Tag Archive for 'Education'

Schome Park the Third

Published on 27th of April, 2008 in Schome Park. 14 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

(Note: This post is slightly premature, because the third phase of the project hasn’t actually ended yet – it still has another month to run. However, I don’t feel this is likely to make much difference. WordPress screwed up and wiped the second half of the post, forcing me to rewrite it. Also, it’s rather dull, as is everything I write.) 

So, after leaving, returning, leaving, returning, leaving, and returning to/from this project, it seems that it has finally decided to die. By which I mean that all attempts to obtain funding have failed, they’re running out, and they can’t afford staff. I can’t say I’m going to miss it much. In all honesty, the project didn’t die because of a lack of funding – instead, it died due to the lack (or, more accurately, the ignorance) of a coherent vision. This is a problem for a project with the stated intent of trying to work out how to make an idea work – so far, all it has to show for it is that it doesn’t, mostly because the management over-compromise to make their vision fit in.

The third phase of the project was, apparently, formed with the purpose of discovering what happens when you add school to the mix – a mix with the slogan “not school – not home – schome.” You basically get school. In fact, that’s exactly what you get. Complete with deadlines, grades, pressure from teachers, and rushed homeworks.

Continue reading ‘Schome Park the Third’

Update on Adults on the Teen Grid (and some SL physics)

Published on 19th of April, 2007 in Schome Park and Second Life. 16 Comments Tags: , , , , .

I have changed my opinion on adults on the teen grid. I’m not against them, but I’m no longer for them.

Why? Because they aren’t doing any educating!

I don’t mind the teen grid having more adult sims than teen sims. I couldn’t care less. What I care about is that they aren’t doing any of what they’re here to do; that is, teaching.

Let us consider Global Kids. They now have three sims: Global Kids, GK Machinima Island and GK Serious Gaming. Why do they need a GAMING sim to teach?
In short, they don’t. They use it to run games. If they let other teens use those resources, I wouldn’t mind. But they don’t – it’s all no build. So them and their managers have the resources to outdo anyone confined to parcels of land on the grid.

TG Adults are going downhill, fast. They had better do something about it.

Oh, and as a side note, I can’t help but be amused by the physics group on Schome Park. Here are some helpful hints:

  • The physics engine is only accurate to within ten centimetres, so objects count as touching if they’re that close. There is no mysterious force field.
  • Gravity is 9.8m/s/s. For proof, try putting this in a script in a physical object, then putting it in the air.
    llSetForce(<0.0,0.0,9.8*llGetMass()>,FALSE);
    This will cause it to levitate. You can also test this by dropping an object and have it immediately report its velocity.
  • The mass of an object is proportional to its size, but nothing else. When large objects mess up experiments, they probably ran out of energy, which is an arbitrary device used to stop scripts breaking stuff.
  • There is no wind or water resistence, but objects will hit terminal velocity.
  • The on friction from an object varies based on its material.
  • Water has no representation in the physics engine – it’s just a visual effect.
  • SL will not let you have objects at the quantum level, and doesn’t simulate its effects.
  • c can be argued to be infinite, as things at any distance appear to happen at the same time no matter where you observe from.

Adults, do something useful. (I am aware Schome Park does more than try and work out SL’s physics, but that project is pointless. I advise they go and read this.)