Fair Do's

Opensim Worlds Fair (OSWF for short) is getting closer, and on Saturday at 12.00 SLT there was another progress meeting for people interested in this project. The steering team - Kimm Starr, Koshari Mahana, and the magnificent Cooper Swizzle, were on hand to share the news, confirm details, get feedback and explain how it's still possible for you to participate in the event - there is still time to get on board!

At the meeting took place on the huge sim on Wolf Territories Grid, with some unique chairs and couches provided for the public.... all the fun of the fair!

That hatted figure you see silhouetted in these photos is, of course, grid owner Lone Wolf. For the address of the huge region housing the entire World's Fair, feel free to scroll to the end of the post, the traditional home of all HG Addresses on this blog.

Weekend Wolf Fest

Sometimes it pays to be cheeky - we asked and we got permission for the HG Safari group to get a sneak peek at a big event happening next weekend, the 15th and 16th of June. It's Wolf Fest, on Wolf Territories Grid, which has seen exponential growth in its relatively short life - with more virtual space in which to wander than even Second Life !

The Fest is all about celebrating the community, and under a deep blue sky, Lone Wolf and DJ Illusions were on hand to welcome us and explain all about it.

Lone Wolf: OK, I hope everyone's settling in.

Thirza Ember: apart from the nakedness, I'd say we are mostly here and good to go?

Lone Wolf: Uh. Nakedness. Ah, that's OK. There's always a bit of nakedness.

Thirza Ember: can never be sure if nakedness is a deliberate choice, or a glitch

Forest Azure: if it was only naked...

Wolf Leaps Forward

 When a grid migrates its servers to a new rl location, it's often quite a tricky process. Just the words 'grid migration' have your average opensim resident shaking in their thigh length boots, admit it.
But that's not always the case... sometimes it can go as smooth as a silk, or the silky fur of a Wolf...

That was the case today, when Wolf Territories Grid announced they have moved their

Name Check

 Yeah, what is in a name?  Full Name, Default Name, Display Name, Username, Modern and Legacy... 
Originally when you joined Second Life, you chose a first name - it could be anything you wanted that wasn't wasn't too obviously rude or copyright infringing. Then you picked a last name from a list of about 50 possibles. This surname list was gradually refreshed, so that people who joined around the same time would often find they had 'cousins' - think of the improbable art trio of Selavy, Bryn and Saveme Oh, all linked by that surname, if not much else.  

It was a golden age of witty and punny creativeness, and a huge dose of crass daftness also. Many of the Last Names invited a play on words, and people rose to the challenge with great choices like AM Radio, Hok Wakawaka, or Rolling Shuffle. I bet you can remember a few good ones, put them in the Comments if you want. 

It's painless and quick to change display names in SL

So far in Second Life's impressive 20 year lifespan, there have been over 11,300 Last Names (here's a list of them). That includes both the ones suggested by the Lindens, and custom names people have requested. Some of the earliest Last Names were Baskerville, Prudhomme, Jetaime, Sideways, and Binder. Interestingly in the first four years of SL, only 360 different Last Names were available, each being retired after a few days or weeks, apparently at whim.
Back in 2010 some big name changes happened in Second Life. New account holders had to pick just one name, and whenever legacy form-filling required a second name, they all used the same one - 'Resident'. 

Crow Castle

At one time there were over 500 castles in Japan, but after the age of the shogun, the long series of civil wars came to an end and the country eventually unified under the ruling power of the Emperor. Most of the old feudal fortifications were either demolished or allowed to decay. Only 12 authentic Japanese castles survive to this day. 

This one is accessible without passport or jet lag... it's on Wolf Territories Grid.

The Art of the Wolf

 Wolf. There, quickly. What comes to mind? Perhaps the sleek fur, an indomitable intelligence, a pack working together. Or something shadowy, sinister, threatening and scary. Is the wolf for you part of the realm of the supernatural, part of endangered nature, or is it all these things? The relationship between man and wolf is as old as humanity, and wolves stalk world languages, popping up in metaphors and idiomatic expressions, proverbs and poems.

No wonder they make such a good starting point for AI art, which you can see - along with some original work by Lone Wolf, on the welcome sim of Wolf Territories Grid.

When you first arrive on Wolf Territories Grid, you'll find yourself in a circular space, full of information about how the grid works, how you can be part of it, how to get help, information, and find your way around this vast grid, which seems to be growing every day. 

Safari goes Little and Large

This week was all about the great and the small. We started small, on Weelandia, Digiworldz grid - full HG Addresses, as always, at the end of the post. 

Small inconvenience getting to Digi - well, a very big obstacle for quite a few, who could not navigate the rather daunting ID process. So our group was not as big than it might have been, which is a shame, because Digi is a nice grid with lots to see. But that's part of the Variety of Opensim, everyone has their own strategies and concepts about grid security and community. You have to like difference to love the HG.

Because none of that could stop us from visiting with the lovely Nebby Newman, in company with aminata Potez, for an extraordinary visit to a true gem of a sim, Weelandia.