Nu Vibez Magazine - February, 2014 by Nu Vibez Magazine

Photo by Filipa Thespian

First let me say thank you to our new and current readers for making last month's January issue a hot topic on the grid. People were talking about everything from the revealing exclusive interview with Stroker Serpen ne to hand-job robots with avatar goggles giving a whole new meaning to the term, "let's shake on it". Some of you even took the me to write us back le ng us know what you liked and didn't like in the previous issue giving us wanted feedback. Thank you for showing us that even a er an extended hiatus, Nu Vibez Magazine is s ll your source of course for mixed reality media. Now as I have shared in other intro notes during February, this is a very special me of year for me. My 6th Rezz Day anniversary is upon us and we have big party plans we want to share with all of you. Also this is Black History Month and acknowledging the many contribu ons that black people have made is always something that I think brings diverse people closer together. And of course I can't fail to men on this is the month for lovers with Valen ne's Day making card and candy companies richer as more partnership boxes declare eternal love for names we won't see in those same boxes this me next month. Ya Go a love love right? lol Lastly, I know you have heard me say it before but this issue is a blockbuster! The amazing staďŹ&#x20AC; and interview coverage are just two things that make this Feb 2014 issue a must read publica on. Oh and don't forget the Nu Vibez Prize Patrol randomly hi ng clubs and anywhere there could be a Nu Vibez kiosk with readers knowing the Phrase That Pays. Get paid for reading or hos ng a kiosk, either way it always pays to be up on the Nu Vibez. Have an amazing February. Nu Vibez Owner and Founder Scorpinosis Nigh ire

"We're creatures of the underworld. We can't afford to love."- Harold Zidler (Moulin Rouge) Saluta ons NuVIBERZ! We certainly hope this frosty February you have found a way to stay warm, and if that is not the case perhaps our pages have just the cure to warm even the cold hearts of the world. Well, we can hope but that might be a stretch even though we really are that good. This month is Historically known for many things, however we then get into percep ons and projec ons of what are really the most important things. That tends to be as different as the cards you will find in the hallmark isle at the moment. For some it is the deep cultural History, while for others its candy hearts bows, and hope springing eternal or it may even be hardship, bloodshed sorrow and pain. There is quite the variety there which is also what we intend to share in these pages as our readers expect from us. Plus so much more. Now while I am deathly terrified of chubby li le cherubs with lethal bows hence my choice in quote for the month, this Publishers favorite thing about February is the end when the world starts to lean more towards a breath of life and warmer weather. Very close tot he idea that you can not have rainbows without rain. So curl up with these pages, bundle up and lets move onward to the Heat of the VIBEZ. Un l Next Time Nani Photo by Nani Xue

It's a bold and exci ng me in which we live, full of technological advances, exci ng new opportuni es in virtual worlds and business and love and passion are literally vibra ng the air around us -- and yet, there are moments that make us pause and reflect. We saved a very important piece for this issue because it is Black History month. What be er me to discuss and reflect upon a man like Nelson Mandela who accomplished such major feats in his life- me. Regardless of our race, it is important to realize that the efforts of this man and others like him are monumental in shaping the future for us all. Racism is a poison that affects everyone -- black, white, Asian, Japanese, American Indian or even Gay people (to name a few). The one prejudice that racism does NOT have, is who it affects! The more each of us speaks out against what is abhorantly wrong with any one issue (such as apartheid for black people in South Africa), brings the reality of an evil to the forefront for everyone. When this happens, people begin to apply that situa on to their own and the revolu on progresses from one group to the next an the next un l one day ... this darkness is stricken from our lives completely. This beau ful blue marble floa ng so majes cally in the vastness of space, circling round the bright golden sun, is not populated with many races as our history might suggest. I hope it doesn't take an alien invasion one day to make us finally realize that, we are but one race, the human race of the planet Earth. All my best, Filipa Thespian, Editor-In-Chief Photo by Filipa Thespian

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FOUNDER Scorpinosis Nightﬁre

PUBLISHER Nani Xue

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Filipa Thespian

PHOTOGRAPHERS Filipa Thespian Natacha Haroldsen Wren Noir

CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS Cobra Momiji Filipa Thespian Nani Xue Scorpinosis Nightﬁre Sherri Shepherd

SALES & MARKETING Scorpinosis Nightﬁre Filipa Thespian

SUPPORT Yolanda Hellman

The goal of this publication is to provide a unique insight into the world of entertainment and lifestyles be it in virtual communities or real world neighborhoods. Covering the issues important to people whether they are avatars or human beings, NuVibez circulates to a large population of readers online and in virtual worlds. NuVibez is published for those whose interests are varied but focused on being entertained and educated on current events, new entertainment venues and artists and finding ways to improve their online experiences. Opinions of the columnists are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the owner or staff, nor does NuVibez Magazine assume liability for claims of advertisers. Letters to the editor: address changes and other correspondence to: 4nfent@gmail.com. Advertising inquiries and submissions need "Advertising" in the subject line and emailed to: 4nfent@gmail.com.

62 Cover Story

About Our Cover Art

50 Shades of Valentines

The Peaceful Troublemaker

Nu Vibez sets the pages of the February issue ablaze with steamy love stories and poetry to ignite your soul!

Black History Month

High Fidelity

A look at Nelson Mandela, the lost of a great man.

PTSD is not just for the Military! We take a look into this debilitating problem that aﬄicts so many.

Hypergrid Business’ Letter to the Lindens It was so good it had to makethe rounds twice. Hypergrid Business and Nu Vibez join forces to further the reach of virtual business news!

A sultry night, soft light, passion burning heavily deep within and your loved one in your arms. What could be more magical on Valentine’s Day than that? Photo by Filipa Thespian.

Little known yet Amazing facts that have shaped ALL our lives!

So many thought, in 2008, when Phillip left Second Life, that was it, but now we have High Fidelity.

Stroker Serpentine, Part 2 The second and ﬁnal half of our interview with Sl’s 2nd RL millionaire and this time we get personal!

What Now UCCSL?

Dom in Shining White ... Leather?

The United Content Creators of SL continue their bid to get the Lindens’ to the table.

Love is in the air and the predators are on the prowl. Protect yourself!

Raider’s of the Lost Prim Have prim creations become a thing of the past now that we have mesh?

The Peaceful “Troublemaker” - p1

“ Troublemaker." That is what his forename “Rolihlahla” meant and certainly there were many throughout the years who believed this was so, yet his parents could not have guessed then, just how prophe c their naming of their newborn son would turn out to be ... depending upon which side of the poli cal divide you did reside that is. July 18th, 1918 in the village of Mvezo in Umtata South Africa, marked an important date and loca on in the history of our World, not just the country of South Africa. It was the day that brought Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela to this Earth. Mr. Mandela was most known for being a South African an -apartheid revolu onary and poli cian, South Africa's first black Chief Execu ve and first freely Elected President. This man did what no one in the United States could have done -- spent a 27year term in prison only to find himself elected to his country's highest office soon a er release. There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires. – Nelson Mandela But this driven man was so much more than many of us realize or remember. Nelson Mandela's leanings toward ac vely speaking his mind through protes ng began during his educa on at Fort Hare University when he was expelled for joining in a student protest. A very different world than many of us understand or have experienced.

Having studied law at Fort Hare University and the University of Witwatersrand, he'd become involved in an -colonial poli cs and joined the African Na onal Congress as a founding member of its Youth League only to later in his life serve as its President from 1991 to 1997. His early professional years saw him rising to prominence in the ANC's 1952 Defiance Campaign and finding his appointment to superintendent of the ANC's Transvaal chapter, presiding over the 1955 Congress of the People. From 1956 to 1961, while working as a lawyer, Mr. Mandela became quite familiar with being arrested for alleged sedi ous ac vi es and even prosecuted from 1956 to 1961 in the Treason Trial ... unsuccessfully. Yet while his ini al efforts to abolish apartheid began with non-violent protest, in associa on with the South African Communist Party (SACP), in 1961 he co-founded the militant Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) which led to a campaign of sabotage against the apartheid government and ul mately his arrest and convic on in 1962, for conspiracy to overthrow the state. I was not a messiah, but an ordinary man who had become a leader because of extraordinary circumstances. – Nelson Mandela Prior to his imprisonment, Nelson Mandela was a very angry young man who considered violence for solving problems but fate intervened. There are those today who even s ll label him as a terrorist yet, nothing could now be further from the truth. He was o en heard over the years, making various statements over how grateful he actually was for his incarcera on, because it gave him a great deal of me to reflect and realize what an Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014 - 23

The Peaceful “Troublemaker” - p2

angry young man he was and how it was not going to accomplish a single one of his goals for this world and for the people of South Africa he held so dear. If there are dreams about a beau ful South Africa, there are also roads that lead to their goal. Two of these roads could be named Goodness and Forgiveness. – Nelson Mandela The life imprisonment term did not sit well with others and an interna onal campaign lobbied for his release in 1990. A er 27 years, Nelson Mandela once again breathed the fresh air of freedom, giving him the opportunity to go forth in peace, and act on his desire to make change with posi ve ac ons, not destruc on and violence. In 1993, Nelson Mandela, with Frederik Willem de Klerk, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, “for their work for the peaceful termina on of the apartheid regime, and for laying the founda ons for a new democra c South Africa.” There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to ﬁnd the ways in which you yourself have altered. – Nelson Mandela When I started wri ng this piece, I men oned it to a friend of mine who, without pause, says to me with some vehemence, “while wri ng it you must remember he was a terrorist.” This set me oﬀ my game some, surprising me, because my own knowledge of the man was

24 - Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014

not this, nor did the wri en history suggest that he was, save his early beginnings that Mandela himself swi ly changed. So, I went sought out another source who happened to be a teenager in the 60's and to date is a staunch Republican (like my friend) and I asked my source for her recollec on of Nelson Mandela. I think I was expec ng her to say something similar, but wow did she surprise me. She looked at me and with vehemence of her own says to me, “he was a great man!” I detest racialism, because I regard it as a barbaric thing, whether it comes from a black man or a white man. – Nelson Mandela No, the conversa on did not end there, suﬃce it to say, her recollec ons mirrored the public record, but in the end, she reinforced my research, that here was a man who as a young adult, as happens to so many of us, started out on the wrong path, yet instead of taking what so many turn to poison in their souls (incarcera on), became the best of us and brought about peaceful change that's lasted decades. His passing marks the end of an era and he will be missed. And though I am not black, it is with great hope that I look to the future, as should we all, because of Nelson Mandela. Let freedom reign. The sun never s et o n s o g l o r i o u s a h u m a n achievement. – Nelson Mandela

16 - Nu Vibez Magazine - January 2014

PTSD is not just for the Military! - p2

PTSD is not just for the Military! By LadiLuck "..worry is soul suicide." -James Allen When the term, “PTSD” is men oned, it is common for one's mind to think of soldiers, in camouflage, on the ba lefield with bombs exploding all around them, but this disorder is not exclusive to our amazing military hero's. Post-trauma c Stress Disorder (PTSD) is described by the Mayo Clinc as, “a mental health condi on that's triggered by a terrifying event. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event.” Anything, from the loss of a child, to a car accident, can trigger this in any of us no ma er how strong we think we are.

yet, there was nothing I could do to change our fates – save watch in horror as it all unfolded around me in what seemed like slow-mo on. To this day, as a result of this accident, I suffer from nightmares and other manifesta ons of PTSD. Being a social-worker; on the front-lines with clients of all ages who o en have mental health and addic on issues or are suffering from the trauma c results of these issues; it is my job to help guide people to healthier solu ons -- to heal their anguish. Yet a er my own accident, while being aware of what I was feeling and why and knowing that my behavior was destruc ve, I was unable to affect a change -- unable to heal myself. It felt as though I had been hijacked by a monster which had the real me

On August 18, 2013, a beau ful sunshineﬁlled day, I was driving my car, preparing to make a le turn. While wai ng for oncoming traﬃc to pass, the constant clicking noise of my turn signal warning others of my pending turn –- I was rear-ended. I will never forget the sight in my rear-view mirror. The other driver looked up and a look of pure terror consumed her features as she realized she was about to hit me. And Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014 - 29

PTSD is not just for the Military! - p3

locked away in a trunk, le to watch as it, using my body, set out on a path of reckless destruc on … of my life! I was a helpless bystander. In more technical terms, there is an internal struggle that occurs. While the human brain recognizes its reac ons are “overkill,” the chemical response triggered bypasses this logic, causing the body to react physically to a serious threat, in a manner that is not a custom of the person or effec ve for the situa on. A human's ins ncts are very sharp and animal-like, the mind rever ng to a me when it was “kill or be killed.” Your base survival ins ncts kick in on the most minor of details or situa ons and the brain translates what is not, in reality, a threat, and responds with a vengeance. When suffering from PTSD, adrenaline and cor sol run rampant through the brain, crea ng dependence -- an addic on and the body has become the drug dealer, deciding for you, when you will take it. As a result, the body becomes chemically unbalanced making even the mee ng of your simplest needs (such as food and sleep), difficult or impossible to achieve. In the average human body, these are good things designed to help us escape a perceived threat. The adrenal glands secrete the hormone Adrenaline, responsible for a variety of func ons such as heart rate and blood pressure, which swi ly saturates the muscles giving the body a quick jolt of what some perceive as 30 - Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014

super-human strength and speed. At the same me, these same glands secrete another hormone called Cor sol which shuts down func ons not needed during mes of perceived threats, such as appe te and sleep preven ng the body from being fa gued by hunger or the need for rest while danger is present. In a person with PTSD, however, the brain perceives even safe and secure environments as threats be it through misunderstandings of surroundings, or even hallucina ons by way of example. These happen frequently, triggering adrenaline and cor sol far too o en for the human body to tolerate and thus, a chemical imbalance is created and we begin to selfdestruct. In my own case, these chemicals were so high in my body were so high that the thought of ea ng posi vely repulsed me. I couldn't even prepare food for myself for ﬁve weeks, stomaching only coﬀee. To add insult to injury, I smoked incessantly, adding even more dangerous chemicals to my already over-taxed system, further compounding the problem. Of course I knew be er and yet, I was helpless to do otherwise. By the me I was able to get the chemical levels low enough where I actually wanted to eat, my body rejected food. This went on for a further four weeks and all the while, I could not sleep! I needed to learn how to take care of my base needs all over again.

Game Changers, Clubs in SL - p3

Nu Vibez Magazine - January 2014 - 19

PTSD is not just for the Military! - p4

Although through my job, these were all things I understood very well and helped other people through, on a daily basis, I could not seem to help myself. I needed h e l p ! I n e e d e d a t ra u m a t ra i n e d professional who knew the right therapies to help me and my speciﬁc problem. I learned to be gentle and forgiving with myself as one does with a child when they learn to care for themselves for the ﬁrst me. Through the help of my therapy, I also learned that it is not “me” who behaves so wretchedly, but the defender of the frightened child inside me that reacts overprotec vely to what it perceives a threat. The body is biochemically geared to protect when the monster called “fear” is unleashed. When seeking to understand and/or treat PTSD, it is important to note that presentday trauma educa on is s ll a very new

32 - Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014

perspec ve and is in the explora on, discovery and educa onal stages. If you suffer from PTSD, please find a therapist who is Trauma trained. This will provide you with a proper diagnosis and the most effec ve tools to help you find your path back to health, happiness and security. One of the websites I prefer, for informa on about treatment of both adults and children, is presented by the Trauma Ins tute at h p://www.childtrauma.com. In the end, the most important thing I've learned through my own experience, however, is that no one can heal by themselves! You must find help, a guiding light at the end of a very dark tunnel and that there is posi vely NO shame what-soever in ge ng that help, only in hiding from the problem!

An Open Le er to the Lindens, Hypergrid Business Report - p1

Hypergrid Business Report

Reprinted with permission from HypergridBusiness.com Original ar cle here: h p://www.hypergridbusiness.com/2014/01/anopen-le er-to-the-lindens/

An open le er to the Lindens By Maria Korolov

Dear Linden Lab board of directors: I just heard that CEO Rod Humble is stepping down. I guess you guys will be looking for a new chief? I’d like to suggest some ques ons to ask yourselves as you decide the future direc on of the company. Now, you might think that I’m no fan of Second Life, wri ng as I do about OpenSim all the me. But I’m actually a huge fan. I created my Second Life avatar in 2005, and was inspired by its founding vision of a three-dimensional, immersive metaverse. I don’t want Second Life to fail.

Is Second Life a pla orm or a social game? For many people, the promise of Second Life was as a pla orm, a stepping stone to the metaverse, a technological embodiment of Neal Stephenson’s visionary novel Snow Crash. There was the release of its viewer code as open source in 2007. That famed teleport between OpenSim and Second Life back in 2008. The release of Second Life Enterprise in 2009. For a while, it seemed that the Second Life grid would be just one piece of a large, interconnected metaverse. But work on inter-connec vity with OpenSim quickly stopped, and Second Life Enterprise, which allowed companies to host their own version of Second Life behind their firewalls, was discon nued in 2010, as were discounts for educators and non-profits. In 2013, Second Life eliminated viewer support for OpenSim and forced creators to give up more of their intellectual property rights. (But it did bring back the educator discounts.) It seemed that Second Life was doubling down on being a social game. Features were rolled out that enhanced the player experience and strengthened Linden Lab as a game company but turned its back on the broader metaverse. Obviously, crea ng a pla orm is much more difficult than crea ng a game. There is usually only one successful pla orm, but there can be Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014 - 37

An Open Le er to the Lindens, Hypergrid Business Report - p2

any number of successful games. Being a pla orm requires almost universal adop on, while building a proﬁtable game just requires enough users to break even. But there are some signiﬁcant advantages to being a pla orm:

Ÿ Pla orms typically have a longer lifespan than individual products. Ÿ Pla orms aren’t dependent on the success or failure of any one product. Ÿ Pla orm creators have a wide variety of ways to m a ke m o n e y f ro m t h e i r pla orms, and, as new products evolve, so do new revenue streams. Ÿ With a successful pla orm for the metaverse, Linden Lab can help create the future, instead of just being a footnote on the road to the metaverse.

Does Second Life have the right business model? Today, Second Life primarily makes its money from sales of land, premium memberships, and virtual currency. Land revenues are es mated to be about two-thirds of the total, and are dropping by around $1,000 per day. Second Life land is currently signiﬁcantly overpriced — comparable land on OpenSim goes for about a tenth the price, without steep setup fees. It seems that today, Second Life is desperately trying to hang on to a shrinking share of the pie. It could, instead — and I realize that I’m stretching the pie metaphor to its limit here — reposi on itself to grab an en re horizontal layer of the pie, such as the bu ery crust of 38 - Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014

metaverse infrastructure, and beneﬁt from the growth of the pie as a whole. Redeﬁning Linden Lab as a pla orm for virtual environments would open up the business possibili es drama cally. Plus, it would posi on Linden Lab be er for the new age of immersive environments that is being ushered in by the Oculus Ri and similar devices — instead of being just another Oculus Ri game among many, Second Life could become a pla orm for all social, educa onal, business and other non-gaming uses of virtual environments. Some revenue possibili es that emerge from seeing yourself as a pla orm. Keep in mind that these will be small at the beginning, and may even cut into exis ng revenues. But exis ng revenues are falling anyway, so a bold move to embrace the future before the future crushes you might be just what’s needed.

Ÿ Linden Lab doesn’t have to sell only Second Life land, it can sell OpenSim land as well, and oﬀer customers low, low prices. Sure, there are already OpenSim vendors oﬀering dirt-cheap rates, but have neither the brand-name recogni on nor the scale of Linden Lab. Larger enterprises, in par cular, like to do business with larger vendors. Ÿ And Linden Lab doesn’t have to be the only company to sell Second Life land. I’m not talking about in-world land barons here, but actual third-party hos ng companies. A revamped, more func onal, and lowerpriced Second Life Enterprise server could b e co m e a p ro p r i e ta r y, s u p p o r te d alterna ve to OpenSim, the way the Windows Server is a more expensive,

An Open Le er to the Lindens, Hypergrid Business Report - p3

proprietary alterna ve to Apache. The Lindens will need to add OAR and IAR support and hypergrid connec vity to make it comparable, and offer sweetheart deals to hos ng companies to get them to offer it as an alterna ve to OpenSim. Many hos ng companies already support mul ple servers — OpenSim, AuroraSim, RealXtend — depending what their customers prefer. A premium Linden server op on may appeal to some highend customers. Ÿ The Second Life Marketplace doesn’t need to be limited to Second Life. Right now, there is no viable mul -grid content marketplace for OpenSim, though Kitely Market is expected to open up to other grids in the next few weeks. But even if it does, the Second Life Marketplace would s ll overshadow it in terms of the amount of content available, even if only a frac on of merchants opt to enable the mul -grid delivery. Ÿ The hypergrid isn’t a dirty word. Opening up to the hypergrid would allow users to have their homes on cheap OpenSim grids while telepor ng to Second Life for shopping and events. Simply create a fourth “export” permission — which is already present in the latest OpenSim viewers — set all exis ng content to “no export” by default, and allow merchants to sell exportable goods for customers who want to take their purchases to other grids. Nu Vibez has me excited about Black History Month. Kitely is already doing this, and Avina on is expected to do the same soon, as well. All these residents will need new stuff to ou it their new homes, school and companies will need content to furnish their facili es.

Ÿ Linden dollars don’t have to be limited to Second Life either. Although the OMC virtual currency from Virwox has been gaining ground recently in OpenSim, and a compe ng currency is in the works, it’s s ll very early days for hypergrid commerce. Linden Lab has the opportunity to become the PayPal of the metaverse. Plus, this would encourage customers to rent their OpenSim land from Linden Lab, since the payments could be instantaneous and seamless, like they are in Second Life, instead of having to go through a second Web-based conﬁrma on step for security, as they would have to when on grids operated by third par es. Imagine if AOL had embraced the Web sooner than it did. AOL would have had the chance to become Yahoo!, to become Amazon, to become Google, to become PayPal, to become

Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014 - 39

An Open Le er to the Lindens, Hypergrid Business Report - p4

eBay, to become Hotmail and Geoci es and Blogger. Not saying that it would have, but it at least would have had the chance.

Is Linden Lab prepared for new kinds of compe tors?

But I guess AOL didn’t think that the Web would grow the way it did, or that it provided a more compelling experience. And, sure, AOL did have a lot of stuﬀ all in one place — it had shopping, search, email, instant messaging, forums, news, sports. No one other site comes close, not even today. By thinking of itself as a product, and comparing itself to individual alterna ves, AOL missed the opportunity.

The ecosystem surrounding the Oculus Ri and similar devices is expanding drama cally, with millions in venture capital ﬁnancing, recordbreaking Kickstarters and CES Best-of-Show awards. Valve just announced an Oculus Ri compa ble virtual reality mode for its popular Steam video game pla orm, and Utherverse, best known for its adult-only virtual world, announced plans to release a Ri -compable virtual world pla orm this summer.

Today, no single OpenSim grid comes anywhere near close to matching the community and content of Second Life. But that’s not the correct metric. Look at it as an ecosystem of public grids, private grids, homebased mini-grids, hos ng companies, currency exchanges, and other third-party service providers. That’s where the growth is, and that’s where the opportunity lies.

The non-gaming applica ons for the Oculus Ri are expanding as well. Ford uses it for automo ve design, NASA to control a robot arm and to let people take a virtual walk on Mars. The U.S. Navy is using it for Project BlueShark. ArchVirtual uses it to preview architectural projects. There are numerous medical and psychological applica ons of this

40 - Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014

An Open Le er to the Lindens, Hypergrid Business Report - p5

technology as well, including for vision therapy, trea ng PTSD, virtual simula ons for training health care prac oners, trea ng phobias, and training amputees to use prosthe cs. Right now, most of these applica ons are built on top of Unity and other professional 3D development engines, probably because right now, only development kit versions of the Oculus Ri are available. As the Oculus Ri gets into consumer hands and as prices drop and compe tors appear, the technology will become more mainstream and more people will be interested in crea ng their own virtual environments, both for personal and business use.

About Maria Korolov Maria Korolov is editor and publisher of Hypergrid Business. She has been a journalist for more than twenty years and has worked for the Chicago Tribune, Reuters, and Computerworld and has reported from over a dozen countries, including Russia and China.

The company or group ďŹ rst out of the gate stands a good chance of becoming the de-facto standard for virtual worlds. It could be Apple or Microso with a proprietary pla orm, or Google with an open one, or an out-of-le -ďŹ eld startup with something else en rely. By teaming up with OpenSim, Linden Lab has the opportunity to make its approach to the metaverse the dominant one. A choice of viewers, mul ple hos ng op ons at all price levels, free do-it-yourself so ware, brandname recogni on, both proprietary and open source server so ware and a ready-made universe of worlds to explore would make the Second Life-OpenSim metaverse a tough combo to beat. And Linden Lab, as the leading company in the space, a force to be reckoned with. Last updated by Maria Korolov at January 26, 2014.

Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014 - 41

50 Shades of Valen nes - p1

50 Shades of Valentines The crea ve spirit burns never more brilliantly than when we are in love, thinking of love, remembering love, desiring love or even mourning love. We all know what the day of love is all about and why, there is history to it, some of it confusing, some not and there are some amazing love stories throughout an quity that s ll to this day inspire movies, books, music and art. In the spirit of this crea ve entertainment, we bring you 50 Shades of Valen nes ... a compila on of short stories and poetry to inspire the in mate and the sexy within all of us.

ODE TO LOVE by Crito Gal er I see you in the darkness In the shadow of the night The silken veil of midnight Covering your sight The hood you wear obscures your face But I know it is but you The one I have been seeking The one my soul but seeks Extended hand doth touch thy face To feel the warmth of ﬂesh I need to know it’s really you The one my heart doth seek Embrace we make of our desire Our bodies clench to what’s aspired Holding you in arms that covet Our lips embrace and love transpires Your touch and warmth ﬁlls heart’s desire The love and passion my soul requires It’s you! It’s you! The one I’ve sought At last, at last my love is caught Let me and distance challenge us Our love will linger past the dusk And in these arms embrace will take Un l me ends and makes its haste

THOSE EYES by Daeden Jessop The mys cal enveloping shadow of night closes in around me as I take in my surroundings. Those haun ng eyes are before me once again -- so so , so warm, so powerful and commanding. No words spoken and s ll I feel the need to obey … to give anything I can … all that I can, to please those marvelous eyes. A light glints off that mesmerizing gaze. It’s a warm light, gentle, maybe yellowish, flickering. It reminds me of firelight or so candles glowing in the darkness, sparkling within the depths of those beau ful eyes. I can see nothing else and yet I feel warmth, I do not shiver from cold, I feel safe … I belong. My own gaze is held firmly in place by the en cing promise reflected from deep within his. A movement, seen in my peripheral vision, registers vaguely in my thoughts yet s ll I look only deep within those enchan ng eyes. A large, strong hand li s up out of the darkness from the direc on of the figure that stands before me. It li s slowly toward my face, fingers loosely curled inward. The lightest caress grazes my so cheek as the backs of his knuckles slip tenderly along my cheekbone to move gently below my jaw. The fingers uncurl to allow rough masculine finger ps to feel the tender flesh of my exposed throat. Those eyes s ll locked with mine, the finger ps press gently against the quickly bea ng vein in my throat. He can feel what he’s doing to me by the reflec on of my hearts’ heightened pace beneath his gentle touch. So ly they slide down toward the hollow at the base of my throat. I quiver, goose bumps race across my now heated flesh, his touch igni ng more than just a physical need held long dormant deep within me. Those eyes begin to move close and the most handsome face I’d ever imagined eases into the so flickering glow of the light. His sensual lips part slightly and his tongue presses forth, moistening this new focus of my avid a en on. The most delectable lips I’d ever seen stop within a hairs breath of my own, hovering, smiling ever so slightly as they wait. Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014 - 45

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I look up once again to peer into that now hungry gaze. My eyes seem to speak clearly to him my every thought, my every need. His look speaks in return to me that he knows, and is pleased, that there is no where else he’d rather be … that he too feels his very life depends upon the touch of our lips and the warm invita on of my heart. His finger ps skim around the side of my throat; almost ckling they touch me so barely, hea ng a path to the very sensi ve skin at the back of my neck. Slowly he begins to massage, gently, tenderly, lightly. The hairs at the nape of my neck stand on end as the gooseflesh con nues to permeate through me spiraling out from each heated touch. My eyes darken quickly with passion, with desperate need, screaming to him, begging and s ll not a word has been u ered by either of us … but he knows. With fierce determina on, nay, possession, his fingers slide purposefully up into the hair at the base of my skull, fanning into it and then gripping possessively. He holds me, controls me and s ll I have not one thought to do anything but what he wants, to give him what he needs. A molten hot burn of desire flairs from within those precious eyes and without warning, those lips descend desperately down upon mine, claiming them for himself, claiming me … and I yield without thought, I melt into him giving all that he would take, all that his silent mastery demands … I am his! Happiness such as I’d never known before consumes me. I am whole for the first me in my life. I feel complete, I do not even know his name and yet I know him. A slight frown seeps into my face unbidden. Something’s not right. An unpleasant tugging sensa on begins to pull at me. I fight to hold on to him as the world within my view grows hazy. It feels almost like a violent a ack, but not of my body – of my mind, of the world around me. I am being yanked from him now and he recedes further and further from me into the darkness, one hand con nuing to reach up and out toward me as if he too is figh ng with everything he is to hold on. The flickering light fading, I see only those tender finger ps … and then … they too are consumed by the darkness. 46 - Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014

The world around me begins to change. Blackness ebbs into gray growing lighter in terrifying increments as I am yanked from those powerful yet tender arms I crave so strongly. The ﬁrst vocaliza on of thought this night slips forth as I cry out for him, begging not to be taken from him. I am crying as he fades completely from my sight, but not from my heart. The cold light of reality returns through my reluctantly opening eyes and I am suddenly, depressingly awake. I stare hopelessly at the ceiling, painful tears slipping slowly down my cheeks. My loss is so severe that I ache right down to my very soul. I am now fully awake but I know … I am s ll his … I know him be er than I know myself and yet, heart-breakingly … I don’t even know if he exists.

SAVED BY LOVE by SaraMae Xaris The sun it rises on another day the so warm kiss, of loving rays reminds her of His strong embrace of His love, His heart, His handsome face. The mind doeth wander, to their last kiss demanding power she cannot dismiss. His hold on her remains ﬁerce and true no ma er what these lovers do. To Him her thoughts scream out of love so pure, so full, a gi from above. On this special lovers day she sends to Him her heart to stay. Once more she pledges every part her mind, her body, soul and heart. Come back to loose yourself within the deepest love she has to give.

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UNTIL TONIGHT by Filipa Thespian Rain is such a beau ful thing on a dreary Sunday when there's no responsibili es and you can stay cozy and warm at home, mocking the cold wet with another sip of the perfect cup of coffee. Snuggling up with a good book and allowing yourself to doze off here and there. Yes, rain is a beau ful thing ... but not on a moonless night, in your car, on a long empty road ... rain falling so heavily you can barely see through the window with the wipers on high. And especially not when you are on the path to meet with your des ny... She may have been edgy, driving through that vicious storm, yet excitement flowed vibrantly through her even as her thoughts roamed over her precarious situa on. For tonight is not a night to stay cozy at home, nor a night to be afraid to step out into the world ... tonight is the night she will finally find herself in the arms of the only Man she will ever love. The only Man who is able to truly and completely possess all of her. The Man who has owned her for so long, has brought her to such heights of joy and pleasure and yet s ll has yet to even touch her. Un l tonight... "Thank God for GPS," she says to herself as she makes the turn she would have otherwise missed thanks to the intense darkness and the ceaseless torrent of water falling upon her car. So close to Him now, the closer she gets to her des na on, the more her body posi vely sings with adrenaline. "Tonight, you will be completely Mine. Tonight I claim all of you ... come to Me!" She remembers their last conversa on and she quivers, already her sweet feminine core slickens in an cipa on. "Tonight it will be My hands caressing, My lips grazing, My tongue teasing, My body joining ... Un l tonight!" "Focus!" she says out loud, snapping herself back to her surroundings, realizing that now is not the me to dri into her thoughts. The road seems to stretch on forever, causing anxiety to build un l finally she see's the lights of the sign she's looking for. She slows, blinker clacking wildly preceding the turn into the parking lot of the motel. She drives Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014 - 47

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very slowly, struggling to read the numbers on the various doors, searching for the right one. Excitement bursts forth in a rush of heat through her body as she makes out the right door and slides her car into the spot right in front of the door. As if on queue, the rain suddenly quiets to a light drizzle. She marvels at that for all of two seconds when the thought occurs to her, "He is just on the other side of that door." Stepping from the car, she automa cally adjusts her skirt, smoothing it down over her hips, pausing for only a moment to try to tame her rapid excited breathing. As the car door 'thwumps' closed, she hurriedly turns and makes her way to the popped trunk for her suitcase. The lights bathing the front of the room when she parked, must have alerted Him to her arrival, for when she closes the lid of the trunk and looks up she see's Him standing there, the light from the room behind Him, presen ng her with His silhoue e. He is leaning in the doorjamb, arms crossed against His chest, casual in stance, but she can feel His eyes boring into her, studying her, absorbing her as much as she is Him. As if with a mind of their own, her feet begin to walk and she watches Him in amazement as He gets closer and closer ... her mind not registering quite clearly that it is actually she that is ge ng closer to Him. Her eyes locked with His though she cannot see them clearly yet, closer she walks, suitcase following on obedient rollers. Stopping only when there is but a couple inches between them, looking up into that beloved face, silence stretches on and yet there is no discomfort, only peace, joy ... and electricity. She swears to herself silently that anyone looking at them must be able to see the sparks igni ng between them as they stand there for the longest me just staring directly into the eyes of the other for the ﬁrst me. His lips quirk into a smile, hers respond instantly with her own sultry grin. No words yet spoken, none yet needed. She releases the handle to her suitcase, the purse over her shoulder forgo en, and takes the last step that brings her body right up against His, whispering up to Him, "i love you" and within those three words are spoken a mul tude... i am Yours ... please take me ... i need You ... i want You ... i submit! 48 - Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014

With that, His arms open, wrapping around her. He pulls her ghter into His body, His lips descend slowly, the two of them savoring every second, every spark, every sensa on, un l ﬁnally their lips touch for the ﬁrst me. Everything else disappears and there is only Him, only His mouth, only His tongue par ng her lips. Only her lips so ly submi ng to His desire, only His arms around her ... only her hands sliding so ly up His back ... and they kiss...

WITHOUT HIM... by Filipa Thespian There is no light without His love, which brings a warmth to days long drudge. It li s the soul and brings true peace, a thunderous heart for Him it beats. There is no dark without His desire, when passion's kiss seeks loves sweet pyre. The night erupts with slickened screams, that beg and plead for more it seems. There is no spark without His ﬂame, with His ﬁery touch the magic came. Her body spent in love's embrace, she gives her soul with desperate grace. There is no life without His claim, her sweet submission for Him to take.

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She feeds His power with gi so sweet, her mind consumed, she is complete.

When I think of you I wander oďŹ&#x20AC; to that quiet place where we are always alone, where passion ďŹ&#x201A;ares and heat abounds throughout the night. When I awaken, the need you inspire rages through me and a yearning so deep spreads through me.

WHEN I THINK OF YOU

When I think of you I feel safe, I feel warm and I feel loved. I picture you here with me, holding my hand, smiling at me, and my soul feels complete.

by SaraMae Xaris When I think of you my love shines bright from my smile. My eyes become beacons of love and adora on, speaking to you. My heart sings to yours of love so deep and tender it knows no bounds. My body aches to hold you, to share with you all that I feel, all that I think, all that I crave.

When I think of you I feel alive. I am always thinking of you, and so I always know, always feel, always crave and always love with the deepest devo on, greatest love and fondest desire ... I am missing you.

Nu Vibez Magazine - January 2014 - 37

Black History Month

Li le Known but Amazing Facts

Compiled By Cobra Momiji By now most people are aware that February is Black History Month and why it is but just in case these facts slipped through the cracks for any of our readers, this is a good place to revisit them. Yahoo answers provides with the following brief synopsis of Black History 101: Black History Month" was originated in 1926 by Dr. Carter Godwin Woodson. In 1926, it was called "Negro History Week." Carter Woodson a ended college where he earned a B.A. degree in European history and a Ph.D. in history. As a new graduate, he managed to earn a living as a high school teacher; and later as a professor of history at Howard University. He had a strong desire to document Negro history. He co-founded and ﬁnanced the "Associa on for the Study of Negro Life and History" in 1915. In 1926, Dr. Woodson was able to oﬀer the Associa on's name to sponsor the week. He chose the second week in Februar y because it marked the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. Through Woodson's promo on of the celebra on in the "Journal of Negro History" and the crea on and distribu on of kits for 52 - Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014

children, "Negro History Week" gained in popularity. In 1976, "Negro History Week" expanded into "B lack History Month." The month is also some mes referred to as AfricanAmerican Heritage Month. It is recognized officially in several na ons including Canada and the UK, and unofficially in others. In the U.S., it is recognized officially. In 1975, President Ford issued a Message on the Observance of "B lack History Week" urging all Americans to "recognize the important contribu on made to our na on's life and culture by B lack ci zens." In 1976, President Ford issued the first Message on the "Observance of B lack History Month." In subsequent years, Presidents Ford, Carter and Reagan con nued to issue Messages honoring "African-American History Month.” In 1986, Congress passed Public Law 99244 which designated February 1986 as "Na onal Black (Afro-American) History Month.” This law noted that February 1, 1986 would “mark the beginning of the six eth annual public and private salute to Black History.” The law further called upon to President to issue a proclama on calling on the people of the United States to observe February 1986 as "B lack History Month" with the appropriate ceremonies and ac vi es. President Reagan issued Presiden al Proclama on 5443 which proclaimed that “the

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foremost purpose of "B lack History Month" is to make all Americans aware of this struggle for freedom and equal opportunity.” This proclama on stated further that this month was a me “to celebrate the many achievements of African Americans in every ﬁeld from science and the arts to poli cs and religion.”

Now what's known even less are some of the following facts from Black History.

In January 1996, President Clinton issued Presiden al Proclama on 6863 for “Na onal African-American History Month." The proclama on emphasized t h e t h e m e f o r t h a t y e a r, t h e achievements of black women from Sojourner Truth to Mary McLeod Bethune and Toni Morrison. In February 1996, the Senate passed Senate Resolu on 229 commemora ng "B lack History Month.”

Fact #2

Since 1996, the Presidents have issued annual proclama ons for "Na onal African-American History Month." To honor Dr. Woodson, the na onal theme for 2008 was “Carter G. Woodson and the Origins of Mul culturalism.” * Yahoo Answers As you can see Black History Month is not some Johnny come lately eﬀort by the government to appease African Americans as has been suggested by some. It is a fully recognized acknowledgement of what blacks have contributed to our world and not just the US.

Fact #1 Nathaniel Alexander was the ﬁrst to patent the folding chair.

In 1897, Andrew Jackson Beard invented the Jenny Coupler, a device linking train cars together through a bumping process. The Coupler was a boon to the welfare of many railroad workers, who originally had the dangerous job of hooking moving cars together by hand.

Fact #3 Henry Blair is believed to be the second African American to receive a patent. He i nve nte d a co r n seed planter in 1834 and a co on planter in 1836. Because he could not read or write, Blair signed his patent with an "X.”

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Fact #4 O s Boykin invented electronic control devices for guided missiles, IBM computers and pacemakers. He would receive almost a dozen patents over his life me.

Earth's far-outer atmosphere and highlighted a variety of celes al objects from the perspec ve of the lunar surface. Carruthers was inducted into the Na onal Inventor's Hall of Fame in 2003.

Fact #8

Fact #5 On March 17, 1896, C.B. Brooks patented the mechanical street sweeper, a truck equipped with brooms. Also notable for a patent on an early handheld paper punch.

Fact #6 The "strongbox," a locked container used to store money and other valuable items, was invented by Henry Brown.

Fact #7 George Carruthers helmed the group of scien sts that created the far ultraviolet camera/spectrograph, used in the 1972 Apollo 16 ďŹ&#x201A;ight to the moon. His inven on revealed new features in 54 - Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014

In 1897, African-American inventor Alfred L. Cralle patented the ďŹ rst ice cream scoop. His original design remains in wide use.

Fact #9 African-American mechanical engineer David Crosthwait, Jr. created the hea ng systems for New York's Rockefeller Center and Radio City Music Hall.

Fact #10 Engineer David Crosthwait, Jr. held 39 U.S. patents and 80 interna onal patents pertaining to hea ng, refrigera on, temperature regula on and pump processes.

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Fact #11

Mark Dean, along with Dennis Moeller, i nv e n t e d t h e I n d u s t r y S t a n d a r d Architecture systems bus, which allowed for the use of computer plug-ins such as disk drives, printers and scanners.

suppressed from the general public. We have a huge rich history of Europeans but Black History by contrast is playing catch up in terms of ge ng to the masses. Also there are so many misconcep ons and prejudice stereotypes woven into the fabric of American society that any historical informa on that dispels those myths needs to be highlighted from General History. As someone once said, "Blacks get February, the other 11months are already claimed so one month to balance out 11 is not much but it's a start." For more info on Black History Month or facts regarding Black History please contact us.

We could go on and on ci ng the many things we have acclimated to our everyday lives and never even considered that the inventor was black. Of course some might respond by saying why would we care if an inventor is black or not, or why even dis nguish Black History from general history? The answer to each these ques ons above is the same answer. We dis nguish black inventors and Black History from general cases because so much of what blacks accomplished historically was Nu Vibez Magazine - January 2014 - 55

High Fidelity by Scorpinosis Nigh ire

Philip Rosedale's Next Genera on Virtual World When Philip Rosedale became less involved with his own crea on Second Life, many saw it as conﬁrma on that the experiment of avatar driven pla orms had failed. However what was not known un l recently is that while Rosedale seemed to be pulling away from his brainchild S L , he was far from abandoning the concept that created it. Enter High Fidelity. High Fidelity is Rosedale's latest project and claims it will be a a lot of things SL currently isn't. Now some may ﬁnd building a whole new pla orm, versus just upgrading the exis ng one, strange. Yet, reminiscent of Simon Cowell leaving his crea on American Idol to start The X Factor, we see that upgrades apparently would not be enough to accomplish what Rosedale can do when he starts over fresh. 58 - Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014

According to DEViCe reporter Robin Burks: High Fidelity is star ng with more intui ve interfaces, using body tracking technology that can take our real world movements and body language and put them into a virtual environment. His ﬁrst experiment involved taking the gyro from an Oculus Ri headset and connec ng it to a simple pair of glasses to simulate head movement. High Fidelity is also looking at other devices, though, created by companies like Leap Mo on. Robin goes on to say the following: Rosedale believes that virtual worlds also need be er virtual economies. He has an idea that could prove groundbreaking: he wants to set up a system where u s e r s e x c h a n g e t h e i r computers' unused processing power for virtual money (for example, when a user is asleep). That could lend itself to the crea on of many ﬁne details in the world that High Fidelity wants to create. Presently, Second Life uses 40,000 servers. But with this new idea, a virtual world could have millions of servers dedicated to it, allowing for image rendering like we've never seen before. Rosedale believes that the technology is almost there to create these complex worlds.

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From Robin's comments one could see why star ng over from a clean slate may be necessary to ini ate such new concepts and procedures because if there is one thing that Second Life residents tend to embrace very slowly its change. Now what's also noteworthy about High Fidelity is what Singularity Hub writer Jason Dorrier reported: The closest exis ng analogous sy ste m s ( ca l l e d d i st r i b u te d compu ng networks) rival the most powerful supercomputers on the planet. However, because of a virtual world's special requirements, Rosedale told us their system will be a “wholly new kind of thing.” When complete, High Fidelity's network will scale with the virtual world's popularity and ever faster cons tuent devices (mobile, laptop, or desktop). Second Life runs on 40,000 servers. Imagine a world that runs on a million, ten million, or even a billion machines. According to Rosedale, what we see in CGI movies today (think Avatar or Star Trek) will be possible in a virtual world six years from now. But High Fidelity won't build all the visuals themselves. Rather, they'll set up the construct, open the door, hit play, and see what emerges.

It seems pre y clear that even with the success Second Life has had that Rosedale is going for a much bigger mainstream audience that will take High Fidelity where SL so far has yet to go. With funding from Linden Lab, Google Ventures, Kapor Capital and True Ventures so far, this project is a serious undertaking that plans on taking us where virtuality has yet to go. Armed with the branding tag line: “If it doesn't hurt to think about it, we're not going to try it.” you get the impression that pushing the boundaries of our current virtual experience is what High Fidelity is all about. Let's hope that not only lives up to its own hype but that it also mo vates the powers that be in Second Life to make our present virtual experience even be er. I know that I for one look forward to all the Wizards of virtual Oz have to throw at us.

h p://highﬁdelity.io

Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014 - 59

Stroker & Mami

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Stroker Strikes Back, Part2 SL's Pioneering RL Millionaire Speaks Out Ar cle by Filipa Thespian Photos by Wren Noir In January, we delved into the business mind of this magne c man who was the second person ever to make a million dollars (USD) from his Second Life sales. In this second half of our interview with Stroker Serpen ne, creator of the SexGen sex pose ball and sex bed system, we take a look way back into his start, learn a li le more about his thoughts on business and SL – then, we get to dive more into the personal side that lives behind the monitor. Love him or hate him, he is a huge footnote in the history of this exci ng pla orm we call Virtual Reality or … Second Life. NVM: What was the first thing you did or discovered the first me you came into Second Life (SL) all those years ago? STROKER: The Matrix franchise was very popular back then and everybody had a black leather duster, Neo shades and wings ... wings were cool! SL was the only pla orm I was ever able to fly in so we flew everywhere. Actually, it was the popularity of Matrix that helped me launch my first business in SL – sunglasses. NVM: Wow, that's a very different start than I would have expected, so tell us Stroker, how did you get from sunglasses to sex toys and what brought up the idea for the toys? STROKER: It all started with a hunt for a plot of land. We all liked this one sim that was administered by Linden Labs (LL) and at the me, was the only full damage sim. I bought this small plot of land right next to a sex club run by Big J. John. He had posters on the wall of naked avatars in various stages of sex and I was curious as to how he did it. He shared with me this scripted cube that went opaque when you sat upon it, freezing your avatar in a sta c pose provided by LL at the me. At that point, he told me, the avatars became mannequins and he'd move them into posi on for the photograph. It's important to remember that, back then, anima ons did not exist in Second Life (SL). I remember thinking to myself that this was reminiscent of the adult pla orm, Seducity that we'd migrated from. They had pose “hearts” with 4 or 5 sexual posi ons that you kept in your pocket (a.k.a. inventory) to rezz when the me was right. It wasn't as “exci ng” as it was in SL though as this world was 2D, which meant you could only look at it

from the one angle … there was no such thing as panning or zooming to see all the interes ng angles. I got the idea that we needed to combine Big John's sta c cube with something similar to what we had in Seducity. I discussed it with a friend of mine, Psych Phaeton, a programmer in RL who had migrated with us to SL from Seducity. Together, we came up with the idea for a pose “ball” that would go transparent and loop the sta c anima ons so that it “looked like” the avatar was moving. Back and forth avies would automa cally switch from 2 sta c anima ons like “standing” and “motorcycle sit” to simulate sex. I look back at it all now, compared to some of the mo on capture anima ons we use today and I just can't help but laugh. Imagine visually in your mind's eye, going from a sta c standing pose to a motorcycle si ng pose and switching back and forth repeatedly. What was worse was the lag they created. They were horrible lag monsters because they were constantly switching between these anima ons with only a millisecond between them. Within a few months, SL was posi vely li ered with these things and LL realized that we just couldn't have them – the system couldn't handle it. By then – some me mid 2004 – we'd go en the idea to include them in (or on) beds. These things looked like they had the measles with all those balls over them. For those who weren't around then, when you were done with one pose, you and your partner(s) would switch to another set of balls. NVM: I remember those, you could go from the head of the bed on the le and sail all the way to the right side at the foot of the bed … very good for the mental picture huh? It makes me laugh to think about it in comparison to now but I suppose … when in Rome … STROKER: Yes! Actually, these beds were my first experience with intellectual property conflict in SL. I'd showed my concepts to a friend who thought they were fabulous and wanted to sell them for me. I was fine with that so I learned how to wrangle prims to make something that resembled a bed; not very easy back then. Just as we were about to launch them, I got word that someone else had also developed the idea to put pose balls in a bed. When I messaged this person, I was told, “oh yeah, we've been working on this for months.” Originally I thought this was all just a coincidence, yet when I teleported over, low and behold, here were all these beds Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014 - 63

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with the pose ball measles and designs just like the one's I'd shown to my friend. This didn't stop me though, I con nued with my designs and intent to sell in the LL sponsored stores that existed on the mainland at the me – basically like Walmart managed by LL where you could s ck your crea ons on a shelf and sell. One day, I got an IM from this guy that I did not know. He sent me a picture of himself (well supposedly of himself), in military fa gues holding an AR15 or an M16; then he says to me, “if you sell sex beds in SL I'm coming to your house and to prove I can find you, here is your computer's ID.” It wasn't difficult to find out he was the partner of this compe tor. But what truly astounded me was that he could capture my internet ID. Eventually we had it out in SL. It was actually amusing, a lot like an O.K. Corral showdown with two groups of people screaming and cursing out the other. And that, was the launch of the SexGen Bed business. Just to cap that story off, several years later at the second SLCC, I approached the creator of those compe ng beds and told her I wanted to clean my side of the street (so to speak), that I had never intended to be compe on and I hoped there weren't any hard feelings. By this me the sex beds were selling well and I was making a few hundred dollars a week in Real Life (RL) – I was happy enough with that. She says to me, "oh don't worry about it honey, that was my X-husband, he's an alcoholic and we're divorced now." To this day, we are very good friends. Lesson #1 learned from this experience – always remember … you can pick your own level of stress in SL! NVM: Stroker, you really were an incredible inspira on to so many people. Turning what you did into that much annual income was amazing. It created the desire in others to aspire to do the same. I think, and I wonder how you feel about this, that it also helped improve things such as customer service and product quality. In conjunc on with that, I'm curious as to what you feel the keys to your amazing success were. STROKER: #1 – easy, customer service! There may be 10's of thousands of people who log into SL every day and yet, it is s ll a very small place and word of mouth is s ll the most effec ve marke ng tool. It's important to remember that SL is first and foremost, a social network. When you have an inferior product and lackluster customer service, where people can never reach you if there are problems, they tell all their friends, “oh don't buy from them because it'll break, you can't get any help from them and you've just wasted your lindens.” 64 - Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014

You see, I come from a family of entrepreneurs – I've always understood the necessity for posi ve promo on. So, I stayed online all the me! That was actually a throw back to our Seducity days. We had to be online 24/7 with someone in the shop, to have a business in that pla orm. and have someone It was the only way you could be contacted as offlines did not exist back then. So when I started a business in SL, I carried that business model over. On top of that, whenever someone made a purchase, I would take the me to thank them. Eventually we did automate that process, but s ll gave customers contact informa on, for support and handled customer support the same as we ever did. I think that is the cornerstone of my success and a good business model to emulate because all you have to do is anger a handful of people, make just a fe w d i s g r u nt l e d c u sto m e rs , a n d t h ey m u l p l y exponen ally. We made sure we had real people in the shop. Today we see so many bots and automated group inviters and A.I. customer service reps – it's just so impersonal. It's important to remember that SL is a personal pla orm. Granted, as creators we have a lot of solitude, but when people log in to SL (creator or otherwise), it's s ll to connect with other people. It's very easy to spread that kind of defama on across a network of thousands and before you know it, you're a pariah. NVM: Well this is fabulous insight Stroker, and makes me curious about something. You said originally it was all about the personal touch, the customer service, the thank you for your business stuff, and then eventually you automated it. You also commented on the prolifera on of bots of today. I'm curious if you saw a difference in response and sales between the personal touch to automa on when you made the change … and now between that and the bots we have these days. STROKER: Absolutely! The personal touch is the way to go but, the bigger SL got, the bigger my company got, the more staff it required to handle the mul tude of issues because LL was always breaking “this or that.” Then there were the newbies who'd been told about sex in SL which led to the avatar make-over process so they could get laid, “ok now you have the avatar, let's go hump some pixels.” We actually created a line of about 6 avatars that residents could drag on easily, at the me a huge improvement over “Ruth.” They spread across SL quickly. It was nice to see our prepackaged avatars all over the grid. But these weren't unique concepts to us. We borrowed the ideas from other merchants and from RL businesses, applying

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them to our customers' needs. It was effec ve, but it got to where I had to keep 8 to 10 people around in the shop at all mes to support the customers. Then, as a business in SL you begin to realize how your “staff” doesn't treat your business as a real job because to them, it's a game. They didn't show up when they were supposed to, didn't stay as long as they were scheduled, and o en didn't even do the job they were there to do. Eventually I had to really back off of how much me and effort I was pu ng into customer service although, I s ll always answered every single IM! Much to the chagrin of my partner though, I would never use busy mode. I s ll don't believe in it although I am sure that people are forced to use it in order to marshal their me effec vely. I just feel that busy mode leaves a bad connota on for the customer as you never really can tell if they're actually there and using it to ignore, or if they really did step away. I learned early on that there is no way you can do what I did or anything of any scaled magnitude in SL without help! If you're a single designer, you're losing me that you could dedicate to marke ng, networking or learning new tools. To this day I surround myself with crea ve-idea people that inspire and mo vate me and I always return the favor. To me, that's what it's all about. NVM: Alright, let's get to something really interes ng. Tell us about the real Stroker Serpen ne, the man behind the monitor ... what is he like? STROKER: I am a very simple man. I like simple pleasures. I have an amazing family of crea ve children and a suppor ve wife who has been through the ringer with my exploits. They are my priority these days. I am a pilot, I enjoy aeroba cs and boa ng. We spend as much me as we can on the water or on the beach. Florida is perfect for that. I am, for lack of a be er term, "Kevin the Plumber." I've had a very sordid past, dabbling in a mul tude of entrepreneurial pursuits but this is the one I have a passion for. It's the old adage, do what you love and the money will follow, and it always has. I worked construc on most of my life, had a successful contrac ng company and would dabble in virtual worlds at night, o en to the detriment of my health, staying up ll 2 or 3 in the morning and ge ng up at 5. But I had a passion for crea ng content that didn't exist prior to its inven on. Then, when I found out I could actually make money doing

it, it became a full-on hobby and it's been off to the races ever since. I try to find that balance between my online enterprise and my family and it's taken me many years get here. I used to spend 12 hours a day and now maybe 8 to 10 and because I'm home I am able to be present in my family's lives. I'm a "Mr. Mom," doing all of the rehearsal shu ling, birthday par es, grocery shopping, the laundry and the cooking – and I love it! I love to cook. I am not a chef, but I enjoy exploring new recipes and this works for us! My wife works full me for a property management company so we're as middle class as they come. We definitely do not live an extravagant lifestyle. Our children are our focus so we don't spend a lot of money on ourselves; it all goes toward their educa on and their development. I'm very happy with where I am in my life today and I take SL in doses. I know how addic ve it can be and how easy it would be to spend 15 to 20 hours a day in SL. But a er 10 years, I've finally learned that there are no emergencies in SL! It'll all be there wai ng for me the next me I log on. NVM: Do your kids know exactly what it is you do to earn your living through SL and how do you handle that? STROKER: They know that my primary focus is anima on and modeling and they've been featured in several of the documentaries I've been showcased in or been a part of. I focus on the fact that I do anima ons and scrip ng, I don't get into a lot of the details of what it is those anima ons and scripts actually do. Although, it's interes ng to me that most of their friends think that SL is a bunch of old perv's. My kids love to create in Mindcra , they're both ar sans, they both have crea ve talent, one is 14 and the other 17. Both are gamers and we're very cognoscente of their online ac vi es and how much me they spend online. They're only allowed to spend 2 hours each evening during the school week online unless they're doing research for homework. They're just such great kids. We've been so blessed with our children, both honor roll students, both musicians and ar sts. One is likely going to be a writer and the other something in musical academics and both already have the entrepreneurial spirit. The thing that astounds me though is how they could care less about fashion "labels" favoring jeans and t-shirts to brand names … but they do love Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014 - 65

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technology – my son can reconfigure our home network and build his own computers. So yes, they are aware of what it is I do, but it is no big deal for them. They know what the web encompasses ... most children today know what it's all about at 11 or 12 years old anyway and my children are VERY well grounded when it comes to promiscuity. Actually, my son just recently, at 16, had his first kiss and was embarrassed to talk about it. As a ma er of fact, my wife and I did a morning show together where we sat on a panel with a writer who'd wri en a book about online addic on, and another gal who was a child psychologist. They asked us "some people would say this is not a great example to be se ng for your children" and oh boy did my wife go off telling them, "My son is in the advanced placement curriculum, with a 4.9 GPA. He's a pianist, plays a saxophone in the marching band and is in the jazz band. If we're doing something wrong, please tell me what it is because I don't want to change it!" Those same ladies also asked her "how do you feel about your husband having online affairs," to which my wife replied, "he could do that just as easily in the real world with his secretary or his accountant. What he does online is a crea ve outlet for him that he finds s mula ng, and I can tell you right now that it has posi vely changed our love life considerably!" Then she just smiled and a loud “awwwww” came from the audience. She's a great, amazing woman. She's been in 3 of the documentaries about me and has always been 100% suppor ve even when I decided recently to return to SL.

incestuous. In reality, those labels in SL really have nothing to do with RL interpreta on because it's merely a social dynamic in SL. It infers a specific type of closeness or in macy in that these are the people you cherish, that you find most appealing and that you want to be with as much as possible. My first SL partner and I had an open rela onship but we learned very early on that humping pixels with everyone in SL just adds to the drama. You can be the biggest porn star, the biggest player, the biggest slut, but all it does is complicate your SL because you become nothing more than an object. Any me one of your sex partners logs on they hit you right up expec ng you to drop everything and come running to have sex a er which, they just log off. It is at that point you begin to realize, you've become nothing more than a sex toy. There are a lot of avatars that enjoy that classifica on but it is a distrac on which makes it very difficult, as a content creator, to focus. My rela onship with Mami today is strictly monogamous. Even though we are both in the adult industry, we choose not to bring those complica ons into our rela onship. We focus primarily on what it is that we want to do in SL and the me we want to spend together. We have date nights, we explore sims, we go shopping together. It is, for all intents and purposes a marriage if you want to use the biological defini on. So, the playboy image, while it was probably deserved in some aspects, it was never really based in reality or even “SLality” as it were.

NVM: Through the years Stroker, you have been celebrated as one of SL's biggest playboys and as I understand it you ﬁnd that ironic. Addi onally, you just got married in SL. We're interested in why it's ironic to you and ... how the heck is SL-married life trea ng you, especially being that perceived playboy?

Well, there you have it. An in mate look behind the veil of the monitor, into the life and mes of Stroker Serpen ne, a businessman, a lover, a friend and a crea ve soul who believes in live and let live while ﬁnding your niche in what you love to do, so that you never have to work a day in your life!

STROKER: I have had only two SL partners in all the years I've been here and been partnered for almost the en re me I've been on the pla orm. We have always been very family oriented which has go en me in trouble actually. With my ﬁrst partner, who I was with for 7 years, I had 2 SL daughters who were both adults in RL. We knew very in mate details of their lives and we cherished them and their privacy. But, because when you refer to someone as your son, daughter or sister, people who are sexually ac ve adults, society tends to correlate those SL rela onship tles to their RL equivalents and labels them as

Thank you Stroker for sharing such amazing ps and tricks and le ng us have this rare look into the personal side of your life! Don't miss out on all the exci ng things planned on Stroker's sim!

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So.. What now UCCSL? by Kylie Sabra, Founder I was cleaning out the UCCSL file cabinets t h i s w e e ke n d a n d c a m e a c r o s s communica ons between Peter Gray of Linden Lab and me. To quickly recap, I wrote a le er to Peter dated October 22, 2013—a simple, straigh orward missive. “The United Content Creators of Second Life is a group of residents and content creators, in both the commercial and ar s c communi es, who share concerns regarding the August, 2013 Terms of Service, specifically Sec on 2.3. To resolve these issues and concerns, we ask that you sit down and meet with the UCCSL Council.” Although I followed up this ini al email with a formal le er, Peter actually responded to the email just two days later on October 24th. “Thank you for your email. We appreciate your group's concerns and have seen others express similar concerns as well. We greatly value Second Life's content creators, whose collec ve contribu ons help make the virtual world the vibrant experience that it is today. We remain commi ed to providing Second Life as a pla orm on which residents can create and profit from their crea ons. This philosophy is central to Linden Lab, and is something that we are ul mately seeking to extend to all of our products and pla orms. Accordingly, the revision to our Terms of Service was made in order to further extend the ability for content creators to commercially exploit their intellectual property through user-to-user transac ons across Linden Lab's other products and services (including our distribu on pla orm, Desura), not just within Second Life.

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We believe that it would be more frui ul to avoid further debate of the asser ons made to date regarding the intent and effect of our updated Terms of Service, and instead focus on whether there may be an approach to address the concerns that have arisen in the community, while also ensuring that our policy remains applicable to our other products and services, and without rever ng to the prior wording. To that end, we are currently reviewing what changes could be made that would resolve the concerns of Second Life content creators, specifically protec ng content creators' intellectual property ownership while permi ng Linden Lab to, among other things, act as an agent of content creators (such as yourselves), licensed to sell and re-sell such content. We are op mis c that we will be able to arrive at a mutually agreeable and beneficial way forward, and ask for your group's con nued pa ence as we work to do so.” (Peter Gray) It all sounds nice enough I suppose. Well. Maybe. Upon looking at it some three months later, what seems apparent is that there was no men on at all of coming to the table and talking with Second Life's Crea ves. In fact, we were told, politely, to be quiet and wait pa ently while they work on a suitable revision. Three months we have waited. A second le er was sent by the UCCSL Council, that laid out our precise concerns—carefully detailing the areas of the ToS that were untenable to Second Life Crea ves. Yo u c a n r e a d t h a t l e e r a t : h ps://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7l89N_zBRlZTaDkwUXM5Tlk/edit?usp=sharing . Peter's response dated November 20th. “Thank you for your group's letter. As mentioned in my last note, we have been reviewing what changes could be made in light of the concerns expressed by some Second Life content creators. The Terms of Service impact all of our products and services, and the careful process of reviewing, evaluating, and making any revisions does take some time; we greatly appreciate the continued patience of concerned Second Life content creators while we do so as quickly as we can.”

So...What Now UCCSL? - p2

I'll let you draw your own conclusions, par cularly in light of the fact that it is now January 25th and we have had no response. I sent a third email to Peter, January 14th—sent it twice actually—and followed up with a cer ﬁed le er, which was signed for by the Lab on January 23rd. In this case, I copied Rod Humble as well. Apparently, it now requires a cer ﬁed le er to get a response—albeit, I've not yet had one. If I don't hear from the Lab in a few days, I will post the contents of that personal correspondence in the UCCSL blog at h p://unitedcontentcreatorsofsl.wordpress.com/.

So... What now UCCSL? We are, first and foremost, Crea ves. I and most in the group will con nue to create. Some will leave and smart ones will ensure that their work is distributed on other grids as well. Does that mean I'm throwing in the towel on effec ng change to the Second Life Terms of Service? Not at all. I and others with more legal knowledge than I, ques on the legality of the Terms of Service under exis ng California State and Federal laws. If you are seriously offended by and concerned about the ramifica ons of the current Terms of Service language, I strongly encourage you to write to the following government en es and express your concerns, as is a right of any ci zen. If you are not a United States ci zen, then please write to the government agencies in your countries. I'll do you one be er. I've wri en out the le ers to each agency. All you have to do is put your legal name and address, fill in a couple of blanks and pop them in the mail. You can find them at: h ps://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B7l89N_zBbnNPSFpOeWY2eDQ&usp=sharing In light of the Lab's lack of responsiveness on this issue—four months now—I can't express strongly enough how important it is for you to exercise your individual rights to take ac on. I've given you the tools, but you have to put them to work. There is no magic pill; certainly not even deba ng the issue in forums, which has been done adnauseum, with no results. There is no group ac on, or ac on on my part, that is going to be as powerful as you picking up a pen and expressing your concerns in the right ears. I will con nue to seek avenues to take this issue public; from extending the reach of the UCCSL blog to my 13,000 Twi er followers to seeking out external press opportuni es.

A orney General's Oﬃce California Department of Jus ce A n: Public Inquiry Unit P.O. Box 944255 Sacramento, CA 94244-2550

Federal Trade Commission 600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20580 Re: Internet Intellectual Property Rights

U.S. Department of Jus ce 10th & Cons tu on Ave., NW Criminal Division, (Computer Crime & Intellectual Property Sec on) John C. Keeney Building, Suite 600 Washington, DC 20530 RE: Intellectual Property Rights in Virtual Worlds

L$100,000 Fundraising Hunt in March! You can look forward to a grid-wide surprise coming in March. UCCSL and many other individuals and groups will be ge ng together for a hunt. Hunts are always fun and this one is will be lucra ve to the winner. The sponsoring group has already garnered $L100,000 and the fundraising is just ramping up. The informa on gathered in this hunt will be a lovely addi on to our toolkit. I'd love to tell you more, but . . . “We believe that it would be more frui ul to avoid further debate of the asser ons made to date . . .” Peter Gray (Wording out of context, but I couldn't resist.) Stay tuned! Kylie Sabra

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by Daeden Jessop It's skirted around lightly in some circles, and is a way of life for others, but regardless of how you feel on the subject, D/s, BDSM and Gor, all deal with one thing that in some degree or another, each of us get excited over, and ul mately explore in the safety of virtual environments. Well, we think we are safe, especially our first me, yet even online, we need to take precau ons to protect ourselves beyond keeping our real world details to ourselves. I came to Second Life in 2005, and to use the term “naive noob” is an understatement to be certain! The first man I ever called “my Master,” so many years ago, turned out to actually be the worst kind of predator. Men like this use what can be a beau ful experience (D/s), to their advantage! He was a manipula ve, contriving, mind bending con ar st, the worst of the lot who nearly destroyed my en re life by brain washing me to the point I was naught but a vacant shell that knew nothing but kneeling upon command, coming when called, dressing only when he's told me what to wear (or I couldn't figure it out for myself) and so much more. I had no drive 72 - Nu Vibez Magazine - February 2014

le , no crea vity, couldn't think for myself, do for myself, care for my kids, and couldn't even hold down a job a er him, when before him I was a high paid execu ve. He caused so much harm its mind boggling and is the worst extreme that I hope no one ever experiences in their lives ... though sadly, I know many will. What so many people do not realize or do not consider is that many submissives, especially those who so eagerly call themselves "slave" are so o en lonely, insecure, abandoned, hurt and ultra-vulnerable people (whether they will admit it or not) that are prime pickin's for jerks like the one I men oned above. I know from experience that their need for acceptance and love is so great, their despera on for a deep bond such as this will drive them to give themselves into the care of people who will decimate the beau ful human beings they are, for their own pleasure or gain. When this happens, when this beau ful soul is stripped of all their own thought and strength, there's nothing le for the right Person to desire and he or she will pass this ta ered remnant of life by, never knowing that's where they belonged all along.

Dom in Shining White ... Leather? - p2

What may be even more overlooked, is a submissive in a vulnerable state being taken advantage of by a 'friend' who thinks he's doing what is best for her, when he's really just sa sfying what he needs or wants. What's worse is when he throws away another vulnerable soul in order to acquire the ﬁrst one ... the one he always thought was stolen from him (but never was in reality) ... that one more trophy to add to his shelf. Whether or not he realizes he's done it, he's just become nearly as bad as that con ar st men oned earlier. 'Friends' like these may even go so far as to tell you things about a good person with whom you're building a life with, things meant to make you doubt, worry and abandon that path. This is so dangerous because once it happens, it becomes harder for true friends to actually get through to a person, when they really are trying to protect, when the informa on and danger are real. You see, there are many forms of predators, from the knowing to the unwi ng, from the deliberate to the desperate. But the one thing they all have in common is ... the vulnerabili es of the target person. I learned a long me ago, the best way to protect yourself, is through your own ac ons and your own mind. Likewise, the best way to stop a predator before he can do harm is through yourself! Your knowledge, your belief in yourself and your determina on to be a whole person and understand that submission as sub or slave, does not mean the hollowing out of yourself to be naught but a serving girl who has a lot of sex, but through your own mental and emo onal growth. If you are not whole, then you can be no good to anyone else least of all the right man or woman regardless of D/s or “vanilla” rela onship status.

Your knowledge, your empowerment, your wisdom, your crea vity, your individualism and your power – these are what make anyone valuable and desirable! If you have these things, predators cannot take advantage of you, they will actually run from you because they haven't the power to climb those walls. And all while you are widening the mote around the castle, your knight in shining white armor see's your value, knows how desirable you are and will work hard to become worthy of the lowering of the drawbridge and welcoming of him (or her) into your heart. THIS Person will realize what a true gi you are and you will know, THIS is what I deserve for I am valuable, worthwhile and beau ful! Do not be afraid to be strong, or even to say the word "no" ... for a Dom who cannot handle what so many call a "difficult sub" or "not a true sub/slave" (terms meant to make you feel guilty for being safe and secure) ... p ... he is not the right Dom for you ... likely is no Dom at all. Your strength will protect you while a rac ng the Person who WILL fulfill your life! I promise and I do so hope with all my heart, that each and every good person out there finds his or her true soul mate.

Be sure to read Daeden's piece en tled “Online Safety: The Big Red X” published in Roleplay Guide Magazine in 2012 and found now on WorldsOfRoleplay.com.

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Finally, reaching what must be the deepest tomb in this massive cave of discovery, he pushes the cold stone door open. It scrapes ominously along the cavern ﬂoor, grinding un l -thumpf- it touches the wall behind, leaving an opening for our adventurer to enter, and discover. And what to his wandering eye doth appear but the shimmering delights of ... mesh!

Has mesh taken our focus from ar s c expression to turning a fast buck? By Filipa Thespian By the flickering glow of firelight, the gigan c foo alls of prim-booted feet crunch in the dirt lining the floor of the cave. So loud, so clunky, un l finally our stalwart adventurer stumbles over his huge prims resembling boots, into the first of many chambers of treasure he is to discover on his virtual archaeological expedi on. His eyes grow wide with wonder when he makes the miraculous discovery that is to save us all from the use of prims where prims just don't work ... the sculpty. But this adventurer is greedy, always wan ng more, sleeker, more realis c. And s ll, he is not sa sfied; his curiosity and need for more keeps him traversing on. These sculpty boots are amazingly realis c un l you see the bubbles of prims when you zoom too far out and so, he keeps searching for that perfect replacement.

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Mesh is truly amazing, it gives us such realis c opportuni es and in building can save a lot of prims. But it does limit the playing ﬁeld when it comes to our content creators. Being able to do the 3D modeling it takes to create mesh is no simple or cheap task. To combat that, there are many who are buying templates on sites like TurboSquid and others, buying products there and bringing them into Second Life as their own. Problem is, they've created a situa on in intellectual property rights, and in the process, helped to give Second Life such a bad name that TurboSquid, and other sites like them, now men on Second Life by name followed by "any other virtual world" as illegal pla orms into which to take items purchased from their services or designers. Then there are the free mesh items that are available on the Internet if you know where to look. These pieces now liter the lis ngs in Marketplace, in quadruplicate, by Avatars claiming the work as theirs, all seeking to turn a quick buck. Many creators now-a-days, rely on purchasing the templates available on Marketplace, not knowing for sure if it was actually made by or

Raiders of the Lost Prim - p2

just bought by, that Avatar, but they take it and make their own product. Copies of the same ou it crop up in stores all over and the uniqueness, the art of it all, seems to be fading into yester-year. So where has the art gone? Is it now just a commercial market with crea vity and uniqueness gone forever? Nicky Ree, Son!a Luxury Fashion by Sonia28 Jie, GizzA Crea ons by Giz Seorn and UTOPIA by saby Clary are just a few whose quality and beauty give me pause and wonder and I s ll buy their prim-wear designs! Stunningly unique and crea ve with amazingly hand drawn textures, these creators took what we had to work with and raised the bar beyond what was thought possible to create realism out of nothing and stunning a re to adorn the top models in the SL universe. S ll to this day even though mesh is “all the rave,” the fashion and modeling i n d u st r i e s s l l re l y h e av i l y o n t h e s e magnificent ar sans, saving the mesh-wear mostly for everyday or knockin-around clothing. There are some creators compensa ng for the public's craving for mesh and their own crea vity and need for ar s c expression by using mesh templates as they did with sculpty pieces they'd buy. These templates, not full ou its but just pieces of, are used as “part” of a complete ou it, not the ou it as a whole. A mesh top is finished off with a clothing layer bo om and a beau ful free flowing flexi-prim skirt – perhaps some custom jeweled adornments – and voila, the ar st has taken something they didn't make (the mesh) that had inspired a crea ve thought in them, and turned it into something truly unique, ar s c and theirs all while con nuing to show off their

amazing abili es and providing an even greater level of quality a re and accessories for us to use to adorn our lovely pixels. So … the next me you're out shopping, inworld or on Marketplace, take a good hard look at the art of the item you are considering – especially in clothing. Is this just another version of the mesh dress you saw at the last store? Or ... is it a free flowing, intricately drawn and well pieced together piece that shows the creator's obvious talent and imagina on, leaving you certain you are buying a truly custom-designed work of art – a true high fashion original seen on the best runway's in Second Life? Please, dear readers; don't forsake the prims for mesh. The models on the runways are not and they get paid to know how to shop and adorn themselves “to the 9's.” What is it they know, that the rest of us do not? The Prim's day has not passed and our ar sts have so much more to give. Always strive to be unique, to be a Sax Fi h Avenue customer, not another department store “off the hangar” shopper. This is Second Life, the place of dreams and limitless skies, why do here what you can do in the real world? Our creators make our experiences in this magnificent world possible, without them, we have a serious problem. So think ahead to the future … support the crea ve spirit, not just the economic machine. For all things there is a place, for us, there must be true crea ve spirit. It is Second Life's founding principle, let's get back to basics.

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