Fun presentations.. =)

For last wk n this wk, i have been so busy with sch work n reali cant breathe.. no time to sleep too.. had marketing ppt, com242 ppt, ntr109 r.p., com300 ppt, com300 r.p., com125 ppt......... However, now:

After all the planting and sowing, we've gotten our fruits of achievement!!

The Cutey Princessy Cherries!!

Haha.. ok people, pls dun be disgusted by us.. This is our hardwork n effort k.. we sacrifice for our presentation ok.. okay, our topic was on media cultivation and so, from some of the research we have found, one way media has cultivated us into is the "act cute phenomenon" for gals!! So, our enthu head n vice-head (Sabrina & Andrea)--> the two most act cute from the pic, one with the hand up while the other with the leg<-- suggested that we dress up and make up to make ourselves look cute.. indeed, we had fun (esp stickin on the fake lashes, haha.. had a hard time.. our kind n 'skillfull' Andrea helped us with it.. like a mama-san.. haha.. Dionne, Joanne n I felt like we cldnt open our eyes..) initially, I was "ee-year-ing" thru'out the make up session and they all ask mi to shut up.. haha.. forgive me, i jus cldnt stand the sight of the long fake lash coz i dun have much lashes.. haha.. but eventually, i thot it looks nice n reali had an enlarging effects.. all we did was worth it.. so enjoyable.. tink our lecturer, Mr Kevin Lim likes it quite alot.. he even requested for our photos to be posted in our academic blog..

The Ultimate 'Gamers'!!

(hey Andrea, mind ur gun k.. dun "zou huo" n shoot me hor.. i sue u ah..)

alright, dun tink we're crazy k thou we're close to it.. haha.. the above outfits were wad we thot of for our another presentation on online gaming.. to make the lesson more interesting, our same heads, Andrea & Sabrina, proposed that we wear clothes that resembles any game character.. so can u guess who r we?? haha.. ok, the first one in blue is Liyana, she rep a character from Final Fantasy dunno wad wizzard people i tink.. =p then followed by Sabrina, i tink u all shld noe who she is by her M hat.. she's pirated Mario.. haha.. then here comes the "big" boobs Andrea.. she is the tomb raider dunno wad.. i helped her in creating that "swell" infront of her 'chest'.. haha.. ok then is me!! guess who?! im street fighter Ryu!! haha.. n the next one, quite obvious oso, is Sailor Moon, acted by Jasmine.. the last is Rosalyn, a CS character.. finally, the most normal lookin guy in our pic is our lecturer.. Mr Kevin Lim.. tink he's fantasized by our ppt.. haha.. we got full grade for our ppt!! hooray!! haha.. thanks alot man.. =b

Finally, quickly "siam", i gonna 'chut' power.. "argh-duh-gan, orh-yew-gan" muahahahaha..
'kan zhao, jie zhao ba'..... cool huh.. so man.. *bluek* anyway, i feel i look quite shuai in black belt so im gona go for gradin till i get my black belt for TKD thou it may not be ez..

*special thanks to Alan Ho, my TKD ex-president for lending me his black belt.. haha..*
*also, special thanks to my bf for providing a listening ear.. hehe*

Have fun everyone.. exams coming!! arghhhhhh.. -poof-

Bonus Mission #2: Why is Second Life not a game?

Second Life is an Internet-based virtual world which came to international attention via mainstream news media in late 2006 and early 2007. Second Life was founded by former RealNetworks CTO Philip Rosedale through Linden Lab. Its users have been increasing from 1 million registered accounts as of 18 October, 2006, to now 5 million registered accounts, 26 March, 2007. In general, Residents can explore, meet other Residents, socialize, participate in individual and group activities, create and trade items and services from one another (“Second Life”, 2007). These avatars (Residents) interact with each other, start up businesses, stage their own concerts, sell real estate and design fashion lines (“CNN”, 2006).

While Second Life is sometimes referred to as a game, it does not have points, scores, winners or losers, levels, an end-strategy, or most of the other characteristics of games. The below features of Second Life, proves why it is not just a game:

1) Communication and transport

Within Second Life, there are two main methods of text-based communication: local chat, and global "instant messaging" (known as IM). Chatting is used for public localized conversations between two or more avatars, and can be "heard" within 25 m. Avatars can also 'shout' ('audible' within 100 m) and 'whisper' ('audible' within 10 m). IM is used for private conversations, either between two avatars, or between the members of a group (“Second Life”, 2007).

This feature of being able to chat within different distances is unlike of other available games. Also, for most games, its nature is to compete with each other and complete the game. It is very seldom that people will chat in games. Thus, this interactive nature of Second Life makes it more than a game.

2) Economy and real estate

Second Life has its own economy and a currency referred to as Linden Dollars (L$) at around L$ 270 to one US dollar. Residents create new goods and services, and buy and sell them in the Second Life virtual world. Residents derive net incomes from this economy, ranging from a few hundred to several thousand US$ per month. Premium members can own land (“Second Life”, 2007).

Statistics have shown that the currency in Second Life is actually very high as compared to the real-world. From data found in Second Life website on 7 April, 2007, The US$ spent last 24 hours was $1,803,863. This is definitely a huge amount of money and it rare to happen in other games. The economical skills and trade in Second Life makes it more than mere entertainment.

3) Creation and copyright

Residents of Second Life create most of the content of the world. The creator can mark an item as "no copy," which means that no copies of it can be made by others, "no mod," which means that others may not modify the item's characteristics, and "no trans," which means that the current owner may not give it to another. Also, not only live music performances take place in Second Life, Residents are setting up business and even an embassy (“Second Life”, 2007).

In many other games, there is little mention regarding users copyright etc. However, in Second Life, Residents are in-charge of their own items and can create their own properties. This is very much alike as real life. The creation and copyright system proves again Second Life to be not just a game.

4) Education in Second Life

Second Life has recently emerged as one of the cutting-edge virtual classrooms for major colleges and universities. Second Life fosters a welcoming atmosphere for administrators to host lectures and projects online, selling more than 100 islands for educational purposes (“Second Life”, 2007).

A growing number of educators are getting caught up in the wave. More than 60 schools and educational organizations have set up shop in the virtual world and are exploring ways it can be used to promote learning. The three-dimensional virtual world makes it possible for students taking a distance course to develop a real sense of community and it is a good way to introduce international perspectives, said Rebecca Nesson, who leads a class jointly offered by Harvard Law School and Harvard Extension School in the world of "Second Life" (“CNN”, 2006).

There is obvious growing popularity of Second Life amongst lecturers. The real-time interaction encourages students to engage in discussion, hence making them more interested in the things they do, ultimately enhancing learning. Using Second Life as an educational tool breaks the norm of game being mere entertainment. Current MMORPGs’(e.g. World of Warcraft) game strategies are to role-play and kill monsters etc. The usual games lack the factor of education. Therefore, with this educational feature of Second Life, it is beyond entertainment.

In conclusion, Second Life is more than a game for entertainment as compared to the other games. However, due to its many features in Second Life, it brings about ethical issues (e.g. pornography) and concerns about game addiction. Therefore, one must think critically and practice moderation so that the pros of Second Life do not turn into cons.

References:

Wikipedia: The free encyclopedia. (2007, 6 April). Second Life. Retrieved 7 April, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Life

Grace Wong (2006, 14 November). Educators explore ‘Second Life’ online. New York: CNN, Technology. Retrieved 7 April, 2007 from http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/11/13/second.life.university/index.html

QotW10: => Elynzz Bailey <=

(1) Ain't I cool?? Handsome me!! haha..

Simply love my hair style, love my build, love my everything in Second life!!

(2) I am on top of the World!! It feels so good to be standing so high to view the world!!

Ain't I strong to withstand the strong winds??

(3) Wonder what is that building for?! Went there and its empty!!

Took so long to explore but still, could'nt find the mission in there.. -Arghhhh-

(4) I wonder what's happening over the other side of the island..

"Boundary-less" sea/land= sense of freedom or create a lonely feel?? Dilemma..

__________________________________________________________

Second Life Name: Elynzz Bailey

Elynzz Bailey is a male with a special looking hair-style. He has got white long hair, with the sides shaved. His fringe, beard and purple eyes make him extremely charming! He is not only muscular but tall too. A very good build indeed! He has a white coat on which goes along with a pair of whie gloves, making him look cool and professional at the same time.

His name is as such because it sounds a little like my own name, Ee Lin, and my idol is named Z-Chen, so Elynzz was ceated. The last name was chosen because my friends and I love to drink barley and Bailey is the closest to it. So if you see characters with the last name as Bailey in COM125 SL group, it is most probably my close friends (as we agreed on using the same last name to have a feel of being a family) =>

Many of my friends created characters in Second Life looking just like themselves in real life. However, I feel that I should create something different from myself. To me, that is the purpose of playing Second Life. Hence, I am a MALE in Second Life. My avatar is not just any ordinary plain looking guy, but a very charming and cool man. In real life, if I were to be dressed and styled that way, people will think I am crazy as Singapore's society (still conservative) have yet to be open-minded enough to accept this kind of bold character. Also, it takes alot of effort, determination and hardwork to achieve a muscular body in real life. I supposed just like females like to be slim, males prefer muscular bodies too. Hence, I modified my avatar to be a muscular, handsome-looking man. I like the avatar that I have created as it fulfils what I could not accomplish and achieve in my real life (e.g.: flying. In many of my dreams, I was always able to fly just like how I CAN NOW FLY in Second Life.) My avatar's appearance, hair style, attire, build etc is also what I feel personally as PERFECT! (or at least close to it). Thus, I can say I really enjoy playing Second Life but I hope I don't get addicted. =D

Next, the place I have chosen to take my snapshot is at a castle. My friend, Andrea (Andreosity Bailey), chosed the same place. We wanted to take the photo together but though we were at the same place (as appeared on the computer that we were using), we could'nt find each other at the site. Hence, we took photos individually. I took several screenshots as I want to let people have a look of my front and back view (my long, nice, style white hair). =b

Reasons why I chosed to take snapshots at the King's chair are because I could not complete all the task in Orientation island as I could'nt find them nor could I teleport out of the island. So I chose my most favourite place in the Orientation Island (i.e, The Castle). Anyway, I like the site as it has very good view and is windy (that is how I feel. hehe). Sitting on The chair really made me feel like a King, just too bad that I did'nt have a crown. =p I took snapshots looking at different directions so that people know what are some of the other areas in Second Life. From that place, I can see places in the castle (including the library), urbanised area where tall and modern buildings can be seen and, the calm sea and spacious land.

Personally, I like to view beautiful sceneries, especially when everything feels so "boundary-less". I seem to always contradict myself. Sometimes, I have a great sense of freedom (being able to enjoy the breeze and fresh air) when I am situated at a big place (just like I am standing on top of the world in one of the snapshots), but at the same time, I will think again and I will actually feel lonely as well. But never mind, I know that in Second Life, there are always people around, comforting me that I am never alone.

Laslty, to my friends who reads my blog and come across this, you could visit secondlife.com and sign up then d/l or install the program to experience it yourself. It is really fun and interesting as you slowly explore the place (though you may find it boring when you first start).