Welcome to 2012... It's the end of an age and the beginning of a new one in Second Life. Where will 2013 lead us and what will the future hold? How many of us can look around this vast Virtual World of ours and remember its creation? We take for granted things such as Huds in our shoes... Search and Marketplace tools. We enjoy the use of Voice and 42 groups. Our talented Photographers and Artists make use of the graphic tools at their fingertips with shadows and light tricks producing such amazingly realistic images that you feel you can reach out and touch the landscapes. The Music Scene brings Live Artists and DJ’s that stream music as if you were in NYC or Seattle hitting the club scene no matter what your genre or flavor of music.
Ten years of Second Life® has seen a lot of changes and revamping of this virtual world, but how many here remember way back when it was little more than a small community of builders and content creators coming together with a vision. A vision that began as simple as making a small box talk or a prim stretch and bend. Come walk with me through this journey as I had the opportunity to sit and chat with Zarah Dawn, content creator, musician, designer and role player who has been apart of our world since its Beta Days. Sit back, relax and join me as she speaks of her adventures...
I look as Zarah walks into my living room, taking note of her casual relaxed appearance I smile and gesture towards the nearby couch. “Welcome Zarah, please find some comfort. Let me start by thank you for agreeing to this interview with SL Fierce Magazine. Wow, 9 years in Second Life®.. You have had quite an adventure here and many tales to tell.. Tell me what brought you to our virtual world so long ago?" I wait with pencil poised above my notepad anticipating a tale here just waiting to be told.
Zarah returns my smile as she settles herself on the couch across from me curling her feet under, contemplating my answer a moment before replying “A friend from The Sims Online® got bored with it & found Second Life® & began talking me into it. When I found out they were canceling TSO I started playing Second Life avidly. I did come to SL before that though..” She pauses a moment as if remembering before continuing with her tale “it was a beta account under the name Tug Cartier. I would get so lost and frustrated during that first time. There was no such thing as Helpers or Mentors such as we have now.”
I begin to write rapidly picturing in my head the first days of Second Life as she brings them to life for me in my mental landscape “ahhh you did? So you really are from the creation of Second Life. Now, this is fascinating. So really it was more like returning home instead of picking up a new game.” I encourage her to continue with her fascinating story of the birth of Second Life as I listen with rapt attention. She laughs at my words “It was all new to me. It was very frustrating learning to fly or figuring out what a teleport was, how to work it, what map coordinates were & how to plug them in.”
I chuckle in commiseration remember my own first days five years ago and how even now those days seem almost alien to the world I see before me every day I log in “Ii remember how I had to adjust to things just five years ago coming from gaming environments of World of Warcraft and Everquest so I can imagine how yours must have been. On one hand a sense of Deja Vu but on another in just one year so many changes."
Zarah nods in understanding agreeing with my description “Yes, it was fun though. The Welcome Area was much different in the beginning. You would come in at the starting point & followed a path. By following along this path you learned how to move a ball, talk to a parrot which gave you 10L$ I think it was. The next step would be to then learn how to edit your avatar. The last thing you did was fly over a gorge to the map area where you learned teleporting.” She pauses as if to enjoy the memory of her first days in SL before continuing “The Welcome Area had a few people standing around, but it was like an obstacle course.
I nodded as I reached for my glass of chamomile and took a sip before proceeding “It sounds like life back then was an adventure simply by logging into Second Life as a new Avatar." She nodded her head answering “It was loads of fun. There were nearby sandboxes. There was a stage at the Welcome area where they held events so we could all get to know each other.” I raise my brows in wonder at the picture she describes with her words “It sounds like Second Life in its early stages was very much about community, please correct me if I am wrong.” she shakes her head not to disagree but to tell me these words are true about the way of life back then “ I miss that part but we spent a lot of time together.”
I can see she does as she sighs almost wistfully for days long gone but obviously not forgotten by this lovely lady before me. “These sandboxes you were encouraged to build and learn to create?” she leans forward with a sparkle in her eyes. Ahh yes, the designer. I see her passion coming forth. “There were numerous classes you could take to learn to build things. I still go back to the places my old teachers had/ have.” I laugh remembering my first attempts at building in Second Life. “I, myself remember the TOS Classes on the building. I took a few of them when I originally joined Second Life. *chuckles* I learned to make a mushroom chair I am still very proud of and a lamp post I can sit on!” She grins in understanding “we learned to make a box talk or make alpha plants among other things that seem so simple today.” I shook my head in astonishment “and now from those very simple things in Second Life we have this unbelievable environment in which anything is possible.” She laughed “They even had classes on how to edit land. Heck, back then even griefing was fun.”
I tap my pencil as I consider my next comment “We have entire sims where truly the limits of creativity is only curtailed by the imagination and we now see reality only impeded by the physical world and yet mesh brings the real world even more vividly to life within our own virtual world. To think all this began with learning to make a box talk.”
“We were all so excited when Tringo was invented & the creator actually sold it to a company outside SL.” She explains continuing her adventurous tale. “Tringo was the first game created inside SL that was sold outside of SL. If you've never played it .. think Tetris in a box. After that, the game market exploded with people eager to make something that they could sell, and that's when the gaming sims started popping up.” I felt my interest peaking as she continued “loads of places you could go play games, hang out & just get paid for sitting around having fun.”
I found myself learning something as I listened “So this is how gambling began in Second Life. Not to change the subject but let's speak of fashion.. most of our readers are of fashion based. Tell me how you have experienced the ever-changing environment of SL Fashion since its beginning.” I wait for her answer as she herself is a designer of jewelry within our virtual world owner of Adorned Jewelry. “Clothes back then were simple,r easier to make & no one really paid much attention to the much finer details ... also there were fewer designers & no one had templates that are available today as they are on Marketplace. Now we expect finished edges, seams to line up exactly & a better quality 'fabric' texture.”
I can see she has given this much thought and her experiences has allowed her to grow as a content creator within our Virtual World. “We have seen the evolution of fashion from as you said where at one time if you could make a prim fit and line up a texture you were a damn good designer to today's Mesh Designers and couture houses where seams and fabric textures are taken directly from the real world into our virtual world. Where do you see us going in the future?”
She pauses for a moment contemplating her answer “I"m not sure about that. SL gamers have brought new levels of everything... if there's a place to go UP someone will bring it.” I agree with her statement as Second Life changes every day bringing something new and challenging with each dawn. “And yourself? You, yourself are a designer of repute with Adorned Jewelry and furniture. Known for your prim work. Where do you see yourself going for your next adventure?” She smiles as she answers “ I make jewelry. I have since 2005. Simone Stern got me started on it & I loved the advent of Sculpts. I haven't tried mesh jewelry yet but I’m sure that's my next jump.”
I stand and reach my hand to shake hers. It’s been a lovely afternoon filled with a personal chat getting to know a woman who has truly understood the marvel that is Second Life. “oh lovely... Well, Zarah.. thank you for coming and sitting with me today. Its been an honor to get to know you.” I watch as she leaves and hurries over to my laptop with excitement feeling my fingers itch to tell the story of the First Zarah in Second Life. Ten years from now who knows where we will be, it may be you I sit down to hear your tale of adventures of Second Life. Till next time Fashionistas!
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