On the non-profit side we have spoken with representatives from charities about how they might better harness the power of the Web. One of those is Paul Lynch and his committee who organise the annual GOAL charity ball in Paris. This year they are using a wiki to organise the event rather than email. Ronan and Paul have revamped www.goal-ball.org enabling people to pay for tickets online, specify meal choices and pick tables. A group has also been setup on Facebook (GOAL Ball Paris) for attendees to join in the conversation.

Each of the above projects are good illustrations of the transition now taking place in social computing. The beneficial use of second generation Web tools is now moving from early adopters to mainstream users.

Just as CNN asks its real-life audience to submit iReports – user-generated content submitted from cell phones, computers, cameras and other equipment for broadcast and online reports – the network invites the residents of Second Life to share their own “SL iReports” about events occurring within the virtual world.

“The thing we most hope to gain by having a CNN presence in Second Life is to learn about virtual worlds and understand what news is most interesting and valuable to their residents,” said Susan Grant, executive vice president of CNN News Services.

CNN are the latest media outlet to take up residence in Second Life. Having worked with Millions Of Us on their entry strategy over the last couple of months their iReport hub progress will be followed with interest. CNN joins Reuters who took up residence with the assistance of Electric Sheep Company in October 2006 and Sky News who were advised by Rivers Run Red and took up residence in May 2007.

Of particular interest is the launch of China’s Recreation District which is the virtual equivalent to China’s “Special Economic Zones”. As someone who was fortunate enough to witness first hand the rise of the Asian Tiger economies over the last 2 decades this event heralds a new chapter in the regions evolution. Many thanks to Brendan for the invitation.

Stanford plays host to its first Metaverse Meetup this evening. Mike Liebhold from the Institute of the Future is tonights guest speaker. As one of the leading 3D Geoweb thinkers Mikes talk on 3D Data for Real World Virtual Worlds promises to be entertaining and educational. Co-ordinator Henrik Bennetsen has more details on the event here. For those who cannot make it to Stanford there will be a Second Life simulcast at Spaceport Bravo.

Saturday sees Harvard Business School play host to its annual Cyberposium. This years event has Virtual Worlds high on its agenda with Linden Lab CEO Philip Rosedale delivering one of the keynotes and a Online Games and Virtual Worlds : More Than Just Entertainment? panel in the afternoon. For those interested in attending registration is available here.

Metanomics 07 is off to a good start with this weeks guest speaker Sandra Kearney, Global Director of 3D Internet and VIrtual Business at IBM. Sandra gave an interesting and interactive one hour presentation on IBM’s involvement in the metaverse. VIdeo archives of all Metanomics 07 sessions are available over on the Second Life Cable Network.

Justin Ratner gave a keynote titled Virtual Worlds – The rise of the 3D Internet at the Intel Developer Forum. A webcast of his talk is available here for those interested. After Intel’s recent acquistion of Havok and partnering with Qwaq Forums on an enhanced virtual workspace product its Virtual World declarations of intent are noted.

Last but not least Sony pushed back the launch date for Home from Autumn 2007 to Spring 2008. Having followed beta developments since April 2007 it still requires work and Sony is doing the right thing. With a steadily growing PS3 online user base of 2.7M worldwide it is eagerly awaited.

David Adams piece in The Age showcases some Australian entrepreneurs who are carving out niches for themselves within Second Life and Entropia. Looking beyond Davids misreading of the Second Life stats page (reporting turnover of 12.5m Linden dollars during July – it was 12.5m resident transactions) it was interesting to see him mention Dotman World.

Mitch Wagner has written a good primer for businesses considering entering Second Life. In light of the recent love-hate coverage Second Life has received of late it is a timely piece written from the perspective of both a knowledgeable resident and reporter.

One organization who continues to pioneer and experiment with Virtual Worlds is IBM. Its Second Life Business Center, which launched back in May 15th 2007, has attracted 10,000 visitors over the interim. Based on its successful launch IBM announced that it would now be staffed 24/7 Monday through Friday providing global coverage.

According to a 2007 survey by the eLearning Guild, which polled nearly 1,500 of its members, from large and small companies throughout the U.S., 38% of insurance companies are investigating using games for work. In finance, accounting, and banking, that figure was above 50%.

Business Week has a special report titled The Power of Gaming which is recommended reading. It showcases how businesses such as McKinsey, Johnson & Johnson, Sears and Royal Philips Electronics are currently using gaming as recruitment, training and collaboration tools. Market research which previously took cool hunters a year to compile is now readily available in real time globally. Many of the tools we have seen todate are remarkably primitive relative to some of the offerings coming to market over the next 18 months.

Whole new industries are being created by a handful of designers and developers who stepped outside of their respective comfort zones within the gaming and entertainment industries. They are taking advantage of the ever increasing number of platforms becoming both accessible and affordable. Some were present at the fifth annual Edinburgh Interactive Festival whose theme this year was Expanding the Creative Culture of Games. For those interested Andrew Doull did a great job in live blogging many of the sessions.

It is refreshing to see public acknowledgment of the fact that games both entertain and educate. Authors such as John Beck, Steven Johnson and David Shaffer have been banging the drum for a number of years now. With generous benefactors such as the MacArthur Foundation funding digital research projects our awareness and understanding of the opportunities to hand will become more common place.

Having fun with fundamentals is something The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra (TRLPO) understands. If you fancy joining TRLPO for a live performance in Second Life on September 14th then register to win a free ticket to the event. It promises to be a new experience for all concerned.

As someone who is not a fan of versioning I prefer to think about what is happening in terms of waves. The first wave was a top-down driven revolution, the second wave is a bottom-up driven counter-revolution and the third wave will be about where the two intersect and ultimately evolve – middle space. During the first and second waves our digital identity and attention identity were separable. In the third wave the two will become one with significant social, economic and political consequences.

A number of projects are attempting to build services to ride the third wave. OpenID, Particls and Project VRM are but three examples which need to be considered alongside the likes of platform contenders Facebook, Google and Linden Lab. Whereas RSS provides content, microformats provide context, Virtual Worlds provide presence – both in terms of location and self. As our understanding and interpretation of gestures improve Virtual Worlds will play an important part in providing a sandbox to enable the mind shift required in third wave thinking from linear to non-linear.

With more people experiencing Virtual Worlds first hand many are surprised to learn just how long they have actually been around. Thankfully an initiative by Bruce Damer called Virtual Worlds Timeline is at hand to help fill in the gaps. For those interested audio and accompanying slides of a March 26th 2007 presentation on the origins and evolution of Social Virtual Worlds by Bruce is available here. There are a number of gems within the presentation for those who take the time to listen to it. More to follow …

Unlike many writers who have written pieces featuring Second Life to-date Wade has taken up residence in-world for a couple of months prior to writing his piece and it shows. Christian Renaud has also dusted off his crystal ball and started to think aloud on what the future may hold.

Organized events such as the upcoming SecondFest are attracting more and more people to experience Virtual Worlds first hand. With Edinburgh University and Santa Clara University joining the growing list of 100+ academic institutions resident in Second Life the conversations on Second Earth have only just begun. Interesting times indeed.

CNN Future Summit: Virtual Worlds aired on June 13th on CNN International. Originating from Singapore and Palo Alto, California, the program features creative visionaries and entrepreneurs leading us into a new age of creativity and imagination.

CNN Future Summit : Virtual Worlds serves as a good primer for those new to the space. Kristie Lu Stout attempts to connect the dots by bringing together some of the leading thinkers from academia, gaming, social media and virtual worlds within this one hour special. It is now viewable online with the show broken down into 6 segments – Virtual reality, Communications, Movies, Connectivity, Creative talent and Virtual future. Recommended viewing and food for thought.