Koinup Improved Groups and new Koinup Artists featured of the week

We're glad to announce a powerful improvement in the Group Management On Koinup. Starting from today, you can add contents to the Koinup Groups directly from the comments. Basically, one of the most used way to invite/add pictures to groups was by adding them via comments. Before this update, it was only possible to add a direct link in the comments. Starting from today, instead, it's even possible add directly the images to the group without visiting the group pages. Just to make you clear, this cut 3-4 steps, and if you receive an invitation with a comment to add a selected image or machinima in one group, you can do that with just one click.

The feature is active only if you're already member of the group, you received the invite to post. Get started with the Koinup Groups Now

If you're wondering what's about the amazing image above, it's taken from "Just Art" blog that just went live with a story about two amazing Koinup Artists: Betty Rogan and Carthalis. I invite you to read the story and/or Enjoy the amazing gallery of Betty Rogan and Carthalis on Koinup.

The New Koinup Improved User Experience

If you visited Koinup these days, probably you are experiencing a series of new brand features that largely improve the users experience on the website. At first, we renewed the user homepage (launch page). The "actions links" (visit your recent page, the comments you've made, the widget menu, etc) are now located in a new sub-head menu. Still in the user homepage, on the right sidebard, you can now enjoy the new tab: What's your FB friends like. It's a Facebook social plugin that display the Koinup Contents most liked by "your Facebook friends". This way, while logging on Koinup, you can see what your Facebook Friends are liking on Koinup and you can follow their suggestions.

Old members will instead appreciate the new options available in the Account Page. If you visit your account page, you can find indeed a series of new privacy options. Basically, you can now disable the forward to your email box of Koinup notifications and Koinup invitations. Some members requested these features some months ago in order to have a better control on the number and type of notification forwared to their email boxes from Koinup. If you disable the forward to your email, you're still able to get the notification in your Koinup Message Box.

Enjoy Koinup and thanks for your precious feedback

Koinup Watermarks to protect your images against unauthorized uses

We've just released a new feature that will help authors to protect their creations and images against un-authorized uses. Basically, starting from today, you can add a watermark sign to your Koinup uploads. The feature works - so far - only for images (that represent about 99% of the Koinup contents) and it allows to stamp a trasparent watermark.

Koinup Watermark is an opt-in feature. While in the upload process you can choose to add a watermark or not to your pics. By default, the feature is not active. The watermark will be automatically impress over your images, only if you choose to add it.

It's featured aimed mostly at some PRO creators and artists that needs a specific-professional tool to protect against the steal of images. The Koinup Watermark adds a transparent "Koinup Logo" on all the image. We choose to adopt a solution similar to Deviantart.

The main goal of a web watermark system is to discourage thieves to download images and use in their webpages or profiles. The Watermark adds a un-aestethics element in the image that make it less appealing for a web thief.

Let us your feedback on this new Koinup brand feature.


How to add a watermark sign

1. Visit the upload page
2. Click on Privacy, Crosspost & Watermarks options
3. Check the Watermark tab
4. Upload your images

3D Wallpapers live on Ovi Store

For immediate release

The most beautiful images of virtual worlds, now available on your mobile

Koinup launches 3D Wallpapers, the 1st mobile application for all the Nokia phones, that allow users to set as wallpapers hundreds of virtual worlds screenshots, 3d artworks and Second Life artworks.

Milan, Italy, 27th of april, 2010 -- The virtual world social network Koinup is delighted to announce the release of “3D Wallpapers”, the 1st mobile application, available exclusively on the Nokia Ovi Store, that brings the avatar art collections of Koinup directly to all Nokia devices.

Available in the "recommended by Nokia" section of the Ovi Store, The 3D Wallpapers app is the 1^st mobile application entirely dedicated to "avatar art" (virtual worlds screenshots, 3d art and virtual photography). The app allows customers to download on their Nokia devices more than 300 wallpapers, picked by the Koinup staff among the many thousands of images published on www.koinup.com

The 3D Wallpapers users will have the chance to browse selected collections of avatar artworks, created by 3D artists, and hundreds of amazing videogames and virtual worlds screenshots.

The 3D Wallpapers purpose is to raise awareness over a new generation of artists that use 3D and virtual worlds as their own canvas. "Virtual worlds influence the way we perceive reality, by changing our aesthetic taste" says Edoardo Turelli, Koinup co-founder and CTO.

The incredible success of "Avatar", directed by James Cameron, shows that virtuality is not more perceived as a way to escape reality, but more as a canvas to create incredible environments or to express the human natural inclination to art and creativity. As stated by Wagner James Au, the author of "The Making of Second Life (HarperCollins): "Avatars have been a crucial part of online identity for years. As all culture becomes digitized, it's only inevitable that the avatar itself becomes a new canvas for artistic expression".

3D Wallpapers goal is bring "avatar art" to the masses, by partnering with Nokia Ovi Store . "We chose to launch the 3D Wallpapers on Ovi Store because Nokia users are traditionally interested in mobile contents as wallpapers and artistic contents" says Pierluigi Casolari, Koinup co-founder and CEO.

You can download the app on the Nokia Ovi Store: http://store.ovi.com/content/30802

More info on the project: http://www.koinup.com/3d-wallpapers

About Koinup Company

Koinup srl founded by Pierluigi Casolari and Edoardo Turelli, is a web company based in Italy, Brescia. Founded in 2007, Koinup.com is a leader website in the virtual worlds industry.

Media contacts: Pierluigi Casolari, editor@koinup.com

Enjoy these Koinup Media Partners

If Koinup keeps growing, along with the passionat, loyal and vibrant community, it depends also on the great and impressive job of Koinup media partners. Today, our "thank you" is for three amazing partners: Hiperia 3D News, Slnn.it, Poid Mahovlich

Hiperia 3D News, is one of the most authoritative and up-to-date virtual worlds focused blog. Hiperia is partnering with Koinup to promote the job of machinimists active on the website. Read the latest Hiperia 3d news article dedicated to a wonderful Koinup machinimist

Slnn.it is the most read and popular italian online magazine dedicated to Second Life. We're partnering with SLnn.it in order to leverage the artistic community of Koinup. Each week, Slnn.it features a Koinup artist in the "Graphic Dreams" column. This is the latest article dedicated to: Ruriko Bracken

Poid Mahovlich is a long time loyal and pro-active Koinup partner. She help with growth of Koinup blog and now is working side by side with Hiperia 3D News in scouting the most interesting machinimists active on Koinup to highlight on Hiperia's blog.

Thanks!

Koinup partners with Club Cooee

We're glad to announce that we're running a partnership with Club Cooee. Club Cooee is a 3D chat where you can chat with friends from all over the world, dress up your 3D avatar, create and decorate your 3D chat rooms and enjoy music, videos and games.

As result of the partnership, Club Cooee members have a specific Club Cooee channel on Koinup, accessible from the main menu. At the same time, Koinup will be recommended to Club Cooee members as media of choice to share snapshots and machinima.

Read more »

Koinup. The main hub for your virtual life

Virtual worlds users can use Koinup as their main web hub for sharing virtual lives.

This post is to summarize the main tools offered by Koinup to virtual worlds players for sharing contents from virtual worlds to Koinup and from Koinup to many other web destinations.



1. Sending Postcards from Second Life to Koinup
While in Second Life, you can easily send postcards to your Koinup gallery without having to save the images to your desktop. Setup your Koinup upload email address and use it to send postcards, while in Second Life

Read more »

Koinup partners with Frenzoo.com, the world of 3D chat and creation in your Browser

Milan, March 17, 2010 - Today, Koinup and Frenzoo.com launch their collaboration, with Frenzoo support in Koinup as well as auto snapshot uploading to Koinup from Frenzoo. 3d avatar lovers can explore a creative online world from in their web browser, then share their experience their Koinup account. The partnership also includes joint events and competitions hosted on both sites.

Read more »

Koinup selected by the startup incubator Working Capital

Working Capital is one the most important italian startup accelerators. We had the chance to meet the Working Capital team some months ago and today we are delighted to announce that Koinup has been selected by Working Capital to be one of the startups incubated in the accelerator.

Thanks to this deal we had the opportunity of migrating Koinup servers in the Top-IX Consortium. Top-IX is one of the most important italian hosting and housing consortiums. Most tech startups are hosting and housing their tech assets in Top-IX. Top_IX gave us access to the Developer Program, a specific and dedicated tech program for innovative italian web companies.

You can read about the Koinup-Working Capital deal, here. There's also an interesting conversation between Working Capital and "me" speaking about Augmented Virtuality. What the heck is Augmented Virtuality? Read more

New tools for Facebook and Twitter members on Koinup

If you are using Twitter or Facebook, maybe you're wondering how to share easily and quickly your Koinup items on these websites. Along, with the crosspost features, we just released a new series of tools for sharing with just "1 click" your Koinup pics on Twitter, Facebook, Google Buzz.

It's enought that you visit the Koinup image or video that you'd love to share and click on the small icons (on the right). Click on the icon of your favourite destinations and it's done. Look at the image to get a preview




The image include a detail from a photo of Lithea

Koinup and SLnn.it partner to promote virtual worlds photography

Koinup and SLnn.it, the italian online magazine dedicated to virtual worlds, are now partnering to promote the most interesting examples of virtual worlds photography and art. "Graphic Dreams" is the name of the new brand column born from the partnership of the two companies. The goal of "Graphic Dreams" is to showcases Koinup talents and creative minds, photos, snapshots and artworks published on Koinup. Graphic Dreams is an exclusive space for Koinup members, powered by the staff of SLnn.it

Read more »

Blue Mars finally on Koinup!

Blue Mars, the wonderful virtual world created by the Honolulu based company "Avatar Reality", has now a brand new Koinup dedicated channel. You can browse Blue Mars Pictures and machinima directly in the header of Koinup. You can also hangout in the Blue Mars main page to access the best contents, stuffs, pics and videos posted by the BlueMars colony on Koinup.

Blue Mars is bringing immersive high 3d definition into the social worlds arena. Moreover, this new virtual world is raising the sidebar of user generated contents and builds, by allowing developers to import meshes and contents built with 3D tools and by offering huge tools for getting creative inworld, too.

Read more »

Looking for bloggers to cover new virtual worlds

We're looking for bloggers and/or writers to cover the development of some amazing virtual worlds: Twinity, Frenzoo, Blue Mars

We think that these three virtual worlds will thrive in the next months and they have all amazing plans for user generated contents (that's the key for Koinup)


So, we're seeking for fresh eyes to keep these worlds on our radars. First of all, we'd love to guide readers and metaverse people through these worlds (tutorials, tips, tricks), then we'd love to give them some deep insights on the best places, most interesting things to do while in these worlds. Then, we'd love to cover the growing art, machinima, building scene in Frenzoo, Twinity, Blue Mars

We're looking for 3 contributors. One for any world. If you're interested, don't exhitate to contact us ( editor@koinup.com ) or leave a message in the comments tab

Changes in the Koinup "coolest" algorithm

The "coolest" algorithm is the "Koinup item algorithm" that assigns to any images and videos posted on Koinup a specific weight. Its has been built with the purpose of ranking contents and displaying some of them with more frequency in the front-pages of the website. The "coolest" algorithm is the reason because some works are more frequently seen and displayed than others on the website. The algorithm was based on democratic criteria such as the number of favs and comments.

If you login today, probably you may notice that the list of Koinup coolest works in the various pages dramatically changed. This happened because we upgraded the algorithm in order to include new criteria and elements in the measurement of the specific weight of the contents. Read more »

Auto-Share your Koinup pics to Facebook

What's better than updating two accounts with only one click? Today, we release a new Koinup feature that allow our members to auto-share their Koinup pics to Facebook. Its a two steps procedure. You have only to grab your Facebook upload email (the link works only if you're logged in FB) and paste it in your Koinup Account (same here, click if you're logged in Koinup). Then, each new picture you will upload on Koinup, it will be automatically posted on your Facebook profile.

Have a look at the tutorial, to visualize the procedure.


(You can also expand the autosharing functionalities, by adding your Flickr upload email to your Koinup account and starting to crosspost on Flickr. We explained this other option, extensively here)

Koinup is now partnering with Club Cooee

We are proud to announce a new Koinup's partner: Club Cooee. Club Cooee is a new-innovative 3d Chat World, whose goal is adding an immersive-powerful layer to the chat experience and allow people to easily hangout 3D with their friends. We highly suggest our readers (and all the Koinup members) to give a try to Club Cooee and share their experience on here. We have also created a group for all the Club Cooee-ians on Koinup. We met Stefan Lemper, one of the managing directors of Club Cooee. Stefan is in charge of business development.

1. Stefan, What's exactly Club Cooee, and why is unique in the industry of virtual worlds?

Club Cooee is a new approach to virtual worlds. We are taking all the benefits from normal text based chatting and messaging and enhance it with a fun and lively 3D virtual world. With just 3 MB download we do not require a monster client software for a new full 3D experience which happens without program windows directly on top of the computer desktop. Club Cooee runs always in the background without harming other applications so the user stays all the time in tough with his friends, and sees whats going on in Club Cooee. It is very easy and casual to create your own 3D chatrooms and add user generated content. It is fun to see how members use Club Cooee to create great all kinds of scenery and items. On top they can easily integrate videos in their rooms, add their favourite music to share and party with friends from around the world. Some even use it as an easy to use webradio client.



2. What's your favorite demographics and how you plan to enter the market

Our users spread from teenagers to people in their twenties, that just like to chat, meet new friends or create great things in our world. We have people from 200 countries in Club Cooee but if you like to chat only with people from your country they are very easy to find. We grow strongly through viral effects but we also partner with great companies like Koinup, to spread the word about Club Cooee.



3. What's are your plans for the next months. Can you reveal some of the features you're going to release in the next months

We do have a lot of plans. What I can tell you, is that we will expand our game functionality. Right now you can already play fun casual games in Club Cooee and compete with your friends. Since our users love the realtime chat we will offer them soon board games, where the 3D room is the game and you and your avatar will be part of it.

4. It seems that most of the more succesfull virtual worlds are based on user generated contents. Are you opening the doors to indie developers and 3nd party creation and if not, how do you think to guarantee enough supply of contents for your members?

As a matter of fact we already enable users to create their own content. Thanks to our very easy application users everybody can create items right in our world so you do not have to buy and use complicated 3D programs. We want to everybody to be able to create. We were amazed ourself how member use all kind of items to create new things. For instance we have a user from Indonesia who built a rollercoaster in Club Cooee. For that reason we are just in the process of supplying special building sets, so they will be even more flexible to create new items.

5. Give us some tips for the new members. How get the most out from Club Cooee?
Just signup at www.clubcooee.com and explore Club Cooee. Style your avatar and meet new friends in one of our lobbies. Your are easily guided there. Make sure to stop by in one of the radio rooms from our users, where you can meet the webradio DJ and ask him to play your favorite songs. Create your room and invite your friends there. I am looking forward to meet users from Koinup in the Club.

Koinup Widgets. The easiest way to share and distribute your Koinup stuffs everywhere

If you are wondering how to share your Koinup items on other websites and distribute them in a quick easy way, you should have a look at the Koinup Widget Platform

The Koinup Widget Platform allows you to create/customize a widget, by choosing the items you wanna include in the badge and provide you the chance to distribute/istall the widget over your favourite websites (Facebook, Google, Myspace, Blogs) with just one click!

Following are some of the most used functionalities of the Koinup Widget Platform

1. By relying on the Gigya Technology, Koinup Widgets is shareble everywhere. Create the widget and then select in the Gigya menu your fav websites where you want to share your widgets. Give it a try now

2. If you are a Second Life members, probably you may want to have a look at the Second Life Widgets Places. Each place featured on Koinup has its own widget.
Browse here the coolest places

3. Following the requests of some members, we have recently introduced the Groups
Widgets, so if you're admin (or even a member) of a specific group on Koinup, you can now easily create and istall everywhere the widget of such a group.
(Visit your fav groups. Click on "get a widget" in the sidebar on the right)

The following is the widget of the group: Avatar

The screens in the Koinup Homepage

If you stop by the Koinup Homepage, probably you could notice that we changed the homepage users images. The new pool is made up some screens created in Second Life, The Sims, Twinity, World of Warcraft. While previously the images were posted automatically on the homepage, by using the "coolest" algorithm, now they are directly picked by the Koinup staff.

Right now, the Koinup homepage is featuring screens by whiteeyed, Marty86, Eves Rodenberger, Poid Mahovlich, Trixibelle, orangeisland

We're going to rewamp the way images are displayed in the homepage. The new images are more socially oriented. What we have learnt these latest months, is that Koinup is more and more used and perceived as a tool and portal to discover interesting things happening in Virtual Worlds. The new images reflect this approach and they are more aimed at showcasing the interesting things you can do, expect and see in virtual worlds.

We're going to launch a series of initiatives whose goal will be getting the direct involvement of the community to create pool of images for the Koinup Homepage.


P.S: If you're logged in Koinup, you can't see the homepage, but you're automatically re-directed to your own Koinup Personal Page.

Crosspost your Koinup pictures to Flickr

If you're active both on Koinup and Flickr, you can crosspost your Koinup pics to Flickr by using the Koinup Crosspost Feature.

In order to deploy such feature and crosspost to Flickr your Koinup pics, you have to follow these steps:
1. Login in Flickr
2. Visit your Flickr upload email page
3. Copy the Flickr-upload-email-address
4. Login on Koinup, go to your Koinup account page
5. Paste your Upload Flickr email address in the Crosspost section of your Koinup account
6. Click on "Save Changes"

You can follow also the step by step tutorial with images if you need more info

Once pasted your Flickr Upload Email Address in your Koinup Account, all the pics, uploaded on Koinup, will be crossposted in your Flickr Gallery. Just one click to spread your contents over your favorite websites

Signup on Koinup with your Facebook and other social media accounts

We have just deployed a new brand Koinup feature for all the virtual worlds members that would love to signup on Koinup. From now, you can signup on Koinup simply by logging with your Facebook or Myspace or Google account. The registration process is now "a one click step procedure" and you don't have to create (and save somewhere) new passwords. Enjoying Koinup is now more easy and fast!

Old members are invited their usuals accounts and keep up on logging by using their Koinup credentials. The new login/signup brand feature (created with tools provided by Gigya) is targeted at the new members.