Showing posts with label metaverse. Show all posts
Showing posts with label metaverse. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

NEVERDIE Studios Launches Music Virtual World ROCKtropia


Remember Mindark's Entropia Universe (formerly known as Project Entropia), the virtual world made famous for boasting some of the highest value virtual goods transactions?  You know the one where a space station sold for a mere $330,000 USD?

The Entropian Universe has been quietly evolving over time and recently a new planet was discovered called ROCKtropia - the "first virtual music world and the first independently developed virtual planet in Mindark's Entropia Universe.  Created by virtual world pioneer and entrepreneur Jon "NEVERDIE" Jacobs, the planet introduces a revolutionary, highly interactive venue for artists to connect with their fans while also creating a new revenue stream in the the music space and a platform for artists to pursue fame and fortune."

Jon "NEVERDIE" Jacobs made headlines in 2005 when he mortgaged his house and invested $100,000USD in a Project Entropia virtual space resort which he later named "Club NEVERDIE". Now millionaire avatar and musician Jon Jacbos and his Neverdie Studios are unleashing Jacob's latest vision as quoted from the LA Times ...

"I think what's going to happen is that every artist is going to have a virtual destination. Everybody in the music business can play a role in a virtual industry. Selling music is not the most important thing in the world when you can make money with a destination."

Read more »

Monday, December 14, 2009

Virtual World Planet Cazmo Shares Music and Holiday Giving with Teens and Tweens


You won't find the words "killer app" in any marketing or promotion campaigns for Planet Cazmo but the virtual world targeted at teens and tweens just might be brewing a secret sauce with at least two killler ingredients - social spaces and mainstream music. Combine an American Idol all star line up (David Archuleta, Jordin Sparks and Allison Iraheta) with a dash of charity and and suddenly the Planet Cazmo kitchen is cooking with good fun, good music and good will with the Toys For Tots Virtual Concert Series launching weekend.

Planet Cazmo kicked off the Planet Cazmo Virtual Concert Series in November 2008 with Interscope-Geffen and Sony Epic Records and has recently partnered with music industry veteran Tommy Mottola as well as Island Def Jam, and The Jive Label Group to expand the series into a mainstream music machine.

I had a chance to talk with Planet Cazmo CEO and Founder Mike Levine recently about how music plays a part in the world and what's coming up.
Read more »

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Say hello to Virtual London


Twinity invites you on a virtual trip to Virtual London! They open the city in the hip neighbourhood of Soho: here you can meet nice people from all around the globe, visit beautiful sights and famous places - it's only one record speed teleport away! (Before starting the trip, don't forget to add a touch of realism to your avatar. Because you have to know that Twinity is going to replicate the reality, not escape from it)

Read more »

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Grace's Liner Notes

photo credit: Paddy Wright


Do you have any idea how hard it is to write your own introduction? Seriously, this is entirely too difficult and even a bit unsettling. I guess we should just start with the basics and keep it short.

I'm Grace McDunnough and I am pleased and honored to have joined the Koinup team.

That's me there performing live at my cafe on Nevi in Second Life. You might call me a wandering minstrel; I'm a live musician in Second Life and a member of the ground-breaking virtual world live music tour called "Rocking the Metaverse" presented by Koinup.

Here I'm unofficially in charge of sass, and officially charged with writing stories about the magic of music in virtual worlds, affectionately labeled Grace's Liner Notes.

Read more »

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Harper Beresford's guide: "Style Across the Worlds"


Dear readers, we're pleased to announce the launch of a new column on the Koinup Blog. It will be called: Style Across the Worlds
and it will guide you through the most fashionist people, style, trends that are spreading out (NOW) from the Metaverse. The column will be held by Harper Beresford.


Second Life bon vivant, business woman, and builder, Harper Beresford is the Duchess of RFyre (CMO and Business Manager) and blogger for House of RFyre. A Second Life Mentor, owner of two sims–Avant Garde and Vanguard, photographer, art collector, and jewerly-maker, Harper has made her mark on the virtual fashion scene with her SL fashion blog, A Passion for Virtual Fashion (http://slfashionpassion.wordpress.com).
Read more »

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - Verdigris

This week on Meet Me in the Metaverse I'm taking you to the sim of Verdigris. This is a unique sim in both design and shopping. It's got a bit of duality to it with the east side having a bit of an old west feeling and the west side being a old time vintage village. A deep gorge with a beautiful river divides these two halves and giant walking bridge connects them.

The landing point brings you to the east side where you can find a handful of really neat shops, and some great tables and chairs to just sit, think, and enjoy the view. Climb down the many many stairs and under the big bridge there is a really fabulous grungy old dock where you can fish with 7Seas system, take a row boat out for a spin, or just relax in the chairs provided. Cross over the the west side of the sim to find things like an open air ampitheater and then fly up to the shops area that really catches the eye of most the shutterbugs...the vintage village on a train bridge to nowhere. Fabulously exectuted and wildly photogenic!

Verdigris by barkPhoto by: bark

Bark did a fantastic job of capturing this sim. What a jaw dropper! If this doesn't make you want to visit I don't know what will.

Verdigris by fiona_haworthPhoto by: fiona_haworth

I took this photo to show off the really fabulous build on the east side of the sim. It is the main shop for Dirty Rat and also a few smaller satellite shops. I really enjoyed just hanging out up top and enjoying the fab vistas.

Feel the Breeze in Verdigris by Shoji Photo by: Shoji


Shoji's fantastic shot here shows you what a picturesque place the fishing area really is. I really love how Shoji captured the sunlight on the water as well as the all the reflections. Nice job Shoji!

I really want to credit n0th1ng Ackland and Oriolus Oliva for making a wonderful sim to both shop and enjoy as well as a great landscape for taking some fab photos!

Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger - Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner - Prim Pads
Twitter - Fiona_Haworth

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Virtual Desktop Wallpaper Competition


With the help of the Metaverse (and Wallpaper) artist Shoji, Koinup is launching a new awesome competition open to all virtual worlds guys! The contest is called: Virtual Wallpaper Contest and basically it ask participants to create a wallpaper desktop by using imagineries/sceneries of virtual worlds. You can read all the rules, and guidelines, here!

JOIN THE CONTEST NOW!

The three winning pics will gain a placement in the Koinup front-page, moreover, we're talking with metaverse developers for providing winners and honorary mention participants other cool prizes and awards....

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - Burning Life

Yesterday marked the opening of the Burning Life sims, and already we've had a number of really fabulous photos submitted to the Places collections. There are 34 sims with over 400 installations to visit. It's quite a sight to behold.

If you've not attended Burning Life before there are a few greeter stations available near the main gate of http://slurl.com/secondlife/Burning%20Life-%20Hualapai/253/3/24 or http://slurl.com/secondlife/Burning%20Life-%20Deep%20Hole/4/3/24.


<a href="http://www.koinup.com/Poid_Mahovlich/work/192234/">Burning Life 2009 Cabaret of Flames</a> - a <a href="http://www.koinup.com/in-games-mmorpg/on-videos/">Burning Life 2009 Cabaret of Flames</a> by <a>Poid_Mahovlich</a> on <a href="http://www.koinup.com">Koinup</a>

Machinima by: Poid_Mahovlich

Our own Poid Mahovlich claimed a bit of virtual land on Burning Life - Rabbithole. She used some inspiration from the RL Burning Man and produced a lovely installation called Cabaret of Flames. It is full of fire, drums, and dance. Watch this lovely bit of machinima shot at the installation and then go experience it for yourself. Additionally, you can read more about Poid's inspiration at her website: http://cabaretofflames.blogspot.com/

raftwet, xavier at burning life party for dj tasty hax by RAFTWETJewell

Photo by: RAFTWETJewell

This snap from RAFTWETJewell was taken at the Radiant Bliss Music Project installation located at Burning Life - High Rock. It's both psychedelic and a really fun place to party. They have events on Monday all day and Wednesday all day so try to stop on out and catch it.

Ub Yifu - Gulliver's travel scene by bark

Photo by: bark

As a huge fan of Gulliver's Travels I just had to include this installation by Ub Yifu. bark's photo of this installation on Burning Life -3 Mile is really wonderful. All the small people on Gulliver are about avatar sized and there are some poseballs for you to play on and takes some photos of yourself participating in the capture. Really wonderful work!

Burning Life only runs until Oct 25th so make sure you get over there and check out what our residents have created just for this special event. And stay tuned to Koinup's blog as we all bring you our own perceptions of such a fabulous event.

Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger - Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner - Prim Pads
Twitter - Fiona_Haworth


Sunday, October 11, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - Black Taj & White Taj

One of the things I like best about SL is the opportunity to explore places I've been or I've wanted to go in RL. I really enjoy seeing how creators recreate RL places as well as expound on them and make them into something completely different. Today in Meet in the Metaverse I want to take you to just such a place. White Taj is modeled after the RL Taj Mahal. It's neighboring sim Black Taj is a product of the creator's imagination building on top of this already amazing structure.

These two sims are just amazing to explore and they connect via an impressive black and white bridge. Visit the dance hall, the shops, fountains, forest, and courtyards. Make sure you take the zeppelin ride fantastic tour among the grounds or grab couples rowboat if you like a bit more work. Lastly don't miss the sky garden at high above the white taj. Both sims were built by the ever talented Jenne Dibou of JD Mechanical Toy Factory and a version of the Taj Mahal is on sale at her shop.
White Taji by mizukiPhoto by: mizuki

White Taji by Mizuki really rocks. The illusion of 3D really brings an element of being there. As you can see both structures are contained within as well as the zeppelin coming off the page. Additionally, the colors on this work are just amazing. Well done Mizuki!

Photo by: HarperGanesvoort

Harper does a really fantastic job of capturing both the White and Black Tajs in this piece. As you can see they are not identical and that the black is a lovely derivitive into fantasy.

White Taj by SebcaenPhoto by: Sebcaen

The White Taj by Sebcaen is a really great stylized piece. It reminds me of drawings done of the RL structure.

If you are interested in having your sim featured on Meet Me in the Metaverse, please feel free to contact me in game or via the PM feature within Koinup.

Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger - Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner - Prim Pads
Twitter - Fiona_Haworth

Friday, October 2, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - Zarbi

This week on Meet Me in the Metaverse, I present a sim still in progress - Zarbi. While taking you all to unfinished sims isn't my typical modus operandi, I was pretty floored by what Jimmer Gabe has already created. Zarbi is a homestead sim where Jimmer's goal was to see what he could create in a space that only has 3500 prims. Currently, the sim consists of the Cathederal, caves, forest, treehouses, a summer villa, and Aquapolis. Apparently, he's only used about 2200 prims thus far.

Zarbi by toxicmengesPhoto by: toxicmenges

Upon landing in Zarbi, you can easily see the impressive gothic cathedral. It sits high on the mountain side prominently featured simwide. Jimmer's real talent lies in the custom sculpts he's made for it: flying buttresses, lancet arched windows, vaulted ceiling, multi-faceted columns, and stunning spires. The stained glass windows really set this build off.

Zarbi by toxicmenges Photo by: toxicmenges

Don't stop exploring at the cathedral though. Jimmer has a whole world below on several different levels. Matter of fact it's wildly easy to get lost in his genius. I was lucky enough to have him as a guide. Take the spiral staircase from the cathedral and explore the caves and the forest. And make sure you get out to the cypress laned summer villa while not as finished as the cathedral it's worth the trip out there.

zarbi_summervilla by fiona_haworthPhoto by: fiona_haworth

Lastly, go to the bottom floor of the summer villa and jump in the pool between the stairs......you'll land far below in a special place Jimmer's made for the merfolk -The Aquapolis. Complete with an amphitheatre, temple, stoa, and merhotel. The channels all connect so the merfolk have plenty of room to swim about.

Zarbi by toxicmenges Photo by: toxicmenges

If you are interested in having your sim featured on Meet Me in the Metaverse, please feel free to contact me in game or via the PM feature within Koinup.

Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger - Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner - Prim Pads
Twitter - Fiona_Haworth

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - Isla Mallorca

This week's Meet Me in the Metaverse - Isla Mallorca came to me in a notecard in game so thanks so much for that! Isla Mallorca is a bit of split personality sim in that it has a big top circus on one side, some grungy housing, and if you take the teleporter you land on mars I think.

That being said, it's a fun place to take some wacky photos. The up top landscaping is minimalist, black ground and mountains make it a great place to mess with windlight and not get an odd looking nature. My first stop was the big top. I've always thought it would be fun to walk the high wire or be a trapeze artist so this was my big break. I wandered around top side click off photos of all there was to see then I took the teleporter and ended up on another planet altogether. The eyes have it below. It's a surreal space environment with tons of eyeballs staring at you.

Koinup's Isla Mallorca collection just has a few pics in it but it's worth the visit!

Photo by: fiona_haworth

This was my foray into being a trapeze artist. Thank god I'm not afraid of heights. The big top has tons of sunshine rays as seen here so those of you not good with photo-editing you still can get some great effects.

Photo by: jmanhoo

Jmanhoo's snapshot is of the lovely carousel. This beauty is rideable and has some really interesting poses that are fun for photos of self. And as you can see it lends itself really well to some more artistic undertakings as well.


Photo by: lontralatzo

Lontralatzo's An Awesome Planet is a great shot of the world below. I really liked the comments about it: "Can eyes of God see people everywhere and all the time?" Seems they can here anyway. ;-)

Thanks again to whomever sent me the notecard and my apologies for not giving you credit for the find. I lost the notecard prior to getting out to write this. Please comment below. If you are interested in having your sim featured on Meet Me in the Metaverse, please feel free to contact me in game or via the PM feature within Koinup (notecards in game work as well).

Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger - Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner - Prim Pads
Twitter - Fiona_Haworth

Friday, September 18, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - AngelGate

This week on Meet Me in the Metaverse I'm taking you to a small set of sims called AngelGate, Dark Moon, and AngelGate Celestial. The sims are advertised as a place for non profit for creative arts, therapeutic and spiritual exploration in a stunning setting. And wow they weren't kidding. The sims contain art installations, a castle, a labyrinth, galleries and just spots to ponder the universe. And it will certainly inspire you to take some really fab photos.

The universal labyrinth isn't of the traditional high wall maze type. It's designed as rather a path to reflect and if you cam up I felt it had a little bit of celtic influence. The teleports within are not to be missed.

The AG3 Gallery is a lovely place to see art from all over the grid. Additionally they host talks with these artists. These are wonderful events where you can hear things like process or what inspires the artist. Sometimes it's all in group chat and other times it's in voice so be prepared for either.

More information on AngelGate and the happenings can be found here: http://angelgatelive.com/

Angel Gate by ShojiPhoto by: Shoji

This piece by Shoji really spoke to me about the real theme of AngelGate.....quiet reflection and inspiration. Shoji's pic just hit the nail on the head.

Dark Moon Islands by BluraySpykerPhoto by: BluraySpyker

BluraySpyker's Dark Moon Islands piece is a really lovely aerial shot of the sim. As you can see there are small separations of space each giving a bit different experience to the explorer. To the bottom left is the labyrinth I wrote about eariler.

Angel Gate by Ravenelle ZugzwangPhoto by: Ravenelle Zugzwang

Ravenelle's picture is of just one of the many different spaces in AngelGate. Here the flowers and butterflies glow just a bit giving it an ethereal feeling.

As you can see from the three pictures I've chosen is there is a lot of variety here at the AngelGate sims, so there is something for everyone. As always, if you are interested in having your sim featured on Meet Me in the Metaverse, please feel free to contact me in game or via the PM feature within Koinup.

PS....late breaking news there is a presentation on Starax's wand at 10am SLT today!!

Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger - Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner - Prim Pads
Twitter - Fiona_Haworth

Aren Mandela is a Robot with attitude

Travel with me to the world of Aren Mandela. Aren is a robot with a lot to say – he is opinionated and his sense of humor could be called radical or perhaps on the other hand plane rude. He is energetic, speaks his mind fully and without hestitation, he is sometimes a little brash, his style is a kin to a bull in a china shop, and as a result I know many identify with him. He is in fact a very funny man in a shiny white robot suit, with a refreshing if not slightly twisted slant on life. He has a grand and ever expanding Meta following and I am proud to call him a friend, even if he does endlessly moan about the scratches on his outfit.

So a little more background to lead you straight on into the questions area - Aren is a robot who conducts interviews, which he records and presents to the metaverse via his show talkbot.tv - he introduces a cool mix of topics predominantly based or rooted in virtual worlds as well as venturing to cross over into Real life, and frankly I must admit you never really know what is coming next, as he is pretty good at mashing things up. The viewing is seamless and enjoyable. I like to watch whilst drinking tea. I myself am very accepting of most things virtual and I think because of this I am predisposed to simply seeing that he is a robot who conducts interviews. I take it at face value for the entertainment that it is. I dare say some some would simply view Aren as a cartoon talking head - which yes of course he is technically - but frequenting a virtual world lets go constraints that some non virtual users have around such conceptions. The series of interviews that Aren continues to make is yet another way to capture and document aspects of our life virtual using machinima, but adding a thick layer of personalty and humour on top. It's an interesting medium to work with and readily accessible to all. You can see a collection here He also runs a twitter account which you can follow by taking this click here



Q1. What brought you to the metaverse?
A. Well, your question implies a time before in which I did’t exist –
that isn’t relevant. I became operational on the 21st of January,
2004.

Q2 What is your biggest influence from the virtual world?
A. Me. I’m my biggest influence. Ask me a hard question.

Q3. How do you see the progress of visualization in the metaverse?
A. I have no *bleep* idea what you are talking about. Next question.

Q4. If you could change anything to access the virtual world better
what would you say or do ?
A.Again, what the *bleep*? I live in a virtual world. I don’t “access” it.
Next question.

Q5. How do you see the future of a virtual universe?
A. What is this obsession with talking about things other than me?

Q6. How do you select the guests on your show talkbot.tv?
A. It’s a highly proprietary, multi-sequenced process that has many
complicated aspects and caveats which preclude me from going into more
detail at this time.

Q7. Tell us in 5 words what best describes your show.
A. Robots kicking your ass daily!

Q8. Whom would you aspire to interview on one of your shows?
A. Well this week I’ve got interviews lined up with Summer Glau, Emma
Watson, Barack Obama and Yoda. That pretty much covers it except for
interviewing myself.

Now you have the opportunity to ask yourself 3 questions Aren so knock yourself out! ...
Q1. How did you get to be so awesome?
A. I was made that way. Also, I employ a special self-enhancing algorithm
to multiply my awesomeness on an ongoing basis. Basically I’m the
singularity of awesomeness.

Q2. What other questions are you going to answer today?
A. None. I’m outta here. I have lots of famous people type things to do.

Ok so just the two questions then, I expect he's late for the tech checkout on that squeaky foot of his - Aren also has a Koinup Account naturally all discerning robots do. So please feel free to drop on in!

Until next time here on Metanopsis!
Poid
Poid Mahovlich
Poid Mahovlich - blog spot

Sunday, September 13, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - Fat Tuesday

This week's Meet Me in the Metaverse features a sim called Fat Tuesday. For those of you not familiar with Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday seem like an odd sim name. However it's a literal translation (Mardi Gras = Fat Tuesday). In SL, Fat Tuesday is an amazing recreation of New Orleans' French Quarter which is where the United States biggest Mardi Gras celebration is held yearly in February.

Fat Tuesday is really well done contains builds like the St. Louis Cathedral, Louisiana State University, and a fun spin off of Cafe du Monde called Cafe du Gos. I even took a few photos I know I have in RL of the Big Easy.

Koinup's collection is a little weak in photos of Fat Tuesday so I'm hoping you readers will use your extraordinary photographer's eye and fill in some more photos of a place SL is lucky to have around. It’s a fun backdrop for fab pictures, a lovely place to hang out, and for those of you looking to get a bit of retail therapy, Bourbon Street has a few shops.

New Orleans French Quarter by Fiona_HaworthPhoto by: fiona_haworth

Here is a fun picture of Bourbon Street. I snapped this one as the trolley went by. As you can see the sim creators did a marvelous job capturing the essense of the French Quarter. Complete with colorful walls, hanging plants, and wrought iron balconies.

St. Louis Cathedral by AmiBeattiePhoto by: AmiBeattie

AmiBeattie's photograph of St. Louis Cathedral just blew me away. I love the reflection on the water and the mood she's given it with the color tones she chose for the piece.

Cafe Du Gos by Fiona_Haworth Photo by: fiona_haworth

So I just had to include this one. I have a pic of me in real life at this famous cafe - Cafe du Monde with the plate of beignets almost gone and powered sugar fallen on my black t-shirt. MMMMM....my mouth waters just thinking about it. Big thanks to Gospel Voom for letting me relive this memory in SL!
As always, if you are interested in having your sim featured on Meet Me in the Metaverse, please feel free to contact me in game or via the PM feature within Koinup.
Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger - Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner - Prim Pads
Twitter - Fiona_Haworth

Saturday, September 5, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - Macbeth

This week's Meet Me in the Metaverse is Macbeth. It is a sim inspired by the bard himself, Shakespeare. It is a place to explore or role play or just learn more about the play. Scattered among the grounds are textbooks that contain notecards to help learn more about this drama. For those of you unfamiliar with Shakespeare's Macbeth it is a dark play about disorder, murder, power seeking, and sorcery. The visuals are in line with that darkness that brooding rainy feeling. Expect no sunshine as this place is set at midnight.

Macbeth is funded by the Literature Board of the Australian Council for the Arts and sponsored by the New Media Consortium. Not only a place rich in imagery, but full of sounds as well so make sure you’ve turned up the volume on your soundcard. At the landing point you’ll see scrolling lines of text from the play and small icons that to teleport you to the different areas of island. This sim has a lot to offer if you are in the mood to explore it properly. There are a few hidden gems like the chamber of blood, the maze and the cube of nothingness.


Macbeth, gallery by Ivus Photo by: Ivus


Ivus' Macbeth, Gallery appears beautiful close up....but look a bit deeper. The flowers begin to fade. Look even deeper can you see the hands? This is the Path of Temptation. As you traverse this path things get darker and lines of text scroll about on the floor like snakes.

Macbeth sim by Zoe ViscontiPhoto by: zoevisonti

Zoevisonti's Macbeth sim shows the nest of the raven. Everything about this picture symbolizes death which is of course the point.

Trapped Spirits...by HarleyRose Photo by: HarleyRose

HarleyRose's Trapped Spirits is taken inside the maze. The maze symbolizes the very end of Macbeth where there is confusion about the prophesies of the witches and the way to escape his impending death.

For more info about Macbeth the sim, check out this wiki. There is a lot of good info about the design of the sim and how to find the hidden sections with ease. If you are interested in having your sim featured on Meet Me in the Metaverse, please feel free to contact me in game or via the PM feature within Koinup.

Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger - Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner - Prim Pads
Twitter - Fiona_Haworth

Friday, August 28, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - Omega Point

There is little else more thrilling than an idea coming to fruition. Virtual worlds enable us to accomplish and experience things we’ve only dreamed about, read about, or seen in movies. Worlds like SL, the Sims, World of Warcraft and similar allow us to wander faraway lands or crawl into someone’s imagination. This week on Meet Me in the Metaverse, I want to take you to a Dark Fantasy/Sci-fi World…Omega Point.

Omega Point has predominately sepia toned infrastructure with a good bit of neon highlights. It feels very HR Giger inspired with surreal dark themed biomechanical imagery. Additionally, the creators worked hard to make this single sim into a richly full destination. They accomplished this by having several elevations that are all interconnected. It is almost so full you can lose yourself inside. I’ve visited Omega Point a few times and on each visit I’ve found even more than on the last. Omega Point is advertised as a hangout, but there is a bit of biomechanical themed retail products as well. This is a lovely place to spend some time especially if you are a science fiction fan.

OmegaPoint by senswansong
Photo by: senswansong

Senswansong's OmegaPoint captures this sim perfectly. As you can see above, the many walkways and neon accents and how organically mechnical this featured sim really is. Senswansong did a wonderful job with both the choice of windlight settings and the perspective.

Snapshot_019 by marmadukePhoto by: marmaduke

I chose Mamaduke's Snapshot_019 to illustrate the depth this sim has as well as the tenticle-like arm accents that really do make it into that biomechanical feeling I was discussing above.

Photo by: fiona_haworth

This last pic is one I took on my most recent visit. Each one of the shots I chose today seemed more of the raw photography style vs enhanced pics. Perhaps that is because this sim is so wild that it didn't need the extras.

I want to remind all you SL'rs to tag your pictures with the SLURL and share them with the rest of the community. All you need to do is add the sim name with /128/128/0 at the end of the prepopulated field titled Add SLurl.

Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger - Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner - Prim Pads
Twitter - Fiona_Haworth

Friday, August 21, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - Dive World

Under the sea…Under the sea…Darling it's better…Down where it's wetter. On today's Meet Me in the Metaverse I'm taking you all to the lovely sim called Dive World where you can don your scuba gear, swimming AO, mermaid outfit or whatever suits your fancy and explore the ocean depths. As you back roll off the docks, you enter the domain of the fishes…and let me tell you this sim has tons to see down there. A few shipwrecks, sharks and whales of many varieties, tons of tropical fish, morays eels , coral reefs, and even sting rays.

This sim is owned by Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI). From what I can tell they just utilize SecondLife to virtually dive and also advertise their real world presence. Additionally, Dive World promotes Project Aware not only through traditional channels but via a game you can play on the sim. Project Aware is a nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving underwater environments. They perform cleanups and conservation and education on protecting our RL oceans. Check out Project Aware here: http://www.projectaware.org/ and PADI here: http://www.padi.com/scuba/.

Dive World_35 by YuNEO_NagyPhoto by: YuNEO_Nagy

This work above from YuNeo_Nagy simply titled Dive World_35 is a wonderful composition. It not only is a lovely perspective but the use of the light is mighty clever. The other part I really liked about this piece was how real it looked.
Diving-Larz by KikiDeVinna Photo by: KikiDeVinna

KikiDeVinna did a fantastic job catching her subject scuba diving in her piece called Diving Larz. I love all the details captured in this shot. From the bubbles to the whales in the background she doesn't lose the subject of her piece.

night by _oO-Sieg-Oo_ Photo by: _oO-Sieg-Oo_

_oO-Sieg-Oo_'s work called Night captures the coral reef with wonderful contrast when shot in the night setting. The tropical fish just pop against darkness of the reef.

I found this last pic by doing a tag search as it wasn't in the collection. I want to remind all you SL'rs to tag your pictures with the SLURL and share them with the rest of the community. All you need to do is add the sim name with /128/128/0 at the end of the prepopulated field titled Add SLurl.

Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger -
Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner -
Prim Pads
Twitter -
Fiona_Haworth

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - Mont Saint Michel

I'm a real life explorer. I try to plan a trip out of the country every few years. Several years back, I saw a pic of Mont Saint Michel in Normandy, France and it's been on my must see list ever since. I just haven't gotten back to France yet. One of the things I love best about SL is the chance to see some recreations of RL things be it architecture to toys. It always brings a smile. Since I've not made it to Normandy yet, at least I have gotten to explore Mont Saint Michel virtually. And it's my Meet Me in the Metaverse pick of the week.

Mont Saint Michel is a lovely estate sim that not only serves as a recreation of this historic landmark but also has a good bit of retail. It is the home of Edelweiss and anyone reading this that is a fashionista knows it's the end stop for the bi-yearly CSR coupon event. (Which is going on now). I want encourage you all to take a big roam around the sim and see how beautifully the creators have recreated the multiple elevations that make up this fantastic RL landmark.

Le Mont Saint Michel by butler_cathandsPhoto by: butler_cathand

I love butler_cathands' piece Le Mont Saint Michel. I'm sure to find something similar on a postcard once I visit this real life landmark. The fog effect used on this piece adds a good bit of realism.

Photo by: Chaos_Teardrop

Chaos_Teardrop's Le Mont Saint-Michel takes an interesting perspective on the gianormus structure. It gives a fantastic aerial to see the grounds and all the levels.

Mont Saint Michel by TalliePhoto by: Tallie

Tallie's Mont Saint Michel piece takes us out of the clouds and down to street level. As you can see from this work, there is a lot more to Mont Sant Michel than just the outer structure.

If you are interested in having your sim featured on Meet Me in the Metaverse, please feel free to contact me in game or via the PM feature within Koinup.

Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger - Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner - Prim Pads
Twitter - Fiona_Haworth

Saturday, August 8, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - Brackish

Today's Meet Me in the Metaverse we are travelling to the sim of Brackish. The landing point is 330m in the air in a cute little shopping area. However the real beauty of this sim lies far beneath. Find the tree with hanging lanterns. Those cleverly designed lanterns are the teleports to the hidden gems that resides within the sim.

If you take the lantern labeled Sea Resort you arrive safely in a tower on the linden land below. As you exit out the tower, you cross a bridge full of streaming sunshine and lush foliage. This bridge provides the means to get to a secret garden; an everglade full of flamingos, tropical birds, lizards, elephants, hanging vines, and even some fungi.

Brackish_Sea_Resort by fiona_haworth

Photo by: fiona_haworth

Brackish is a lovely example that you don't always need a private estate to create something so stellar. The main sanctuary is constructed with prims and flora that control the overall view from within to see only the linden oceans beyond its border. The entire structure is sunk just a bit to provide the water elements necessary for the marsh. Make sure you take all the lanterns and explore the rest of what this sim has to offer…there are surprises everywhere along the way.

Archaelogical Site of Alir by Liqueur

Photo by: Liqueur

I want to thank all the lovely contributors to this Koinup place. Had I not seen the unbelievable pictures contained within this sim, I probably would have dismissed the area after wandering the shops. It took me awhile to find the lantern ports. But since I had seen the collection I had already jumped over the shops and hit the ground to see the marshland gardens below.

Brackish /2 by Icarus_RobbianiPhoto by: Icarus_Robbiani

Lastly, I’ll wrap it up with this note, if you are interested in having your sim featured on Meet Me in the Metaverse, please feel free to contact me in game or via the PM feature within Koinup.

Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger - Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner - Prim Pads
Twitter - Fiona_Haworth

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Meet Me in the Metaverse - Athan

This week in Meet Me in the Metaverse I bring you - Athan. Fallen Gods Inc. set up this sim adjacent to their store sim as a place for exploration and of quiet retreat. It is truly awe inspiring. I couldn't stop my fingers from clicking the snapshot button while I was wandering around.

Koinup's place collection for Athan contains 60 unbelievable pictures and videos that will really inspire you to take the jump and see this place for yourself. If you don't believe me, check these out!



<a href="http://www.koinup.com/CarlaBroek/work/117344/">Fallen Gods</a> - a <a href="http://www.koinup.com/in-games-mmorpg/on-videos/">Fallen Gods</a> by <a href="http://www.koinup.com/CarlaBroek/">CarlaBroek</a> on <a href="http://www.koinup.com">Koinup</a>

Machinima by: CarlaBroek

CarlaBroek's Fallen Gods is a lovely piece of machinima set to some beautiful piano music. In just under 4 minutes Carla takes you on a journey that highlights all the sim has to offer. Beautiful vistas, beaches, trees and temples. It's shot in realistic lighting so you'll truly get a sense of the sim as it appears without enhancements or windlight settings.

Fallen Gods 06 by YeNEO_Nagy Photo by: YuNEO Nagy

YuNEO's Fallen Gods 06 makes Athan look almost real life real. The sun reflecting off the water as well as the lens flare brings some true authenticity to the piece, like a postcard from your favorite vacation spot.

Under Full Sail by CarlottaCeawlin

Photo by: CarlottaCeawlin

I love Under full sail from Carlotta. It's a beautiful photo that was enhanced to make it into a magnificient piece of artwork.

As you can see Athan brings inspiration in tons of different ways. This collection of media is really amazing. After checking them out take the plunge see the sim and add your photos. Don't forget to tag your photos with a SLURL and it will automatically get added to Koinup's place collection. (Click here for freebie to make SLURLs with just a click - Codie's SLURL HUD)


Fiona Haworth
Guest Author - Koinup.com
Staff Blogger - Phantom’s Republic
Co-Owner - Prim Pads
Twitter - Fiona_Haworth