Inside a Virtual Meeting

I post regularly at Oh!VirtualLearning! about news and events relating to virtual worlds for learning and teaching, and as I talk with friends and colleagues (and sometimes complete strangers) about this avocational interest I often mention last year's PBS Frontline episode called "Digital Nation."

Periodically, I present about the topic to interested educators. One of the things I invariably mention is the segment in the program where the narrator, co-producer Douglas Rushkoff, wanders through the empty halls of IBM's physical office building, his footsteps echoing not because no one is "at work," but rather because everyone is working from their home offices, their dinner tables, or their hotel rooms--meeting in virtual worlds rather than in the physical one.

How does a virtual meeting go? I've taken gigabytes of video snippets to help share that with others, but perhaps if you'll take 86 seconds to view this video, the work of professional film documentarians, you may walk away with a better notion. From Digital Nation's extensive website, packed with footage that didn't make it into the 90 minute Frontline episode:

Inside a Virtual Meeting

More than 10,000 IBM employees collaborate in virtual worlds. Take a look inside a meeting in Second Life from the home of IBM V.P. of Innovation, Francoise LeGoues.

Watch PBS TV TONIGHT for "Digital Nation"--check local listings

I had the opportunity today to preview the show online. This one will be controversial, ya'll, and I'd love to start a discussion here. Watch it, because you will most certainly be called upon for an opinion by parents and administrators...

From PBS email:

Last March, we launched a Web site to start a conversation about how
digital technology is changing almost every aspect of modern culture -
from how we think and learn to how we build relationships and even
conduct warfare. We asked for your feedback, and you shared your
stories that helped to shape our 90-minute documentary which airs
Tuesday, February 2, at 9pm ET on PBS (check local listings).

This program is guaranteed to make you think, to question your understanding of and use of technology, and to cause a big stir in educational technology. Very well done, I initially report. Controversial? You bet.

I had seen some of it early on, and we hosted a presentation by the producers--thanks to ISTE member and colleague Malinda McCormick--at the Second Life Playground at NECC09 in Washington, DC last summer. But watching the show in its finished format is even more powerful, incredibly so. What is your response? What does this mean to our work? I'll ask you the same thing I would ask any of my students: What are the creators of this media intending to communicate? Share here.

I'm Laughin' Here--PBS Digital Nation

This is so random it's beautiful. I attended an event in Second Life tonight, a presentation on PBS Frontline's Digital Nation project, and I recalled contributing to the project when my friend Malinda McCormick first told me about it. I had the thought that my odd exercise setup came in under the heading of the project's focus. KJ (you rogue) mentioned that I was on the site, and I've gotten twitters from folks who pursued it. I hope it spurs others to contribute. Yes? It's all about interconnection, in odd but sometimes gratifying ways...  Here's the DN website, and here's my little contribution: