LINKLIST for all things second life

https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/dcwill/www/research.html +prof Champ.Urbana D. Williams research papers, etc.
http://www.gamesconference.org/digra2005/papers.php?first_letter=all ++GOLDMINE, research paper database!!
http://www.bized.ac.uk/virtual/ +not about games per se, a site for exploring economics with virtual simulations
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2005/09/13/DI2005091301150.html?nav=techalert ++great viewpoints
http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm?setview=features&loadFeature=120&gameID=31&page=1&fp=1024,768,98067109,20051002221733  +this is a link to a Q&A with the creator(?) of Project Entropia

http://plaguelands.com/?page_id=172 ++gold dupers who got caught, their story, spiced up with film references
http://gameslah.com/pics/ +some guys beowulf cluster gaming system, about 30+ computers networked together

http://www.benchmark.com/news/sv/2005/05_29_2005.php +guy makes 1800$/mo for 4hrs/day play building online real estate
http://gameusd.com/ +tracks online money value vs. the USD
http://gamingopenmarket.com/ +game commodity trading & has explanation of how the market works
www.ige.com
http://terranova.blogs.com/ +Univ. Champaign Urbana group blog on the virtual world econ’s ‘why’s & wherefores’ (looks good)
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1040_22-5859069.html +criminals seek virtual goods too, for the game or for the money
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1040_22-5842791.html?tag=nl +article about Sony’s site that hosts transactions
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1040_22-5678052.html?tag=nl +more on Sony’s site
http://stationexchange.station.sony.com/ +Sony Online Entertainment auction service – secure method of buying and selling
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1040_22-5566704.html?tag=nl +underground transactions
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1040_22-5820137.html +more more more
http://www.gameeconomy.com +exchange site
http://www.guy4game.com/home.php +exchange site
http://www.walrusmagazine.com/article.pl?sid=04/05/06/1929205&tid=1
http://playerauctions.com/ +exchange site
http://www.ige.com/FrequentlyAskedQuestions.aspx +MMOG (massive multiplayer online game) exchange and services site
http://www.answers.com/topic/mmorpg +an overview of the scene
http://www.markeedragon.net/sellgold.php +exchange
http://www.markeedragon.com/u/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Board=uonews&Number=29818++confession of a retired gold farmer
http://www.onlinegametrader.net/ +exchange,

http://www.juliandibbell.com/playmoney/2004_04_01_playmoney_archive.html#108200652843059601
++a blog from a guy who appears to have bagged some dollars from this,

http://boards.powergamers.net/index.php +exchange but with more of a community feel, 5000+ members
http://www.mogs.com/index.php +exchange
http://www.gamestudies.org/ ++like the title says, an academic view
http://www.gamestudies.org/0302/castronova/ ++more from castronova in ‘04, great for his reference/bibliography
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0226096262/qid=1127679104/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-8992795-3331802?v=glance&s=books
+who knew, castronova has a book out, pretty cheap too, however,
not yet released

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/issues/11/pdf/TheEscapist_11_final.pdf ++about page 21 is when the game article starts

http://terranova.blogs.com/terra_nova/2005/05/a_200m_market.html ++variety of viewpoints, anecdotes, figures
http://wiredblogs.tripod.com/gadgets/index.blog?entry_id=1230071 game programmers didn’t mean for this to happen, spread like real plaugue
http://www.dragonscoveherald.com/blog/index.php?p=936 +Linden Labs
(Second Life) to incorp. RMT – dissing other 3rd party site with long
history of SL RMT

http://arxiv.org/pdf/cs/0503080 +heavy duty academic paper from europe, fresh off the presses 10.01.05!!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MMORPG_terms_and_acronyms +get hip to the hype
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_economy +URL says it all
https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/dcwill/www/research.html +prof Champ.Urbana D. Williams research papers, etc.
http://www.gamesconference.org/digra2005/papers.php?first_letter=all ++ research paper database!!
http://www.bized.ac.uk/virtual/ +not about games per se, a site for exploring economics with virtual simulations
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2005/09/13/DI2005091301150.html?nav=techalert

http://www.spacethinkdream.com/articles/article/5/creating-a-mannequin +using photoshop and SL
http://www.alwaysblack.com/blackbox/wanderingyaffle_01.html +choosing an avatar and manipulating it
http://dt.thereinperson.com/gallery/Cotton_Candys-Second-Life/Alyssums_Spot2 +50 screen shots
http://trumpy.cs.elon.edu/metaverse/gst364Win2005/handout.html ++an academic assignment (?) to use SL, great overview with how-to?s, titled
?101 Uses for Second Life in the College Classroom?

http://pics.livejournal.com/peganthyrus/pic/0000eap7/g6 +26 screen shots with descrip
http://www.craphound.com/ +ctrl+F for “Second”Cory Doctorow, Legal Director for the Electronic Frontier Foundation,

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4488103 +NPR radio show on SL
http://www.alphavilleherald.com/blog/ +the ?newspaper? for SL, plus a lot of other good materials
http://www.makezine.com/blog/archive/2005/08/making_things_i.html +Making things in the Virtual World: Second Life Primer
http://www.austin360.com/recreation/content/recreation/video_games/features/secondlife/secondlife_1.html +article on SL
 

So, a friend and I started a production company last week, Tripod Studios. Last year I finished a Master’s degree in Documentary Film + Video production, and I’ve been itching to get going on some projects. The biggest obstacale, by far, was not having enough capital to purchase or rent equipment. Problem sovled. Long story short, I’ll have my hands on a full production suite before the year’s out. Here’s what we went with:

Canon XL2 – Used on ebay $2700

3x wide angle lens – $ 1,169.95 from B&H or from the camera box for $999 from the same store as the xl2 (they are price grabber certified, so they’re reputable)

Canon FS-72U 72mm Filter Set – $114

Porta Brace Soft carrying case – $249

EQ-XL1 Equalizer Windscreen for XL-2 – $120.95

4-Year Extended Warranty for Pro Digital Camcorder – $199.95

Quick Release Plate for tripod ¼ – $22.95

Lightweight Professional Video Tripod with fluid head – $647.95

Dual G4 with keyboard and mouse (no monitor): $1075 shipped.

Samsung Syncmaster 19inch LCD Monitor – $375 (if we’re going to shop around, the monitor needs to have digital inputs, and a minimum contrast ratio fo 700:1. Here’s an acceptable viewsonic for $319 and here for 257 (open box). The $50 difference between the first monitor is a higher refresh rate, and twice the response time (measured as ms). The first monitor was just released, and the others are a couple years old (new, but old technology).

Lowel DV Creator 3-light kit – $949.95

Currently bidding on a Lowel DV 55 Creator kit: http://cgi.ebay.com/Lowel-DV-Creater-Light-Kit-55_W0QQitemZ7564495081QQcategoryZ3860QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I put a max bid of $1000.

Apple Final Cut Studio – $499.99

Sennheiser Audio Wireless Lav – $475.99

Sennheiser Short Shotgun Mic – $179.95

External LCD Monitor – $279.95

Total: $9784.66

I’m pretty stoked about the deal, as a number of projects have been offered to me and I’ve had to turn them down.

Anyway, i’ll keep this site updated with my documentary production adventures, as well as include links and sources for those interested in documentary film.