“Back To The Future” Gwyneth Llewelyn Innovation Week ’08 Orange Island, September 29, 2008

Gwyneth Llewelyn

Innovation Week ’08

Orange Island, September 29, 2008

What innovations changed Second Life® completely ? Clues to find them: “Disruptive innovation”: suddenly a host of new things start to become common, when they were unthinkable before Fads that never go out of ‘fashion’

Clues to find them:

“Disruptive innovation”: suddenly a host of new things start to become common, when they were unthinkable before

Fads that never go out of ‘fashion’

Since we just have one hour.... ... we’ll focus on the kinds of innovations that unforeseenly changed the way we think about Second Life® Often Linden Lab introduced them with completely different goals Residents, however, transformed them and created something new

... we’ll focus on the kinds of innovations that unforeseenly changed the way we think about Second Life®

Often Linden Lab introduced them with completely different goals

Residents, however, transformed them and created something new

The Economy Second Life started... without the L$! Allowed residents to exchange goods and services using a micropayment currency Things like the LindeX (after the Gaming Open Market exchange) were unplanned and unexpected!

Second Life started... without the L$!

Allowed residents to exchange goods and services using a micropayment currency

Things like the LindeX (after the Gaming Open Market exchange) were unplanned and unexpected!

Lessig’s IP-on-a-prim Intended to allow deeper-grained control in collaborative building Instead: it made SL an one-of-a-kind virtual world, the single one featuring only user-generated content!

Intended to allow deeper-grained control in collaborative building

Instead: it made SL an one-of-a-kind virtual world, the single one featuring only user-generated content!

Animations Introduced in June 2004 Linden Lab thought about “emotes” (inside gestures) But... it was used by the dance industry ... and made the whole sex industry go through a Renaissance!

Introduced in June 2004

Linden Lab thought about “emotes” (inside gestures)

But... it was used by the dance industry

... and made the whole sex industry go through a Renaissance!

Flexible prims (flexies) A nice addition to tortured prims allowing new types of building elements (e.g. flags, awnings...) Totally used by the fashion industry! The same applies, of course, to sculpties

A nice addition to tortured prims allowing new types of building elements (e.g. flags, awnings...)

Totally used by the fashion industry!

The same applies, of course, to sculpties

Web connectivity June 2004: XML-RPC allows webservers to communicate with in-world objects (before that: email) Planned to allow simple interactions with remote databases ... but we got web-based shops, market exchanges, social site mashups...

June 2004: XML-RPC allows webservers to communicate with in-world objects (before that: email)

Planned to allow simple interactions with remote databases

... but we got web-based shops, market exchanges, social site mashups...

Voice Planned to “keep up with the competition” who used voice for gaming purposes But we got business conferences, seminars, live music, even talk shows... LL is the world’s second largest VoIP operator after Skype (in just one year!)

Planned to “keep up with the competition” who used voice for gaming purposes

But we got business conferences, seminars, live music, even talk shows...

LL is the world’s second largest VoIP operator after Skype (in just one year!)

Streaming media Perhaps thought to allow people to tell their friends what they were listening to... Generated a huge music economy, where DJs and live musicians now work full time, and radios and in-world TV stations offer regular features

Perhaps thought to allow people to tell their friends what they were listening to...

Generated a huge music economy, where DJs and live musicians now work full time, and radios and in-world TV stations offer regular features

Resident innovations! Mostly they addressed SL’s limitations by clever tweaking of certain features, exploiting bugs, or thinking out-of-the-box Some have become so popular and universal that residents think it was “planned this way”!

Mostly they addressed SL’s limitations by clever tweaking of certain features, exploiting bugs, or thinking out-of-the-box

Some have become so popular and universal that residents think it was “planned this way”!

The Ugly Avatar Newer generations will never remember Ruth any more, but... we all have prim hair, shoes, and skirts animation overriders & dance bracelets avatar radars skins

Newer generations will never remember Ruth any more, but...

we all have prim hair, shoes, and skirts

animation overriders & dance bracelets

avatar radars

skins

Extending Second Life If Linden Lab were any other company (think Kaneva!), these would be part of their services: Snapzilla The online webshops SL Profiles LindeX is just LL’s clone of the GOM

If Linden Lab were any other company (think Kaneva!), these would be part of their services:

Snapzilla

The online webshops

SL Profiles

LindeX is just LL’s clone of the GOM

libOpenMV Formerly known as libsecondlife, this is a re-engeneering solution to talk to SL without using a 3D viewer It brought us CopyBot and LandBots... but also all sorts of new ways of get rid of LL’s imposed limits on LSL Statistics, metrics, mapping, invites...

Formerly known as libsecondlife, this is a re-engeneering solution to talk to SL without using a 3D viewer

It brought us CopyBot and LandBots... but also all sorts of new ways of get rid of LL’s imposed limits on LSL

Statistics, metrics, mapping, invites...

The future?... As we will see later, new technologies might become the next ‘disruptive technology’

As we will see later, new technologies might become the next ‘disruptive technology’

Thanks for your time! Feel free to IM me or email me at [email_address]

Thanks for your time!

Feel free to IM me or email me at [email_address]