What we're going to talk about this time

We have a vexing question. When you first come into ActiveWorlds, where do you want to land? What would you like to see? What would be the environment for you that would be the most enticing? Over the past year or so, there have been numerous landing zones for newbies coming into ActiveWorlds for the first time. Now that could be a rather frustrating enterprise for a newcomer. There have been AWGate worlds in the past, these seem to have been relegated do the virtual scrap heap so far as newcomers go. We have had folks come into AWReunion, AW (Alpha, the current LZ), Yellow, and AWMall. Perhaps more that we are not aware of.

So, we have a puzzle for all readers. The question is: Where do you want to land when you first come into this ActiveWorlds universe? Here is a list of some the worlds that you currently may find yourself landing in, as the entry point is currently rotating:

  • AW (Alpha, the current LZ)
  • AWReunion
  • AWMall
  • AWGate
  • AWGate 22
  • AWGZ
  • Other?

In other words, what sort of world would you want? Outdoor landscaped with water and trees, science fiction, village? Let us know. Just send an email to the Yellow Gazette. We are very interested in what you would like to see. Alternatively, you can Telegram Ozman or Apooka with your responses, and be sure to add your AV name.

BTW, what is the "e;official"e; term for the place where people first land? Ground Zero? Landing Zone? Can someone please advise? This is causing some confusion.

AW School LZ

AWSchool lives!

We are repeating here the interview we had with Kenny McC about the AWSchool, in case you missed it in the last issue which came out late.

1: What are the school's goals now? What are the aspirations you hope to reach?

The focus of our organization is on the new citizens and less on the advanced builders. We still offer monthly courses hosted by expert builders (such as Bach Zhaa) who discuss advanced topics. But this is handled by 1 person only, not half the staff.

The new citizens should have the best possible assistance from the organisations within AW and in AWSchool we try to provide that with our Guides and Teachers as well as our tutorials of various topics.

2: Do you have a schedule of classes? We would like to feature this in the YG.

We have implemented a schedule for both our Guides and Teachers. If no teacher is present in AWSchool, but a Guide is. The Guide can help the student set up a class and this is displayed in GZ on our teacher's calendar. The Guides know at what day and time of the week a teacher is available for teaching.

3: Are you looking for new teachers, teacher aides and such? And how can people apply?

We are always looking for more Guides and Teachers! Guides are there to help out new citizens who need help with the basics and even moderate AWSchool (so similar to what PKs do). The Guides are there to allow the teachers to focus on teaching, so no time to waste on how to fly, teleport or how to telegram! Teachers are there to teach basic building mostly, if they know of more advanced topics like particle emitters, zones, astart/adone, it is a big bonus, but NOT a requirement. There is a big misunderstanding that AWSchool teachers have to be the best builders out there. We don't need the best builders, we need the best teachers. So if you doubt about how good you are at building, we only ask that you know the basics, so do not hesitate to apply! You can apply at http://www.awschool.net/teachers.htm.

4: Are there any new features in the school that you would like to show?

Currently we're very busy updating the world and we have Bach Zhaa working on an ambitious tutorial that explains almost everything of AW. Dreme Loyk is working on updating the PE, zones and mover tutorials. Especially on the mover tutorial Dreme will introduce some amazing feats that can be pulled off with movers. One of the coolest features we have in AWSchool is our bot (by Tomas) which notifies online AWSchool staff when someone needs help in AWSchool. Either you type "is there a teacher here" or left click on the bell right next to the landing zone and the bot will notify us. The school has been idle for a few years, so we need to update a LOT of dead teleports, web pages and even the object yard is getting overhauled.

5: Anything else that you would like to highlight?

What I would like to highlight is how we have intensified our training program: No more "let loose and play", but a thorough training which has little theory but loads of hands on practice. We've seen trainees develop into fully fledged teachers in matter of weeks instead of months/years. This is a huge success :) Furthermore, we try to have the entire team involved in all that we do. My goal is to have a team that works well together, free of politics, backstabbing and other anti-social behaviour. We try to recruit people who have the desire to help, not the desire to have bold fonts. So far things are going well and we 'll work to keep it that way :)

Thanks Kenny McC. We appreciate your time.

[Ed. Note: awschool's new website: http://awschool.net/index.htm]

And Finally...

Be sure to explore all the shops in the AWMall! There are some really good objects there for your own CAV (Customisable avatar). Have fun creating a virtual you...

Visit the Virtual Teaching machine in AW School. Go to the school and teleport to 16S 1E 0.0a 90.