Well, what a ride it has been. This is my 365th day with Second Life Insider. A whole year of writing about Second Life and things related to it. Digging up news tidbits and trying to generally provide you all with useful content and news. In the last year, I've produced 1,120 posts - a total of 367,657 words. We've all been working hard to bring you great stuff, and it's great to see how you've all responded. Journalists, corporates and media agencies read Second Life Insider daily. Linden Lab certainly does.

Second Life Insider is bigger now than it has ever been. The last couple of months have been absolutely massive, and your support has been fantastic. And we've got equally massive changes on the way, too. For the last month, we've been working behind the scenes on a new, expanded site: Massively. Everything you love about Second Life Insider, and a massive dose of news from other virtual worlds, and MMOs, more writers (everywhere I turn, I trip over another great writer that we've swiped from somewhere), more ... everything.

While it's a bit sad to put down the Second Life Insider name, it's even more fun and interesting to be branching out, and covering more good stuff. There's more than 200 virtual worlds and MMOs on our list, and more on the way, including everything Second Life as usual. So this isn't goodbye - it's welcome to SLI's new home. Welcome to Massively.

I'd been a reader of Second Life Insider for quite some time when I heard that Akela Talamasca was looking for me. I couldn't quite understand why he'd want ME to write for this blog. I'm still not sure what he saw in me, but now I feel like I'm part of the family.

These last nine months have been so enriching for me, but like Akela, it's time to move on. I promised myself that I wouldn't cry, but I'm just so sad to go. I wish I could tell you more, but that's for another post. For now, just know that I'll be taking this massive opportunity to provide you with even better coverage of the things that you love. I'm pouring some liquor out for you, SLI.

If I were a pagan, this would be the first day of the new year. Although it's not a description I'd use, I've known more than enough over the years, and sometimes that feeling of looking forward now (in relative sobriety) rather at the more normal new year (which is also a RL friends birthday and rarely sober if I'm healthy) feels right.

Somehow I think this year to come will be a year of massive changes. Looking back, a year ago I wasn't writing, now I find things to write about in SL most days as well as the "boring numbers" column - although a lot of people read the boring numbers too, and find them useful.

A year ago I was trying to make a living from SL. Now, I still am - having meningitis and recovering from it slowed me down, but I'm close to the point of making a comfortable living now, and writing for SLI helps with that massively. Over 125,000 words so far, and more to come, whatever the future might hold for us all - at least unless LL shut the door!

There have been things of a personal nature that have changed my life massively and that haven't made it into press, but journalism of this sort agrees with me equally massively. Hope you'll follow through whatever changes the next year brings and enjoy what you read.

Those of you who follow me on Twitter have heard me refer to this announcement: I will no longer be writing for SLI. As Lead Blogger, and one of the remaining founding members (along with Aimee), I've found writing for you all to be one of the most rewarding experiences I could have asked for. I've seen amazing things, met wonderful people, and generally had the time of my virtual life! Now I'm moving on.

This is not to say you've heard the last of me, though some of you will be sorry to hear that! No, in fact, I'll be jumping right aboard a brand-new blog, which will be announced tomorrow right here on SLI! So, shed no tears for wolfie; I'll be in good hands. Good, warm, massive hands.

As you may remember I'm not exactly a fan of Jira, although I will admit, having voted on a couple of issues recently, it's got more accessible.

One of the issues I've voted on has been started by TigroSpottystripes, an SLI reader, at least in part to my recent posts about LindeX and billing issues. This one is a request that the tech support Linden's work to cover weekends as well as weekdays. This will help reassure those of us that pay tier and the like on weekend and rely on trading on LindeX and the like that our issues at least stand a decent chance of getting fixed over the weekend rather than the "tough, live with it 'til Monday" we've seen this time.

I'd like to add to the list that there's a contact person or team available too, so we know how to find people for those times when a 30s intervention in world is all that's needed, but I guess those days are gone now.

No, not in the adult sense. Our very own Lead Blogger, Akela Talamasca, appeared on Intellacast earlier today. They discussed topics such as avatar appearance, why he chooses to be a wolfie, voice chat in SL, and blogging for SLI! I even learned a few things about him. For example, I pronounce his name totally wrong!

What is Intellacast? It's a regular blog and podcast written and edited by Intellagirl Tully. She is currently using Second Life as a research and education tool.

I found the podcast very interesting. The best quote taken out of context from the session came from Akela. "It's got mad pecs, yo!"

Some of you probably know me already. I've been around in Second Life for a while now, in fact the contract to write for SLI appeared on the day I'd spent 2 years and 7 months inside Second Life.

For those of you that don't know me, I would describe myself in SL as primarily a scripter, and in RL primarily as a teacher. Of course that leads to scripting in RL and teaching in SL. I also sell stuff, run a couple of shops, rent some land to my friends.

I'm a moderately inveterate shopper, mainly for clothes: like many scripters I don't buy many people's gadgets, I write my own. I can (and indeed do) sell a few clothes too, but I'm a consumer in that market rather than anything else.

I plan to write a little summary of the economy inside and through Second Life every day to complement Tateru's daily census.

I'll also be reporting on educational issues in Second Life, which will spill into grid stability and features from time to time.

There will be a range of other issues I'll write about as the fancy takes me... in fact there's a new RPG within SL that I'll be checking out later on today to find out what that's all about, and writing about it soon.

Like a couple of other people here, I'm based in Europe, so my posts may appear at odd times. Things that affect us over here will also be mentioned no doubt!

My name is moo Money. While I'm no stranger to blogging on a personal blog, this is my first time doing it in a professional manner, so bear with me. I found out about Second Life in January of 2003 when I was managing the news for TSO Stratics. I wasn't feeling very creative at the time, so I didn't stay for very long in SL.

I returned in December of 2005 after reading an article about Second Life somewhere. It was a wondrous, magical place and I couldn't wait to get started on my new virtual life. I eventually found my niche in May of 2006 at which point I was hired by BuhBuhCuh Fairchild to promote Machinima. I've accomplished a lot since then ...

When I was invited to blog for SLI, one of the very attractive parts of it was that despite the blog being owned and operated by AOL, nothing was sacrosanct. I was told that I would be entirely free to blog anything that I wanted to blog, and that would include criticising SL, Linden Lab, AOL, whatever I saw fit.

I have always liked organisations that can accept criticism, and which are big enough to allow criticism of their operation. I think it is a mark of a mature organisation that it can allow others to criticise and respond openly to that criticism. The Quakers attracted me with one of their Advices and Queries, which are things for members to think about, not proscriptive things-one-must-do, which suggested: "Think it possible you may be mistaken". For "you" read you, me, anyone and us.

I understand that blogs have to ban people who persistently post porn or commercial links or advertisements to viagra etc. But I hate the idea that we have banned someone for making comments we disagree with on the comments to the blog, especially when it seems to me that some of the postings concerned deliberately provoked the comments.

I wasn't informed that we had banned Prokofy; I discovered this from his own blog. I haven't heard yet the justification, and suppose I should restrain myself on this until I have received a reply to my request for information, in case there is something I haven't understood about the situation. This is supposed to be a team blog, but I have not been part of this decision, and I want to make that clear, because it conflicts with my belief in freedom of speech and not censoring people who say things that we find disagreeable.

I am not sure that I will be able to stay here if censorship and not allowing criticism has become part of SLI. You may well find me migrating to VTOR if I don't get satisfactory answers to my questions.

This is the twenty-third in a series of mini-interviews with the residents of Second Life. For the most part, I'll try to leave the responses unedited, except where editing will grant greater clarity.

Shockwave Plasma, or Shocky, as I like to call her, is someone with whom I don't get to speak more often, and that's a shame. I've always found her to be intelligent, witty, insightful, and whimsical, frequently all within the space of 3 minutes. I don't know how she was able to slip the Resident Snapshot noose for so long, but I finally nabbed her!

How did you first come to SL?: I was looking for some sort of on-line social, or gaming group, and tried to find one that was more than just blasting people and space ships. The ones I found were rather bland, or rather stifled, until I came across Second Life. It reminded me of Snow Crash, I must have read that in 2000.

How did you choose your name?: I was trying to decide between Plasma and Pixel, and as Plasma is the fourth state of matter, and as we are neither gas, liquid, or solid,
then a Plasma I must be. One of the first Cyberpunk novels was "The Shockwave Rider" by John Brunner, so that was suitable for for my first name in my first
cyber world. Now I find a Shockwave Plasma is also a spectroscope.

What's your favorite thing about SL?: The people and the imagination they display. Touring the Sandboxes can be more like walking in an interactive art gallery, than walking through a building yard. Meeting people from all over the world is my cure for insomnia. Sometimes I would be awake until 2am, but logging in to SL seems to get rid of the thoughts that kept me awake.

What do you like least about SL?: Being in the UK, and most of the parties, weddings, shows are mainly for a USA audience, where most of my friends reside. (That's life). No boolean searches in FIND/Search. Griefers. LL not banning Mime avatars.

Favorite hangout/store?: Shelter/ Shelter in Exile. I don't have a favorite shop, but I like to crash test Cubey Terra's planes.

Name one new feature you'd like to see added to SL: To have the servers spaced around the globe.

Shout outs: Hi Tateru, Mera, Sumar, Pip, Ordinal, Dani, Erbo, Aldo, Misty, and Oni (where ever you are!)

Of course, the implied question is "Seriously, who's really lost sales because of it?" Right now, there are a ton of people who've closed shop because of this CopyBot scare, but how many of you have had your content stolen and resold so far?

By the way, if you recognize the guy on the right, please turn off your tv and get out into the Big Blue Room for some exercise.

Nov. 13, 2006
Warren Ellis Rants Again!

Nov. 12, 2006
The Deathline is coming to Second Life
Jeff Pulver and the new political climate
Quiet Achievements

Nov. 11, 2006
Just Askin': Why Go From Free to Pay?

Nov. 10, 2006
Interview: Plastic Duck/Gene Replacement
New Web Tab!
Town Hall Fallout, Part 1

Nov. 9, 2006
Cutting instructor payments
Zee Linden Responds
Torley Linden Teaches Photography
Dancing Prims

Nov. 8, 2006
SL Journal: November 7/8th, Ice Cathedral
New Moopf's Skoopfs on the horizon
The Philip Linden Town Hall Drinking Game
Flawed Reasoning Regarding WoW/SL
Why Do Companies Come to SL?
Move Over George Bailey: Is there a virtual run on the bank?

Nov. 7, 2006
Free Money!
Not the nine-o-clock news
SL Broadband TV
Mislearning the 'Facts' of SL
Silent witness pays tribute to domestic violence awareness
SL Journal: November 6th, Christmas in Nemesis
Plans to change autoreturn

Nov. 6, 2006
No more free alts... Yippee!
Big Brother is Being Watched by You!

Here's a review of the past week's articles:

Nov. 5, 2006
NCI South
In the Same Place


Nov. 4, 2006
Screwing Up Online
In a Spin
Preventing Texture Theft

Nov. 3, 2006
Open to Sale or IPO
Building a Virtual World
Just Askin': Are RL Names Important?
Names Optional?
The New York Times Does Well by SL
Supporting New Residents
Who Are the Griefers?
Please Welcome SLI's Newest Blogger, Tateru Nino!

Nov. 2, 2006
Aussies Tax SL Transactions
Just Askin': Groups Addiction?

Nov. 1, 2006
Hiro Queso Announces the End of Rentals
Building the Global Metaverse
Talib Kweli: Mr. Brownstone
Poor Communication Infuriates Residents
RL Companies' Regions Highlighted with Photos
Computer Games Addiction: Real or Mythical?
SL Economics

Oct. 31, 2006
Will Wright on SL
Camping Chairs: Problem or Solution?
Network Quality of Service and Keeping Residents
Business Week and Hipness
Randy Shore: Vancouver's Embedded Reporter
Someone Else "Gets It"
Just Askin': Where Will You Spend Halloween?
Halloween in SL: IBM
Dreams Winners
Fighting Fit: Enamabala Towradgi
Resident Numbers Disparity
"Getting" SL

Many of you know who Tateru is already. You may have been helped by her on one of the Help Islands. You may belong to the Cult of Tateru. You may even know her from this blog. Regardless, I'm pleased to announce that starting today, she'll be posting regularly to SLI, and I couldn't be happier. Tateru's a well-loved, active member of the community, and we can all benefit from her insight and wisdom. Welcome, Tati!

Here's a review of the past week's articles:

Oct. 30, 2006
A lovely quote to start your week
Exploring SL: ROMA Expands

Oct. 29, 2006
Dreams and Nightmares

Oct. 28, 2006
3D Weather Data Visualization in Second Life

Oct. 27, 2006
Just Askin': Are You Sedentary or Peripatetic?
The Meaning of a Million
LL Moves to Amazon S3 Servers

Oct. 26, 2006
The Escapist: World, Interrupted

Oct. 25, 2006
SLGadget!
Just Askin': Wear on Head/Wear on Hand
NewsAtSeven: Potential SL Newscast?
Machinima Awards Ceremony to Broadcast in SL
Animations for Beginners
No, the sky isn't falling

Oct. 24, 2006
CNet Podcast: "What's the big deal with virtual worlds?"
Ben Folds Post-Event Wrap-Up with Photos
More Virtual Charity
John Lester on Online Communities for patients and caregivers
Prokofy rent boy shock
Getting it right: Nissan launches in SL
Just Askin': How Do We Stop Griefing?