Second Life Public Library

I have been kicking this idea around for some time. What I would like to do is create an in-world library that would be of use to anyone in Second Life who is interested in learning something about the world.

The library would contain notes and other media which would explain concepts.

I already have an incredible architect on-board to construct a beautiful library. What I need help with is content.

I am searching for some investors to fund the filling of the library with content. I hope to pay anyone who contributes to the project up to 500 dollars per quality notecard explaining how to do something specific in Second Life.

Please reply here or IM me in-world or on AIM (SLJadeLily) if you are interested in helping out or would like more information. Thank you!

...get in contact with Khamon Fate.

sounds like you two could benefit from talking to each other about this idea.

Cybin, have you thought about forming a group, like "the Friends of the SL Public Library"? I'd make the entry fee L$200 to L$300 to help support the Library.

I'd like to lend my building skills to help out in its construction. I'm not as skilled as some people are, but I do have a dab hand at creating buildings.

Then again, we can have a design contest, where would-be Frank Lloyds put forward their ideas of what the Library should look like.

sounds like a good idea!

even though i have no direct hand (currently) in said library/libraries, i do strongly support their existance(sp?)..

give me a day or two to outline the group structure and (maybe) i will end up starting one to support such things.

*thinking to self.. make name, structure, insignia, etc..*

*think, think, think*

We can donate 200 prim bookshelves by Taessa Weaver


Briana Dawson

LOL.. now that brings back memories.

OI. I'm so glad we're in good humor about that these days. You know, I might be able to afford the prims to put one of those on display for ol' time's sake, perhaps with a plaque nearby explaining the significance.

A good friend of mine is a fantastic architect. He has agreed to build the library, but I don't want to exclude anyone. Kedamono, Get with me in-world after I've had a chat with Juro and we'll see what we can work out in terms of dividing up the construction, if you're interested.

A support group would be awesome. Also, LL has been known to support some development efforts. If there is a group of people who have all paid entry fees to support such a library, then perhaps the Lindens would be interested in at least matching the contributions. Perhaps they would offer money to library content contributions as well.

Once we have a decent sized group, we can write up a proposal for Linden Lab. Cybin, if you would like to put the group together, that would be great.

Would there be any interest in having the Library combined with the University of Second Life (currently under construction, search for University under places) in their own "learning" or "University" sim?

I would love to help out on this project. I'm fairly new, so the bank account is not that large, but I could donate a couple of hundred.

Also willing to help where ever I'm needed.

I have a 12km2 plot of land in Hawthorne that is sitting empty right now. There's no need for us to invest a lot of money for an entire sim. The plot is mature, on the ocean, and right next door to a telehub. It's a lovely piece of land, and in one of the oldest sims.

An entire sim would be nice, and the University could be combined nicely with the library, but frankly, I pay enough as it is for SL, and am not very capable of paying more. More importantly, the University is already being developed, and I don't want to step on anyone's toes through a combination effort. Unless LL gives us a sim, I'd feel more comfortable developing with what we have. If we do a good job, maybe LL will consider supporting it.

Don't worry, no toes to be stepped on!

I've set aside 8 sq m in Phobos, on a hill for University Class rooms and gallery. Mmmm, maybe could find some additional benefactors to combine forces and obtain enough land, half a sim's worth or more. 8k + 12k is 20k, and that's a huge start right there. Plenty of room for class space, gallery space, full library building/contents, and more.

i think combining the University and the Library is a great idea..

if these were developed in an independant sim (one of those swanky new islands) it would be awesome! there could be a large "campus" with a park-like setting.. requiring minimal prims.. thereby allowing more prims to be dedicated to the University and the Library themselves.

perhaps if there are enough people who would like to support this, then we could all band together and would be able to afford a sim all our own for this/these project/s.

of course, i would be more than happy to create several island maps for group voting.


and yes, i am planning on creating a support group for these efforts. not sure when it will be ready though.. but, i will work on it.

Jade, great idea. You can count GOM as a supporter. We'll work out the details.

I thought it would be amazing if some of the "older" folks could contribute some historical content. I've read of the tax revolt. It would be nice to have that distilled down to a readable chunk by several different people.

I will personally volunteer to edit any content. I'm a bit of a grammar snob.

Jamie Hale (Zeppi Schlegel)
President - Gaming Open Market Corp.

I had a brief chat with Hank Ramos, and he invited me over to have a look at his University.

First, a disclaimer. I'm going to give everyone my honest opinion. Negative opinions are not personal attacks, just reflections of my own tastes. I know what I like, and I recognize my own weaknesses. That's why I will find someone else to help me do something if I know that my skills are limited in that area. Having said that...

The concept of SL University is great. I am all about providing opportunities for people to learn everything they want to learn. Classes are conducive to this. It makes a lot of sense to combine the University with the Library, because the goals of the two are very much the same: to afford everyone the opportunity to learn.

However, there are a few things that I do not like about the current University's design. Most importantly, it will not be consistent with the design of the Library. If we are to combine the two, then I would like for them to be built by the same person or team of constructors.

When a team of individuals are put together to build, it is conducive to consistency to have the people working on separate *tasks* rather than separate portions of the building. For example, you hire one person to design the entire architecture, one person to texture the entire building, one person to create the furniture for the entire building, etc, for however many tasks you can designate. Opposite of this would be to have many people constructing, texturing, and furnishing different sections of the building, which would *not* be conducive to consistency.

This is why it will not work to have the Library combined with the University, unless the entire University is redesigned. My mind is rather set on having Juro Kothari design the Library. This is not meant to deliberately exclude anyone from the process, but merely to guarantee an effective, elegant structure that residents will enjoy visiting.

I think having an entire sim dedicated to a learning center would be fantastic. Unfortunately, I am utterly broke, and really can't afford to contribute anymore land than what I own in Hawthorne. I also cannot leave Hawthorne. It contains too much sentimental value for me, and has become reminiscent of my existence here.

However, 12km2 is plenty enough land to support both the Library and the University, if Hank is willing to move and let Juro redesign it. Hank's role will remain to oversee the development and scheduling of the classes, to create incentives for teachers to use the University, and to help spread the word of its existence, along with whatever other roles we determine would be appropriate for the dean of the University.

If the support for having an entire sim to house the project becomes so great that it makes no more sense to remain in Hawthorne, then I will raise my land tier to $75 per month in support of it. However, I think for now it would be best if we worked with what we already have and iron out the construction and functionality of the project. If we are successful, then chances are Linden Lab may offer us an entire sim, Linden supported, and we will not have to tier up or allocate our land to the project. I think it is in our best interests to prove to the Lindens what we are capable of, then write up a proposal for having a sim dedicated to learning.

Thanks Jade for coming by last night and having a look.

No problems here, if we can join forces at this point (we are all limited on land and resouces) or not, no problem.

I would love to band together, if at all possible, to combine land allotments for an entire "learning-sim" if at all possible, as it would make sense with regards to dwell (going to support the university's, library's, gallery's, etc. efforts), lag issues with classes, prim needs for galleries, bookshelves, etc.

My vision for the university portion would be for a group to control the direction of the university, not just myself. Just trying to give the project a kick-start

I think the two projects, being in the design/organizational stages, could survive on their own for now with the current land donations.

For the future, I was thinking of a true campus, with separate buildings over a large area, including builds for Library, class rooms, galleries, and whatever people might dream up.

Peace

Edit: clarity

Jade,

you have made some very succint points and i completely understand what you're trying to get at. consistency between secitions of the buildings and between the two buildings themselves would be beneficial to the overall ambience.

if they are built seperately, then there is a good chance they will look very different.. of course, if there is a dedicated sim for this, then it would be fine.. seperate buildings adjoined by a large park-like campus..
i would also like to suggest there be a couple other buildings that are along the same lines.. such as an art gallery..

oh yeah, i also suggest that if this ends up in a dedicated sim that it be a PG sim.. or something new.. a Mature sim, but sections dedicated to being PG..
such as two wings for the gallery, one for PG and one for M.. this is meant to allow art/other that would fall into the 'M' category, so there is no constraints on creative expression.. but then the PG would exist for those who want to go somewhere 'safe'.


...and i'm still trying to think of a name for the support group..


edit: Hank.. it looks like we're all of a like mind here.. seperate buildings (University/Library/Gallery/etc..), large campus with low prim usage (helps with lag due to buildings and classes, etc..), ..and actually forging ahead with it!

Thanks, Jamie! I'm excited that you're interested in the project.

I have also been thinking a lot about historical content for the library. Second Life has developed a culture of its own. New developments and changes in policy have had a significant impact on that culture. It is a subject that I am exploring myself, and I invite others to do the same. We will document our research and make it available for all to experience through the library!

All of the content will be edited so that we can provide a product of the highest quality. I welcome (encourage even!) your participation, Jamie. Thank you so much!

Even if we were to obtain an entire sim, I would push for a consistent, elegant design throughout. As an example, I could see Juro designing the buildings, and perhaps Higbee Protagonist would design a park. I would expect the two to collaborate so that their designs mesh well together.



In an attempt to capture the complete essence of Second Life, the land would need to allow for mature content. Dividing mature and PG content into separate areas is a good idea as long as we're not excluding mature content altogether, because it is a significant part of our culture.



I'm sure whatever you come up with will be great.

One last thing. I may be coming on a little strong. My intention is not to boss everyone for the sake of my ego or whatever. I just want to see my vision through. A project of this magnitude with no leadership is a project without direction. I have a lot of great ideas, many of which I have not yet expressed. However, I can't and won't force my direction upon anyone. So I would like to ask formally for your acceptance and trust. If you will have me, I promise to develop an undeniable resource for Second Life. Of course, I will remain open to everyone's comments and suggestions, and the end result will be a product developed by a *team* of talented residents, not just one person.

Thanks to everyone for your input so far!

Jade,

speaking for myself, i don't think you're coming on too strong or pushy at all, i think you are providing a solid vision. as you stated, a project of this magnitude needs solid direction.. it would never work if it was put together all 'willy-nilly'.

in regards to PG/M.. i agree again. i wouldn't suggest leaving out M content, just providing an arena for both PG and M. it would be unfair to everyone to have only one way or the other.

as far as the building designs go, consistancy would be nice. i have to admit though, what i keep seeing in my head is a more historic/classic looking architecture for the University and a modern/artistic architecture for the Library and Gallery.
..i'm not saying, "do it this way".. just saying it's what i see in my head, but it's not *my* project.. as a matter of fact, i'm only supposed to be heading up support.. lol

(wow, i'm rather involved in this for someone who's supposed to just be support! ROFLMAO)

I appreciate your involvement, Cybin!

Something I thought of. One of the things I didn't understand about the University design was the sheer size of it. To me, it just seems unnecessary to have enough room to hold 9 simultaneous classes. I don't foresee two classes being held at the same time. I think Hank mentioned something about allowing for semi-permanent settings for classrooms.

I think we could make more efficient use of our resources. I could see having two or three classrooms designed with different purposes in mind. For example, a building class would need extra space so that each student would have room to build along with the instructor. A clothing design class wouldn't need so much space, but may need a slide show screen so that the instructor could show screenshots of photoshop during the process of creating clothes. This might warrant two separate classrooms with different layouts. Or even, and perhaps preferably, one classroom that has been scripted to modify itself to suit the needs of the class.

That said, maybe it wouldn't be necessary to have separate buildings for the Library and University at all. Perhaps we could combine the two. Just an idea.

I feel like I might be stepping on your toes a little, Khamon. For that, I apologize. I think what you have in mind for your project is a little broader than what I have in mind. You seem interested in building a sort of media center, where people can find textures and things as well as information.

What I want is to focus on the information. There is SO much to learn in Second Life. Having been a mentor for some time, I know that 30 minutes isn't nearly long enough to cover even the basics of the world.

Members shouldn't have to wait around for a class to learn what they want to learn. The information should be readily available to them 24/7.

Documenting that information is a daunting task. I don't want to stretch the project too thin, and so I think that our goals differ in that respect.

Still, I don't know what to say. When I found out you were working on a library already, I thought I might give it up to you. But then all these people came to me offering their support, so I have decided to press forward.

Please get in contact with me, and let's discuss our plans. I hope we can still work something out.

i've had both of you in mind all along.. as a matter of fact, i have EVERYbody that is doing anything like this in mind..

my whole idea has been that we ALL get together and create a massive collection of resources..

i was originally turned to all of this by Khamon and his library.. i have wanted him to be a part of this project along with you, Jade, and everyone else as well.

this is why i was suggesting the possibility of a dedicated sim for all of it.. so that we could all supplant everything there.

Jade, excellent points about The University.. a classroom per class-type would be perfect!

The Library would probably be the most ambitious project of all.. the amazing amount of information and resources that would be contained there would be a marvel.. one of the Wonders of SL for all time!


and .. it's my pleasure to be involved in any way i can be.

YAY! I had a library for a little while in kissling (Had to pull it down for 1.2 ). I still have all of the books, 50 some full works. I'd be happy to contribute them. I have some of them up in the lounge at whitestar. I would be happy to help out adding books every so often. I will warn you, if you are doing full books, its a pretty big pain in the tail but well worth it!!

i'll be etting in contact as soon as i get the support group started.. there will be an announcement for that as wel

Wow! I had a similar idea a while back but never wen't through with it. Keep up the good work!