Sunday, August 26, 2007

Abyss

Some people call the Abyss a piece of artwork on Second Life. Honestly, I think everything built on SL is a piece of art. According to Wikipedia, "Art, in its broadest meaning, is the expression of creativity or imagination, or both." Someone has created and molded prims into something useful or something decorative from their imagination or to interpret their reality in SL; therefore, I call it all "art."

So, what is the Abyss beyond a piece of artwork? The Abyss is educational, informative, and a visual feast dedicated to our oceans.

The teleport area is a welcome center with maps, information, and souvenirs. One of the most curious things I found in the welcome area is a globe. Click on the teleport outside of the globe, and you are teleported inside the globe. While inside you view the earth from space as it is lit up with lights at night. If you go into mouselook, it much easier to look around.

As you walk out of the area, you'll find a walkway lined with information about the history of ocean exploration and how the oceans are being polluted. At the end of the walkway is the entrance for the visual masterpiece.

Notes at the entrance to the under-the-ocean part of the exhibit state to put your world settings at midnight and go into mouselook mode. The walkway is black at first with neon arrows pointing the way. Then, it turns into a long transparent walkway which descends you deep into the ocean to the ocean floor. As I walked, my mind kept thinking that this exhibit reminded me of the creativity of a ride at Disney World. Beautiful, almost neon glowing, sea life was viewable throughout the walkway. When reaching the ocean floor, you are truly immersed in sea life... different types of fish, jellyfish, and plants. Walk around and enjoy the spectacular view!


The Abyss is a creation by Rezago Kokorin and Sunn Thunders and can be visited by CLICKING HERE. (Blekinge 150, 44, 431)

Sunday, August 19, 2007

The Greenies are here! The Greenies are here!

A friend of mine asked me the other day if I had visited the Greenies yet. And, my quick response was "what is the Greenies"? Visions of what the Greenies could be were flashing through my mind... green pastures... an area devoted to "green" products... a greenhouse... green avies? Well, the last one was close.

My friend sent me a TP. I rezzed in an area that wasn't very spectacular. It was just brown dirt with very large torn newspaper fragments, hills, puddles in the valleys of the hills, and not very bright. After completely rezzing I saw the arrows pointing the way. I followed my friend and the arrows. At the top of the hill, was an entrance that looked like a mouse hole. We entered, went up a few steps, and walked through what looked like a living room. We walked through the wall on the other side which wasn't closed. After I walked a little further, I stopped and looked around.


I was totally in awe. I was in a room where I became a Lilliputian! The room was huge compared to me. Large pieces of furniture such as a chair, tv stand, kitchen table, tv tray, desk, and buffet were all around me. The house even includes a larger than life kitchen. It's difficult to absorb the entire room from a Lilliputian point of view, so I took flight. Looking around from a taller vantage point worked very well to absorb it all. It wasn't until absorbing the house into my thoughts that I realized the TP point for the Greenies Home is under the house.

My friend disappeared and I found him on the table. That was the first time I saw one... a Greenie! He was lying on the table listening to an iPod. Greenies are small green aliens that are investigating the house. You'll find them playing in sugar, using a remote control car, imitating a sculpture, etc.

Once you are done investigating the house find one of the orbs that are hidden throughout. Click on the orb and a glowing bubble will come out of it. Sit on the bubble, and it will transport you to the alien mothership.


The mothership is done in transparent psychedelic colors that reminds me of the 1970s. The ship has a store to buy alien related items. Another section of the mothership has alien avies for sale, so you can become a Greenie yourself!

Once you're done exploring the mothership, find the orb that rezzes a spaceship. Sit in your spaceship, follow the directions, and fly back down to the house. When you reach the roof, you will fly right through it. I found it fun to spend some time flying around the house looking it over again from the view of the spaceship. Once you stand up, the spaceship will vanish.

To best enjoy the Greenies Home, set your draw distance to at least 300. Enjoy this fun and entertaining place in Second Life. I would even say it is a piece of art you can interact with.

To visit the Greenies Home, CLICK HERE. (Greenies Home Rezzable 192/12/25)