mine, a fascinating project in Second Life, created by Sand Castles Studios, in association with the Deep Down Mine documentary film, and this is the subject of today’s Designing Worlds show – more details will appear here shortly!

In the mean-time, enjoy the jigsaw!

Power Station at the Virtual Mine

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Catch up with your Prim Perfect jigsaws (showing images of Second Life and other virtual worlds).

If you’d like to submit a photo of your own to feature as a jigsaw, send it to the Prim Perfect Flickr Group. It should be sized 800w x 600h, or else it will need to be re-sized.

Read Full Post »

Æther Salon: Heraldry!

Please note this event in your personal calendar – the Salons are indeed a highlight of each month in the Steamlands!  (and there’s always food!)  The newly rebuilt Salon precariously straddles the Babbage Palisade & Academy of Industry sims, for cunning reasons of crowd balancing.

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Babbage%20Palisade/254/60/106

and
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Academy%20of%20Industry/2/56/106

The Æther Salon is brought to you by Baron Klaus Wulfenbach and his assistants who take no responsibility for your lack of enlightenment should you choose not to attend.  Everyone hopes fervently that you shall be amongst us tomorrow!

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