Tuesday, June 23, 2009

SLED meeting

Those of you who have seen me in SL know I have the walk of a newbie and that I'm just as likely to need you to teleport me to your location as anything else.
Soooo, with that framework in mind, I visited the site of the SL Educator's Roundtable meeting a couple of times before the meeting - even sat in a chair around the table to make sure I could properly sit.
I was in the Montclaire State University promptly at 5 EST, only to learn from Margeret Michaelski that the meeting started at 5:30. Soooo, we chatted a bit - all by type - and I elected to remain there until the hour-long meeting began. Perhaps twenty-five or so were at the meeting, although there weren't that many when I took the photo I'll post. The educators were from around the world - Australia, the UK, and most from the US: Wisconsin, NY, UNLV, Tulsa, NC, NJ. The moderator was Pathfinder Linden; I believe he's the one who was blue in color.
I thought it would be easy to follow the conversation AND to take notes as I listened/read, but the conversations flowed so quickly that multi-tasking was NOT an option.
The environment was welcoming; I was not the only one who entered and asked about protocol. I was there so early that it was easy to do so. It was obvious that several avatars meet there regularly; the conversation was familiar and joking at times. Very pleasant. I felt welcomed... one of the ladies in the forum said she recognized me from the SLED list. I'd only posted two comments, so I was pretty impressed that she remembered me!
The first meeting of each month uses voice; all others are typed.
The hour of the meeting went by pretty quickly. Discussion centered around how much we are like our avatar(s). Turns out that newbies, like me, are easily recognized by our default walk and clothing. I didn't know avatars could change forms...so there was lots of incidental learning going on for me.
I was pleased to learn about two links for SL support... when I searched "slooghud" (at least that's what I have in my notes), I got a whole page of SL support topics. I also searched "sloodle" and have included those hot links in the posting on the main page. The Second Life tutorials may be something I use in the future.

I just included one url, but you get more on the page when you conduct a search for those terms, so you're actually better off doing that.

I used my PC with a nice large screen for my SL experience tonight. Since I had only to walk a short bit and sit primarily, the video card in my PC that isn't up to snuff for SL was ample for tonight's visit. I was pleased to learn that. For future meetings when I can sit, I'll always opt for the PC instead of the laptop. For movement, the laptop is closer to giving me what I need, although I froze frequently last visit to SL and was on the laptop.

There was discussion about how to notify educators of the meetings...at the beginning, someone was sending out reminders to the regulars... It was actually more engaging than a videoconference might have been. I was quite surprised. If I attend more, there's a whole 'nother language I need to learn. I saw a blog at the top of the page when I searched for slooghud to which I might return... a gentleman commenting on what he had learned after his sixth visit to SL.

Why do I feel like I should end with "nanu nanu"?!

Enjoy,
Anne

3 comments:

  1. Great reflection on your experience, Anne! You are a gifted writer. I felt like I was there. Sounds like it was a big help in SL navigation for you. I love your nanu~nanu closing thought. Not sure all in our class will get the reference. :)

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  2. Thank you, Cheryl,
    I like to write, especially when time and mood allow for crafting well. In the past four years, I've spent a lot of time by myself and have written hundreds of lengthy e-mails... introspective, I suppose. I wouldn't call myself a wordsmith, but do like that appellation (had to find something semi-crafty there!).
    Check out my "incognito reporter reporting" in my Capstone project if you liked the nanu nanu reference!

    http://www.tropicalteachers.com/web2.0/a2b/?Capstone_Project%3A_Win_a_Trip%21:YouTube%3A_Win_a_Trip

    My apologies: can't link in this mode.

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  3. LOL...Mork and Mindy! and I know exactly where Inigo Montoya comes from...I used to watch that movie over and over. Anyway, love your reflections on the SLED meeting. I had some anxiety too about attending a meeting. I need to disguise myself into not looking like a newbie!

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