You read it in the Metaverse Manifesto back in 2007:

“Humans have already split into two camps – those that cling to the dim vestiges of a default “reality” and those that are forging new, augmented realities.”

Now comes word that the old guard is at last realizing the import of these words…..
Today we find Via: (http://www.v3.co.uk/v3/news/2245980/intel-outlines-generation) and Via: (http://www.virtualworldsnews.com/2009/07/intel-foresees-a-leap-forward-for-virtual-worlds.html) that the technologists are realizing Second Life to be a forerunner to a deeper, augmented reality.

After Second Life was “derided by both the corporate reality mongers and even the technologists themselves.” exactly as predicted in the Metaverse Manifesto - now we find that some are seeing the force of the revolution in play.

Via:(http://io9.com/5305828/gorgeous-short-film-about-a-bio+robot-with-endless-desire-+-for-water)
Via: (http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_ch00XMTg3Mzk2ODg=.html)

Title: Mirage
Director: Youngwoong Jang
Country: Korea
Year: 2009
Running Time: 8:24

Via:(http://io9.com/5305828/gorgeous-short-film-about-a-bio+robot-with-endless-desire-+-for-water)

[MRO]

With pieces like this, it’s no wonder old media is on the losing end of the revolution.

“Advertising Age” - as in, advertising’s previous age gets it wrong here: “Twitter Is What Second Life Wasn’t: Light, Cheap and Open”.  Writer obviously is completely at sea about the functionality of either Second Life OR Twitter…. get ready to LOL here:    (http://adage.com/digitalnext/post?article_id=137604)
And don’t miss the line: “the ascent and crash of Second Life”.  What would compel a man to be so permeated by contemptuous boldness?

More reactions at:
(http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2009/06/twitter-versus-sl.html)

And at:
(http://adage.com/digitalnext/post?article_id=137604#comments-40309)

and don’t miss the last hilarous bit “a college textbook I’ve recently had published, “Principles of Internet Marketing” here: (http://adage.com/digitalnext/post?article_id=137604#comments-40316) Tee hee!

Next  up,
“ITBusinessEdge” admits “Catty Thoughts on Job Recruitment via Second Life” finds the need to state: “I’ve yet to see any use cases that seem better suited to virtual worlds like Second Life vs. the real world or more traditional Web sites.”  You know, those ancient traditional  websites. Nevermind that virtual worlds and avatars are almost as old as the web itself – even part of it’s original vision.  Get ready for another one here: (http://www.itbusinessedge.com/cm/blogs/all/catty-thoughts-on-job-recruitment-via-second-life/?cs=33684)

It just makes you wonder how “journalism” (aka. the pay to say industry for corporations) got into a situation where people write about  things with so emabarrassingly little experience of the topic.  Actually, we know why, as stated in the Metaverse Manifesto:

“These and other groups will be threatened by the coming Metaverse, and the inevitability of it will produce a strong dismissal and reactionist movements towards simplicity and the like. We know these critics to be merely cheerleaders for a game that is already over and lost.   Their own world is decaying, and this is frightening to them.”

These and other groups: old media and their henchmen
Simplicity: Twitter

At least:
“Troy Media Corporation” allots 3 pages for “Enter Second Life, virtual reality’s twilight zone” with a nice ending quote by Philip Rosedale saying “(Second Life) represents a greater intellectual challenge than the actual real world around them. And in a few years, we’ll argue that if you are not spending a lot of time in virtual reality, you’re probably impoverishing yourself in some way.”  This is probably the only one worth reading at: (http://www.troymedia.com/NewsBeats/Technology_News_Beat/2009/06/TMC061609.htm)

Where were we supposed to be?

Where are we now?

Where are we going?

Tell me at http://www.twitter.com/mro

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010:_Odyssey_Two

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2001:_A_Space_Odyssey_(film)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Constellation

There’s lots of talk about The Wave…

Ready to jump on board??

http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/05/08/twitter-is-down-15-alternative-things-to-do/

From:

Jonas Lowgren, Professor of Interaction – Arts and Communication at Malmo University Malmo, Sweden
Interaction Design Bookshelf: http://webzone.k3.mah.se/k3jolo/idBookshelf/index.htm

Thanks Jonas!

Montagne, O. (2007). Metaverse manifesto. San Francisco: Studio SFO. [IM]
“Written in classical manifesto style, with each epigrammatic sentence forming its own paragraph, the book lays out a fundamental split between those humans who »cling to the dim vestiges of of a default reality« and those who create new realities. The rest of the book, simply put, outlines the ideological stance of participatory grassroots media as applied to Second Life and similar virtual worlds. The tone is confrontational, as befits a Manifesto.”

The Manifesto is slowly but surely having an impact.  Can I call it an “underground classic” in Silicon Valley circles??  Let me know any mentions or reviews you see! http://twitter.com/mro

I’m willing to believe it’s a simple design ooops…

I guess they could call it the Waffen-MakerFaire.

and finally found the source:

I knew I’d seen it somewhere!   Subersion from within or Freudian slip??

Join us for the Virtual World SIG Monday
6:30 PM (August 25) for a presentation by
Entropia Universe’s John Bates. Learn about the
Entropia virtual world that is leading in graphics, gaming, and
entrepreneurial economic models.

We will be streaming *LIVE* from the Palo Alto meeting into Second
Life with all venues linked from http://www.virtualworldsig.com

Full Description:
Perhaps no other virtual world has pushed the concept and execution of
virtual economies as far as Entropia Universe. Launched in 2003, the
free-to-play Entropia has a user base of over 800,000 users today,
generating over $400 Million USD in-game turnover in the economy.

Blurring the lines between games, virtual worlds, and real economies,
Entropia was chosen in 2007 by the Beijing Municipal People’s
Government as the platform of development for the Chinese “Cyber
Recreation Development Corp” (CRD). The project will create a
cash-based virtual economy for China that encompasses
business-to-business transactions and other sophisticated economic models.

Not only innovative in economic terms, the Entropia world is being
deployed this year using the CryEngine 2, which will deliver stunning
graphical experiences not yet seen on a wide scale on the web. On
nearly every level Entropia Universe is leading in virtual world
innovation, while extending the reach of the experiences from the game
directly to real-world ATM’s.

The change brought about by virtual collaboration is only beginning to
be understood. Join us for a unique look inside the merging of real
and virtual economies via one of the most fascinating virtual worlds
today – Entropia Universe

More about this event: http://sdforum.org/vwsig

Time:
6:30PM Monday Aug. 25, 2008

Silicon Valley location:
Pillsbury Winthrop Office Silicon Valley
2475 Hanover Street
Palo Alto, CA 94304-1114
Directions:
http://www.pillsburylaw.com/bv/bvisapi.dll/portal/ep/ofcDetail.do/ofc/14

Virtual Locations:
Streaming media links posted day of the event at:
http://www.virtualworldsig.com

Be there or be virtually irrelevant!

-MRO