Re Crafting

So, things aren't so bad after all in Craft. The total loss predicted this morning has turned out to be only a partial loss. Most rezzed items and most sims are fine, although one owner came inworld to find half his sim pure white - weird huh. The main loss is to people who joined after December 23rd. Their accounts have been wiped, at least so it seems. Maybe even they will  beat the jinx somehow.
Of course, you'll say it's not a jinx, it's a salutary lesson in grid-building - the first article of faith is BACK UP YOUR WORK. But at the Hypergrid Adventurer's club today, it's interesting how many sim and grid owners confessed that they really haven't backed up their OARs and IARs as much as they should. Pathfinder also keeps his stash of belgian beer way too close to the camp fire. What does OAR stand for, anyway.

The club met to test the new Hyper Taxi. I should give credit to the script inventor but confess in the confusion I forgot to write it down, begins with a T I know that... but you know all that stuff is over on Pathfinder's blog. He has a Google group also that shares tips and tricks about hypergridding in general; look for it. Hyper hero Jeff Kelley showed off his manly attibutes, by picking up the taxi, seen here on a mountain in Reaction Grid, and we were all impressed, even more impressed by the taxi mechanism. You click on the sign on the top, and it says 'Taxi' and then after 10 second you are tp'd to your destination. I believe Path made tha actual car - I took a copy, don't ask me what I'm going to do with it in Jokaydia. Hypernauts are really fun and funny people, you should join HGAC, they do cool stuff.
Back in Craft, whew my chess clock and bike, which I wasted the whole week making, are not gone and everything else in my skybox on Cassiopea is still there.

Ditto at Chocolate; I had a brief idea I'd redo everything, seize the opportunity to do more, and more exotic, but now waves of laziness encircle me, zzz why go climbing any mountains I don't have to. There is some stuff to repair, but lack of know-how was the big time sink in most cases, now I can pretty quickly sort out the in-viewer a/o, find nice urban textures and sounds online, and make a bikini crotch that is flap-free, for example.

Losing the inventory, well, it's a two edged sword. On one hand there were all those copies of aborted textures, on the other hand, scripts, animations, prim assets... wow. But it is interesting to see how much road has been travelled since December 23rd. I have learnt a lot in Craft, from Alphas to Zhaos.
The really nice bit, there was none of that bitter carping you get in Second Life, with horror stories about Jiras and tickets and I don't know what. It was a mistake, we are all in this together, and took great pleasure in each other's relief at finding most stuff still standing. Licu and Tao have created something special, a truly Friendly Grid.

Countdown to Craft One

Craft Grid is about to turn one year old, there's a party and you're invited!
The party isn't until January 27th, so you have time to prepare. You don't have to bring a bottle, but Craft is an OpenSim grid, not a place in Second Life. So now is the time to figure out how to get there, so you'll be ready on the day.
You've two options. First thing, be sure you're using a viewer that supports multiple grids. Phoenix or Imprudence are great because you can eliminate the need for attachments like translator, a/o, etc; reducing lag. Configuring the viewer for another grid is simple too.
In  Preferences : Grids

Click the button "Add" in the box "Login URI"  insert:  http://craft-world.orgL8002/
Insert a Nickname (possibly "Craft")
Click the button "Get Grid Info"
Click the button "Apply"

Craft will then be added to your list of Grids, which you can access using your avatar name, surname and password. 
Go to the Craft website and make an avatar, like you did at the beginning of your Second Life. It's going to be basic, Male Female or Gender neutral, so a chance for something new perhaps? Something bizarre for a change? Or finally something less weird? Anyway, you can change all that later if you want, including importing your personal custom shape. Don't get too freaked out about being a noob. OpenSim is less about what's on your skull, and more about what's going on inside it. Having said that, there are plenty of stylish freebies, at the landing point on Hydra and also at the Craft Freebie store. This is a non-commercial grid, so look forward to a lot of sharing.

Maybe you already have a nice avatar in,  for example, Reaction Grid (this map courtesy of Pam Broviak and the good people at govgrid). If you do, you use it to can jump into Craft. How do you jump? Pathfinder Lester explains Hypergrid Jumping here. Even a technomoron like me can do it, it's a lot of fun - see the photos here.
So once you're in Craft, what will there be to do?
Botgirl Questihas described Craft as a 'European grid', and, while he's not wrong - Licu Rau is Italian and partner and co-founder Tao Quan is Scottish - the atmosphere on Craft is international, not eurocentric. Tao and many others don't speak Italian, so don't feel at a disadvantage if your Italian, or indeed your Scottish, is not perfect. Almost everyone wears a translator. And everyone is friendly. It's the Friendly World!
What will there be to do and see in Craft? Music, presentations, and art exhibitions are planned, but even now you can visit some cool stuff, like Tao and Licu's sim-sized ship on Agra.

Try the interactive game on sim White Light, that begins underwater and takes you through a series of fantastic towers (Look behind you for the HUD at the landing point!)

and of course the Museo del Metaverso and the artists' colony that is coming together around it.

See you in Craft!