LL Content Creation Region?

I meant to add a poll but forgot, so just add responses in post form if you have any opinion, please. Thank you!

So, I've been thinking for a while, and I think it'd be awesome if LL had a sim (or sims) devoted to teaching content creation. Not Lindens sitting around just to teach, that would be a waste of their people (Supposedly). but I mean have something like the Ivory Tower (Though a bit different), a few interactive scripting tutorials, some texturing videos as parcel media streams, sculpty information, etc, and maybe an 'interactive wiki' which would involve notecards, videos, text chat, etc.

Quite honestly, this is something I want to do. But I don't have the money for a sim at this point (Decided not to sell my land, and have various RL endeavors starting up now), and think that it would truly be something that LL might be willing to get behind.

My question is, do you think LL would ever possibly get something like this going? Resident created-and run, OR NOT, either way, but something that LL donates the sims for at least, and gets the project going.

I'm not asking if you think they'd buy me a sim for my own endeavor, or even if they'd let me work on a project like this for them, just if you think they might be willing to get something like this going.

I asked a Linden once for his opinion, and he just said to go to the JIRA, in the misc. area.

I didn't do that, as I just want opinions, but if people really think it might be a possibility in the future, I'd post a JIRA for it, definitely.

So yeah.. do you think that Linden Labs would ever sponsor, or create, or whatever, a content creation region, encompassing building, scripting, texturing, sculpties, animations, etc, or even just part of it?

I know Torley recently did a thing about the Ivory Tower, but this is beyond even that, theoretically.

If that was your response to just asking a Linden's opinion, I seriously doubt it. Well, I doubted it before you mentioned that, I just doubt it more now

Linden Lab doesn't really seem terribly interested in doing things for the community. I know they are making some noise about a few new community-oriented projects, but even those are pretty underwhelming.

.

All depends on the Linden in my opinion...

I can't remember what he does, but his name is CG Linden, and his reply was

This sounds like NCI and other already existing places to me. They have classes that teach content creation. They have scripted tutorials. There are a few videos, I think.

Some Lindens are definitely better than others in terms of public relations and getting stuff done, I wholeheartedly agree with that.

But, unless they can move mountains, they may have an uphill battle to get the company to "buy in" to such things.

Let's just hope that I'm just in a cynical mood and am completely wrong about everything

.

From the wiki to Torley's videos, LL does quite a bit to help the community out with content creation, not to mention the many places that exist that have exactly what you mention. Why would LL waste money duplicating what residents already provide? Hint: Use the search button.

Check out "Nova Civis Caledon" - an entire region devoted to Second Life education, run by Carl Metropolitan and NCI.

It's just incredible. There's support for non-English languages on a lot of things, as well.

I'll see your NCI and raise you The Shelter, both of which offer great resources for learning (somewhat different) things about SL and content creation. There are others, too.

This got me thinking that it would be great if LL gave some kind of "special deal" to folks like NCI and The Shelter. But, bottom line, such giving would be at the (tiny) expense of each tier-payer or premium member, so maybe it's just as well that it be up to us to contribute what we can for their continued operation. (E.g., I'd guess that NCI isn't paying full Caledonian rent for Nova Civis, if I know Des. )

All that said, I do think it's high time that LL refreshed the content on offer to residents, starting with making public domain every texture used in Bay City. (If there are any that can't be made public because of licensing problems with the creators, then that content should just be wiped and replaced by something without such problems.) I know they had some plans for distributing such textures, but haven't heard how that's being done. As much as the texture artists would have us believe that every surface needs a unique custom texture, lag would be greatly reduced if there were more use of a smaller palette of efficient textures, even at the cost of a subtle shading here and there.

I've searched, and I've looked, but what I'm intending hasn't been done that I've found.

A single place, well organized, that has information on basically every aspect of content creation AS WELL AS classes taught by knowledgable residents on each subject, and so on so forth.

There are places for building, scripting, texturing, animations, etc, but I have yet to find any place that offers any good amount of information for all of the above, outside of classes.

People don't always have the times available for classes, or don't have the want to go to a class to learn directly from someone. That's one reason I love the Ivory tower, because it's entirely self-run. Nothing needs other people to tell you what to do next, or try to explain something, it's all visually represented right there, and you move at your own pace through the entire thing.

Judging from responses, I'd say everyone thinks there's no chance of LL having anything to do with such a thing, beyond happening to have it on their grid.

So...maybe someday I'll strike oil in my backyard, buy a few sims, and make one of my own. If one doesn't already exist by then, that is.

And one more question...

Do such sims, if used only for teaching and such, qualify for the educational sim pricing? As I understand it, they do not, only things associated with RL educational facilities and non-profit organizations qualify for the lower pricing.

I think that, at least, would be helpful, to make sims used only for teaching (Just about anything, really) cheaper to buy and such.

This would mean no, you can't live on it, rent it out, use it for personal businesses, etc, only for teaching. Not that LL checks these things anyway, in all likelihood.

I don't think the Ivory Tower or other projects that have already proven themselves even qualify for educational pricing (I hope I'm wrong, but I only heard the opposite, but again not based on fact but hearsay).

It's a bit looser than "educational facility" though. Any teacher can get a sim at educational pricing as well (or more accurately: I know a teacher that owns one and uses it for her own projects, nothing to do with the school she teaches in. She pays for it as well, not the school).

---

I don't think you'd really want LL to run it anyway. It wouldn't be maintained, they wouldn't grant anyone the ability to eject/ban troublemakers and if they let residents run it it'll just cause crazy amounts of drama when people have different ideas on how things should run and Lindens just don't arbitrate (SLVEC is a good example for mentors).

CG Is a techie guy and if you talk techie to him, you'll get good answers. Community relations aren't really his area and I'm pretty sure he didn't mean to come across as being disinterested.

This actualy happens, Second Life Mentors, well mentor Coaches are authorized to hold Classes on the Mainland, so people can attend them. If you become a Mentor you'll have access to Classes run by Mentor Coaches at the SLVEC too.

http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Volunteer_Portal

http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Volunteer-sponsored_Classes

Yeah, I understand that it's not his field.. just happened to be a Linden I saw, so asked.

^_^

You should contact a VTeam Linden;

Amber Linden, Mia Linden, Lexie Linden, George Linden or Blue Linden.

Maybe even Pathfinder Linden? I think he's a Education Linden, could have his name mixed up with another Lindent hough >>>.<<<

From Pathfinderlinden.com

So yes education is in there

The Shelter and NCI have been helping new people for years.

LL used to have SL Instructors but the group was disbanded, as was Live Help. I often liken the NCI Group IM to when LH was active. People helping each other with a wide variety of questions. And it's fun hehe

The Shelter is more social and a great place to get aquainted.

Isnt the Help Islands for LL help? Or are they closed now?

Help Islands are still there, but I think she means more of a sim for Classes, building class etc. rather than Help Island. Second Life Mentors do this though already, just not all that much.

I'll be setting some up in a few weeks perhaps, they're help on the Mainland and listed on the Resident Wiki. I linked a few posts up.

I'm not just talking about classes, though

Sure, there are places that offer classes, and groups that offer help.

But also tutorials with noone talking, no set speed, no time limit, just things that show information, images, examples, tutorials, etc, for someone to follow.

Interactive tutorials along the vein of the Ivory Tower, but encompassing all aspects of content creation, and going farther in depth in some cases as well.

The Ivory Tower offers basic building principles, and tells you to go from there, essentially. But nowhere I've seen can you find an interactive tutorial that explains how to build and texture a basic house, and maybe script smoke from a chimney or a door opening.

I want to eventually create (Or someone else create, either way, I want it to exist) a place where such things exist, as well as classes taught by people who know their stuff.

A collaborative effort with more than just on persno working, to offer a more cmoplete environment for learning multiple tiers of content creation, from making your first cube to making a house with working doors and lights, or to making a basic car, or to making a simple skin, or whatever.

It would go far enough to offer more than just simple basics, but still not enough to make them capable of a well-run business without more effort.

Enough to teach the basics of any type of content creation for SL, and then go further to teach some of these used in concert, and used together to make full prjects, so on so forth.



This, is my utopia

Ah I see, here's a link to a page that offers a little bit of help.

http://jamesbenedek.googlepages.com/

Such things are lovely, but still... not nearly as complete as what I hope to someday see in SL.

Quite honestly, if I find myself with the money or opportunity, I will be buying a number of sims, and making them into this building utopia of mine.

I once wanted to own a sim just to live on it... now I want a sim..more than a sim, more like 4 or 5, just to help people learn to build, and create for SL.

I want to share the joy that I find in creating, and help others beyond what I'm capable of helping just when I'm online.

Maybe someday I can afford it ^_^

Aww that's lovely! Id give you free sims if I had the power to!

Maybe one day you can afford a normal sim, with Edutators Discount, and then add some Open Space sims onto it.
perhaps you should look into Open Sim. Or whatever it is called.

Open sim won't do.. different tools, different limits.. blahblahblah.

Bah...maybe I can get LL to hire me, and then sneak a few more sims onto the grid >.> They totally wouldn't notice