Thanks so much Erin for all your hard work in bringing Second Life to all of us who couldn't make it to Chicago - it far exceeded my expectations! :-)

For the Elizabeth Edwards session, my avatar was on the left side of the room in the front row - with the flower vase protruding up into the video. I'd like to humbly request that in the future, that vase (or other props) be removed.

As for the sound problems, I hope that those in Real Life operating the mics or speaking into them will take into consideration those in SL trying hard to follow along - i.e., get the volume levels set right!, move the mics away from the speakers mouths to avoid wind blast and repeat the questions from the audience members.

anyhow...

Thanks again,

-Bob
bobafifi.com
usedviolins.com
fluteplayer.net

Bob is right. The audio was very distracting in not just the keynote, but in the sessions too. The mics were too hot, the speakers not trained in how to use them, and the feedback was damaging and painful to the ears in at least one session I attended.

The conference was so well planned - if I were on the team, I would be really disappointed that a technical problem took away from the hard work that went into the content.

It might help to understand that at the venue in Chicago the grand ballroom in which we were situated was um...a GRAND ballroom. The Audio there was piped through wireless mics attached to the speakers clothing. This audio was fed through a soundboard which went into our computers which broadcast to the server in London and into Second Life.

We did have cases of over modulation that was fixed nearly immediately and the under modulation was cranked up through the sound board and our own devices. Such is a live event, where wireless mics are used.

I found our sound and video tech very able and with much testing found the few problems being reported were home pc or mac issues, as we worked hard to balance our levels.

Amazingly the only issues we had on the SL exclusive sessions was one dropped cell call that was quickly redialed. I was in session rooms in Chicago that had mic and audio issues, such is a live, large conference.

The fact that we had live audio and video streaming from Chicago and into a virtual world is an amazing accomplishment for all those involved from Chicago to Los Angeles to London and back. I'm very proud of our team. -I hope the participants, who got a glimpse of what the Chicago attendees paid a registration fee to see in person, understand the large amounts of work involved.

I invite everyone to listen and watch our sessions at http://slcn.tv

Politics & News Contributing Editor
Queen of Spain

This is a great example of why it was important to come to SL and practiice, learn the program BEFORE participating. One of the great things about SL is that in it's 3d world, there is no obstructed view. It doesn't matter which way your Avatar is facing, you can swee whatever you want - rotate your vision every way possible and zoom as well.

But if you don't know how to do it, well I can understand why that would've been frustrating.

Despite the glitches and minor incoveniences, I think Erin did a super job of coordinating a lot of chaos and letting all of us who coudln't make it to conference in Chicago enjoy it for free in the comfort of our own homes.

It was no small feat to get streaming live video and audio into Second Life in a room for of people who were still struggilng wtih how to FUNCTION in second life, which can be a challenge when you are new to it. Plus it can be a challenge when you're streaming audio over the web and you're using high end mics - high end mics pick up everything - to the detriment of those of us using headphones. But you guys did a great job responding everytime we had a REAL problem.

Thanks Erin. I know it wasn't easy.

Now, when I get settled in to my new SL house, you can come over for some chocolate martinis.

Gidge