Geez, 6 months no Blog posts. You probably thought i quit. But i didn't. When Google+ disappeared google " forgot" my Blogger was hooked to it, so first had to re-register before I could get back in. Also i wrote some drafts, but never hit the publish button. And thus all over sudden 5 months have passed.
Since G+ is gone, OSgrid opened a
MeWe account here.
OSgrid is still present and going strong, despite the sounds about a declining interest in virtual worlds in general. We have seen quite some people leave over the last years. Developers, admins, even some long running venues and annual events in the metaverse have had their "last run". In some cases however the 'passion' lives on and such events are continued by others. HgSafari & Avatarfest for example. In absolute numbers, new people keep discovering opensim. There just more thinly spread due to a massive growth in smaller grids. Overall there is still growth, even after some major grids having closed down the past year.
Despite the metaverse being a niche (it is, really, ask anyone you know in RL about metaverse stuff...) i like to believe its a persistent one. Just like in real life, people come and go as time moves on. Some grids grow, some get abandoned and disappear.
Living in OSgrid i'm not scared of it "disbanding". In the past 4 years, the board and it's admins have achieved impressive steps forward, strongly backed by a supportive community. Bearing in mind it's completely running on volunteers, it's progress is slow but steady.
Servers got migrated, front end completely rebuilt, OSgrid made legal non-profit status, listed at Paypal, due to collective efforts and support of all users & residents with fundraising efforts. The admin team was expanded with Wizard and Aussie, LBSA plaza has been modernized. Hurliman plaza was born so we have a great auditorium for meetings now, and we said goodbye to some older event builds, as these now get built per event and loaded at Event Plaza. The database server disks have been renewed, and all above efforts give us stability and the capacity of growing for another 3-5 years. Residents sometimes don't "see" much of what the OSgrid board does, but as you can see, it's doing exactly what it should. Prepare for the future constantly. This is also the theme for our next fundraiser. Building a solid future.
Yesterday (9-6) OSgrid has had it's annual community meeting, you can read it back
here. In there the following items were discussed :
OSG12B regions : They are up. 22-28 July is the event date. The first 2 regions are already full, so if you want a display plot, don't wait too long asking for one. at any of the admins. OSG is preparing huge party's as always, and
your input is really appreciated. Talk to Aussie if you want to run a gig on Event Plaza. And don't forget to visit the OSG12B regions to check the cool builds and grab the goodies !
Fundraiser :Planning for our yearly fundraiser has started. This is all very early, but these events take an incredible amount of effort to not only be held but also " work", so a whole team started brainstorming on this years festivities. (Dunno if this is a secret, but : This year will have Sci-fi / Steampunk as theme !!). It's going to be a blast, like last year !
OSgrid Board changes : Wizard Atazoth has been invited to join the OSgrid board of Directors. We congratulate him on his new position, and wish him luck and much wisdom in this role. Like all board members, he will also remain active as grid administrator, so you can still bug him with tech stuff.
Admin Changes :Last, but not least. Paela Argus, our web and back end developer, has retired from active duty. We congratulate him, as he's expecting to become a father soon !! He will need his time to focus on his new family. The efforts and input he gave to this grid are commendable, so on behalf of the OSgrid and it's community we thank him for all of is hard work and efforts, and wish him all the luck in the world in a new adventure as a parent.
