Member Sharing Session delivered by Mary Hudson and Alison Williams at the 2008 BBSLG Conference, hosted by Leeds University and Leeds Metropolitan University, 9-11 July

1. Second Life
BBSLG Leeds 2008
By Mary Hudson and Alison Williams
11th July 08
Second Life July 2008

2. Second Life
Copy in black 18pt
Trebuchet MS. Copy
Nam libero in hac
habitasse platea
dictumst. Proin ipsum
ut ac odio sit amet
pede facillisis
commodo. Copy in
black 18pt Trebuchet.
Copy Nam libero in hac
habitasse platea
dictumst
Second Life July 2008

3. Second Life
Who’s heard of it?
Who’s using it?
Who’s thinking of using it?
Second Life July 2008

4. Second Life – what is it?
A social space
3D virtual world - Linden Labs - 2003
Content is built entirely by its residents
Population: 14,203,869 (i)
Has it’s own currency – the Linden $
There is a separate teen world (under 18s)
People represented by avatars
Second Life July 2008

5. How we have been involved
2007 – awarded funding for project on
potential of Second Life (SL) for the library
Our avatars, Merry and Wynne, have
attended virtual world librarianship courses
and meetings (ii) and have spoken at an in-
world conference
Mary and Alison have written an article (iii)
and made contacts with academic staff with
an interest in SL
Second Life July 2008

6. Second Life July 2008

7. Solent Life
Solent Life Campus is
the university fashion
group’s SL project
Popular music and
journalism are also
interested
Second Life July 2008

8. Solent Life
We have a library
area with reference
desk in Solent Life
and plans to build
an information skills
area off the coast
Second Life July 2008

9. Second Life July 2008

10. Second Life July 2008

11. Second Life July 2008

12. Second Life July 2008

13. Second Life – why get involved?
SL is the most widely used virtual world
Growing educational presence (iv)
Transferable skills
Distance/blended learner support
VLE links - Sloodle
If academic staff and students are in this
new space, we should be there too
Second Life July 2008

14. References
(i) Second Life, 2008. Second Life Economic Statistics [online]. San
Francisco: Second Life Inc. Available: http://
secondlife.com/whatis/economy_stats.php [accessed 4 July 2008]
(ii) For meeting reports and transcripts see Sheila Webber’s Second Life
blog: http://adventuresofyoshikawa.blogspot.com/
(iii) Forthcoming in Sconul Focus
Alison (Wynne Merlin) Williams and Mary (Merry Mayo) Hudson.
Reflections in Wonderland.
(iv) Kirriemuir, John, 2008. A Spring “snapshot” of UK higher and
Further Education Development in Second Life [online]. Bath: Eduserve
Foundation. Available: http://
www.eduserv.org.uk/foundation/studies/slsnapshots [accessed 4 July
2008]
Second Life July 2008

15. Contact details
Mary Hudson mary.hudson@solent.ac.uk
or IM Merry Mayo
Alison Williams
alison.williams@solent.ac.uk
or IM Wynne Merlin
Second Life July 2008