Solving Content Theft in SL

I don't fully understand the technical or legal issues which make content theft in virtual spaces so difficult to solve. Like most people I have read that "if you can see, you can steal it" on the Internet. In order for us to be able to see all the wonderful things SL offers, the textures have to be rendered on our computers and once the information is on our computers, clever people can find a way to keep that data. Once the data has a price tag as virtual goods do, there is a powerful incentive for dishonest people to claim the content and attempt to redistribute it.

Again like most people, I hear about talented content creators having work stolen in flagrant ways and I wonder "why isn't Linden Lab doing something to stop this crime?" I have heard about DCMAs being filed and nothing happening. I see stolen content all over the grid and wonder what is it going to take to stop this theft? I figured it was time for me to try to understand the issues a bit better -- content theft has been going on for a long, long time but it sure seems to be spiraling out of control lately.

Yesterday, I was invited to a talk Bettina Tizzy organized on the frustrating and difficult subject of content theft. The speaker was Ben Duranske who wrote "Virtual Law: Navigating the Legal Landscape of Virtual Worlds," and I was so interested to hear what he had to say that I rearranged my RL schedule to be there. Duranske's talk was fantastic and for a great summary I suggest you read Phaylen's blog. She has done an excellent job of summarizing the presentation and highlighting the issues.

Duranske suggests content creators make sure they register their copyright with the government because in the US doing so increases the ability to sue for damages and recover legal costs. When content theft becomes international, despite the Berne Convention, prosecution becomes difficult. Duranske said the best thing to do if your work is stolen is to file a DCMA with Linden Lab. He went on to suggest that, in his personal opinion, Linden Lab's response to content theft has been insufficient. (I think any reasonable person would strongly agree with this assertion.) Duranske said he is a "big fan" of the class action suit as a tool. He remarked that the class action suit recently brought against Linden Lab regarding content theft was very well done. I guess we will see the results of that action eventually, hopefully sooner rather than later.

Later in the day I attended "Asked & Answered: All you ever wanted to know about third party viewers and content theft." This event was a panel discussion produced by Rezzed.TV. Stuart Warf was the moderator and his guests were Rebel Hope a content creator who has had her entire store stolen by a copybot, Tenshi Vielle a blogger and member of 'The Artist's Voice' a group working to find solutions to content theft, and two of the developers of the Emerald Viewer Lonely Bluebird and Fractured Crystal. You can download the podcast here. The venue was packed demonstrating the incredible amount of interest in this subject. To be honest the best discussion happened in the audience after the end of the show. Rezzed.TV plans to continue the discussion in a series of similar events over the coming weeks.

Later in the evening I passed on a few Halloween parties and instead chose to listen to Kazihiro's talk about the creative process, which I blogged about a few days ago. Kaz walked the audience through the use of Maya to create sculpties and baked shadows, then shared the process used in Photoshop to create detailed textures. I will say listening to an artist talk about all the work that goes in to one single sculpted prim really capped off my day of learning about content theft in an appropriate way.

Solving content theft is just not going to be easy. Saying "Linden Lab should stop it now!" is way too simplistic. Frankly, I think Linden is somewhat limited in what they can do. Once that lovely object is viewable on a thief's computer they can technically steal it. The question is what legal and social pressures can Linden Lab and individuals use to prevent the theft. If prevention is not possible, how do we prosecute effectively? I really don't know the answers, but it seems lots of people are engaged in the discussion and hopefully something positive will happen soon. I don't even want to think about the future of SL if content theft continues without restraint.

ETA: Duranske's slides can be found here.

Kazuhiro Aridian Talks About The Creative Process

White Lebed was the Art Director of Burning Life 2009 and she will be staying on with the organization in that capacity. Throughout the year she plans classes taught by some of Second Life's best artists and content creators. The first of these special events is tomorrow Friday 10/30 at 6pm with a class taught by the amazingly talented Kazuhiro Aridian, who built the otherworldly Berlin Stage, where the class will take place. A second class will take place on Sunday at the more euro-friendly time of noon SLT.




During this class, Kazuhiro will talk about the creative process that resulted in the build you see above. The plan is to talk in detail about the mechanical process of creating one part of the build and to guide the audience so they will be able to make something with the information Kazuhiro shares. So, if you ever had the desire to learn from one of SL's great artist this is your chance. After the class the intent is to turn the Berlin Stage build physical and destroy it, marking the end of Burning Life 2009 and the start of the AfterBurn period.

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I had the opportunity to meet Kazuhiro at europa, the shop where you can buy creations made by this talented artist. Kazuhiro makes spectacular avatars, including this bi-ped I am wearing. I love how I retain my human face and at the same time am transformed into a robot-like creature. Kazuhiro's imagination and amazing technical skill are abundantly clear when you look at the details in this creation up close. I must apologize for the quality of these photos. I am in a bit of a rush so I will resort to the tired of cliche "you need to see this work for yourself, my photos don't do it justice." Follow the link to europa and you will be amazed, this I promise.



Kazuhiro has been creating in Second Life since 2005. The human behind the avatar is a college student who is studying illustration. Kazuhiro is self taught in 3D building and uses Maya as the tool of choice. Kaz told me building in Maya is "deceptively simple" and "it's a lot like cooking. first, you have to learn the recipe and follow the rules and measurements. once you make something that tastes delicious, you know how to modify your experience and apply it to other recipes."

While it may be true that with enough training and exploration, most people can learn to use tools like Maya. It is also true that the genius of Kazuhiro's work is the artistic vision and powerful ability the art has to evoke an emotional reaction.

You can read more about Kazuhiro here on Bettina Tizzy's blog and here on New World Notes. The photo below is Kaz and I when we chatted earlier today. I am very much looking forward to the class tomorrow. Join me there, won't you?

A Very Personal Post

If you read this blog with any regularity you know I recently lost a friend in RL. She died when she got an infection common in lung transplant patients. The lungs she got from a generous donor gave her three extra years with her sons, who were 4 and 6 years old when she died.

I could tell you about my friend Pat who has a donor kidney and my son's friend Jack who got a donor heart when he was just 8 years old. Instead, let me just say that organ donation is something I feel strongly about.

Recently I learned my friend Delinda is waiting for an organ transplant. Delinda does amazing work in Second Life and over time we have become friends. I respect her a great deal and when I learned that she too needs an organ, it hit me particularly hard. Please go to Delinda's blog and watch the short video by SLer Drew Carey. Then take the poll. Thanks.

Where in the World is Chestnut?

My first rez day was in June 07 so I am coming up on 2 and a half years in Second Life. In that time I have seen a lot of people come and go. I have known people who have felt like they needed a hiatus and I honestly never understood. Lately, I get it.

Maybe it is losing two people I cared about within 5 months in RL that is coloring my mood. I am not sure what the seed of my discontent is but there is no doubt that I am mostly seeing shades of gray in everything.

I felt glimpses of the wonder of Second Life at Burning Man. I had days of being really into Octoberville before the frustration of not being able to figure out the game sapped my enthusiasm entirely. Sigh.

I have three build projects I should be working on but I rez a cube, stare at it, delete it. No inspiration.

Instead I am going to turn on my torch and melt some RL glass in my studio and see what happens. Luckily I don't even own any gray glass.

"The problem with SL, is that, it is fundamentally broken." ColeMarie

I happened to see a flickr photo with a comment from ColeMarie yesterday and it has been bugging me ever since. Please go here and have a look.

She says "I am not saying SL is entirely useless. I am just saying that SL has made you all sick. Whether you realize it yet or not. This is true."

Well. Umm.

Here is what I have to say:

Linden Lab offers us a tool called Second Life. This tool allows people to do many different things. Some of us use the tool for social reasons while others use the tool for artistic, business or educational purposes. There are as many ways to use the tool we call SL as there are "side effects" of doing so. For some of us that means we have developed skills for others it means we have developed illnesses.

We should no more give a hammer credit for creating a fine piece of furniture than we should blame SL for damaging our mental or physical health. It is silly to blame a tool for our own behavior. In the end, a tool is just a tool.

As my friends Grace McDunnough and Salome Strangelove say in their song Fairy Tale, "This world is what you make of it."

The Temple of the Prim by soror Nishi

If you have not been to The Temple of the Prim I think you should treat yourself to a visit.. British landscape artist soror Nishi's unique style is easy to spot. Her colorful, otherworldly plants clearly do not grow in our gardens, -- they look like they originated from a place light years away from planet Earth. I love her work and walking around this installation is a treat.

Read about soror's approach to building and her inspiration here on Bettina Tizzy's blog. Then go here to experience this fun, interesting and very photographable installation for yourself.

The smell of the incense

I was not raised in a religious home. Churches are foreign places I don't understand. The words spoken make little sense to me and the rituals feel strange. Yet, there are days when going to Church is the only option -- like when there is a Monday morning 10am funeral mass for your friend.

All I know is I can't stop smelling the incense and I can't shake the image of her brave little boys holding their Dad's hands as they walked into the Church together.

Peace be with you, Jackie.

Time for a RL Interlude

My friend Jackie died last night. She was 38 years old. Jackie leaves behind 4 and 6 year old sons and her wonderful husband Kevin.

After the birth of her baby 4 years ago Jackie was having trouble breathing. Many doctors and many tests later she discovered that she was born with a rare disease that meant her only hope for survival was a transplant. About 3 years ago Jackie had a double lung transplant. Someone's tragedy meant my friend had three fairly healthy years with her young sons.

Over the past several months Jackie suffered from an infection that is common in transplant patients. No matter what the doctors did, no matter how hard she fought there was nothing left to do but ease her pain with heavy doses of morphine. About 10:30 last night Jackie took her last labored breath and passed from this world.

I am telling this story not for sympathy and not to make you sad. I am sharing this because I would like to ask you to do something in Jackie's memory. Please give blood and sign an organ donation card. Carry that card with you so if the unthinkable happens, you can give someone else the gift of life.

Please be extra kind to someone today -- for me and for my friend. Thanks

Eyes of the World

Sometimes we live no particular way but our own,
And sometimes we visit your country and live in your home,
Sometimes we ride on your horses, sometimes we walk alone,
Sometimes the songs that we hear are just songs of our own.

Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world,
The heart has its beaches, its homeland and thoughts of its own.
Wake now, discover that you are the song that the mornin brings,
But the heart has its seasons, its evenins and songs of its own.

The Grateful Dead

25 Group Limit - Redux

You often hear people complaining about the 25 group limit in SL. The tenor and volume of the complaints has subsided a bit now that group subscription services are available, but I still hear the complaints.

Today I left a group that I have been in for a very long time. It was an emotional thing, believe it or not. I did not want to leave the group, but sometimes things happen and its just time to go. So I opened the group tab, noticed all the powers that had been taken away from me without so much as a word. That confirmed it for me and I left the group. Sad, sigh. Done.

This little act got me wondering about groups. Why do we belong to in world groups? For me there are some that serve no useful purpose really, but I have an attachment to the people or maybe the group is a memory. A perfect example is M is for Myg, which is my friend Mygdala March's group. She is off in RL tending to her adorable twin boys and has not been around in world for ages. M is for Myg lays fallow and has been so for well over a year. Will I delete that group? Maybe one day, but not today.

How many groups do we really need? Since I have just admitted I hang on to some for emotional reasons it occurs to me that others do as well. Perhaps the 25 group limit is not a bad thing. I am pretty sure I would hold on to a lot of groups if I had the room. And, sometimes it really is time to just let go.

Skye Galexy - SL Musician You MUST Hear

This video is not the best but it gives you a tiny taste of Skye Galexy's voice.



It is not often I swoon when I hear a new musician in SL All I can say is Skye Galexy stopped me dead in my tracks and I was blown away. I cleared a spot and joined his group by the end of the first song I heard him sing.

Skye's voice is like honey. He sang How Soon is Now and I loved it. Yes. He sang Morrisey and he owned the song. Totally owned it.

Go.See.Skye. You can thank me later.

ETA: Skye just sent a "CD" of original songs to his group. It is an object that looks like a CD and when you touch it it plays the music over the sim music stream. Very cool. I wish I knew how to post it here for you to hear but, sadly, I don't. If you want the music then you can join Skye's group "Skye High." I can invite you so IM me inworld and I am happy to do so. Then all you have to do is go to the Notices history and grab the CD.

Eyes are the Window to the Avatar Soul

I generally do not blog fashion as I am not qualified, interested, and do not nearly have sufficient ego or self esteem to be in the very scary world of fashion bloggers. Having said that, occasionally I come across something that makes me sqeeeee in dorky fashion delight. Today the squee heard round the sim was because of my new eyes from Poetic Eyes. These lovelies come with small, medium and large eyes in each set, which cost $200. I just love the complexity and depth of these eyes. Don't you?


These are medium size, ocean in midnight sea.


These are medium size, gold flakes in moonstone.

And while I am playing fashion blogger:

Skin: Curio Sundust Frex Dark Breeze - Mauve Mist 2 SURL
Lashes: Cake Flutter Lashes SLURl
Hair: Frangipani (unavailable)