Monday, December 20, 2010

Libraries are Alive and Thriving in Second Life

I have always appreciated the fact that there are libraries in  Second Life, this seems to be a good fit for libraries, patrons and lovers of books.  Oh sure we can all access the same resource they do directly from the web without going in to Second Life, however the immersive environment in Second Live provides for a “realistic” library experience.  
This photo was taken at the Cybrary in Second Life as you can see here they provide links to Guttenberg books for their patrons.  

The bookcase below holds Cook Books from the Caledon Library:

Cybrary has been around for a while, in Second Life terms, based upon this article on the Second Life based library.
A list of libraries from the Cybrary City 1 and 2 in Second Life:

    • Bibliotheek Amsterdam OBA (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
    • Glenview Public Library  (Illinois, USA)
    • Olathe Public Library (Kansas, USA)
    • Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library

Totally Virtual Public Libraries with sites in Second Life
    • Alexandrian Free Library Consortium
    • Bibliotheque Francophone
    • CALEDON LIBRARIES
    • Genesis City Public Library
    • The Lbrary @ Driftwood Beach
    • Library @ Insight Virtual College
    • R.F. Burton Memorial Library
    • Sustainable Living Library


Belos is an example of exhibits held at the Caledon Library.    From the Steampunk Wiki you will learn that the Caledon Libraries are managed by JJ Drinkwater.  These libraries are the hub of information, Victorian culture and information in Second Life.   As stated in the wiki, “The collecting policies of the Caledon Library have two main foci: the 19th century and Caledon's defining literary genres, Steampunk and Alternate History.”      As you can see from their calendar, the library and the surrounding area of Caledon, maintains a very active events list. Check out the blog for regular updates from JJ Drinkwater.

The virtual learning library is more of a specialized library focused on the learning needs for residents of Second Life.  This library provides resources on building, scripting to skills just as navigating the Second Life environment.

A second life sculpt map:

Information for new residents to Second Life:

Steel City
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife//116/121/40

State of Kansas Library  This library site provides links to state, regional and local websites of interest.
http://skyways.lib.ks.us/orgs/kcfb/


The Community  for Virtual Libary’ website:
http://infoisland.org/calendar/
McGill University Library also provides links to it’s web pages of  specialized libraries:

One unique feature of the McGill LIbrary is teleporting to their virtual university which makes it seem as if your avatar is actually in the library:

Libraries are alive and thriving in Second LIfe