Stream On…
by Alphaville Herald on 23/06/05 at 6:35 pm
Well, ok, the Lindens have a link that gives streaming live video from in the game. If you are like me you’ll be able to watch it for 30 seconds or so before you feel that sense of boredom that you haven’t experienced since the summer after 6th grade. I’m not sure what its supposed to accomplish, but it does remind me of 1993, when those guys at MIT wired their coke machine to the internet to show how many cans of soda were left and people used to go there to look at it because there was nothing else *on* the internet. Problem is that there are other things to look at now. But if the coke machine were the only other thing on the net I might watch the streaming video. Maybe half the time. Are they expecting to get customers out of this or are we to think of it as an interesting hack?
Jade Lily
Jun 23rd, 2005
I believe it is an early experiment meant to prepare us for streaming video from an upcoming event.
Karras Weary
Jun 24th, 2005
Now it’s a streaming image of an error message. It’s very fitting.
marilyn murphy
Jun 24th, 2005
it was worse than boring it was embarrasing. if i had seen that as a new person who did not know second life i would have passed it by. audio streams being played by residents who were being camera whores included flatulence noises and the uncle fucker song bite. i am aware this amuses 14yr olds as my son laughs hysterically over such things. as a pr idea it stinks. as entertainment it stinks. i suspicion linden labs needs to think long and hard about running such a thing on their web site.
marilyn
Tony Walsh
Jun 24th, 2005
Normally I’m very cynical about these things, but I think the video is actually a pretty good way to introduce the public to SL — people who might not go as far as signing up, but are interested to have a look. It’s difficult to describe SL to people who haven’t seen it — all the different avatars, the flying around, etc.
Aimee Weber
Jun 24th, 2005
I’m with Marilyn on this one. I don’t think Linden Lab is doing itself any favors with this stream. The context is all wrong and gives viewers a very surreal, bizarre, and more importantly INCORRECT impression about Second Life.
Tony Walsh
Jun 24th, 2005
I should have watched it more, but couldn’t hack more than 5 minutes. I was sort of hoping to see some dirt, but managed to miss all the good stuff. Thanks for the info on this.
Colette
Jun 24th, 2005
Dont think it was needed.
But if they are bound to keep it ..
Maybe they could add a camera so that people wouldnt know when it was on or where it was. Just in a list of PG sims say “in this Sim you may be streamed to the web site”
Kind of like the way web Cams dont get noticed on intersections and the like.
seems like the fact they know that they are “on TV” is encouraging juvinile behavior.
Cocoanut
Jun 24th, 2005
It’s a great idea, and I loved seeing it. But then hearing that it became things that aren’t allowed on a PG Sim – I figure they must not have thought it through very carefully. Surely they didn’t intend that non-PG type things would be right there on the front page for people who aren’t even in the game to view.
I still think it’s a wonderful idea, but not if they are going to do it this way. It’s kind of nuts to ban people for saying the f-word in a PG sim (“some” people, that is) and then feature this sort of thing in a place that truly IS PG; i.e., a web page anyone of any age can easily view.
It goes without saying that I wouldn’t have wanted to join had I seen that first, and I imagine many others we would like to have join would be turned off, too.
coco
simon
Jun 24th, 2005
Okayy then…
Joe Public
Jun 24th, 2005
The funniest thing is reading so-called internet evangalista wunderkinda Reuby Linden’s blog, where he call’s it “profound”.
http://reuben.typepad.com/reuben_steigers_weblog/2005/06/video_from_a_vi.html#comments
Jeez, if that’s profound I can;t wait for the sublime.
Didn’t this sort of hype die with the tech wreck bubble…or is that the era that reuby is stuck in?
SNOOPYbrown Zamboni
Jun 24th, 2005
Uri > it does remind me of 1993, when those guys at MIT wired their coke machine to the internet to show how many cans of soda were left and people used to go there to look at it because there was nothing else *on* the internet.
I hear ya. But keep in mind that tracking inventory over the internet is much bigger than one particular Coke can counting app. One of the most important business systems in the world is realtime supply-chain management to automatically know when a product’s been purchased or a part used and then instantly signal men and machines to produce another and get it where it needs to go. So the global economy runs on Coke can counting machines!
(And hey, considering the spectacle of its complexity, I’d probably tune in and watch the Wal-Mart supply-chain TV channel from time to time 
)
In a similar way, portals from digital worlds will become much bigger than one particular steady shot of w00tin’ avs. I saw the homepage video portal as a really big deal…kind of like Second Life’s version of a moon landing in the sense that SL has finally left its home planet: “One small step for Second Life; One great leap for digital worlds kind!” (BTW, I think SL’s version of alien invasion will happen with full Firefox integration
) In the hands of SL users, the ability to SLcast or simulcast from SL or whatever you want to call it, will allow all sorts of cool new stuff to happen. The next teeny step is to allow people tuning in from the Web to chat *into* SL and vice verse. In fact I think that’s already here…it’s just not distributed yet. That kind of two-way communication (feedback) will likely lop off the bulk of the lame factor pretty quick. (And also be like a chatter bot that works, from the POV of Web surfers 
)
tminus
Jun 24th, 2005
We’ll one thing most of you can’t offer is a perspective on what it is actually like for a non-resident to see this. I am currently working on my machine to get it capable enough to handle SL. Since I found out about SL I went around in a craze looking for videos (the only official ones from LL are from two years ago!) and before I found Jack Digeradoo’s site fireballtrailers.com there was almost nothing on the internet (Bloody Mary, Prims in the Wild, Chinatown.) I just wanted to simply see something from it to curb my obsession until I could join. I even sent LL an email about having videos for interested people to download and this is their response, I assume, to emails on the subject.
For one it shows the ability of SL to simulcast the game. How many other games do this? It is a testament to SL’s uniqueness. Second, downloading and playing may not seem so hard for you but with many others it may mean the difference between playing it and There, Project-Entropia etc. It is a simple first step for potential residents without investing any time, energy or funds. Does it show off the game’s finer points? Probably not. But does it serve a purpose to potential residents or even people who are incapable of playing? Indeed. Third, why make a 30 sec. commercial when you can just stream live video. It is a frontpage ad without any annoying, in-yer-face selling points. In one minute I saw a furry sing the meow-meow song and get shot, a storm-trooper morph into Darth Vader, another furry dancing and a spaceship land and take off! If I hadn’t already been about as informed about SL as one can be without playing then that would of all been completely amazing to me, and still was even with the knowledge.
…And all that stuff SNOOPYbrown Zamboni said. =)
Urizenus
Jun 24th, 2005
Yeah ok. I was being too much of a hardass. But it would be more interesting if they would give us the feed from an avi rather than just a fixed location that is going to be camped by attention ho’s. And what I’ve seen so far might be branded FIC TV.
Joe Public
Jun 24th, 2005
>>How many other games do this?
hmmm….ever hear of UnrealTV?
Mr F.
Jun 25th, 2005
I’ve tried to turn on some of my friends to SL. After I seen some of the live feed I wont ecourage anybody to check it out. Its just to embaressing. I dont want people to think I waste time and money on that. It shows none of the aspects of SL other than dancing AVs and crowding in front of a camera and saying “Hi Mom”. The worst SL night club is better than the live feed I witnessed.
Reuben Linden
Jun 25th, 2005
Nice to see the debate proceeding at such a lively clip. I agree that the content of the stream ranges from boring to baffling to bizarre. Also agree that fixed camera streams from editorially selected locations might be better. Definitely true that having an av flying around to various locations would be better, and we can certainly do that.
The reason we began with a fixed camera was that we needed to test feasibility and also get a sense of what would happen if we just left it running. In just the last 2 days, we’ve learned a great deal — 99.5% of it good.
Thanks for all the feedback — we’ll be pushing to liven up the feed and make it more exciting while still preserving the spontaneity of SL. And we’ll keep the hype to a minimum.
Cocoanut
Jun 25th, 2005
You’re right, Mr. F. I watched some of it last night. I was thinking, hey, I can watch people dance without dying of lag! lol
But I was also thinking, gee, this makes it look like a kiddie place, really.
Then I thought, but what could you do NOT to impart that impression? I mean, a still camera, with no commentator. One can’t do much with that EXCEPT wait for people to come hang out in front of it doing not much of anything.
coco
SNOOPYbrown Zamboni
Jun 25th, 2005
Reuben Linden > And we’ll keep the hype to a minimum.
Moon landings and alien invasions, I tell you!
tminus
Jun 25th, 2005
“Yeah ok. I was being too much of a hardass. But it would be more interesting if they would give us the feed from an avi rather than just a fixed location that is going to be camped by attention ho’s. And what I’ve seen so far might be branded FIC TV.”
Comment by Urizenus
I totally agree that it should not just be a fixed position. Despite concerns of content control, the camera should have a variety of director styles like following an avi, as well as free roaming and even special event coverage. On machinima.com someone had mentioned that SL, in regards to machinemation, had limited options for precise camera control and I said “you know someone, probably 5 or more someones, is working on this already” and sure enough I was right. No doubt that the streaming video will be further developed by LL in the future.
“>>How many other games do this?
hmmm….ever hear of UnrealTV?”
Comment by Joe Public
Yes I have and you only proved my point. There is only one other (that I know of) and it is infinately less unique than SL. UnrealTV allows viewers to watch games being played, which arguably is not more exciting than the current state of SLTV, but in coming months I am sure SLTV will be notably more interesting.
I find it interesting how agro people are about who already play the game. If I could play I would be in SL rather than writing comments and bitching about something that has little or no impact on me. SL video stream serves one basic purpose, to show potential residents that it is real. It is a commercial to get more customers, so why would existing customers be so upset? To my knowledge it will not effect lag times, membership fees etc. except by introducing more residents but that is inevitable! Don’t get me wrong, debate is great, but if I were able to I would be in SL right now! Anyone want to trade systems? My setup is perfect for bitching about stuff! =)
Joe Public
Jun 26th, 2005
>>Yes I have and you only proved my point.
Bollocks!
Look, it’s just a video stream from a content feed. Live, dead, SL or FL…Big deal. Watching paint dry is as dull in SL as in FL…unless that happens to be your fetish, I suppose.
It’s not a first (so cut the BS on that one) and won’t be the last, and more games/platforms will do it….just so long as we don’t hear a lot of crap about profound compelling content when all they are doing is the virtual clone of “beach cam” or “Kate’s bedroom”.
Maybe prok has a point about the lengths people go to ingratiate themselves with the “lindens”…even to the extent of blathering on about nothing of value.
I wonder when we will see SNN? I…can’t …. wait….zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
tminus
Jun 26th, 2005
Nothing of value, like all that maybe? You went to the same lengths to bash them so how is that any different?
I have no opinion on LL either way and my statement still stands… why would you spend all this energy bitching? I mean, you could be using the time to play, or if SL is so boring then you could be doing something else of value in your life. Either way you are just commenting to bitch about LL and have your ego stroked! It will probably never be any more interesting but it serves a purpose, to advertise to potential customers, which you aren’t one so again…. what do you care?
Joe Public
Jun 27th, 2005
That’s a big load of assumptions there, tminus, all of them incorrect.
But to answer your q:
>>what (sic) do I care?
Needless marketing hype, drivel, and BS.
If LL adds new features they should be more intelligent in the way they spin it. We seem to have learnt nothing from the tech wreck 2000 and BS futurist fanboys/girls crap on without any form of solid critical analysis.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0691122946/103-4243181-6111848?v=glance
tminus
Jun 28th, 2005
I just fail to see how they are ‘spinning it.’ If there were pop up ads about how streaming video in SL will change your life and make you a better person then I would agree. But it is just streaming video from in world and though it is not a comprehensive look there of, it is a somewhat illustrative window into SL. From your comments I can only induce that you think all advertising is BS, but if you own a business you have to advertise to stay in business. It is just a part of capitalism. And that is what this is, an advertisement to get more members, not to entertain existing ones. I don’t remember any LL official statement that says otherwise.
More importantly, I fail to see how anything you have written is a ‘critical analysis.’ I have only seen your opinion, which is very critical but hardly an analysis. Not that I have done otherwise, but you were the one going on about an analysis. Here is the definition of analysis:
Main Entry: anal·y·sis
Pronunciation: &-’na-l&-s&s
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural anal·y·ses /-”sEz/
Etymology: New Latin, from Greek, from analyein to break up, from ana- + lyein to loosen — more at LOSE
1 : separation of a whole into its component parts
2 a : the identification or separation of ingredients of a substance b : a statement of the constituents of a mixture
3 a : proof of a mathematical proposition by assuming the result and deducing a valid statement by a series of reversible steps b (1) : a branch of mathematics concerned mainly with functions and limits (2) : CALCULUS 1b
4 a : an examination of a complex, its elements, and their relations b : a statement of such an analysis
5 a : a method in philosophy of resolving complex expressions into simpler or more basic ones b : clarification of an expression by an elucidation of its use in discourse
6 : the use of function words instead of inflectional forms as a characteristic device of a language
You have certainly broken it down into one ingredient but I just don’t believe it is that simple. I took time after reading your comment before posting to think about what you’re saying. Although I think you are missing something I do believe you have a point but the way you have articulated it just doesn’t sound like a critical analysis to me. Is it really completely unecessary to advertise your product to potential customers? Is streaming video on their webpage really BS? I mean, its not like millions around the world are getting spam emails or t.v. commercials outlining the life altering experience of SL and how they will find Jesus or something. It just doesn’t sound like you considered any of the implications involved nor the perspective of a potential customer.
Simply put again, I am not a resident and at the very point where I found about SL I wanted to see a video from in-world. To check out the graphics, the gameplay and the creative works contained there in. If I had a system capable of running SL at the time this would have been the exact thing I needed to make the decision to download and start playing. I watched it for a minute when it started and in that minute all of the things I mentioned where illustrated for me. So wouldn’t that make an argument for it being useful in some way? Am I missing something here?
Joe Public
Jun 28th, 2005
I think you misunderstand me….the issue (for me) is not the use of video, it’s the marketing BS used to describe it.
My “critical” analysis is related to post #10 above … hardly academic, but a gut analysis none the less on the use of the word profound to describe whooting av’s waving their virtual fingers in Video Lindens lens.
ie: analysis==> b : clarification of an expression by an elucidation of its use in discourse
pro·found Pronunciation (pr-found, pr-)
adj. pro·found·er, pro·found·est
1. Situated at, extending to, or coming from a great depth; deep.
2. Coming as if from the depths of one’s being: profound contempt.
3. Thoroughgoing; far-reaching: profound social changes.
4. Penetrating beyond what is superficial or obvious: a profound insight.
5. Unqualified; absolute: a profound silence.
I have nothing against Streaming Video from inworld per se and think it’s a good thing…when they finally figure out that it’s actually a camera that needs to be directed by a brain in order to feed good vision down the pipe…ie: to really distribute profound content.
I’m not against advertising and the reality is it’s a necessary cost of doing biz if you wish to reach markets.
What am I against really?
BS, cos we’re drowning in it…
tminus
Jun 28th, 2005
Apparently I did misunderstand and I totally agree that it needs to be more than just furries dancing. I guess I just assumed that over time it would become more developed and actually show more interesting content. I am designing a webpage for a friend’s business and we are starting off very simple and as more actual business is generated from it I planned to develop it further. I just thought of this the same way, that LL would put more effort into it as it generated more actual business but that is an assumption I am making. I am more than willing to admit that its current state, although somewhat illustrative, is pretty lame as well as the hype on the subject. Thanks for ellaborating. =)
Prokofy Neva
Jun 28th, 2005
I find the claims that the videos and snapshots going to Sluniverse.com are just about “advertising the game” and residents “shouldn’t care” to be a very narrow take on the possibilities for narration now opening up. We saw how people enthusiastically and creatively responded to the narration opportunities provided by the Sims offline game capacity to upload stories in “family albums” and then later videos made out of the “families” in the offline game. Of course a lot of it is dreck but there are some real gems — I used to spend a lot of time on this. Now with SL, we have even more amazing opportunities to make and tell stories — it democratizes the entertainment industry even further by putting into the hands of ordinary people the capacity that once only belonged to Hollywood and 6th Avenue and Madison Avenue. If everyone can make and star in their own TV show, we’ve utterly democratized media for the masses. FIC types will shrink in horror at the low-brow culture of dancing and pron and bling this will bring but the opportunities are amazing and I am confident whole new vistas await us in telling the Human Story in ever new ways.
I do hope the Lindens don’t cramp the flow of creativity with more of their forums-like censorship on this marvelous two-way portal that SNOOPY is all excited about. People often get very excited about the Internet and its wonders…but, at the end of the day, you have to sit in RL for 90 minutes just outside the GW Bridge as a million trucks carrying all that stuff people ordered off the Internet try to lumber across the Hudson River. Honestly, sometimes it’s all smoke and mirrors.
Memory Harker
Jun 29th, 2005
No, really, it’s a great *idea*, the streaming video from inworld. But as much as I’m enamored with my SL citizenship, I WOULD NEVER HAVE JOINED had I first seen what I’ve seen on that stream. Because it *does* make SL look like little more than a very stupid place for pre-adolescents to goof off in when they’re not busy entertaining each other with RL armpit-fart contests, you know?
SL itself is much more varied and deep and fascinating than I ever expected it would be, and I hope Linden Labs flourishes for decades to come and that Rosedale & Company get filthy rich and enjoy First AND Second lives of luxury and joy, hurrah, hurrah. But what’s most often seen on that video stream right now? As opposed to the actual wonders of SL, it’s embarrassing. At times, it’s fucking pathetic.
I, too, think a roaming avatar with a camera — covering specific newsworthy events as they happen — kind of like Hamlet Linden, but with Live! Streaming! Video! — I think that would work best.
I’d be glad if the editorial direction were in the hands of the Lindens, and even glad if the resultant video, streaming or recorded, were used as a marketing tool; just, please, get that currently static, unfiltered, cretin-mongering camera off the air?
Thank you,
~ Memory