Is Dubya secretly an online gamer? Nah, I'm kidding.

This week, someone with a "sociologist" tag logged into Second Life and teleported to my daughter's virtual coffee house to check out Open Mic Night for live musicians. It's interesting to note how someone would announce so publicly that he was there for research. I felt a little under the microscope, but after the first performer started to strum his guitar and sing over the streaming audio channel, I forgot about my odd guest. After an hour, "the professor," as we jokingly called him, logged off, presumably to share his findings about online 3D communities with his academic colleagues.

No matter what your interest, there are plenty of reasons these days to tap into the growing world of 3D virtual reality:

• Non-profits like the American Cancer Society are cashing out virtual dollars for real dollars. The 2007 Relay for Life of Second Life "raised more than $118,000" in real money "and attracted more than 1,700 avatar participants" to its main event, reports the official RFL of SL Web page. A slew of charitable entities are making their presence known in the virtual space, thanks in part to the efforts of the Non-Profit Commons, a collaborative group of folks who provide virtual office space for non-profits.
  


• Entertainment companies continue to migrate from TV/films/radio to the Internet, and now to virtual worlds. This week marks the debut of Mini Match, a new kid-friendly virtual world from Cartoon Network. Last month, EMI Music named Second Life co-creator Cory Ondrejka as its new SVP of Digital Strategy. Don't know EMI? Think David Bowie, Coldplay, Korn, Kylie Minogue, Pink Floyd, Joss Stone. Ahhhh, now you get it, right?
  


• CNN iReport invites Second Life users to contribute as citizen journalists, and regularly features SL stories on its main page.


• Harvard University, Stanford University, Ohio University in Athens, San Jose State University and the University of Arizona are among a growing number of educational institutions recreating campuses in Second Life. In-world programs range from social computing research to virtual study abroad to immersive learning of foreign languages.


• Insurance company Cigna Healthcare announced this week that it has created a "virtual environment in the Second Life virtual world to educate people on how to improve their health."


• Medical professionals are discovering that patients benefit from involvement in virtual worlds. At Keiko University in Japan, a paralyzed man used headgear with brainwave sensors to control his Second Life avatar and walk it around the 3D game world. Scientists heralded the experience as ground-breaking, citing a potential to alleviate depression among people with disabilities. Researchers and therapists supporting individuals with autism and Asperger’s Syndrome are finding virtual worlds are helpful tools for building social skills among participants.
  


• ...and if you didn't notice, even H&R Block had fun in Second Life with its DJ avatars spinning tunes for island visitors. It was part of the tax company's overall strategy to dabble in social media this season. A late-comer to the concept of real businesses exploring Second Life as a social media tool, the tax prep company declared this year's digital media experiment successful in redefining its brand. They liked it so much, they're going to do it again in 2008.
  

But...and it's a big but (tee hee)...as much as I'm addicted to Second Life for its educational, humanitarian, business and entertainment value, somehow I've mentally drawn the line for certain uses. I know. Emotionally, I'm advocating budgetary censorship. Look, I just don't want my tax dollars in these hard times to fund certain types of virtual world research.

Whoops! Too late.

If you haven't heard, a few months ago, Comedy Central and Jon Stewart had a field day lampooning the Congressional hearing on Second Life. After they found no basis for fearing this Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG), I figured, "Good. They're done. Let's move on."

(big sigh)

A-SpaceX is a collaborative project between "the Air Force Research Laboratory, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the newly-formed Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA)," informs Wired.com.

Translation: The U.S. Intelligence community is developing virtual world analysis gizmos and gadgets on our dime.

Damn!

At first, I was annoyed that the Bush administration still wants to delve into what two consenting avatars might be doing behind closed virtual doors. But then, the bleeding-heart liberal in me imagined the rhetoric one might hear when this little gem is finally revealed for it's true purpose.

"Mommy! Mommy! I'm hungry."

"I'm sorry, dear. Our food stamp program was cut because our leaders need funding to tip the make-believe strippers in a Second Life nightclub."

Okay, I love social media and online communities as much as the next geek, but this is embarrassingly a horrible waste of money. Even I know that. Oh, well. At least, now that they're busy chasing "toon tail," I can rest easy that they've finally stopped reading my email...one would hope.

Sweeney Todd - A Cut Above

Sweeney Todd - A Cut Above

Review of: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)

By: Kim M. Bayne

Rating: 4 stars

I saw "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" on a Saturday night with an audience full of teen Thespians who had performed the stage play in a high school production. The teens "ooo'd" and "ahh'd" when the young men sang. The teens giggled and guffawed when throats were slit. It sure took the edge off an otherwise dark storyline.

Unless you know that Tim Burton's "Sweeney Todd" is an operetta combined with a slasher flick, you might not get it! Apparently, some audience members didn't do their homework on Sweeney. A couple at my showing were overheard saying "What is all this singing shit?" then they walked out. And there was the family that brought along their grade schooler...ummm, what part of an "R" rating did they not understand?

From my viewpoint, the movie was chillingly scary yet it had its moments of lightheartedness, and I admit that I knew in advance what to expect. I would go see it again, even though I had to cover my eyes more than a few times! This was a great adaptation, especially in its use of monochromatic sets and costumes that emphasized evil characters and glistening red blood. If there were an Oscar for "Most Creative Use Of Spurting Blood and Gurgling Sound Effects," this movie would win.

As for the acting, Alan Rickman was just perfect as the creepy Judge Turpin. Alan amazes me every time I see him in a new role. What a chameleon! Would you believe he had a singing duet with Johnny Depp?

Helena Bonham Carter did an adequate job as Mrs. Lovett, but brought nothing unique to the role. To be honest, it's tough to outdo Angela Lansbury, who appeared in the Original Broadway stage play.

Sacha Baron Cohen stood out...or should I say "bulged out"...as the well-endowed, colorful barber Pirelli. Not my casting choice, due to his slapstick acting style, but who else has made his name playing an inappropriate buffoon lately?

Best singers in the whole production? Jamie Campbell Bower as young love interest Anthony Hope and Ed Sanders as street urchin Toby.

As for J.D., the hilarious expressions (or lack thereof) during the beach dream sequences were well worth the price of admission. One caveat: I did a double take upon seeing Johnny Depp stand in one dramatic scene, complete with goofy hairdo and an outstretched arm brandishing a glistening razor. Visually, if only for one brief moment, it reminded me of Edward Scissorhands.

If you like the dissonant sounds of Stephen Sondheim musicals, the campy visuals of Tim Burton movies and the quirky character portrayals of Johnny Depp, then go see this movie. If you cringe at the mere thought of gratuitous blood and violence, you may want to wait until this movie comes out on video so you can fast-forward at will.

Sweeney Todd cast interviews on YouTube

Peas, Peas Me!

Twitter friend and blogger Susan Reynolds has breast cancer. Today is Frozen Pea Friday and her surgery day. Find out why everything is pea green today.

• Boobs On Ice - a blog by Susan
• Frozen Pea Friday on Flickr - a photo pool of pea avatars being used around the Web
• Frozen Pea Fund - raising awareness and donations

Is Twitter Left Twiddling Its Thumbs?

All the buzz about Google buying Jaiku has users wondering if Yahoo will grab Twitter. The big players have tapped into social media, especially the kind that has a "Flavor of the Month" sensibility like 140-character IMs. Is anyone really surprised at how the microblogging world is playing out?

To be honest, I admit, I've been tweeting for quite a while now, so the appeal of "status update" tools is not lost on me. I think of Twitter (and clones) as a true virtual water cooler of the Web. It's more spontaneous than a blog post, and more entertaining than adding to a forum discussion. And it lends itself nicely to the mobile community, for those of us who can't quite get enough of being plugged into group interaction. Meanwhile, I'm still admiring Google's predictable move in acquiring the next big thing.

Looking at the edgier and more robust social networks like Second Life, I recognize that these communities court an entirely different consumership -- and it doesn't attract the same type of buzz at all. In SL, you don't just jump on board then blast off a few missives to anyone who will listen. You've got to actively engage in mastering the features and functionality or your experience becomes, well, less than stellar.

Bottom Line: If you are popular or successful in Second Life, it's not because you posted 5,000+ non sequiturs, with many a "hello" to new followers. So while users like Scobleizer and New Media Jim are climbing the charts of Twitter popularity with their incessant chatterings, the real staying power may lie in building a presence in the 3D virtual world, which means the Google acquisitions team won't be far behind.

Online Community Summit 2007

Last week, I attended the Online Community Summit in Sonoma, California. I came away with a renewed sense of purpose in launching two forums. View an excerpt from the final session on BlogTV (above) and view some photos taken during the OCS 2007 conference in my Flickr photostream.

Just Shut Up and Sing

As my daughter and I ponder which city to attend for the next round of American Idol auditions, something more daunting is being tackled in the U.K. for geographically-dispersed vocalists.

Apparently, a lecturer at The University of Manchester is studying how to create an Internet choir. Gee, and I thought the network delay on BlogTV was annoying.

The type of super-fast low delay broadband network needed for the study is currently being delivered for some limited applications - and Dr Cheetham hopes ambitious initiatives such as the Virtual Choir will drive the future development of Internet communications. ~ in A Cappella News, by way of Tim Stahmer on his blog AssortedStuff.

8 Random Things About Me

I have been tagged by the author of Goldie's Gabs to post eight random things about me. Okay, fasten your seat belts.

1. MUSTARD IS FOR HOT DOGS: When I was very little, my Uncle Walter showed me the best way to get the last drop of condiment out of a jar. He cut up a Kosher hot dog and tossed the pieces one by one into an almost-empty mustard jar, then he screwed the cap back on and shook the jar. I still remember the smile on his face while we shared the yummy taste of hot dog pieces all coated in French's Classic Yellow.

2. SPELLING BEE CHAMP: When I was in elementary school, I won the school spelling bee and came in third in the regionals. As a result, I’ve become a spelling snob. You would, too, if spelling was your nerdy claim to fame at an early age. Years later, I still beam with pride when I find a typo no one else has noticed.

3. ENGINEER WANNABE: In junior high, I dismantled an old radio that belonged to my Dad. I was fascinated with how it smelled, how it looked and how the glass tubes fit inside the box. I wanted to see if it was possible for me to assemble it after I’d taken it all apart. Yes, I somehow managed to remember where everything went...and it still works, too.

4. SALES CONTEST WINNER: In high school, I was very active in Junior Achievement, winning sales contests and attending events. I have an old baseball cap filled with pins and a cheesy trophy on the mantle. Back then, the only gender available for the salesman of the month body was male. The JA counselors jokingly said they’d knit a tiny dress for the trophy if, on the odd chance, a girl actually won. Nope, I never got the dress...as if I ever cared.

5. GUINNESS BOOK OF WEIRD COLLECTIONS: When my husband and I were first married, we referred to artificial coffee creamer as "liquid Naugahyde," in reference to the mostly-unidentifiable ingredients and yucky taste. As a joke, we started a collection of "liquid Naugahyde" labels from our travels, mounted in a magnetic photo album and captioned as though we were wine connoisseurs. For example, one caption read "An amusing little creamer without breeding, but I think you'll be amused by its presumption."

6. WITHOUT FURTHER ADO: I was active in Toastmasters International for several years, as an officer and a winner of evaluation and humorous speech contests. I remember trying my darnedest to stop one of the event organizers from replacing the male with a female figure on a trophy I had just won. Look, I had competed and won against both men and women, so why did it even matter? The whole concept of having a definitive gender on one's trophy, when it's not relevant to the competition, still escapes me.

7. STAND-UP COMIC: One Saturday night, I sat in the audience of a comedy club thinking, "These guys aren’t so clever. Heck, I can do that!" During the comedy Renaissance of the 1980s, I was a runner-up in the Southern Colorado Comedy Competition, which aired on local cable TV repeatedly. People would come up to me in grocery stores and laugh...which was most disconcerting until I realized I didn’t have a booger hanging out of my nose. They had just seen my act on TV.

8. HIGHER EDUCATION IS FOR FUN: My high school aptitude tests pointed to either engineering or computing as a career path, but I preferred instead to major in performing arts as an undergrad. Later on, I was drawn into the computing world, eventually earning a Masters degree in computer resources management, then writing articles and books about the Internet. My daughter will be a senior in high school this year. No matter which path she takes in college — whether it's musical theater, vocal music, graphic arts or something totally unrelated — I'll cheer her on. After all, what's an education worth if you don't enjoy it?

Now it's time to "Pay It Forward," by tagging the next group of folks. I hereby pass the meme torch to the following people, in no particular order:

Tracy Ruggles, author of reinventnow

Chris Duke, author of EdTechatouille

Bill Johnston, author of Red Plastic Monkey

Joi Podgorny, author of her eponymous blog

David Ward, author of Wired@Home.blog

Brent Spore, author of I Bought a Mac

Lee Lefever, author of Common Craft

Sheldon Chang, author of The Social Wave Blog

~ Kim

Play Sink the Putt from Orbitz

Normally, I hate pop-up ads. But this one from Orbitz was kind of fun!
See how well you do...

[ tags: Games, Golf ]