Grass weave walls
This is my Vietnam war inspired grass weave that I have used for the wallls of my latest building project. I would ideally like to make this a 3-D texture.
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January 28, 2008
This is my Vietnam war inspired grass weave that I have used for the wallls of my latest building project. I would ideally like to make this a 3-D texture.
The velvet cushion texture
This is a velvet cushion texure I made. I am thinking of using it for an outdoor ampitheatre for the benches
January 20, 2008
Pictures of Monty House with self made texture done in GIMP
I was inspired while trying to create a hidden self portrait in GIMP to try a GIMP filter for creating a texture to use on the walls of the new house. It was quite easy once I tried it and it worked well with very little experimentation. I had a definite vision of what I wanted and it seemed to turn out very easy. I put the new texture into Second Life and then applied it to all the solid walls. I was going for a grassy thatched look to the walls.
To find out the proper size for a texture graphic I searched Second Life using Google and found the size should be 64 by 64 pixels. I read about this on this page http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Sculpted_Prims:_FAQ at the Second Life Wiki. This page is about textures for sculpted prims but it had the size I was looking for and inspired me to think ahead. It would be neat to develop a sculpted prim wall that worked as thatched grass. This would move slightly when touched and have the physics of a real thatched wall. This would also give it a variable depth and allow for a real 3D texture.
Below you can see some pictures of my new house and the walls although the pictures are not clear it seems.
Picture 1
Picture 2 
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Picture 6 
I continue to build and then line up objects by copying and pasting coordinates.
I am building a multi floor building. I am leaving large gaps in the floors for flying. It is built something like the present fall 2007 Orientation Island flying lessons building but smaller. I am also starting to think of an ampitheatre. I have been building walls and floors and fake corner posts for the second and third floors by copying and pasting coordinates and sizes and textures from the first floor objects to the objects that make up the second and third floors.
At the same time I am starting to build in absolute coordinates and sizes. I am slowly coming to a numerical understanding of the space in Second Life. This means I am just starting to learn Second Life engineering design. Meanwhile in my first life I am learning complex systems design methods.
January 13, 2008
The whole land swap was motivated by trying to buy a coffin somewhere.
I got started buying 288 sq m in Monty because I was looking to build a neuromancer style coffin for sleeping in on a small parcel. This of course would not have worked but that was the crazy idea that started this move back to a Mature sim.
Building in Monty, learning and making mistakes.
At any rate I now have my old house set up in Monty, my crystal computing web design offices and have a roof or second floor started on the club building. I have at least 400 prims I can still use right now to build so should be fine. I got in some trouble when I joined the desks with the house and cubicles and then unlinked and the one desk became unlinked and then the house too. I think I have put the desk back together now. It was the first part to become affected because I tried to move the whole desk when it was unlinked and I took it apart in affect. I tried to put it back the way it was when I bought it. I think now I will unrez everything at the office and take it back to inventory and start with a fresh 27 prim beach house. Then only link the cubicles and stairs. They will have be all unlinked before I do this though.
Before this I learned it would be better if my z rotation for the offices were right angles to the grid so that when objects are moved inside they move right angles to the offices when they are being placed in the offices, because objects generally move right angles to the grid axis.
I ended up buying more of Monty.
I did end up back at the 25$ tier level for rent payments. I also spent my credit that would have covered this months rent and premium membership fees. My real life can just barely cover this right now. I am also already thinking about getting money out of this when I sell so I am worried in a greedy sort of way, I must reflect.
I continue to build my club in Monty and I have been able to buy two more adjoining land plots. I also looked around in Monty at all the for sale plots. There is a rainbow outdoor spa area in Monty and a few other small projects. Then there is my neighbour across the road with the huge castle and courtyard garden. I do not see buying that person out and see asking that avatar to manage the Medieval aspects of Monty Python culture. Oh well now my plans involve others.
January 5, 2008
I sold all my Stratus Land.
It is strange as to why I was attracted to Stratus. I thought of Spoke and the episode of Star Trek involving the cloud city of Stratus which ends in mutual class collaboration or dirtying to women of the upper class with mining work of the lower class.
I sold my land now in that sim. I bought some more land in Monty but sold more than I bought and in all I have money now to cover my monthly costs and also lowered my monthly costs.
Also by allowing someone to own more of one sim I have helped that person create a more themed area which they are doing in all their land there.
January 4, 2008
I sold my shop land and about 1600 sq m in total in Stratus
I sold a large amount of my land in Stratus. I had built up almost 4000 sq m there. I have been doing more in the mature sim Monty lately. I have been inspired by a number of in-world events I have participated in lately.
The first was a building class where the object was to build snacks. I learned a lot more about the object editing interface. So partly my forays into Monty have been building a building there. I have spent time lining up objects and trying out things like the free elevator.
The other inspiration comes from a redzone live in Second Life concert that took place a few weeks ago in the Gibson sim. So I have been thinking of building a club. I guess this is a common goal in Second Life and there are already a lot of clubs. I would need to diversify my club to do other things. I had thoughts last night of getting some expression for the club going along the lines of Monty Python in Monty sim. But that is just copying like the Gibson sim does. But I am reading about social simulation theory this evening and thinking of studies in computer based and mathematical simulations. Ah free thought! Copies of copies and empty lives devoid of meaning except by being measured by what we consume. No, not for me, but read on. One point I have been thinking is that consuming is actually a good thing because it helps us live better lives, even if some is excessive. We need the excess to make choices and mistakes. And the green movement can be used to guide those choices. So Second life an Ideal form or copy of the material world? Copying Monty Python?
The idea is brewing to buy all of the Monty sim and build up a Monty Python Inspired world there even with killer rabbits. I should get some money together and watch some more Monty Python and, of course, make a spreadsheet budget for such a sim.
Really Second Life is best done with other avatars. Building alone is not as much fun as social Second Life. The answer to consumption and the only way I can see it as a good behaviour is because of how it helps us with other people. I can see why single persons might like to have virtual avatar sex. Even the more hot topic of cheating avatar sex makes sense in some ways if unethical in my opinion. I certainly get better land deals when I do it avatar to avatar, rather than through the about land interface. Most of the land sales I did yesterday were to a neighbour. Neighbours have also given me land. Yes the book I am reading concludes that simulation as a philosophical theory is too gloomy and should concentrate more on relations with other people rather than consumerism and copies of the material world. I think I like that idea, as I paraphrased it here.