3pointD.com

Stefan Geens at Ogle Earth reports that Google Earth has added two new layers to its default set, and created a new directory for “Geographic Web.” Now included in Google Earth’s default placemark sets are georeferenced articles from Wikipedia and georeferenced photos from photo-sharing site Panoramio. Adding these as default layers is a nice way to promote what Google’s calling the geographic Web. It moves flat Web pages closer to 3D functionality. All that’s needed to complete the circle is for people to add links in Wikipedia’s georeferenced pages that launch Google Earth at the appropriate placemarks.

Second Life resident Tateru Nino has a very perceptive post on Second Life Insider yesterday. The post points out a new phenomenon in “camping chairs.” These are usually located at nightclubs, and allow users to earn a trickle of Linden dollars (usually something less than L$50 an hour, that last time I looked) simply for parking one’s avatar’s butt in a chair and remaining there for a period of time. (Most people simply walk away from their computers once they’ve sat down.) The users gets “free” money, and the club owners get high traffic ratings, which push their location up in the charts, making it easier to find, thus attracting more traffic and, hopefully, more revenue. But as Tateru writes, some club owners have recently started installing camping objects that put users’ avatars through the paces of erotic dance. “Is there a qualitative difference here between these and the regular dance-pad/camping chair vulturing?” Tateru asks. “Does this cross the line, or should we consider this more-of-the-same?” Interesting questions. Related: If you saw an avatar doing the erotic zombie dance, would that taint that avatar’s reputation for you? Consider the fact that there’s no one at the controls. It’s like the tree falling in the forest. If an avatar strokes its breasts in public while there’s no one behind the keyboard, does that make them naughty?

Or at least, we’re talking to one of the Big Brother Second Life contestants on SecondCast #46. In this case, it’s TheDivaRockin, who’s a podcaster herself, as well as being a hoot of a guest — and having made it through to the second round! One thing I liked about having TheDiva on the show was that she was one of the few guests we’ve had who seemed to treat Second Life as just another corner of the Internet, rather than as some mystical place that’s an escape from anything “real.” And she has some energy, and is not afraid to dish. A fun show.