I recently read a blog post about "the best free things to do in Second Life" and found my way over to #2, Archery in Avalon Mist. This is a "medieval fantasy role play sim", so I felt obligated to don one of the free gowns available in the arrival area. I think a tux might have been more appropriate for Virtual Bailey, but I was in a hurry so I rushed off looking like an escapee from a 1980's prom.

I found my way to the archery pavillon, but for the life of me couldn't get the darned "dispenser" to give me a bow. I'm sure I'll have like 20 when I log in tomorrow. Luckily, a friend teleported in and already had one in their inventory.



Sadly, the bow didn't work with the scoring system, so I was only able to shoot and it didn't track our scores.



I'm sure it was just a SL glitch - perhaps it was offended by my gown? I'll have to stop back later when I have time to shop for proper medieval attire.

Ever find yourself in a crowd where people aren't speaking your language? Ever wish you could speak or understand another language? If so, you should pick up the Babbler and De-babbler translation HUDs (which you can get them free at Green).

De-babbler is used to translate what someone else is saying and Babbler is used to translate what you say. Both use Google transation to translate between English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, and Japanese. It also will translate into Pirate, although that translation comes from Pirate Monkeyness rather than Google.



To use either, all you have to do is wear them.

By default, the Babbler HUD displays in the upper left. When Babbler is on, the largest button is green, when it is off that button is white. Click this button to select your language and the language that you want Babbler to translate your text. Then start babbling - for each line of text that you enter, you will see a second line with your translated text (it will be green, and there will be an "x" before your name). If you click the Q button this puts you into quiet mode, meaning that only your translated text is displayed (so the original text that you type is not displayed).

The De-babbler HUD displays in the upper right by default. For me this was under the mini-map so I moved it (right click, edit, and use the color-coded arrows to drag it somewhere else). When you are the vicinity of someone speaking another language, simply click the yellow button to select who you want to translate and then click the big white button to start De-Babbler.

Now I need to find some non-English speakers, or pirates :)

Today I visited the AKK Horse Ranch.







I didn't purchase one - a tad too expensive at L$2000, not to mention 127 prims. I'm surprised they don't have a corral with rentals.

There was also a funny sign that said:
"Do not edit horses while wearing them and do not "open" them at any time."
Definitely not a sign you would see at a real world barn :)

The International Spaceflight Museum opened in Second Life last June. If you haven't been there recently, I highly recommend it.

In addition to an impressive display of rockets and numerous exhibits on spacecraft and space travel, you can ride a rocket into outer space.



The landing is a bit rough, but the views are definitely worth it.





You can read more about the project on their website.

If you're looking for a place to do some Highland dancing, check out the Scotland island.



You can also pick up some freebie Scottish items, however the flexi prim skirt didn't fit my girth properly :(

Back in November I stumbled upon a NOAA weather data visualization exhibit on Info Island. NOAA now has a full island on Meteroa.



When you arrive at the island you can pick up a HUD to be used on the island. It took me a minute to figure out that it was used for information delivery rather than navigation. This method provides a less obtrusive experience compared to traditional notecards.

The first exhibit that I visitred was the one on weather balloons. Keep your hand on the "fly" control because when the tour ends the balloong ends and you plummet to the ground :)



Next I took a ride on the hurricane plane.



And then I headed over to the glacier exhibit.

Sears and IBM recently unveiled a prototype at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

The concept is to use virtual worlds to help customers visualize real world purchases, for example kitchen cabinetry or appliances.

Earlier in the week I checked out the (somewhat new) Capitol Hill build.



The first thing I noticed was that all the flags were at half staff, because it was still within the 30 days after the death of President Ford. I found it unusual to have airplanes buzzing around (since you definitely won't see that in Washington), but closer inspection revealed they were pidgeons.



The House of Representatives was empty, so I took a seat for a bit before exploring the rest of the two island complex.



There's a big countdown clock, but it wasn't counting down to anything yet. There are also pavillions for the Democratic plans on healthcare, national security, college costs and other topics. Each one includes a notecard that explains their position in a few bullet points.

On the opposite end is a semi-transparent replica of the Washington Monument. At the base I clicked a small triangle that let me teleport to the top, but unfortunately once up there I couldn't find a teleport back to the bottom. There is a multi-chair up there in case you are looking for somewhere to hold a meeting :)

Commonwealth Island looks a tad like a campground in Yellowstone and features an active geyser.



According to an information kiosk, the project is being developed by real world non-profit EnviroLink Network. The goal of the project is to provide a starting place for social and environmental organizations that are interested in venturing into Second Life.