Spent from 6pm - 11pm on Saturday and Sunday in Second Life at a building workshop specifically for people involved in education.  Most of the participants and the course leader are from various parts of the States, but the assistant leader is another Brit.  As we are using voice to communicate quite a bit, it’s interesting hearing the different accents - and though I’m no good at working out which US accent belongs where, there are some I find quite grating!

Leaving aside the use of voice in SL - may come back to that later - the course itself is excellent.  Unlike many of the building classes I attended in my early days in SL, this is moving at a fast pace with lots of different builds - all useful for anybody setting up a learning space in the virtual world.  Not only are we building, but we have been sent on field trips to look at different types of build in SL - some extremely impressive - and to consider the textures, atmospherics and activities that have been built in.  We have also spent time in  a garden set up by a project at Southampton where sound is an essential element.  It is interesting to consider how far sound contributes to a sense of immersion in the environment.

The course leader has introduced us to several useful building tools - and given us copies of most of them.  We have also looked at other tools which are not available free but which can be useful, especially in a class setting.  A general observation was maintaining a SL inventory, especially if using some of the sorting tools, is almost a full time occupation.

I have been able to use the skills learned this weekend to create a number of objects for the Sussex Learning Zone, including goody bags, a greeter (with spoken greeting) and a dispenser for the building supplies for Wednesday.  Lots more to do, but at least a few things are now ready for use.