Learning

Introduction

This page will be used to post links to videos, tutorials, wiki’s, programs, books and other useful tools for those new to Second Life.  If you find anything you think should be added to this list, please email me so I can get it posted.  This is specifically targeted at those who are new to Second Life, and those that want to maybe learn something new.  Yes, you will find a few links to more advanced stuff, but the overall demographic is those wanting to learn more about Second Life.  Enjoy!

• Second Life Help Search - powered by Google
• Download Second Life Client - Windows, Mac and Linux
• Second Life System Requirements - make sure your video card is compatible, and the drivers are up to date
• Second Life Blog: Keep an eye here for announcements (video on how to use the blog)

Books

• Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide, by Henry Jenkins
• Designing Virtual Worlds, by Richard Bartle
• Second Life: The Official Guide
• Synthetic Worlds: The Business and Culture of Online Games, by Edward Castronova

eBooks

• The Complete Fools Guide to Second Life (Unofficial) : Online and PDF Download - FREE

Listserv’s and Forums

• SL Developer’s Forums
• SLED - Second Life Educators
• SLEDT - Second Life Educators working with Teens

Programs

• Avimator - Creating animations for SL
  • Download Avimator
  • Beginner’s Guide
• Blender 3D
  • Download Blender 3D
  • Blender 3D Wiki Book
• DazStudio - Free 3D Modeling
  • Download DazStudio
  • Download DazStudio Manual (PDF, 258 pages)
  • Daz Productions Tutorials - select DazStudio & Plugins from drop down menu
  • DazStudio Tutorial
  • Gwyneth Llewelyn’s Blog article on DazStudio and Poser Files (reads the official SL models)
  • Thread on viewing SL skins in DazStudio from SL Forums
• FRAPS - Commercial real time video capture utility, free limited demo
• Paint.net - Free graphics program with alpha channel support
• Poser v7 - Commercial 3D Modeling

Videos

• Alt-Zoom Studios Machinima
• Basic Machinima (2:11 mins)
• CTER Second Life Tutorials - eight tutorials from CTER’s Master’s of Education program
• How To - Alt Zoom : MooMoney (4:59 mins)
• Building a clock in Second Life : SLBuilding.com  (7 videos, 45 mins)
• How to Live in Second Life : Basic Tutorial on getting started (1:59 mins)
• Official Second Life Video Tutorial Page
• Natural Selection Studios : Noob be Gone Series
  • Camera Controls (7:04 mins)
  • Building Tutorial (10:18 mins)
• Robin Wood Videos
  • Transparency in Second Life 
  • Smashing Second Life Video - Google Talks - Philip Rosendale CEO Linden Lab and Corey Ondrejka,  (1 hour)
• Torley Videos
  • Advanced Snapshot Magic (11:26 mins)
  • Sit on a Prim and get 500m high (20 secs)
  • How to make a Sculpted Apple - 5:04 mins (Torley)
  • How to use gestures - 9:47 mins (Torley)
  • How to manage your inventory - 12:25 mins (Torley)
  • How to use HUD’s - 9:46 mins (Torley)
  • How to change your appearance - 9:19 mins (Torley)
  • How to open and sell boxes - 5:36 mins (Torley)
  • How to use the building grid - 9:51 mins (Torley)
  • How to fill in your profile - 14:51 mins (Torley)
  • How to send and create a notecard - 4:58 mins (Torley)
  • How to use Undo - 4:51 mins (Torley)
  • How to make a flag that waves in the wind - 8:29 mins (Torley)
  • How to make tiny prims - 8:35 mins (Torley)

Webpages - Tutorials and Templates

• Ariane Brodie’s Second Life Tips and Scripts
• Bridge making - Make Magazine
• Programming in Second Life - EdBoost
• Giving a slideshow on a prim - O’Reilly 
• Gwyn’s Beginner’s Guide to Second Life
• Hair Editing 101: The Ultimate Salon Guide for Beginners - Linden Lifestyles
• High Quality Templates - Chip Midnight
• How to create textures with alpha channels for Second Life - Instructables
• How To: Texture Zones - Julian Fate
• Ice Texture Tutorial - Electric Sheep
• nEscher
  • Alpha Channel Primer
  • Creating a Tatoo in Second Life
  • Creating your first shirt
  • Introduction to creating clothing
• Robin Wood Tutorials
  • Alpha Channels
  • Adding Patterns to Cloth using Photoshop
  • Avatar UV Templates
  • Getting the white out of line art
  • In-world Texture Tutorials (main grid)
  • Lace Textures in Second Life
  • The Robin (Sojourner) Wood T-Shirt Template
• Second Life Insider - Adjusting to a new world
  • Moving Around
  • Communicating by Chat
  • Instant Messaging
  • Clothes Making for Beginners
  • Clothing
  • Animations and Gestures for Beginners
• Second Life Knowledge Base : Official Linden Lab
• The texture of our world - SLOG
• Torley Web
  • How to make a beautiful panarama in Second Life in 15 mins
• Using the Linden Scripting Language 

Wiki’s

• 101 Uses for Second Life in Education
• Alpha Channel Tutorials - SL Wiki
• Campus Teen Second Life - SimTeach
• LSL Portal : Scripting Language
• LSL Wiki : Scripting Language
• Second Life Education
• Second Life - Open Content
• Top 20 Educational Sites in Second Life
• Vital - Laboratory at Ohio University