What makes a great public area in Second Life, or OpenSim, or any virtual world? How do you create a theater, corporate build, or exhibit that people find useful and enjoyable and will want to return to again and again?

I discussed those issues with two of the best authorities on the subject in Second Life: John Jainschigg, aka John Zhaoying in Second Life, is exec director of the Internet and Community Labs at ZiffDavisEnterprise, and head of the advisory board at World2Worlds, which provides the venue and recording support for Copper Robot. And Jon Himoff, aka RightAsRainRimbaud in Second Life, is CEO and founder of Rezzable, which built some of the best entertainment areas in Second Life, including the Greenies sim and the Heritage Key King Tut Exhibit on OpenSim.

We had some great comments from the audience during the panel, most of which I have to admit I couldn’t follow because my multitasking skills aren’t up to participating in separate, parallel voice and text discussions. However, I hope we can continue the discussion right here in the comments area, below.

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P.S. This is a new blog installation and I haven’t had a chance to give the comments a workout. Please shoot me an e-mail at mitch@wagmail.com if you spot any bugs. And if you include the words “Copper Robot” in the subject line, I’ll see your e-mail faster.

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