Day: February 16, 2019

NeosVR Has Released an Impressive-Looking Update

I haven’t written about NeosVR for quite some time. NeosVR has just released a major update to its social VR platform, and I must admit that it looks pretty good!

One new thing I have noticed is that they are doing an ICO (initial coin offering) on a new in-world cryptocurrency called Neos Credits. However, you don’t need to purchase cryptocurrency to participate.

NeosVR is available to download for free from Steam. They also have a Patreon page for the project. You can also follow the project on Twitter, YouTube, and Discord. There’s also a white paper.

The developer, Tomas Mariancik (a.k.a. Frooxius), has released a ton of YouTube videos on his progress. NeosVR seems to have come a long way already in a short time! Definitely, this is one product to keep an eye on.

Intolerance and Social Media

Today I had to ban the first troll from the official RyanSchultz.com Discord server, for posting racist and homophobic statements and then denying she had said anything wrong (i.e. gaslighting). I am getting truly fed up with the amount of hate and prejudice I am beginning to see on most social media, and I will not hesitate to pull out the banhammer if I see it erupt on my Discord. This person was banned and all her posts deleted.

My rules for the RyanSchultz.com Discord include the following statement which I essentially lifted verbatim from Linden Lab:

Intolerance: This server encourages social interactions between users across multiple countries. The use of derogatory or demeaning language or images based on race, ethnicity, gender, religion or sexual orientation is prohibited. Actions that marginalize, belittle, or defame users or groups are similarly prohibited. Hate speech of any kind is prohibited.

I have frankly had enough of the toxic stew that many social media platforms have become. I have left Facebook, and Google+ will soon shut down. I have, for own sanity, blocked Donald Trump on Twitter, and I am spending a lot less time there (although I do still cross-post my blogposts there, and I will continue to do so). I feel like taking a good, long vacation from all social media, except my blog and my Discord. I may just do that.

I think we all need to stop and think hard about this monster we have all had a part in creating and sustaining, and what kind of negative impact it is having on society. Some people feel they now have a platform to spread misinformation, lies, and hatred with impunity, and we must all do our part to stand up, call them on their bullshit, and put a stop to it.