The upgrade means jokaydiaGRID will finally enjoy some of the stability of 0.7.2 and a return to some hypegrid connectivity! Yay! You can read more about the upgrade over at ReactionGrid’s blog.

More news coming soon!

The jokaydia Festival of Unconferency-ness continues this weekend with a number of events Saturday and Sunday! Join us for some play and exploration! Check out the Unconference Week 3 Wiki page for more details!

Event Times

• jokaydiaGRID Meetup and Mini Tour – Saturday 11 June, 8:00am – 9:00am (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• Hypergrid Adventure and Photosafari! – Saturday 11 June. 9:30am – 10:30am (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• World of Warcraft Adventure - Sunday 12 June, 1:30pm- 3:00pm (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• Campfire Discussion Series – Part 5 - Sunday 12 June, 6:00pm- 7:00pm (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• jokaydia Minecrafts – Open Day - Sunday 12 June, 8:00pm- 12:00am (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• Hypergrid Adventurer’s Club Meeting – Monday 13 June, 3am – 4am (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)

Opensim Worlds Exhibition

We’ve had a small number of submissions for our Opensim Worlds Exhibition which you can view at Exhibition Sim at jokaydiaGRID. However, we’re really love to see lots of submissions and really encourage you to get involved! Check out the Opensim Worlds Exhibition wiki page for further details.

Would You Like to Facilitate a Session?

There’s still time to add your voice to the Unconference by facilitating a session! Check out the Week 4 Unconference Wiki page for times and opportunities!

Today we’re excited to open the doors to our minecraft server for visitors for the first time, for a jokaydia Festival of Unconference Minecrafting Session!

Join us in NewCity to survive your first night in Minecraft. Do a little basic skills development, and explore the minecrafting environment. Meet some of our miners and join in on the digging!

Starting at 2:30pm – 4:00pm Sydney Time (Check your local time here) – simply login to the jokaydia Minecraft to attend!

Session Instructions

To join this session you’ll need to signup for Minecraft (fees apply) and download and install the software. Once that’s complete you’ll be able to login in to Minecraft and join our Multiplayer environment. For a guide on how to connect to jokaydia’s Minecraft server visit the jokaydia Minecrafts Blog @ http://minecraft.jokaydia.com/how-to-connect/!

Additionally, during this session we’ll be using Ventrillo to create a voice channel during the session. Ventrillo is a very simple VOIP tool which you can download and install on your computer for free. There’s a guide to connecting to the jokaydia Ventrillo channel on the Wiki @ http://jokaydia.wikispaces.com/jokaydiaventrillo. Please ensure you have setup and tested Ventrillo prior to the event!

Note: There is a 20 player limit on the jokaydia Minecraft Servers. Our server will be open from 11am Sydney Time today until 5pm Sydney Time and visitors are welcome to explore during that time. We will then return to our regular Whitelisted default state. Please carefully consider the jokaydia Minecraft Charter before visiting!

More Unconferencing Tonight!

Additional to our Minecraft session, join us @ jokaydiaGRID from 6pm – 8pm Sydney Time (Check your local time here!) for some hypergrid adventuring, discussions on bringing content to opensim and our regularly scheduled campfire discussions!

Check out the wiki @ http://jokaydia.wikispaces.com/unconf2011_week2 for more details!

During the session we will explore the work the PLANE Team have been doing at jokaydiaGRID to develop a virtual worlds activities and environments to support teacher professional development.

Project Background:

The PLANE project will develop a suite of on-line learning experiences to achieve the objectives and outcomes of the three key result areas (see below). A key feature of the project will be its utilisation of two environments for the delivery of the online experiences: a 21st century immersive learning environment – a “digital virtual world” for experiential learning, problem based simulation learning, collaboration and communication, and an online rich multi-media environment.

Key Result Areas for the project: Improving capability of pre-service teachers, Enhancing capacity of in-service teachers, Driving innovation through leadership.

(From the PLANE Website: http://plane.edu.au/about/)

The session will include as tour of four work-in-progress projects and an open discussion to seek feedback, suggestions and explore best practice.  Don’t Miss it!

Would You Like to Facilitate a Session!

Unconferences are about participation! We invite you to share and showcase your work by volunteering to facilitate a session at the jokaydia Unconference! For more information check out the jokadyia Unconference Wiki pages @ http://jokaydia.wikispaces.com/unconference2011

As part of the Festival of Unconferency-ness 2011 we are facilitating a Community Art Project and Competition entitled ‘Opensim Worlds’ … and you’re invited to participate!

We invite all hypergrid travelers to contribute images to our ‘Opensim Worlds’ Exhibition – a celebration of the amazing creativity, innovation and collaboration happening across the Opensim Metaverse!

To participate, simply take snapshot of your favourite locations on the hypergrid and submit it via the form here. We’ll add your images and details of the location to the Exhibition Sim at jokaydiaGRID for all Unconference participants to enjoy! This is a great way to spread the word about your opensim space, or to celebrate the stellar work of your favourite opensim content creator.

Submissions close on the 22nd June 2011. The Exhibition will be open from 1 June 2011 – 1 August 2011.

For further details, check out the jokaydia Festival of Unconferency-ness 2011 Wiki pages or visit the Exhibition Sim at jokaydiaGRID!

Woohoo! The jokaydia Festival of Unconferencey-ness 2011 Swapmeet Sim is already filling up with groovy freebies! Thanks to all who’ve dropped in to share some content with the community!

As part of the 2011 Unconference, we have opened a Swapmeet sim to allow all participants to share their latest opensim creations, and of course its always fun to shop, right!?

To participate simply visit the Swapmeet sim at jokaydiaGRID – you can search for it on the map or use the signs at Scooter sim to get there! The sim will be open from the 29 May 2011 – 26 June 2011.

Things to Remember:

• Ensure that the content you are sharing is labelled appropriately and includes an creator information that is appropriate
 
• Ensure that the content you are sharing is set to ‘anyone may copy’ so that other visitors can grab a copy
 
• And most importantly – Ensure that you have rights to share the content you are adding! If it is content you have obtained from another creator or grid, please ensure that it is ok to share it with others. jokaydiaGRID staff reserves the right to delete any content that it is infringing on a content creators rights!

Coming Up!

The next official session for the Unconference is happening on Wednesday 1 June 2011 from 8:00pm Sydney Time.

• Event details are on the jokaydia Unconference Wiki
 
• You can check your local time here!

Never been to an unconference? New to virtual worlds or opensim!? Then today’s events are for you!

To kick off the first day of our Festival of Unconferency-ness 2011 we’ll be holding an intro session, tour and campfire discussion … TODAY!

The draft schedule for sessions is available on the Unconference Wiki pages and is as follows:

Unconference Information and Newbie Session

Time: Sunday 29 May, 2:00pm – 2:30pm (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)

Session Description: A short social session to open the conference. Join us at the jokaydia Landing Point to meet other participants and find out more about the planned events. Learn about how you can participate by facilitating a session or contributing to our community projects. Setup your avatar, grab some freebies and get ready for the month of unconferencing ahead!

Facilitator: Jokay Wollongong

Location: Scooter Sim, jokaydiaGRID.

jokaydiaGRID Tour

Time: Sunday 29 May, 2:45pm – 3:45pm (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)

Session Details: New to Virtual Worlds or Opensimulator? Join us at jokaydiaGRID for a short tutorial on setting up your avatar and exloring the grid. Visit a number of sims at jokaydiaGRID who are exploring the use of virtual worlds in their various fields.

Facilitator: Jokay Wollongong

Starting Point: Scooter Sim, jokaydiaGRID

Campfire Discussion Series – Part 1

Time: Sunday 29 May, 4:00pm – 5:00pm (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)

Session Details: Join us at the jokaydiaGRID Grid Gardens on Ajax sim and share your ideas, questions and crazy ideas! All topics relating to virtual worlds and games in education are welcome! You can add your suggestions via our Wallwisher below!

Facilitator: Jokay Wollongong

Location: The Gardens @ jokaydiaGRID, Ajax Sim

Unconference SwapMeet Sim Opens Today!

Today we are also launching the Unconference Swap-Meet sim – a space to share, swap and shop throughout the unconference!

Join us at the SwapMeet sim to start the sharing ball rolling! Throughout the month we’ll be inviting content creators to share their work … because everyone could do with some new loot in their inventory, right?! For more info, check out the Unconference Wiki pages!

Unconference Facilitators – We Need You!

Unconference’s are about participation and are best when facilitation is shared and session topics are wide and varied.  We invite you to be a part of our Unconference by sharing your work, your favourite hot topic or even your work in progress at one of the Unconference sessions.

To do so, simple check out the Unconference Wiki pages, click the ‘EDIT’ button and add a session:

• WEEK 2 – 30 May – 5 June 2011
 
• WEEK 3: 6 June – 12 June 2011
 
• WEEK 4: 13 JUNE – 19 JUNE 2011

Ideas for session could include:

• Give a presentation on recent virtual worlds project or initiative
 
• Run a workshop which demonstrates a tool or strategy you’re using
 
• Lead a discussion on a hot topic or convene a panel session
 
• Teach a building or scripting class and share your virtual worlds skills
 
• Create a roleplay or immersive activity for participants to visit during the unconference
 
• Run a newbie event for new residents
 
• Create an exhibit or display to share at the unconference
 
• Take us on adventure to your grid, sim or other online space
 
• Share your favourite educational gaming environment

If you need further information or would like support in planning and facilitation a session at the Unconference please contact Jokay Wollongong inworld or email: support@jokaydiagrid.com.

Contribute to the Discussion!

During the Unconference we will hold a number of Campfire discussions. These sessions are an openspace for participants to share ideas, raise issues, ask questions and learn from each other. And of course (in true unconference style) we’d like YOU to help us to plan the topics!

Add your thoughts to the wallwisher below and help us to create a relevent, engaging series of discussions!

It’s on again! The jokaydia Festival of Unconferency-ness 2011 starts this weekend and continues for the next 5 weeks … and you’re invited!

As many of our residents already know, jokaydia traditionally holds an unconference in May to celebrate our community’s work and achievements. This year, we’ve decided to go even bigger(!) by holding not just a weekend of events – starting this week, we’ll be hosting Unconferences over 5 weeks!

And remember – Unconferences are all about PARTICIPATION! We need you to help make this a great event!

WHAT?

The jokaydia Festival of Unconferency-ness 2011 will be occuring from 29 May 2011 – 26 June 2011, with a range of events taking place across our spaces at jokaydiaGRID, the Islands of jokaydia in Second Life, World of Warcraft and jokaydia’s Minecraft!

The aim of the events is to encourage community and collaboration amongst jokaydia Community Members, and to share and showcase great uses of virtual worlds for education, business and the arts.

Join us to participate in a range of events including exploring jokaydiaGRID spaces, adventuring on the hypergrid, workshops and presentations on a range of projects, explorations, games and community activities.

For further information about the draft schedule of events check out the Festival of Unconferency-ness 2011 pages on the jokaydia Community Wiki.

WHEN?

This year the Unconference is running over several days per week for 5 weeks as follows:

• Day 1: Sunday 29 May, 2:00pm – 5:00pm (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• Day 2: Wednesday 1 June, 8pm – 10pm (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• Day 3: Friday 3 June, 8:00pm – 12:15am (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• Day 4: Saturday 4 June, 2:30pm – 9:30pm (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• Day 5: Thursday 9 June, 8:00pm – 12:00am (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• Day 6: Saturday 11 June, 8:00am – 2:00pm (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• Day 7: Saturday 18 June, 9:00am – 5:00pm (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• Day 8: Sunday 19 June, 6:00pm – 10:00pm (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)
 
• Day 9: Sunday 26 June , 9:00am – 4:00pm  (Sydney Time, Check your local time here!)

We have tried to spread across different time zones as much as possible to cater for our international community, however if you would like to facilitate a session outside these times, please feel free to contact Jokay Wollongong for further information!

WHERE?

The Unconference will primarily be occuring at jokaydiaGRID. However we will also be visiting jokaydia’s Minecraft, World of Warcraft and any other places and spaces proposed by our participants!

Please ensure that you have checked the Unconference Wiki pages for information on the sessions and any technology you will need to attend.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE?

This year we’d like to encourage participants to focus on virtual worlds and games and how they can be used to save the world! Are you doing something in virtual worlds or games that is making a difference in your school, community or company? We’d love to hear from you!

Ideas for sessions could include:

• Give a presentation on recent virtual worlds project or initiative
 
• Take us on a tour of your virtual world – we’d love to visit other places and spaces
 
• Run a workshop which demonstrates a tool or strategy you’re using
 
• Lead a discussion on a hot topic or convene a panel session
 
• Teach a building or scripting class and share your virtual worlds skills
 
• Create a roleplay or immersive activity for participants to visit during the unconference
 
• Run a newbie event for new resident
 
• Create an exhibit or display to share at the unconference

…..or whatever crazy virtual scheme that you’ve come up with! We’ll provide you with a venue for your proposed session and of course lots of support during the big event!

This is a great opportunity to share new work, get some feedback from an enthusiastic audience or practice your virtual worlds facilitation skills!

HOW TO PROPOSE A SESSION

To propose a session, simply visit the 2011 Festival of Unconferency-ness Wiki pages and add your details to the Draft Schedule. You can choose a 30 or 60min session, or propose something completely different!

Please ensure that you include:

• A title and short overview of your proposed session
 
• The names of facilitators who will be involved in the session and their contact details
 
• If you are taking participants on a tour of your own grid, or another platform please ensure that you include clear instructions on how to attend and any technical requirements or software to be installed. 

FIND OUT MORE!

To find out more about the conference check out the Festival of Unconferency-ness 2011 pages on the jokaydia Community Wiki or follow the event via Twitter – we’ll be hashtagging with #jokaydiaunconf!

TWEET THE EVENT

Help us to spread the word about the conference by tweeting with the Festival of Unconferency-ness hashtag which is: #jokaydiaunconf!

And so another VWBPE Conference comes to a close and much fun was had by all!

At jokaydiaGRID we had the pleasure of hosting both the Whistlestop Tour and a session on the fabulous Western Institute Virtual Tourism project, and it was lovely to have visitors on the grid new and old. We also had lots of fun at the Beginner Tour of World of Warcraft.

For those who didn’t make it to the sessions, we’ve left some resources out so you can take yourself on a self-directed tour … you’ll find them on Scooter sim near the landing point. All you need to do is click on the vendors to receive a notecard which contains all the landmarks and some notes about the projects and locations included.

We’ve also published some slides and photos from the days sessions – check them out below!

A huge thanks to all the jokaydiaGRID residents who participated in our whistlestop tour – you all rock! And of course even huger thanks to the fabulous VWBPE Team for all their hard work in creating such an epic event! Seeya all next year!

It’s that time of year again – YAY! As most of our residents know, the Virtual Worlds Best Practice in Education Conference (VWBPE) is coming up this weekend … and you’re invited!

From the conference Website…. “The Virtual Worlds Best Practice in Education (VWBPE) is a community-based conference that provides opportunities for participants in all virtual worlds to share current teaching, learning, and research practices in 3D virtual environments. Conference presentations focus on teaching/learning, scholarly work, projects, events, activities and new and innovative tools for virtual education. Presenters will focus on the identification of best practices in education designed for 3D virtual world technology.”

For information on how to participate in a huge range of presentations, workshops and social events check out the main VWBPE Conference website and register to attend (for free!).

As in previous years, the jokaydia Community is very pleased to be involved in VWBPE, and we’re honored to be hosting 2 events at jokaydiaGRID this year! Check out the details below for more information on how you can get involved.

jokaydiaGRID Whistlestop Tour!

4pm – 6pm, Thurs 17th March  (Second Life Time / PST) / 11pm – 1am , Thurs 17th March  (GMT) / 10am – 12pm , Frid 18th March (Sydney Time) / Check your local time here!

Join us for a whistlestop tour and meet the residents who are creating jokaydiaGRID!

Visit our new landing point sim, meet some of the residents and find out more about the various projects we are building! After the tour we will gather for a fireside discussion focused on the joys and challenges of exploring opensim virtual worlds environments for education and the arts.

• Meeting Point Location in Second Life: West Departure 2 (SLurl). jokaydia Team Members will be at the Departure Area 30mins prior to each session to assist those who are new to open simulator.
 
• Starting Location at jokaydiaGRID:  Scooter Sim
 
• Session Facilitator: Jokay Wollongong
 

How to Attend:

To attend this session you will need to choose from one of the following options:

• Signup for an account at jokaydiaGRID. You can find instructions on how to signup and setup your viewer software here.
 
• If you have an avatar at a compatible opensim grid like ReactionGrid,  (jokaydiaGRID is running Opensim 0.6.9) you can hypergrid to the Tour Starting Point via Hypergrid Address: jokaydia.metaverseworlds.com:9000.
 
• We recommend the Imprudence or Hippo Viewers as the best options for participants who are new to opensim.
 

Western Institute Virtual Tourism – from Moodle to Opensim!

9pm – 10pm, Fri 18 March 2011 (Second Life Time / PST) / 4am – 5am, Sat 19 March 2011 (GMT) / 3pm – 4pm, Sat 19 March 2011 (Sydney Time) / Check your local time here!

Join the project team for a live guided tour of ‘Wards Resort’ and the other learning spaces that have been created as part of the Western Institute Virtual Tourism Project.

During the tour, participants will be invited to take part in some simple activities designed to support students in developing a range of skills and knowledge including customer service skills and occupational health and safety. Following the tour we will meet at the Resort Restaurant for a Q&A session and an opportunity to discuss how these types of immersive environments can be used to assist students in developing skills for the workplace, and the outcomes of a 5 week pilot undertaken with 15-18yo students in 2010.

• Meeting Point Location in Second Life: : West Departure 2 (SLurl). jokaydia Team Members will be at the Departure Area 30mins prior to each session to assist those who are new to open simulator.
 
• Starting Location at jokaydiaGRID:  Scooter Sim
 
• Session Facilitators: Rob Merchi, Jokay Wollongong
 

How to Attend:

To attend this session you will need to choose from one of the following options:

• Signup for an account at jokaydiaGRID. You can find instructions on how to signup and setup your viewer software here.
 
• If you have an avatar at a compatible opensim grid like ReactionGrid,  (jokaydiaGRID is running Opensim 0.6.9) you can hypergrid to the Tour Starting Point via Hypergrid Address: jokaydia.metaverseworlds.com:9000.
 
• We recommend the Imprudence or Hippo Viewers as the best options for participants who are new to opensim.
 

Beginner Tour of World of Warcraft

2pm – 4pm, Sat 19th March (SLT / PST) / 9pm – 11pm, Sat 19th March (GMT) / 8am – 10am, Sunday 20th March (Sydney Time) / Check your local time here!

Join us for a beginners tour and some in-game fun in Azeroth! The VWBPE Beginners Alliance Tour of World of Warcraft is happening on the Sisters of Elune server and is sponsored by Global Goblin Gathering a subsidary of Jokaydia, Center4Edupunx and endorsed by the guilds Socially Inimacable (Worgen) and Inevitable Betrayal (Horde). For more information email abacuscapalini@gmail.com.

How to Attend:

• Registration for the tours are required please email abacuscapalini@gmail.com. The tour will be capped at 20 and registrations must be received by midnight SLT on 15 March!
 
• Participants will be emailed with login and server information.
 
• PLEASE NOTE: To attend you must register for a free account and download the World of Warcraft Trial Software. This process can take 2 hours or longer depending on your computer. You will also need to download Ventrilo at http://www.ventrilo.com/ to participate in voice chat.