The Seven Media Group, who control the Seven television network in Australia, recently announced a partnership with TIVO to introduce digital video recorders into the Australian market. Those in the US and Canada will know about TIVO, the company having been offering digital television recording since the late 90s.

Tivos are suppose to revolutionise the Australian television industry because they will allow consumers to record television programmes and play them back at a later time. You know, like you used to do with VCRs and, now with, PVRs. The Australian industry has long resisted the introduction of digital recorders. They even sued to prevent the publishing of their programme guides. But now, with changing viewer habits and rapidly declining revenue streams Seven has been forced to act. Unfortunately, for Seven and the other networks, it’s too little too late.

The problem is that the Tivo is old tech. It was great when the networks were the only distribution system for your favourite television programme. However, now most tech-savvy fans download their shows from peer-to-peer sites, often years in advance of the shows been broadcast in Australia. Even better the downloads come sans commercials. And despite the measures of the MPAA and their ilk, this method of distribution only seems to be on the increase. Australia has the highest number of users per capita downloading tv shows in the world.

Commercial television is in a major flux. Audiences and subsequently revenues are declining across the board. It’s clear that what was once a cash-cow is now under serious threat. But for the most part the industry only has itself to blame. It has been slow to adopt new technologies and as a result consumers are looking elsewhere for their entertainment. The industry needs to completely re-educate and remodel itself otherwise it risks irrelevance.

Tableau is one of those little boutique shopping sims that make shopping away from strip mall sims such a joy. It’s beautiful, offbeat, fun, and its shops are just a joy to poke around in.

Designers and builders featured here range from artist Toast Bard, the eclectic Nylon Pinkney, freebies goldmine Forseti Svarog, builder Ingrid Ingersoll, and the operatic House of Lu.

And then there’s the sim itself.

Tableau is like some fabulous midnight psychedelic fantasy of New Orleans - a little bit blue bayou, a little bit decayed Victorian splendour, a little bit glow-in-the-dark funky.

There is a chill out park watched over by its patron saint, St Ingrid the Flatulent. There’s the neon graveyard with its neon tombs and fairy party lights. There’s the haunted house with the pirouetting furniture. There’s the crashed plane you can go have a private dip in. There’s the nightclub inside a giant crocodile on the hill.

In short, Tableau is a fine example of what good designers can achieve with a little imagination, vision, and humour. They have created a vivid little sim that not only showcases their builds, but creates a terrific thematic setting for their shops, and is also an enjoyable place to visit just for itself.

Come to Tableau for the shopping. Stay for the fluorescent nightlife.

If you’ve ever wanted to work in the advertising industry or even just play around with video, then the new ABC web site for the tv show, The Gruen Transfer, gives you a great opportunity. You can create your own commercials for three Gruen product using either the online tools or by downloading the rushes. You can even upload your edit of the Gruen commercials to the website. Check it out here.

“Virtual worlds can be valuable places where children rehearse what they will do in real life,” states this BBC article about its own Children’s BBC virtual world game Adventure Rock.

Yeeess… but it’s not just the kids, is it?

Right from the beginning, during the pre-dawn of the net, when virtual worlds meant text-based chatrooms and MUDs, people have been using virtual spaces to make pretend. They were roleplaying fantastic scenarios, exploring identities, and socialising in ways and manners not practical or possible in the “real” world. And taking what they learned there back into their own real world lives.

“Online worlds,” according to Professor Gauntlett of the University of Westminster, “were very useful rehearsal spaces where children could try all kinds of things largely free of the consequences that would follow if they tried them in the real world.”

No kidding? Virtual worlds such as Second Life are very useful rehearsal spaces for grown-ups, too. There, we have the freedom to play, to pretend, to try things out, to experiment, to explore, and most importantly, to fail. We fall down, we get up, and we run with the scissors again and again and again. We gain experience by doing, we gain wisdom by failing.

This is true not just for the individual wondering if these white shoes complement that red suit, or whether it would be more advantageous to present their avatar as a member of the opposite gender or even as a human at all, or whether a corporation should present its virtual offices as hip industrial urban or super-sleek chrome and marble.

If it doesn’t work the first time, that’s okay. Because we haven’t really spent thousands of hard-earned on a disaster of a boob job, or millions on an unsafe skyscraper. The virtual world allows us the opportunity to experiment with our appearance and to redesign buildings with a few clicks.

Practice may or may not make perfect, but it certainly means that we have a better understanding of what might work, what might not, and what might be worth trying out for real. In an environment such as Second Life, we have the power to tweak and alter what we can’t in real life. Perhaps that’s what the real appeal of virtual worlds is, that others find so hard to fathom - virtual worlds make us all children again, not just in the way we play, but in the ways we find to experiment and practice and learn. And in the ways we adapt and apply our discoveries to the real world.

Want to make a feature film? Have little or no money? Then you’re probably out of luck. Unless you’re Flinders University student, Dario Russo. Dario is the genius behind the parody, Italian Spiderman.

What was so genius about Dario’s concept wasn’t that he made a very cheesy little film - all shot in a day. Lots of film-makers do that. In fact some never move beyond that. No, what was the genius was that he only made the trailer which he then uploaded to YouTube in November, 2007.

1.7 million hits later and he soon had the seed money to make his feature. A mere $A9500 from the South Australian Film Corporation. Now, on a normal film production that would be the budget for the star’s morning coffee fix, but this isn’t a normal film. For starters it will be released on YouTube. In 3-minute parts. Now to be classified as a feature it needs to run at least 75 minutes, so that would mean around 25 episodes, but even there Dario isn’t being conventional.

This is the first episode, and there are plans for nine more. I suspect Dario and his crew will seek further funding once they’ve completed those ten. You see, the genius with this method is that you don’t need a lot of money to make a feature film. And because you’re essentially getting constant feedback from your audience as you’re making it there’s less perceived risk for your financial backers. If it does well they know immediately and can invest more. If it flops then they can save their money.
And because it’s all being shot on 16mm film, then once it is completed, it can be onsold for television or even the cinema. It’s a very clever method. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if we soon see even mainstream movies produced under a similar strategy before long. It makes great marketing sense.

I’m a bit late on this one but an interview with me has been posted on The Metaverse Journal. Enjoy.

In a world of pseudo internet anonymity it is possible to register different names for the different sites that you use. So your gmail account can be joebloggs, your facebook JospehMBloggs and your myspace LordThumbleGlorydaBe. This is all great for those worried about tracking and monitoring from the government or other nefarious organisations, but it’s not really useful for those doing business.

In the much-hyped world of Web 2.0 (I prefer the term Interactive Web) your online name becomes your brand. Choosing an original name and staying with it for a long time is important. My brand name is skribe. It’s a name I’ve had since the early nineties. It’s derived from the time when I was mainly a writer. Type ’skribe’ into Google and most of the results on the front page relate to me. They all used to relate to me, but then someone invented a cool piece of software with the exact same name and so depending on the day Skribe (the software) and skribe (me) dice for top spot.

Not only is the choice of name important, but it’s necessary to register that name for every site that you use. So, I’m skribeproductions on twitter, skribeproductions on skype, and skribe Forti in Second Life. In fact I’m usually skribe or skribeproductions at just about every social networking site that I use (and even a few that I don’t). The skribe name has become so aligned with me that not only was I known as skribe amongst my rl friends, but my wife was - for a brief time - only known as MrsSkribe. It’s damning, I know, but it does demonstrate how important social networking site naming can be.

When you’re doing business over the web - without any face-to-face interaction - your name carries far more weight than it does in the real world. It is for some the great leveller. Use it to your best advantage.

Establishing your corporate brand in a virtual world can have enormous benefits. It also has a number of risks associated with it. Failing to attract worthwhile coverage from consumers and/or media is one. Another is attracting large numbers to your brand and failing to capitalise on it. Or worse, actually alienating your consumers through lack of leadership and planning.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s answer to the BBC. It is a wholly-owned government broadcaster charged with providing comprehensive and innovative broadcasting services both within Australia and internationally. For a little over a year, the ABC has had an island presence within the virtual world of Second Life^®. Given its charter this is a very rational and correct action for it to undertake.

Plonking down an island and putting your logo on it, however, is not the end product. Virtual worlds are only another weapon in your marketing arsenal. Much like your corporate web page they need dynamic content to ensure consumers return regularly for updates. Unfortunately, the ABC Island is like a bad web page from the mid-nineties complete with blink tags and animated gifs. The island has become unusable for many of its consumers due to the introduction of many superfluous scripts, that cause all but the latest and most powerful computers to lag and even crash. What a way to annoy your visitors: crash their computer.

And then there’s the content. Just as with a web page, virtual worlds need to give consumers a reason to visit. Repeatedly. The ABC Island’s strange attractor was not the 50+ years of award-winning broadcasting content. It wasn’t the chance to meet and give feedback to the multitude of stars and programme creators. It wasn’t even an exhibition of great new talent, for which the ABC has a long and cherished history. It was a sandbox. A place where Second Life residents can come and build their own content.

That may sound like a very democratic and innovative idea, but unfortunately it has intrinsic problems. Allowing any resident to build is like allowing anybody to post comments on your web page. Yes, you will get feedback. But you will also get LOTS of spam. Griefers they are called in Second Life. Anti-social idiots that enjoy disrupting others with noisy and bothersome scripts. It’s a security nightmare, annoys consumers and hurts your corporate brand.

Much of the ABC’s problems could be fixed easily. A show of leadership. The development of a concise and clear plan with obtainable goals. The ABC currently seems to lack both of these with much of the driving force over the last year coming not from the paid staff but from the small group of loyal volunteers (and even they are beginning to show the strain).

Virtual worlds are not hard. They are just like every other facet of your marketing engine. They require an achievable plan, great content and strong promotion. Do that and you will see massive returns. Fail and you’re only wasting money.

Anyone who’s ever ‘bought’ a box of freebies knows to expect six types of crud. And yet, it is actually possible to get serious freebie gear if you know how.

1. Don’t waste time in freebie warehouses. Do invest some time in checking out the big shops and the quality malls.
2. Some shops have freebie offers specifically for newbies. If your avatar is fresh enough (30 days or younger, for example), you could pick up some great starter hair and clothes (and even skins!)
3. Many clothing and hair shops have discounted and even free wares on offer. Last season’s hair or prim skirt may not feature the latest scripted gimmick or texture trickery, but remember that in the virtual world, last season was only a week ago.
4. Some shops have group offers. Members may be offered anything from discounts to limited editions to free items to store credit.
5. Some shops also do freebies or special offers which are only available in their main store, or in
   a specialty sim. Be sure to check them all out.
6. Be a girl. Sorry, chaps. Where girls can wear guy clothes and hair, it rarely works the other way. Some items, like male skins, are also particularly rare as a good freebies.
7. And the best freebie tip of all: learn to make your gear and own your look.

Admittedly, these tips assume you’re into fun and funky, and that you’re the sort of girl who prefers flat shoes and and guy shirts in real life as well. Observe:

Hair by Calico Kitty (group freebie)
Skin by Another (Eloh Eliot is legend for giving away quality modable skins - heap praise and money upon her)
Camisole and Jacket by Pochette
Jeans by PixelDolls
Shoes by Shiny Things
Specs by me.

Did a spot of Foo navigation in Second Life (where I type random words into Search and teep to the first available hit I get, whatever it is), when I came across Liquid Heat.

Hmm, pirates, castles, and mystical elvish ruins. It’s not Tahiti as I know it, but you gotta go with your Foo.

So the builds are scaled somewhat on the big side, and there’s a tendency to vast empty rooms. Or little empty rooms. (I eventually found a scripted object in the inn that you could actually play with, but that was a case of the exception that proves the rule.)

And all the people I thought were there role-playing turned out to be just a bunch of bots.

At first glance, Liquid Heat seems pretty enough. Even if you’re not into pirates and elves. As the signs proclaim, there’s lots to do. Take a balloon tour of the island! (my balloon got stuck in a building, but never mind). Get romantic by the waterfall! (by myself? Pass). Take a ride in the Elvinator! (Just call it a lift, guys). Buy our stuff! (Ah-ha!)

Liquid Heat, you see, is a showcase sim. But, you say, what sim isn’t?

However, the purpose of this sim is to make money. Everything is either for sale as a ready made kit, or a demo of a custom build. Only problem is, there’s nothing here you haven’t already seen elsewhere and done better. As a showroom, it’s nothing outstanding. As a sim, it’s dull. There’s nothing to do, unless you enjoy pretending to make out with yourself, or watching bot actors run back and forth.

Activities, such as they are, are all passive. Sit here, admire that, look at this, look at that. Good sim building is as much about designing an experience as it is designing structures. If I wasn’t writing up this sim, I wouldn’t have returned.

But if you like pretty (and unimaginative) builds, then I have terrific news for you, because Liquid Heat has a 3-tier Affiliates program! From $L0 to $L10000, you can buy into the Liquid Heat Franchise and earn up to a whopping 50% commission from sales and demos of Liquid Heat products such as the Aztec Cave Kit or the Giant Tree Kit!

Imagine, a strip mall of identical Liquid Heat castles in the metaverse!

Quick! Get your Liquid Heat Starter Franchise Kit here!