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.
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| 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.