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Second Life’s 14th birthday draws closer, the Second Life Community Celebration website currently shows the countdown at 3 days 23 hours. That website is an important one to pay attention to because it will keep you informed about events and happenings. The birthday celebrations are scheduled to run from June 18th-25th, but you will have longer than that to enjoy the exhibits.
The main thrust of the timeline for visitors is as follows :
- June 18, noon SLT: Opening Day!!
- June 23: The Birthday
- June 18-25: Open with Performances
- June 26- July 2: Open for viewing–No Performances
- July 3-5: Breakdown
- July 6: Sims Go Offline
So the performances and spectacular events will take place between June 18th-25th but the exhibits will be open for viewing until July 2nd.
Linden Lab have also blogged about the birthday celebrations and that post involves information regarding a music festival and a couple of parties.
The blog post informs us that there will be a three day music festival, which, as in previous years, takes place at different times on different days and is therefore staggered to give people all over the world a chance to visit the music festival at a convenient time. The schedule is:
- Music Fest Day 1: June 23, 2017 from 11 AM – 3 PM (SLT)
- Music Fest Day 2: June 24, 2017 from 8 PM – 12 AM (SLT)
- Music Fest Day 3: June 25, 2017 from 4 PM – 8 PM (SLT)
On top of that there are two parties hosted by Linden Lab, with the blog post informing us :
We will be hosting two costume parties inworld – Come as You Were, and a Masquerade Ball. We all come into this (virtual) world as total n00bs, and the Come as You Were party is a nod to those days of yore – whether it was yesterday or over a decade ago. Put your best Ruth forward, as there’s a costume contest and a L$5000 prize on the line! We’re also hosting a Masquerade/Masked Ball – where mystique and intrigue are sure to reign supreme! There is also a L$5000 prize for the best at the ball! Both parties will take place at the Cake Stage in the SL14B Community Celebration Regions – stay tuned for details once those locations go live! Those Regions will also be home to where you can pick up a special commemorative avatar and bonus gift from the Lab.
- Masquerade: June 19, 2017 from 11am – 1pm SLT
- Come as You Were: June 21, from 6 – 8 pm SLT
There’s more, Lindens will be interviewed as part of the successful Meet The Lindens series, more details about that soon.
Then there’s even more, whereas a lot of events will take place on the regions designated for the celebrations, you don’t have to have a presence on those regions to join in the fun. There’s a Destination Guide Category setup for SL14B, and that means if you are planning a party or event you can send the details to Linden Lab’s editors to see if it’s approved to be part of the Destination Guide. Terms and conditions will apply and I have no idea how they go about approving parties.
The theme for this year’s event is “Carnivalesque”, if you’re wondering what that means, then the SLCC website has more information :
Our theme for SL14B is “Carnivalesque!”
If this is a birthday, then we’re going to have a festival worthy of Second Life®! Strike up the band, toss on your glad rags, and join us at the SL®14B Community Celebration as we hit the carnival.
While much of the interest around virtual reality has shifted to singular experiences, largely fueled by the pursuit of headset-focused content, we want to remind you of the joy of hundreds of people from all over coming together in one place in celebration, and form a carnival-like atmosphere that you simply cannot achieve alone. Let’s challenge all the perceptions, break all the molds, and show everyone that we know how to celebrate.
This is your chance to be part of the biggest fete Second Life can offer — the 14th birthday of the Second Life grid — and be part of the carnival atmosphere. This will be a time for mirth and merriment, and a time to both entertain, and be entertained. Come to the SL®14B Community Celebration and show us all a great time!
The official birthday is June 23rd and if you know where to look, you can find the announcement for the official release of Second Life 1.0 via a forum post from Philip Linden, all the way back on June 23rd 2003 :
Residents and prospective residents,
Welcome to Second Life!
I am pleased to announce that today, Monday June 23rd, we are releasing Second Life version 1.0, and opening the service for general availability.
We’ve been able to reach this milestone through a combination of very hard work in creating a unique new technology and product, and the amazing efforts and engagement of our Early Creators and beta residents.
A ‘ball-drop’ ceremony was held in-world last night to celebrate the release.
Along with the many early residents of Second Life, let me salute our entire team of ‘Lindens’ for bringing this amazing experience to life. It has been a tremendous effort and, well worth it.
Philip Rosedale
aka Philip Linden
Eagle eyed folk will recognise that Second Life is actually older than its official age, but the release of Second Life 1.0 is considered the date of birth of the platform. If you are interested in Second Life history you will find plenty of excellent information in the Forum Archive :