Embodied souls: Life Lessons: Shopping

Days saved: 1 (good); communication malfunctions: 1 (bad)

As regular readers will know, am one of coorganisers on regular Thursday meeting of SL educators i.e. Virtual Worlds Education Roundtable. In VWER we
a) discuss hot topics of day or
b) listen to someone talking about hot topic of day or
c) reassure each other that is really cool to be a SL educator: latter achieved by talking about same old same old viz. why don’t people “get” SL, why doesn’t SL fix group chat, will SL disappear when SL 2.0 comes along, what are good examples of teaching./assessing/learning/research in/about SL or
d) tell each other what the weather’s like where we are.**

Most exciting VWER recently was 3 weeks ago when Kali and I had a 2-avatars-1-voice experience, that was nearly a 2-avatars-no-voice-at-all experience. Kali was due to interview 3 v.v. interesting people but sadly had SL voice problems, which is not total bar to interviewing but using text chat tends to make things slower. Also more difficult to manage voiced people if YOU are in chat, not that would want to imply that any speakers would be in need of managing, cough.

Anyway was emailed earlier in day by Kali saying her SL voice was kaput, and could she skype and speak via my avatar. I said no problem, obs. However was busy day and when had seen last student out of RL office felt was in need of some play and rest and so checked out whether kittycats needed feeding and then took opportunity to finally tp into The Arcade (see 1st pic) and scope up umpteen gatcha items that will doubtless sit unused in inventory for forseeable future (except for peacock shown in 2nd pic, cute or what).

As sidenote, am now on constant lookout for new items of food for SL cat cafes (see yummy 3rd pic), unfortunately whilst have increasing cornucopia of exquisitely fashioned cupcakes, steak dinners, pretzels, fruit plates etc. is also rise in % of SL food that simply sits there and looks ornamental, rather than giving portion of said food on click. Would not want clients of the Yoshikawa chain of cat cafes clicking madly on array of coffee and cakes in vain hope of obtaining something to drop into inventory and ADD (here’s me stuffing face with pixel muffin etc. etc.).

Think should be some kind of SL food standards authority decreeing that only allowed to call something “SL food” if can actually eat it. Perhaps non-edible SL food could be called food sculpture, equivalent of RL food being made of plaster or plastic.

To return to the VWER meeting. Whilst was technically free for hour and a bit before VWER meeting, was indulging in SL wandering around and random thoughts as above, so was less than half hour before VWER meeting before tp-ed into the VWER auditorium to say hi and work out the voice thing.

Now must confess that had engaged zero brain cells in thinking this through, but had vague consciousness there was something wrong with arrangements that had been made. When using SL listen via headphones and speak via USB mic. Kali was going to skype and then was expecting to speak via me. How was the sound to go from my ears into SL?
Think now that must have had unquestioning faith in Kali’s ability to manage magic mind transfer, though suppose if she could do that would not have had the voice problem in the first place. Magic mind transfer would solve SL’s frequent voice problems at a stroke though could also cause embarrasment when one forgot to turn off mind transfer and broadcast all sorts of unsuitable things to assembled avatars. Although forgetting to turn mic off can also be embarrassment as I and others have found out hard way, thus does experience teach us life lessons.

Well, to cut long tedious story short was some fruitless inteplay as start time of VWER session approached and indeed was upon us, before realised that headphones were the problem. Essential element for the thing to work was placing microphone next to speakers that had sound coming out of them. Once this was realised, twas but a moment’s work to turn on speakers and so forth and away we went with efficient and effective interviewing process.

Sat in audience being Kali’s dummy and reminding people periodically that was not her. If had put more effort into whole thing could in fact have put notice over head saying KALI IS SPEAKING THROUGH SHEILA but there you go, most people probably didn’t even notice.
So what life lessons come out of THIS experience?

1) Do not go shopping when should be preparing for serious professional event
2) Test things out more than 10 mins before intending to use them if do not want to appear idiot
3) Apply simple questions such as “Is this going to work”?

In fact can dispose of first 2 points, since if apply item 3) will swiftly emerge whether or not there’s time to go shopping or whether need to be
• squinting at incomprehensible Windows control panel
• pulling jack plugs in and out
• checking and unchecking boxes in SL preferences
• deciding which of the unlikely sounding audio device names listed on the pull down menu is the one that is the actual name of the audio device you have plugged in and therefore want to activate

Final life lesson is that if have ace people (i.e. me and Kali) trying to cobble together a solution then solution will be duly cobbled and no-one else will be aware was problem in first place.

Probably.

** NB VWER is one of fave things in SLife so all this tongue in cheek ahem ahem

Carriages at 9.30

Big fluffy ballgowns owned in SL: numerous (good); Pet peacocks owned in SL: 1 (v. pink); RL dress code conundrums: 1 (bad)

In RL have gained university award for TEACHING EXCELLENCE which is obviously v.v. good. Various benefits including RL dosh (no lindens, although perhaps could CONVERT some to lindens) to spend on teaching and learning, which apparently can include swanning off to conferences to work v.v. hard and not do any lazing around AT ALL, ahem. Additionally get given certificate and shake hand of v. important university person on graduation day, plus go to DINNER with other awardees and get to shake hand of v. important university person again.

As is way nowadays all this communicated via email, and in particular emailed invite for dinner has been perplexing somewhat in that there is severe lack of instructions about how to dress, but however fulsome timetable which finishes "Carriages at 9.30".

Now "Carriages at 9.30" conjures up images of laughing Edwardian aristos sweeping out of mansions and saying "Home, James", somewhat in manner of Downton Abbey, or alternatively dramatisations of the complete works of Trollope with flighty young debutantes flicking their fans at their caddish suitors. Does not conjure up visions of senior lecturers earnestly debating merits of constructivist vs. construuctionist pedagogy whilst trying to pick the edible bits out of a dinner supplied by WeAreUniversityCatering.

Is difficult to tell whether the use of "Carriages at 9.30" is: a) Cut and paste hangover from previous invitation to rather more upmarket do for potential donors to university funds; b) Post-modernist sardonic jeu d'esprit, indicating that of course one will be departing on foot or on eco-friendly bicycles; c) indication that one is expected to come in white tie and tails (men) or full blown ball gown inc. tiara (women).

At any rate, as usual, is lot simpler in SL. If one finds oneself inappropriately garbed in SL (e.g. dressed as an elm tree, and it turns out that "smart casual" was in order), then one click and a few blurred glimpses of half-rezzed mesh and there you are changed into what's needful. Also, you can bring a choice of carriages folded up in your inventory, and add ornamental pets for added pezaz.
Therefore decided to exorcise worries about correct RL dress tomorrow at physical world dinner (and, incidently, procrastinate over marking**), by rehearsing in SL.

Thus you see
(1) Arriving at steps of venue - as usual am a little behind everyone else - but being early is SO unfashionable
(2) Adjusting pet peacock before entering the stately pile
(3) A pause in the festivities as we are encouraged to pose on the battlements
(4) Wandering round after dinner; am glad have left own peacock indoors as this one seems a little agressive
(5) Carriages at 9.30: appear to have to drive own carriage, my dear, one simply can't get the staff nowadays.

** marking, or dressing up in a ballgown and driving round in a carriage, no contest really.

Encountering, linking, swirling

Participation in pretend audiences: 1 (ok); Educator Coop visits to view people doing stuff I can't do myself: 1 (good); Encounter with useful ppt in SL: 1 (v. good); time spent floating amongst verse: lots (good)

Am pondering how I feel that in one way have done lots in last 24 hours, and in other ways not. Interesting how feel am not really doing proper work in SL even when engaged in work-related activities, which results in gloom, guilt etc though also in lots of pretty pics of me flitting around in SL.

Yesterday got back from RL journey in time for regular Monday Educators Coop chat. North showed part of his Library Technology Report articles transferred to a thincbook. V. cool, should put more of my stuff in thincbooks. Will put North's in our SL library.

Then Rx arrived and tp-ed us over to where he is using Studio Builder to make sculpties (see first pic). He had made a large boat consisting of just 2 prims, and he also showed how a teapot he'd done could be made tiny tiny.

Afterwards sent out some notices to the Educational Informatics students and was still inworld when call came to become a pretend audience for a machinima on a Babel Project event. Hung round in audience feeling like a prop and doing other stuff offline. Actual event at which machinima will be shown is happening in Lisbon and RL at 11 next Monday; unfortunately will be teaching then.

Today was supposed to be a presentation from some of Jackie's students, on Infolit, about their virtual ethnography, but alas SL had a power outtage and Infolit iSchool was one of the 4000 regions offline for an hour or so. Bother.

Anyway, hung round and finally visited the 15 second Poetry game and the poetry skybox recommended by Jackie. Was great fun and took some nice pics in the swirly peacock dress that happened to have on.

Finally, followed a call for people to see student presentations at a research exhibition at Texas Womens University. First exhibit turned out to be about librarians collaborating in SL which is v. useful since

a) am giving talk on this very issue in about 2 weeks time at a RL conference and

b) Pancha is holding a focus group on this next week!

So dropped a notecard to Valibrarian (the author) hopefully to get full slides, and dropped a word to Pancha as well. Is useful since is not only material for talk, but is also example of using SL to make professional connections, cool or what.

Pic shows me bumping into Oronoque at TWU (she is the one with more feathers)