As a building exercise, I've been constructing a virtual version of my real world cubicle area. For reference, here's a snapshot.



Using a point and shoot digital camera, I took a few pictures to use as the main textures (the partitions, bulletin board area, carpet, file cabinet, etc.) and then got to work assembling. Next, I constructed the desk and added some details that I had missed (like the six wheels on the teeny tiny file cabinet). I then shot a few more pictures to add details to the desk (papers and books, my daily lack of nutrition, and of course by Fabjectory statue). Here's the finished product.



I was amazed at how much depth can be achieved from some relatively simple texturing (just don't look at that water bottle from the side though!). Next, I added some shadowing and a few scripts to bring it to life. The bookcase opens to reveal a messy interior, the desk light works, and the drawers in the file cabinet open - except the bottom one which only opens for me since it contains some confidential materials.

Hair Fair 2007 runs through the 14th, so if you are still wandering around with the default hairdo this is a great place to find all of the major hair designers in one location.



This is one of the most crowded events that I've attended in Second Life. There are two venues (the same booths at both) and when I visited (6am PST Easter Sunday) I counted over 60 avatars at each! It was a little laggy at times, so I wound up standing in one place and using my camera to navigate from booth to booth.

There are many good freebies and dollar buys - some labeled and some not so if it looks like a present or a gift bag, click it to see what's inside. One designer I hadn't seen before was Pazzaz, who has a line called Transitions. When you click the hair, your avatar does a little "tousling hair" gesture and then the hairdo changes to something else - for example, up-do to hanging free. Of course, scripts are disabled at the fair location, so to see the demo in action you have to go somewhere else to try it out.

The Orange County Chopper build (link) opened yesterday.

For L$1, you buy a HUD that displays a blueprint for the bike and walks you through the process of building it. There's no customization per se, but it's a snazzy little bike for a buck :)