#social vr platforms

[mikkokomori]

Im here to terrorize you

Fat Omori.

WRONG, because I remembered someone drew fat Omori and he looked soooo cute so if you think that's going to terrorize me then you have another thing coming

[virtualrealitynewstoday]

Meta Horizon Worlds v163：「投票移除」功能更新與修復重點介紹

我們非常想知道您對 Meta Horizon Worlds v163 更新中新功能的看法！您覺得投票移除功能有助於改善社交互動嗎？請在下方留言分享您的想法，我們樂於聽取並回應每一位讀者的見解！

在最新的 v163 版本更新中，Meta Horizon Worlds 帶來了一系列提升使用者體驗的改進。這包括了一個正在測試階段的新功能，讓用戶在錄製影片或拍照時能夠切換名牌標籤的顯示與否。此外，亦新增了世界詳情頁面的內容描述符，以及對「投票移除」功能的更新，增強了用戶的操作便利性和互動體驗。 在一般改進方面，Meta 團隊加速了虛擬世界中畫廊的加載速度，使用者現在可以更快地存取及分享照片和影片。針對名牌標籤的切換功能，該功能目前處於測試階段，只對部分用戶開放。在測試階段的用戶可以在開啟相機時，透過一個新的圖標來切換名牌標籤的顯示與否。值得注意的是，使用無人機相機拍攝時，名牌標籤會自動移除，且無法切換。 Poll to…

[walterboy360]

Explore Croom Motorcycles with a 360° VR Tour!

[monicagreen]

Meta Horizon Worlds Early Access Now Open on Web and Mobile

The 3D social platform, which was previously the VR-only social app Horizon Worlds is now moving to the mobile and web platforms that provide more value to its users, according to a recent announcement from Meta.

The social app’s extension outside of VR is now available, and the company says it will release more worlds in the coming months to enhance the experience even further.

[just-a-jock]

Get Digitized

Josh is your typical college kid maybe even a little nerdier. He majored in video game development and is a part of the gaming club at school he really didn’t take part in any social life. He was very average-looking, not too skinny but not too fat. Of course, he has some pudge around him One day while waking to his character design class he noticed a new flyer on the bulletin board

“Love video games? Want to earn cash? Come join our trail of Beta testers”

Josh loved the idea as he continued reading. It did pay pretty well and would provide all accommodations during the duration of the trial. He decides to take the pamphlet and heads to his apartment pondering if he is going to do it or not.

The next day Josh ends up driving to the address. Some big office parks with multiple buildings. “WAG” said the sign out front. He remembered seeing this developer when taking his Indie gaming class last semester. “We Are Gaming” is what the company was called and they specialized in virtual reality games and development. Josh was excited to see what project he would be helping in.

As he walked into the building he went to the front desk.

“Hello I’m here to be a part of the beta testing program,” Josh asked the receptionist

“Hello, please fill out the form on the iPad and one of our specialists will assist you momentarily”

Josh grabbed the iPad and started to fill out the questionnaire. It had all the reasonable questions you might think Until he got to the end

“What the fuck” Josh winced as the questions got more personal. Cock size, sexuality, perceived popularity. Josh decided to answer as he didn’t want to get disqualified and entered the form. Not that long after a man in what seemed like a doctor's uniform comes out from a secure door

“Hello, you must be Josh. My name is Doctor Houston. I’m the head of the VR department. Please follow me” Houston had a very stern voice with a seriousness that he did not want to mess around.

As he started to follow Dr.Houston Josh asked questions “Wow so you have a Ph.D. in gaming or computer science?”

Dr. Houston chuckled before answering “No, I have a MD in Internal medicine. WRG hired me to head the VR department as they want to see the reactions the body takes to long-term virtual reality gaming… and here we are” He finished saying as he opened a room to some sort of laboratory containing a monitor, sleek white gaming equipment and some sport of large computer. On the other side a window looking into what seemed to be a control room

As Josh walks in he hears a door close and lock

“Hey, what’s going on” he screams while banging at the door. After a moment he notices dr Houston walk into the control room across the room and sit down at a desk facing the main room.

Over the speaker “Dear Josh, I will be monitoring your experience from over here. Please strap onto the center platform near the screen so we can start”

Josh felt like this program was more of a medical drug trial and video game testing but decided to continue with what the doctor said anyway. As he walked up to the platform he put his two feet on the conveniently designated spots and looked at the screen as it turned on.

“Welcome player to your new life”

wait new life what did it mean by that. Before Josh could react clamps came out of the ground and attached to his feet holding him in place

“Hey what’s the meaning of this” he screamed

“Please stay calm as we proceed,” the doctor said over the speaker

Large laser pointers came from the side of the computer. “Beginning digitization” the computer screen announced

“Wait what?? What’s happening”

Slowly two beams from the computer started to travel up his body as everything it touched slowly disintegrated

“AHHHHH FUCK IT BURNS STOP IT STOP IT PLEASE” Josh pleated to the computer and the doctor or anyone that would notice

As the computer continued up his body in a burning pain he noticed on the screen a complete 1 to 1 replica of himself….. wait no not a replica that was him…

The computer finally made it up to his head as he pleaded one last time “PLEASE I DON'T WAN…..” He was caught off as his head was completely overwhelmed by the lights

Suddenly Josh regained consciousness but now he is in some white room with nothing around. He then hears a noise

“Customization available……. Character template chooses… JOCK…….. PROCEEDING MODIFICATIONS”

“What is happening stop this” Josh screamed but no one was around to hear him as his clothes completely vanished out of nowhere.

Slowly his body started to change to correspond to the data inside the computer

First Josh's feet grew from his regular size 9s to a huge size 14 which would be making noise anytime he walked anywhere. As the changes traveled upwards his calfs and leg muscles grew. His thighs ended up looking like watermelons and could easily break one if he wanted to between the two.

“Oh fuckkkkkkkkkk” Josh moaned as the changes continued

His cock and balls were next to change as his penis started to pull outwards slowly inching from a 6….7….8…….9……10 and finally ending at a huge size 11 which would make anyone fucked with It limp for days. His ball felt sore as they grew to baseballs filled with cum ready to fill and breed. The last touch to his groin area was the re-growth of his foreskin and ended with a continues leaky cock.

The changes moved to his torso as his abs started to chisel themselves one by one making a road all the way to the growing mountains that were his pecs. His chest looked like it was being inflated and his pecs were the Mount Everest of the range with a pointed nipple which faced downwards due to the muscle growth onto of his pecs.

“Ughh please make it stop…” Josh moaned as the changes continued

Next, his arms grew with his biceps growing to the size of footballs and his hands matching to be able to palm and grab any ball he wanted. The next set of changes started to settle in as hair started to grow across his body. His armpits started to burst out with hairs so thick that even when he put his arms down they would spew from the sizes. Next hair started to travel across his chest and legs thinking and giving him a nice rug that accentuated his already defined muscles. Lastly, but most importantly his bush started to grow more and more from his groin. Anytime of pants or underwear won’t be able to cover the spillage that will be coming over the top of them.

Josh was in a dazed state as the changes started to subside and finish up. He didn’t know how to feel…. Horny? Confused? Scared? Everything seemed so different as he started to hear the voice again.

“MODIFICATIONS COMPLETE….. STANDARD JOCK REGISTERED…… NAME: CHRIS HERNANDEZ… REGISTERED”

Wait that wasn’t his name why would it say that was someone entering all of this

“GAME WILL BEGIN MOMENTARILY… PLEASE HOLD”

Soon everything went black and it felt like Josh fell asleep.

“Oh god…. where am I” Josh woke up in what seemed to be a house much different to his one. It felt almost generated. Against his will, Josh got up from his bed and started to move to the kitchen where his body made a protein-heavy breakfast.

“Omg stop why can’t I control my body what is happening,” Josh thought in his mind completely scared of what was going on. Unbeknownst to him outside the computer his body was being fully controlled by someone on the outside.

After eating the breakfast his body immediately got up and started to walk to a new room filled with gym equipment. “Oh god no,” Josh thought.. His body started to go through an intensive workout against his will.

by the end of it he was completely exhausted with the last bits of energy he had he was able to take control for a moment and scream out

“HELP IM STUCK” . . .

“Um Doctor, there seems to be an issue,” the voice said

“What seems to be the problem?”

“The character said something weird… “Help, Im stuck” in like screaming pattern” he responded

“Ahh that’s strange don’t worry about that. We can fix that in the next patch. Might just be grabbing from some unused text files. Thank you for pointing it out” The doctor replied as he walked away taking notes and smirking

Josh was now completely trapped inside WRG new game “US” a life simulation game where gamers can be anyone their dreams can be. Unluckily for Josh, he was stuck being the complete opposite of his original self. Now is a template of a stereotypical jock for those who are too lazy to create their own characters in the game.

.

.

I hope you all enjoy. This was a story swap with @axeegliter. Check out their story and blog!

[babyb1ues]

infold stays making xavier the guinea pig like when the game was about to launch and they made him the first event banner—injured and naked which btw went viral more than once across different social media platforms before launch— then the Apple Vision Pro like they got him out here experimenting and doing VR dates it’s just so funny to me.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

The (open) web is good, actually

I'll be at the Studio City branch of the LA Public Library tonight (Monday, November 13) at 1830hPT to launch my new novel, The Lost Cause. There'll be a reading, a talk, a surprise guest (!!) and a signing, with books on sale. Tell your friends! Come on down!

The great irony of the platformization of the internet is that platforms are intermediaries, and the original promise of the internet that got so many of us excited about it was disintermediation – getting rid of the middlemen that act as gatekeepers between community members, creators and audiences, buyers and sellers, etc.

The platformized internet is ripe for rent seeking: where the platform captures an ever-larger share of the value generated by its users, making the service worst for both, while lock-in stops people from looking elsewhere. Every sector of the modern economy is less competitive, thanks to monopolistic tactics like mergers and acquisitions and predatory pricing. But with tech, the options for making things worse are infinitely divisible, thanks to the flexibility of digital systems, which means that product managers can keep subdividing the Jenga blocks they pulling out of the services we rely on. Combine platforms with monopolies with digital flexibility and you get enshittification:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/21/potemkin-ai/#hey-guys

An enshittified, platformized internet is bad for lots of reasons – it concentrates decisions about who may speak and what may be said into just a few hands; it creates a rich-get-richer dynamic that creates a new oligarchy, with all the corruption and instability that comes with elite capture; it makes life materially worse for workers, users, and communities.

But there are many other ways in which the enshitternet is worse than the old good internet. Today, I want to talk about how the enshitternet affects openness and all that entails. An open internet is one whose workings are transparent (think of "open source"), but it's also an internet founded on access – the ability to know what has gone before, to recall what has been said, and to revisit the context in which it was said.

At last week's Museum Computer Network conference, Aaron Straup Cope gave a talk on museums and technology called "Wishful Thinking – A critical discussion of 'extended reality' technologies in the cultural heritage sector" that beautifully addressed these questions of recall and revisiting:

https://www.aaronland.info/weblog/2023/11/11/therapy/#wishful

Cope is a museums technologist who's worked on lots of critical digital projects over the years, and in this talk, he addresses himself to the difference between the excitement of the galleries, libraries, archives and museums (GLAM) sector over the possibilities of the web, and why he doesn't feel the same excitement over the metaverse, and its various guises – XR, VR, MR and AR.

The biggest reason to be excited about the web was – and is – the openness of disintermediation. The internet was inspired by the end-to-end principle, the idea that the network's first duty was to transmit data from willing senders to willing receivers, as efficiently and reliably as possible. That principle made it possible for whole swathes of people to connect with one another. As Cope writes, openness "was not, and has never been, a guarantee of a receptive audience or even any audience at all." But because it was "easy and cheap enough to put something on the web," you could "leave it there long enough for others to find it."

That dynamic nurtured an environment where people could have "time to warm up to ideas." This is in sharp contrast to the social media world, where "[anything] not immediately successful or viral … was a waste of time and effort… not worth doing." The social media bias towards a river of content that can't be easily reversed is one in which the only ideas that get to spread are those the algorithm boosts.

This is an important way to understand the role of algorithms in the context of the spread of ideas – that without recall or revisiting, we just don't see stuff, including stuff that might challenge our thinking and change our minds. This is a much more materialistic and grounded way to talk about algorithms and ideas than the idea that Big Data and AI make algorithms so persuasive that they can control our minds:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/11/06/attention-rents/#consumer-welfare-queens

As bad as this is in the social media context, it's even worse in the context of apps, which can't be linked into, bookmarked, or archived. All of this made apps an ominous sign right from the beginning:

https://memex.craphound.com/2010/04/01/why-i-wont-buy-an-ipad-and-think-you-shouldnt-either/

Apps interact with law in precisely the way that web-pages don't. "An app is just a web-page wrapped in enough IP to make it a crime to defend yourself against corporate predation":

https://pluralistic.net/2023/08/27/an-audacious-plan-to-halt-the-internets-enshittification-and-throw-it-into-reverse/

Apps are "closed" in every sense. You can't see what's on an app without installing the app and "agreeing" to its terms of service. You can't reverse-engineer an app (to add a privacy blocker, or to change how it presents information) without risking criminal and civil liability. You can't bookmark anything the app won't let you bookmark, and you can't preserve anything the app won't let you preserve.

Despite being built on the same underlying open frameworks – HTTP, HTML, etc – as the web, apps have the opposite technological viewpoint to the web. Apps' technopolitics are at war with the web's technopolitics. The web is built around recall – the ability to see things, go back to things, save things. The web has the technopolitics of a museum:

https://www.aaronland.info/weblog/2014/09/11/brand/#dconstruct

By comparison, apps have the politics of a product, and most often, that product is a rent-seeking, lock-in-hunting product that wants to take you hostage by holding something you love hostage – your data, perhaps, or your friends:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2021/08/facebooks-secret-war-switching-costs

When Anil Dash described "The Web We Lost" in 2012, he was describing a web with the technopolitics of a museum:

where tagging was combined with permissive licenses to make it easy for people to find and reuse each others' stuff;

where it was easy to find out who linked to you in realtime even though most of us were posting to our own sites, which they controlled;

where a link from one site to another meant one person found another person's contribution worthy;

where privacy-invasive bids to capture the web were greeted with outright hostility;

where every service that helped you post things that mattered to you was expected to make it easy for you take that data back if you changed services;

where inlining or referencing material from someone else's site meant following a technical standard, not inking a business-development deal;

https://www.anildash.com/2012/12/13/the_web_we_lost/

Ten years later, Dash's "broken tech/content culture cycle" described the web we live on now:

https://www.anildash.com/2022/02/09/the-stupid-tech-content-culture-cycle/

found your platform by promising to facilitate your users' growth;

order your technologists and designers to prioritize growth above all other factors and fire anyone who doesn't deliver;

grow without regard to the norms of your platform's users;

plaster over the growth-driven influx of abusive and vile material by assigning it to your "most marginalized, least resourced team";

deliver a half-assed moderation scheme that drives good users off the service and leaves no one behind but griefers, edgelords and trolls;

steadfastly refuse to contemplate why the marginalized users who made your platform attractive before being chased away have all left;

flail about in a panic over illegal content, do deals with large media brands, seize control over your most popular users' output;

"surface great content" by algorithmically promoting things that look like whatever's successful, guaranteeing that nothing new will take hold;

overpay your top performers for exclusivity deals, utterly neglect any pipeline for nurturing new performers;

abuse your creators the same ways that big media companies have for decades, but insist that it's different because you're a tech company;

ignore workers who warn that your product is a danger to society, dismiss them as "millennials" (defined as "anyone born after 1970 or who has a student loan")

when your platform is (inevitably) implicated in a murder, have a "town hall" overseen by a crisis communications firm;

pay the creator who inspired the murder to go exclusive on your platform;

dismiss the murder and fascist rhetoric as "growing pains";

when truly ghastly stuff happens on your platform, give your Trust and Safety team a 5% budget increase;

chase growth based on "emotionally engaging content" without specifying whether the emotions should be positive;

respond to ex-employees' call-outs with transient feelings of guilt followed by dismissals of "cancel culture":

fund your platforms' most toxic users and call it "free speech";

whenever anyone disagrees with any of your decisions, dismiss them as being "anti-free speech";

start increasing how much your platform takes out of your creators' paychecks;

force out internal dissenters, dismiss external critics as being in conspiracy with your corporate rivals;

once regulation becomes inevitable, form a cartel with the other large firms in your sector and insist that the problem is a "bad algorithm";

"claim full victim status," and quit your job, complaining about the toll that running a big platform took on your mental wellbeing.

https://pluralistic.net/2022/02/18/broken-records/#dashes

The web wasn't inevitable – indeed, it was wildly improbable. Tim Berners Lee's decision to make a new platform that was patent-free, open and transparent was a complete opposite approach to the strategy of the media companies of the day. They were building walled gardens and silos – the dialup equivalent to apps – organized as "branded communities." The way I experienced it, the web succeeded because it was so antithetical to the dominant vision for the future of the internet that the big companies couldn't even be bothered to try to kill it until it was too late.

Companies have been trying to correct that mistake ever since. After three or four attempts to replace the web with various garbage systems all called "MSN," Microsoft moved on to trying to lock the internet inside a proprietary browser. Years later, Facebook had far more success in an attempt to kill HTML with React. And of course, apps have gobbled up so much of the old, good internet.

Which brings us to Cope's views on museums and the metaverse. There's nothing intrinsically proprietary about virtual worlds and all their permutations. VRML is a quarter of a century old – just five years younger than Snow Crash:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VRML

But the current enthusiasm for virtual worlds isn't merely a function of the interesting, cool and fun experiences you can have in them. Rather, it's a bid to kill off whatever is left of the old, good web and put everything inside a walled garden. Facebook's metaverse "is more of the same but with a technical footprint so expensive and so demanding that it all but ensures it will only be within the means of a very few companies to operate."

Facebook's VR headsets have forward-facing cameras, turning every users into a walking surveillance camera. Facebook put those cameras there for "pass through" – so they can paint the screens inside the headset with the scene around you – but "who here believes that Facebook doesn't have other motives for enabling an always-on camera capturing the world around you?"

Apple's VisionPro VR headset is "a near-perfect surveillance device," and "the only thing to save this device is the trust that Apple has marketed its brand on over the last few years." Cope notes that "a brand promise is about as fleeting a guarantee as you can get." I'll go further: Apple is already a surveillance company:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/11/14/luxury-surveillance/#liar-liar

The technopolitics of the metaverse are the opposite of the technopolitics of the museum – even moreso than apps. Museums that shift their scarce technology budgets to virtual worlds stand a good chance of making something no one wants to use, and that's the best case scenario. The worst case is that museums make a successful project inside a walled garden, one where recall is subject to corporate whim, and help lure their patrons away from the recall-friendly internet to the captured, intermediated metaverse.

It's true that the early web benefited from a lot of hype, just as the metaverse is enjoying today. But the similarity ends there: the metaverse is designed for enclosure, the web for openness. Recall is a historical force for "the right to assembly… access to basic literacy… a public library." The web was "an unexpected gift with the ability to change the order of things; a gift that merits being protected, preserved and promoted both internally and externally." Museums were right to jump on the web bandwagon, because of its technopolitics. The metaverse, with its very different technopolitics, is hostile to the very idea of museums.

In joining forces with metaverse companies, museums strike a Faustian bargain, "because we believe that these places are where our audiences have gone."

The GLAM sector is devoted to access, to recall, and to revisiting. Unlike the self-style free speech warriors whom Dash calls out for self-serving neglect of their communities, the GLAM sector is about preservation and access, the true heart of free expression. When a handful of giant companies organize all our discourse, the ability to be heard is contingent on pleasing the ever-shifting tastes of the algorithm. This is the problem with the idea that "freedom of speech isn't freedom of reach" – if a platform won't let people who want to hear from you see what you have to say, they are indeed compromising freedom of speech:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/12/10/e2e/#the-censors-pen

Likewise, "censorship" is not limited to "things that governments do." As Ada Palmer so wonderfully describes it in her brilliant "Why We Censor: from the Inquisition to the Internet" speech, censorship is like arsenic, with trace elements of it all around us:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMMJb3AxA0s

A community's decision to ban certain offensive conduct or words on pain of expulsion or sanction is censorship – but not to the same degree that, say, a government ban on expressing certain points of view is. However, there are many kinds of private censorship that rise to the same level as state censorship in their impact on public discourse (think of Moms For Liberty and their book-bannings).

It's not a coincidence that Palmer – a historian – would have views on censorship and free speech that intersect with Cope, a museum worker. One of the most brilliant moments in Palmer's speech is where she describes how censorship under the Inquistion was not state censorship – the Inquisition was a multinational, nongovernmental body that was often in conflict with state power.

Not all intermediaries are bad for speech or access. The "disintermediation" that excited early web boosters was about escaping from otherwise inescapable middlemen – the people who figured out how to control and charge for the things we did with one another.

When I was a kid, I loved the writing of Crad Kilodney, a short story writer who sold his own self-published books on Toronto street-corners while wearing a sign that said "VERY FAMOUS CANADIAN AUTHOR, BUY MY BOOKS" (he also had a sign that read, simply, "MARGARET ATWOOD"). Kilodney was a force of nature, who wrote, edited, typeset, printed, bound, and sold his own books:

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books/article-late-street-poet-and-publishing-scourge-crad-kilodney-left-behind-a/

But there are plenty of writers out there that I want to hear from who lack the skill or the will to do all of that. Editors, publishers, distributors, booksellers – all the intermediaries who sit between a writer and their readers – are not bad. They're good, actually. The problem isn't intermediation – it's capture.

For generations, hucksters have conned would-be writers by telling them that publishing won't buy their books because "the gatekeepers" lack the discernment to publish "quality" work. Friends of mine in publishing laughed at the idea that they would deliberately sideline a book they could figure out how to sell – that's just not how it worked.

But today, monopolized film studios are literally annihilating beloved, high-priced, commercially viable works because they are worth slightly more as tax writeoffs than they are as movies:

https://deadline.com/2023/11/coyote-vs-acme-shelved-warner-bros-discovery-writeoff-david-zaslav-1235598676/

There's four giant studios and five giant publishers. Maybe "five" is the magic number and publishing isn't concentrated enough to drop whole novels down the memory hole for a tax deduction, but even so, publishing is trying like hell to shrink to four:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/11/07/random-penguins/#if-you-wanted-to-get-there-i-wouldnt-start-from-here

Even as the entertainment sector is working to both literally and figuratively destroy our libraries, the cultural heritage sector is grappling with preserving these libraries, with shrinking budgets and increased legal threats:

https://blog.archive.org/2023/03/25/the-fight-continues/

I keep meeting artists of all description who have been conditioned to be suspicious of anything with the word "open" in its name. One colleague has repeatedly told me that fighting for the "open internet" is a self-defeating rhetorical move that will scare off artists who hear "open" and think "Big Tech ripoff."

But "openness" is a necessary precondition for preservation and access, which are the necessary preconditions for recall and revisiting. Here on the last, melting fragment of the open internet, as tech- and entertainment-barons are seizing control over our attention and charging rent on our ability to talk and think together, openness is our best hope of a new, good internet. T

he cultural heritage sector wants to save our creative works. The entertainment and tech industry want to delete them and take a tax writeoff.

As a working artist, I know which side I'm on.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/11/13/this-is-for-everyone/#revisiting

Image: Diego Delso (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Museo_Mimara,_Zagreb,_Croacia,_2014-04-20,_DD_01.JPG

CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

[briarrolfe]

Recently, I was sent a job listing. It called for a graphic designer "to produce direct response static & video ads for various social media channels, such as Facebook, TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube." So, even though it was asking for a graphic designer, it wasn't a graphic design job—it was an advertising/social media/videography job. The career I've dedicated eight years of my life to is the bit the ad referred to as 'static'.

Ever since, I've been thinking about this idea that video is the future, and also I have been (not coincidentally) extremely depressed. Not to be all "you kids and your phones," but...

In advertising, your consumer's attention is money. Video is THE most attention-demanding form of advertising and therefore the most bang for your buck. It's why Facebook fudged their own stats for the effectiveness of pivoting to video so aggressively in the first place. If your consumer is reading something—a magazine, a poster, a book, something on their phone—then they're still listening, and if something else demands their attention, they'll just look up. If they're listening—to somebody talking, to music, to a podcast—then their eyes and hands are free to do whatever they like. They can look at the world around them, which involves many forms of competing visual advertising.

Video is a media form that doesn't stop. It keeps talking when your consumer looks up, and then keeps moving to grab their visual attention again. The best method for advertising is one that a consumer has to exert energy to not pay attention to.

(—This is why I hate video so much as somebody with ADHD. When my dopamine and blood sugar are low, focusing past someone playing TikTok audio is hard enough for me that it hurts. I've never had the same problem with radio or with like... idk, billboards. And TV is kind of bad, but at least it makes predictable sounds, whereas every person who films a TikTok with sudden screams or yelling in it is, in my opinion, going to hell.)

This is why the UI for platforms like TikTok and Instagram have autoplay, algorithms that disappear things you've seen so quickly, no scrub bars, and don't have skip or pause buttons. Your consumer has to keep their phone in hand to keep swiping or scrolling to properly engage. If that consumer can't stop a video or go back, then the platform can train them not to look up until the video is over. Anxiety that a user will lose their place or not be able to keep up with what is happening is part of what keeps them from looking away.

This is also a reason to be suspicious of why so many tech companies are obsessed with VR in general. A phone that people have to hold and look at and listen to is pretty good, right? But they can ultimately still put it down when an ad plays. It would be way better if we could put the advertising somewhere that tracks and follows their eye movements so that they literally can't look away.

We all know that text is still a better, faster, and more information-dense delivery system. Sometimes I see people mourning the pivot to video because it's a worse way to consume information. They're right! It is! But social media platforms have NO INTEREST in providing their users with like, actual reliable information. If they did, then social media companies would have no interest in AI.

(—This is also why they have no interest in fighting misinformation on their services. People who get radicalised are very engaged platform users. And the people who radicalise them come with massive budgets for ad spend.)

All social media platforms want is to get consumers hooked on their content so that they'll continue to deliver ad revenue. Video is the best way of achieving that. That's why we're all pivoting to algorithms and video. That's why Tumblr Live exists and Snapchat miraculously has not died.

Anyway. I chose to become a graphic designer.

[multitrackdrifting]

I'm tired of Metaverses, I'm sick of seeing billions of dollars thrown at social mediums nobody uses, to chase after solutions multiplayer games have already solved.

Look at Facebook/Meta's Horizon Worlds, a VR Metaverse:

11,000 employees fired

$700 billion dollars wasted

An ego that has flown too close to the sun.

Players quit after just one month

Nothing is more disconnected from reality than developing a social platform that fails to connect people together in a shared context where they are free to socialise & express themselves.

[sunshinesmebdy]

Pluto in Aquarius: Brace for a Business Revolution (and How to Ride the Wave)

The Aquarian Revolution

Get ready, entrepreneurs and financiers, because a seismic shift is coming. Pluto, the planet of transformation and upheaval, has just entered the progressive sign of Aquarius, marking the beginning of a 20-year period that will reshape the very fabric of business and finance. Buckle up, for this is not just a ripple – it's a tsunami of change. Imagine a future where collaboration trumps competition, sustainability dictates success, and technology liberates rather than isolates. Aquarius, the sign of innovation and humanitarianism, envisions just that. Expect to see:

Rise of social impact businesses

Profits won't be the sole motive anymore. Companies driven by ethical practices, environmental consciousness, and social good will gain traction. Aquarius is intrinsically linked to collective well-being and social justice. Under its influence, individuals will value purpose-driven ventures that address crucial societal issues. Pluto urges us to connect with our deeper selves and find meaning beyond material gains. This motivates individuals to pursue ventures that resonate with their personal values and make a difference in the world.

Examples of Social Impact Businesses

Sustainable energy companies: Focused on creating renewable energy solutions while empowering local communities.

Fair-trade businesses: Ensuring ethical practices and fair wages for producers, often in developing countries.

Social impact ventures: Addressing issues like poverty, education, and healthcare through innovative, community-driven approaches.

B corporations: Certified businesses that meet rigorous social and environmental standards, balancing profit with purpose.

Navigating the Pluto in Aquarius Landscape

Align your business with social impact: Analyze your core values and find ways to integrate them into your business model.

Invest in sustainable practices: Prioritize environmental and social responsibility throughout your operations.

Empower your employees: Foster a collaborative environment where everyone feels valued and contributes to the social impact mission.

Build strong community partnerships: Collaborate with organizations and communities that share your goals for positive change.

Embrace innovation and technology: Utilize technology to scale your impact and reach a wider audience.

Pluto in Aquarius presents a thrilling opportunity to redefine the purpose of business, moving beyond shareholder value and towards societal well-being. By aligning with the Aquarian spirit of innovation and collective action, social impact businesses can thrive in this transformative era, leaving a lasting legacy of positive change in the world.

Tech-driven disruption

AI, automation, and blockchain will revolutionize industries, from finance to healthcare. Be ready to adapt or risk getting left behind. Expect a focus on developing Artificial Intelligence with ethical considerations and a humanitarian heart, tackling issues like healthcare, climate change, and poverty alleviation. Immersive technologies will blur the lines between the physical and digital realms, transforming education, communication, and entertainment. Automation will reshape the job market, but also create opportunities for new, human-centered roles focused on creativity, innovation, and social impact.

Examples of Tech-Driven Disruption:

Decentralized social media platforms: User-owned networks fueled by blockchain technology, prioritizing privacy and community over corporate profits.

AI-powered healthcare solutions: Personalized medicine, virtual assistants for diagnostics, and AI-driven drug discovery.

VR/AR for education and training: Immersive learning experiences that transport students to different corners of the world or historical periods.

Automation with a human touch: Collaborative robots assisting in tasks while freeing up human potential for creative and leadership roles.

Navigating the Technological Tsunami:

Stay informed and adaptable: Embrace lifelong learning and upskilling to stay relevant in the evolving tech landscape.

Support ethical and sustainable tech: Choose tech products and services aligned with your values and prioritize privacy and social responsibility.

Focus on your human advantage: Cultivate creativity, critical thinking, and emotional intelligence to thrive in a world increasingly reliant on technology.

Advocate for responsible AI development: Join the conversation about ethical AI guidelines and ensure technology serves humanity's best interests.

Connect with your community: Collaborate with others to harness technology for positive change and address the potential challenges that come with rapid technological advancements.

Pluto in Aquarius represents a critical juncture in our relationship with technology. By embracing its disruptive potential and focusing on ethical development and collective benefit, we can unlock a future where technology empowers humanity and creates a more equitable and sustainable world. Remember, the choice is ours – will we be swept away by the technological tsunami or ride its wave towards a brighter future?

Decentralization and democratization

Power structures will shift, with employees demanding more autonomy and consumers seeking ownership through blockchain-based solutions. Traditional institutions, corporations, and even governments will face challenges as power shifts towards distributed networks and grassroots movements. Individuals will demand active involvement in decision-making processes, leading to increased transparency and accountability in all spheres. Property and resources will be seen as shared assets, managed sustainably and equitably within communities. This transition won't be without its bumps. We'll need to adapt existing legal frameworks, address digital divides, and foster collaboration to ensure everyone benefits from decentralization.

Examples of Decentralization and Democratization

Decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs): Self-governing online communities managing shared resources and projects through blockchain technology.

Community-owned renewable energy initiatives: Local cooperatives generating and distributing clean energy, empowering communities and reducing reliance on centralized grids.

Participatory budgeting platforms: Citizens directly allocate local government funds, ensuring public resources are used in line with community needs.

Decentralized finance (DeFi): Peer-to-peer lending and borrowing platforms, bypassing traditional banks and offering greater financial autonomy for individuals.

Harnessing the Power of the Tide:

Embrace collaborative models: Participate in co-ops, community projects, and initiatives that empower collective ownership and decision-making.

Support ethical technology: Advocate for blockchain platforms and applications that prioritize user privacy, security, and equitable access.

Develop your tech skills: Learn about blockchain, cryptocurrencies, and other decentralized technologies to navigate the future landscape.

Engage in your community: Participate in local decision-making processes, champion sustainable solutions, and build solidarity with others.

Stay informed and adaptable: Embrace lifelong learning and critical thinking to navigate the evolving social and economic landscape.

Pluto in Aquarius presents a unique opportunity to reimagine power structures, ownership models, and how we interact with each other. By embracing decentralization and democratization, we can create a future where individuals and communities thrive, fostering a more equitable and sustainable world for all. Remember, the power lies within our collective hands – let's use it wisely to shape a brighter future built on shared ownership, collaboration, and empowered communities.

Focus on collective prosperity

Universal basic income, resource sharing, and collaborative economic models may gain momentum. Aquarius prioritizes the good of the collective, advocating for equitable distribution of resources and opportunities. Expect a rise in social safety nets, universal basic income initiatives, and policies aimed at closing the wealth gap. Environmental health is intrinsically linked to collective prosperity. We'll see a focus on sustainable practices, green economies, and resource sharing to ensure a thriving planet for generations to come. Communities will come together to address social challenges like poverty, homelessness, and healthcare disparities, recognizing that individual success is interwoven with collective well-being. Collaborative consumption, resource sharing, and community-owned assets will gain traction, challenging traditional notions of ownership and fostering a sense of shared abundance.

Examples of Collective Prosperity in Action

Community-owned renewable energy projects: Sharing the benefits of clean energy production within communities, democratizing access and fostering environmental sustainability.

Cooperatives and worker-owned businesses: Sharing profits and decision-making within companies, leading to greater employee satisfaction and productivity.

Universal basic income initiatives: Providing individuals with a basic safety net, enabling them to pursue their passions and contribute to society in meaningful ways.

Resource sharing platforms: Platforms like carsharing or tool libraries minimizing individual ownership and maximizing resource utilization, fostering a sense of interconnectedness.

Navigating the Shift

Support social impact businesses: Choose businesses that prioritize ethical practices, environmental sustainability, and positive social impact.

Contribute to your community: Volunteer your time, skills, and resources to address local challenges and empower others.

Embrace collaboration: Seek opportunities to work together with others to create solutions for shared problems.

Redefine your own path to prosperity: Focus on activities that bring you personal fulfillment and contribute to the collective good.

Advocate for systemic change: Support policies and initiatives that promote social justice, environmental protection, and equitable distribution of resources.

Pluto in Aquarius offers a unique opportunity to reshape our definition of prosperity and build a future where everyone thrives. By embracing collective well-being, collaboration, and sustainable practices, we can create a world where abundance flows freely, enriching not just individuals, but the entire fabric of society. Remember, true prosperity lies not in what we hoard, but in what we share, and by working together, we can cultivate a future where everyone has the opportunity to flourish.

[virtualrealitynewstoday]

Meta Horizon Worlds v145 - 全新版本發行說明

Meta Horizon Worlds的全新版本v145即將登場！這一次的更新專注於提升Horizon和使用者選單的功能，同時也修復了一個暫停模式下的問題。 在全新的Horizon選單中，現在能夠輕鬆地將所有您的物品組織在同一個地方。這還不止，他們還新增了一個鏡子功能，讓您在踏入虛擬世界之前能夠輕鬆地查看自己的虛擬形象，並輕鬆編輯外貌。只需在鏡子前點擊背包圖示，您就能夠輕鬆查看您的Horizon…

[whereismywizardhat]

Saw Glass Onion, and I cannot help but think about what the movie is trying to say.

Spoilers Ahead, you have been warned

The most obvious (and considering how November went in the year 2022) is the dismantling of the myth of the Tech Billionaire.  Miles Bron is a obvious Musk/Zuckerburg stand-in, with the former’s charisma and energy industry connections and the later’s assorted former business partners.

Miles surrounds himself with “The Disrupters” aka the shitheads.  Lionel the engineer, Duke the alt-right troll, Claire the politician, and Birdie the fashion model.  Science, Media, Politics, and Entertainment, four pillars of society each dependent on the smooth talking grifter with the pile of money for their own continued success.  Like with Knives Out, the politics of the four doesn’t particularly matter: Claire is mentioned to be a liberal politician, while Duke’s MRA talking points barely can escape his garage without being called out by his mother and Birdie mindlessly repeats slurs on social media with such regularity her assistant micromanages her phone.  Class solidarity matters more, 5% will protect the 1%.

Miles surrounds himself with these people, but he has no loyalty to them.  He powers his home with an unstable energy source that his engineer is sure is dangerous (because it’s hydrogen, the most explosive element), he has already convinced the politician to back his dangerous energy source, he assists the far right media guy in getting a new platform but does not platform him on his own network, and he intends to allow the fashionista to take the fall for their sweatshops.  

Coming out in a year where we have watched billionaires throw good money after bad in such ventures as “Worse VR Chat” and “Let’s Burn the Bird Site to the Ground”, it has never been more obvious the mediocrity of tech billionaires.  And here comes Glass Onion, which presents it’s Ersatz Zucker-musk as the most mediocre of them all: seemingly only having the talent to steal ideas from others and force others to repackage them.  A man so utterly devoid of creativity or talent that naturally everyone thinks of him as a genius.  A Cave Johnson level Moron.

The fifth guest, Andi, Mile’s former partner, represents Business but she’s also a black woman who was the true brains behind the operation, and thus was first discredited then murdered.  The Andi we meet is actually her school teacher twin sister, Helen.  Education, another pillar, and notably the only one is not beholden to Miles.  Tech Billionaires aren’t even beholden to Capitalism, but they are beholden to people educated enough to see through their snake oil.

And finally there is Benoit Blanc, our beloved detective.  He represent justice (notably, not the police), and notably while he solves the crime he cannot touch Miles.  White Privileged Billionaires never have to worry about Justice reaching them, they are insulated from it.  The only thing he can do is encourage Helen.

And Helen burns it all down.  No justice can be extracted from Billionaires, but we can burn their houses down, their own hubris practically guarantees that they will have left fuel everywhere.  After all, they are morons.

[funsexydb]

Sorry for just popping by here in and out. I was starting to believe that it wouldn't be feasible to browse more than one or two social sites at a time... but then twitter will have an update or do something SO DUMB it makes me think... "hm, maybe I should venture out to different websites from time to time?"

I'm starting to think back on how I used to jump from blog to blog, site to site, not signing up for everything really, but instead exploring and reading different articles, comments, pictures, etc. Twitter made me miss doing that a lot. I doubt anything will change tomorrow to the way it used to be. From bluesky, to tumblr, to mastodon, to ig, to tiktok etc, things can feel overwhelming or tiresome. Do I even have the mental space to engage in multiple sites and socials? No, right?

But honestly? It's becoming tiresome to browse/scroll through only ONE site. It's almost feels like never leaving your house. Yes, I do indeed "touch grass" more often than you'd know. But I'm speaking about the downtime when I'm not outside and hanging with friends, but on the comfort of my couch or at the desk on my PC.

I always had this mindset that having everything in one place was better. Like news, art, online friends, trends, etc. And that was what twitter is (or was?) for years. But maybe browsing different blogs, socials, and discord servers, isn't such a horrible idea that I thought it was.

I don't think the "next twitter" is going to happen again anytime soon. I'm hoping it'll be something new, but not in the way we think. Maybe ironically the next big internet thing is "touching virtual grass" (no, not VR) but by "socializing" outside of just ONE platform for everything, but at least having a handful of sites that we like and enjoy visiting. Places I can rotate between and possibly discover more I like.

Tumblrs nice, bluesky is great, and twitter as much as it pains me to say this, still has some good in it, but it's clearly falling apart. And I don't want to retreat to another social media site and have it become the only site I scroll through 24/7.

Anyway, I'm ranting! My ass will probably fall back to bad habits and be stuck on twitter for the next five hours something, haha! But I sincerely hope things can change online sooner than later. For all our mental well being.

[tennantloki]

best study websites:

like pop culture, quotes and images pertaining to academia and studying have been featured here and i would like to go more in-depth into that aspect of the blog so i’ve compiled a list of sites that can be used for studying & research

inspirit: immersive vr & 3D STEM content along with traditional notes & lessons. features content for high school biology, ap biology, physics, chemistry, algebra, statistics, geometry, and more.

studyable: this site creates study guides and flash card sets using AI for any topic (still in development though)

smarthistory: learning platform & free textbook for art history

science direct.com: access to scientific journals, books, and research. useful for both natural and social sciences or even reading comprehension

seneca learning: free revision site for english, math, history, science, and more with a guided, engaging curriculum of interactive lessons and exercises