Finders Keepers

 If there's one thing everyone can agree upon about Opensim, it's the ephemeral, here today gone tomorrow nature of the beast. Assets, regions, addresses, inventory - even whole grids can suddenly not be there any more. At the same time, new people and places, new builds and ideas are always springing up. Whether you're a full-on builder, a grid owner, or just an average avatar trying to look good, you have probably been out there, looking for assets to dress your sim, your art idea, or your body. 

Famous freebie sims are of course the first port of call, but depending on what it is you need, and how much time and expertise you have to go searching, you can't always find exactly what you're looking for. Or can you?
Two years ago, Nico Kailani started a group in Opensimworld that helps out with that. Here's a direct link to the What Are You Looking For group. Yes, it's true, OSW is often blasted for the drama, bullying, and over-sharing by a handful of troubled souls, but remember, all that nonsense is really only on the Home Page - the site has other useful and underused features, and 'Groups' is one of them. 

Nico Kailani: Before the “Looking For” group, the only place people could ask for help finding stuff was in the OWS front page chat Box. Requests for help were too often drowned out by toxic chat from trolls and people with personal vendettas. Even at its best, what you say in the Box quickly disappears because you can see only the last dozen or so messages.

'Groups' on OSW can be tricky to find, but you can see them all by clicking here and of course, you can find the Groups you have joined by going to your own Profile, and scrolling down to the bottom right side of the page. 

Hundreds of groups have been started over the years, but very few have more than a handful of members, or are actively used. Nico gives a practical example of why her group has thrived.

Nico Kailani:  The question, “Does anyone know of any open-mic clubs in opensim?”, was asked in the Box some days ago, and there was no reply. I posted the same request in the “Looking For” group and within two hours there was an answer. What we are doing right is, quite simply, helping people. The message board format worked as I had hoped. Our group of dedicated and very knowledgeable volunteers are the reason for our ongoing success. My main job is to encourage them with posts like this. You can still see the very first posts made two years ago on the “Looking For” message board, as well as all of the replies and comments. They are threaded, so real conversations in the group are possible. The conversations are respectful, helpful, and there is sincere gratitude expressed for the help offered. It’s an example of the best of OS.

Out of the Gate

 Star Ravenhurst: Art and storytelling

are the best bits of OpenSim. 

Currently under construction on Star Ravenhurst's grid 10thDimension is 'Raven Gate', an 8x8 Var where the landscape tells a story that you will be able to explore via the 'Quest' format, meeting brand new characters who will help you discover clues and thus unfold the narrative, ultimately discovering the key to the mystery. 

The current arrival point on Raven Gate

The project is out of the gate, but miles of road lie ahead before they reach the finish line, and open the quest to the public. There's still plenty to place, choose, refine. design, and animate, so some of the things you'll see in these photos will change radically, not only in their development but also the preferred Environment lighting. Also, if you're a builder or scripter and are looking to be part of a group project, this may be somewhere for you to shine, contact Star to learn more. 'Raven Gate' promises dark secrets, magic, tragedy... but in the end redemption and triumph. The idea for this project came to her last year in the fall, and it's a long term job. Why so?

Star Ravenhurst on the quest Var region Raven Gate, a work in progress

Star Ravenhurst: Because it’s complex, creative, and collaborative. I contacted people I believed would work well together—those with talent, knowledge, and the kind of imagination and enthusiasm needed to bring a new world to life. Just as important, they share a strong sense of commitment.

Poppy's Arrival - Coming Soon!

For a very long time, Poppy Fields has been in SL (and still is sometimes, she has a club there) but she has always explored various worlds. Then, she says... one day she found herself here in Opensim... 

Poppy Fields: ... and I kind of hung my hat here. I am creative both here and in SL. But somehow my creative side is encouraged more here.

Poppy Fields

We met on Poppy's sim Mistburry on Osgrid, where preparations for the latest project are well under way. Called 'Arrival'. Coming in August, it's a multimedia experience that will be performed inside the theater, called simply 'The Box'. 

Poppy Fields: A special shout out to my partner Rachael Cooper for being so patient with me working on this  ...so many evenings standing here watching me work ! This upcoming show is a story told in pictures combined with stage sets, music and lights. It's not quite a club and not quite a gallery. We're telling the classic story of finding love, losing it, and re-united. exploring the relationship between humans and machines

Thirza Ember: and 'arrival' - what does that refer to?

Poppy Fields: the arrival of artificial sentience - I mean an AI that is more advanced that it is at present,. AI with empathy.

Ipsofacto, in Fact

In Opensim, the name Ipsofacto is always closely associated with Prodyck Theas. For many years, Prodyck's been an explorer, experimenter, and videographer, best known for his Twitch channel where he has filmed and archived events, particularly in the Francophone community - weddings, inaugurations, even Safari trips! As a sim, Ipsofacto like so many places in the hyperverse has undergone lots of adventures - going offline, and finding a new home, and a new iteration, all the time expressing the solidarity of the francophone community. 

Prodyck in a surreal moonlight on his sim Ipsofacto, when it was on Osgrid.

The meaning of names is always so important... 'Iposofacto' comes from the Latin for 'by the fact itself' in other words, something that needs no explanation, is obvious. But there's more at play here; the Latin word we translate as 'fact' also means a deed - something done, a creation or action. And what is Opensim all about if not actions, creations, and deeds?

If you ever get a chance to talk to Prodyck, ask him about the French-speakers of the early days of Opensim - he has many memories of those early times, when assets were scarce, but on the other hand, experimenters and explorers were everywhere. This is a good moment to mention Francogrid, a lost treasure of Opensim, which, after a long decline, went offline  in 2022 due to a tech failure at the place where the grid was hosted. If you're curious about FG, or about opensim history in general, why not take a look at this post where 8 years ago (my how time flies!)  the Safari gang met up with a bunch of Francogridiens.

Remembering Mal Burns

Mal Burns died a few days ago, and if that comes as a bit of a shock, you're not alone. 

The news of his passing has with much dismay and sadness rippled across Opensim, where he had his home, and in Second Life, where he got his start in virtual worlds in February 2007. A vital piece of our virtual network is now missing. 

From his earliest days in virtual worlds,
Mal always loved to see a beautifully landscaped sim.

News aggregator, videographer, talk show host, critic, builder, intrepid traveler, and all round communicator, in Mal's eyes virtual worlds were an opportunity to discover one another, to be better, more creative, and to stay in touch with the people who matter to us, despite the challenges of our far flung real lives. 

In a world where most people's pronouncements on social media are all about themselves, Mal kept the focus on others, on the places and projects that he found fascinating. He probably would be a bit embarrassed to think that people were reading and talking about him, rather than some cool new sim or innovative development in virtual worlds.

Mal will no doubt be memorialized in Second Life and of course RL. As you know, this blog is about Opensim, so the focus of this article is to share comments by a few Opensim friends of Mal, their words represent hundreds of voices from all over the hyperverse. 

Let's start with James Atlloud and Tosha Tyran, Mal's current co-hosts on his talk show Inworld Review. It's worth pointing out that the original 'Inworld Review' - an offshoot of other talk shows Mal produced and presented - first aired on January 13, 2013 in SL, with Tara Yates and Petlove Petshop.  The show was revived in Opensim in 2016 with Maria Korolov as co-host beside Mal and James, at Mal's studio on the Great Canadian Grid.

James and Mal on Inworld Review, 2025

James Atlloud: My relationship with Mal was a unique and amazing journey.  In YouTube production there were times I became so irritated with him! I’m also sure he had those moments with me, and even so we made it all work - just like so many of us do in virtual worlds.  I will miss him more than I can say and I know I’m in a huge community of people who will never forget his influence on our lives.

Osgrid turns 18

Well, it's official. At the end of this month OSgrid will turn 18, old enough to get a tattoo, go skydiving, and vote. And of course, the grid is celebrating with the traditional show-and-tell festivities on the OSGB regions. 

Spaces are still available, although many are already spoken for, so don't wait too long - get building! At time of posting, there will be at least three exhibition sims, each with a dozen or more original installations, rides, gifts, and exhibitions celebrating the diverse and ingenious group of people who make up the OSGrid population.

 To get a parcel, contact one of the grid Admin. Who are the Osgrid Admin?  Dan Banner, Paela Osgrid, Sarah Klein, Foxx Bode, Wizard Atazoth, AlbertR Landar, and Aussie Envee. Aussie organizes the Event Plaza music shows which of course will be a big part of the festivities. And speaking of music...

Event Space

Theater in Opensim is a lot of hard work, but well worth it, both for the performers and for the audience. The challenges are many - getting together a troupe who are able and willing to commit time and talent to the group project, figuring out how to convert a text into something workable in the virtual environment, where considerations about lag and scripts and assets can at times be super frustrating, plus the effort of getting an audience to come and see the performance - that's essential of course! We all know that the fragmented nature of opensim, and, let's confess it, the grid-tribalism we still suffer from just a bit, can make it hard for special events to get the audience they deserve.  Tristan Dehais and his opensim theatrical company "Les Théâtreux" are planning a long term project to put on "The Little Prince". 

By 'long term', we're talking about months of prep, with the idea of having the play ready next Spring. So you may ask, why blog about this now, so far in advance of the opening night? Well, that's s that you - yes you, you talented devil! - can maybe get involved; there are lots of ways that can be done, in terms of being an actor, helping out with props, scripts, loads of things on and off-stage. 

Tristan speaking during the French session of the Hypergrid International Expo, 2025

Tristan Dehaie gave an interesting talk about his experiences in virtual theater with "Les Théâtreux" at this year's HIE event and I asked him to go into more detail about his Opensim experience. He's French, so I wondered which grids had been to most impactful on his non SL virtual life. 

Tristan's Opensim theater, Event Space, is located on SV3D grid

Tristan Dehaie:  France-RP and SV3D. But it's more the people involved than the “grids” themselves, or their owners. In fact, I believe that anyone who sets up a grid (necessarily and consequently) wants activities to develop there.

Thirza Ember: That's for sure ! Can you tell us more about your activities in SL and opensim, and how the two compare? Does it keep you very busy?