So hard to believe that I have been on the Second Life grid this long. I still remember 2007 when I arrived on the color sims near the a popular sandbox. Building and creating my waterfalls... trying to mimic the world I really live in with the rivers, streams and natural places near my home. I have learned a lot here in Second Life. I learned how to build and though I am still a rudimentary scripter, it's amazing that I can even do that now!
My two regions have been so fun create. Like others, the passion we put into our land is the vision inside our heads. Some builders create fantastic fantasy worlds while others like me try to copy Mother Nature. It has brought a profound appreciation to the real world that I experience.
I am lucky. I travel, I see beautiful places on this earth and I try to bring that experience into the virtual world here. Without any fanfare, my regions are now in Second Life's showcase. I am so proud to have been chosen to be on that list. Look for WETLands in the Parks and Nature category; we are at #4 now. Wow! And, as a co-owner of THE A LIST! my actual land is actually on LL's list!
I have taken thousands of pictures and they are uploaded to my avatar, rafee's flickr and koinup. I created several RAFTWET Jewell youtube by myself and with my friend, Aoshi. And, the blogs... gawd, do I ever stop blogging? LOL! But, I needed something more.
A very good friend was on the Discovery Channel's Deadliest Catch videography team that finally won the Emmy. After a few years of being nominated, this death-defying team won this year. So, I talked to my friend and asked him if he would film a whitewater sequence in real life and incorporate my avatar rafting on WETLands. He was intrigued by the idea and enjoyed visiting both my land and SL.
Enjoy the video and then come on over to WETLands and try the rafts... or just bring a date and hang out in a natural park-like setting and just chill. There's an outdoor ballroom next to the bay area, both romantic and casual at the same time. Have fun!
Showing posts with label wet builders. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wet builders. Show all posts
Friday, June 18, 2010
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Viewer 2.0 - I Got an Opinion!
I just read all the posts about the recent Second Life viewer 2.0. Log into the website and search for "Recommend Abandoning Viewer 2.0." When you click on the link here, it will take you to the middle of the comments... ya gotta scroll up to read all of it... if you have time. It's a worthy read.
One of the reasons I don't comment there is because I am a corporate avi. And, I figure no one will hear my opinions because of that. Blah blah says the corporate avatar who only thinks of the bottom line and business... so no one will pay heed or even allow me to have an opinion.
But, I do have a perspective that might be different from the old guard, newbies or even Linden Labs. I have been a cheerleader for the lab ever since I got here. I shared the same dream and vision of the grid as many of you. I really believed in the utopian concept of sharing, creating and making this a new frontier for our internet future. A digital world where we can have a secondary life while managing our real lives in here using banking, purchasing, researching educational needs, implementing concepts frugally and socializing with some of the most sophisticated, artful, technological minds in the world.
I really believed and I still believe this. Though things have changed mostly because of economic downturns around the world, LL has been inundated with the real life BS of corporate reality; ie., lawsuits, con artists, technological hurdles, social communities of various interests, and a pervasive attitude of me-ism.
I am a builder here (not top notch, but I like building very much). I spend most of my time building and hanging out at clubs and live music events. And every chance I get, I am exploring and posting blogs about my experiences in Second Life.
The comments that I read today is worrisome. I just loaded viewer 2.0 for my alt. She is a building alt to help me practice in-world because my main avatar, RAFTWET Jewell is so busy with IMs, chat, and blogging that it has become impossible to build as her. So my alt has loaded 2.0 and is practicing with it on another computer.
My first reaction was, "OMG! my desktop shrunk." The menu tabs on the right bolt out in a very large format decreasing your view by nearly half. And, I didn't like the movement keys below that are very large and seem to be in the way when you use them. The other thing I didn't like is that the system seems to be illogical and not very intuitive. It took me 30 minutes to figure out how to make a "pick" in my profile. I even asked a senior associate at the Fermi sandbox and she didn't know! I had to Google a search for "how to make a profile pick in viewer 2.0" to find the answer.
More clicks are necessary to accomplish what I used to do while building. And, for me, that is a problem, because I am showing signs of carpal tunnel and it made my wrist and thumb ache after a session. I never did find out how to see if someone has pushed, bumped or griefed me. (If you find it, please IM me and tell me where it is?)
With that said, I think the new viewer is more user friendly for a brand new avatar coming into Second Life for the first time. I do like that I can close all the windows and have a clear desktop for when I am exploring or building. But, I have to use more clicks to do that.
As with everything, I know this is a major attempt to make things better. I don't want to sound like a major complainer because I do welcome change. When I first got here, the GUI seemed daunting and not user friendly at all for a non-technical person like myself. And, I learned through trial and error and through the good graces of this sharing community.
With the new viewer, I hope I will keep an open mind and learn this new system. I want to believe that LL will listen to our criticisms and suggestions with an open heart and mind. The techies out there need to get on the blog and make your comments and suggestions, because we all need your input! If you don't see me in SL for a while, it's because I'm practicing as my alt with the new viewer... I will learn it. Just like I learned the old version.
One of the reasons I don't comment there is because I am a corporate avi. And, I figure no one will hear my opinions because of that. Blah blah says the corporate avatar who only thinks of the bottom line and business... so no one will pay heed or even allow me to have an opinion.
But, I do have a perspective that might be different from the old guard, newbies or even Linden Labs. I have been a cheerleader for the lab ever since I got here. I shared the same dream and vision of the grid as many of you. I really believed in the utopian concept of sharing, creating and making this a new frontier for our internet future. A digital world where we can have a secondary life while managing our real lives in here using banking, purchasing, researching educational needs, implementing concepts frugally and socializing with some of the most sophisticated, artful, technological minds in the world.
I really believed and I still believe this. Though things have changed mostly because of economic downturns around the world, LL has been inundated with the real life BS of corporate reality; ie., lawsuits, con artists, technological hurdles, social communities of various interests, and a pervasive attitude of me-ism.
I am a builder here (not top notch, but I like building very much). I spend most of my time building and hanging out at clubs and live music events. And every chance I get, I am exploring and posting blogs about my experiences in Second Life.
The comments that I read today is worrisome. I just loaded viewer 2.0 for my alt. She is a building alt to help me practice in-world because my main avatar, RAFTWET Jewell is so busy with IMs, chat, and blogging that it has become impossible to build as her. So my alt has loaded 2.0 and is practicing with it on another computer.
My first reaction was, "OMG! my desktop shrunk." The menu tabs on the right bolt out in a very large format decreasing your view by nearly half. And, I didn't like the movement keys below that are very large and seem to be in the way when you use them. The other thing I didn't like is that the system seems to be illogical and not very intuitive. It took me 30 minutes to figure out how to make a "pick" in my profile. I even asked a senior associate at the Fermi sandbox and she didn't know! I had to Google a search for "how to make a profile pick in viewer 2.0" to find the answer.
More clicks are necessary to accomplish what I used to do while building. And, for me, that is a problem, because I am showing signs of carpal tunnel and it made my wrist and thumb ache after a session. I never did find out how to see if someone has pushed, bumped or griefed me. (If you find it, please IM me and tell me where it is?)
With that said, I think the new viewer is more user friendly for a brand new avatar coming into Second Life for the first time. I do like that I can close all the windows and have a clear desktop for when I am exploring or building. But, I have to use more clicks to do that.
As with everything, I know this is a major attempt to make things better. I don't want to sound like a major complainer because I do welcome change. When I first got here, the GUI seemed daunting and not user friendly at all for a non-technical person like myself. And, I learned through trial and error and through the good graces of this sharing community.
With the new viewer, I hope I will keep an open mind and learn this new system. I want to believe that LL will listen to our criticisms and suggestions with an open heart and mind. The techies out there need to get on the blog and make your comments and suggestions, because we all need your input! If you don't see me in SL for a while, it's because I'm practicing as my alt with the new viewer... I will learn it. Just like I learned the old version.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
xavier, raftwet at HPMD virtual second life
xavier, raftwet at HPMD virtual second life, originally uploaded by rafeejewell.
The builders and creators in Second Life always bring their best during the Christmas holidays. Virtual designs and creations are sweetest during this season.
We went to check HPMD's Winterfest site and landed at a crystalline white snowy patch surrounded by a white field of flowers. We were in a snow globe!
Beautiful, serene and ever so sweet, the bunnies, santa and cute little houses were so endearing and charming.
I fell in love with the bunnies as we lay our heads on their soft fur. We stayed like that until another couple came along.
The Santa lent his lap for us to sit while we cuddled sweetly and talked about the past year.
Second Life and its builders are the reason why we stay on this grid. The creators continue to surprise and delight us everyday. And this holiday season, they do not disappoint. Go explore!
raftwet jewell in myspace
raftwet jewell in blogger
raftwet jewell in koinup
raftwet jewell's the a list! in blogger
raftwet jewell's the a list! in myspace
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Rafee, Aoshi at Tokyo Nights in Second Life
I have the supreme pleasure of participating as a helper at Burning Life in Second Life this year. The last two years were futile attempts to try to grab land, and this year, with my huge inventory, the lag got me again as I could not grab a plot during the Land Rush.
My best friend Aoshi got a huge site. He is a photographer and videographer in real life. Though he is modest about his building abilities, he is also a great builder. He has a huge photo tripod representing his photographic passions. Behind the stage, he built a photo slide changer to exhibit his work. And, he has added several bears and creatures that he created in the past few years in Second Life with new modifications to fit the SL Burning Life concepts. I still have his original bear light that he created for an outdoor garden sculpture.
The site was large, so he had me build a stage. Our inspiration was a recent visit to Tokyo Nights club. A black and white stark build of asian influence was my inspiration for this. I took a ton of pictures when we were at the club that night a while back. Of course, Aoshi had to make a video, too. I have it here so that you can see it and see where we got our inspiration for the Burning Life plot. Enjoy and look at the pictures, too!
My best friend Aoshi got a huge site. He is a photographer and videographer in real life. Though he is modest about his building abilities, he is also a great builder. He has a huge photo tripod representing his photographic passions. Behind the stage, he built a photo slide changer to exhibit his work. And, he has added several bears and creatures that he created in the past few years in Second Life with new modifications to fit the SL Burning Life concepts. I still have his original bear light that he created for an outdoor garden sculpture.
The site was large, so he had me build a stage. Our inspiration was a recent visit to Tokyo Nights club. A black and white stark build of asian influence was my inspiration for this. I took a ton of pictures when we were at the club that night a while back. Of course, Aoshi had to make a video, too. I have it here so that you can see it and see where we got our inspiration for the Burning Life plot. Enjoy and look at the pictures, too!
Sunday, September 6, 2009
WET Builders : aoshi, raftwet, chrome from The A List!
simplicity is the key.
two colors.
a soothing way to be,
inspired by an asian theme.
wet builders search out.
for the best of the best
as we go wandering about.
castles, spaceships or garden plots.
aoshi, rafee, chrome
dancing tokyo nights.
we see design as we roam.
a canvas blank to hone.
sept 2009
wet builders virtual world second life
Note: Builders in virtual worlds like Second Life are constantly searching for inspiration and new themes. Several of the best builders are involved with WET Builders and The A List! group. Their excellence in building is the reason why the grid is rich with designs and experiences. Seek out the grid and the sims... you will find an inspiration for your next project. The world is there for you to explore.
two colors.
a soothing way to be,
inspired by an asian theme.
wet builders search out.
for the best of the best
as we go wandering about.
castles, spaceships or garden plots.
aoshi, rafee, chrome
dancing tokyo nights.
we see design as we roam.
a canvas blank to hone.
sept 2009
wet builders virtual world second life
Note: Builders in virtual worlds like Second Life are constantly searching for inspiration and new themes. Several of the best builders are involved with WET Builders and The A List! group. Their excellence in building is the reason why the grid is rich with designs and experiences. Seek out the grid and the sims... you will find an inspiration for your next project. The world is there for you to explore.
Raftwet Jewell, the first whitewater rafting avatar in the virtual world!
raftwet jewell in myspace
raftwet jewell in blogger
raftwet jewell in koinup
raftwet jewell's the a list! in blogger
raftwet jewell's the a list! in myspace
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