Second Life Event Interrupted by Flying Penis Attack

Second Life Event Interrupted by Flying Penis Attack

December 21, 2006
There was some animated mischief afoot when former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner visited massively multiplayer online game Second Life earlier this year.

But nothing like this.

CNet's Daniel Terdiman reports that an in-game interview he was conducting with a well-to-do Second Life purveyor of virtual real estate was interrupted by a griefer who launched a disruptive flying penis attack.

Terdiman's account raises all sorts of issues about the manipulation of in-game economies and social interactions in the virtual world. From the article:
On Monday, Graef visited CNET's Second Life bureau for a discussion about her business, how best to set up businesses in Second Life and the nature of competition there.

Unfortunately, as the interview was commencing, the event was attacked by a "griefer," someone intent on disrupting the proceedings. The griefer managed to assault the CNET theater for 15 minutes with--well, there's no way to say this delicately--animated flying penises.

...the interview was attacked again, and the protester even managed to crash the entire server on which Chung's theater is held.

Airborne manly equipment aside, Terdiman's interview with Second Life real estate magnate Ailin Graef of  Anshe Chung Studios is fascinating and worth a read. Sadly - or perhaps fortunately - we have no screen shots of the event. Use your imagination...

GP: Thanks to Valleywag, where we first stumbled upon this story.
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Comments

This was on SomethingAwful today too... so freakin' awesome. Almost makes me want to play the game.
So what are you saying GP? That someone on Second Life was being a real Di....

You knew someone was gonna say it, didn't you? :)

nightwng2000
NW2K Software
Man. This actually makes me want to play the game now. If crazy crap like this happens at any time, it sounds fun.

I'd make a silly avatar, like a Weiner dog on roller skates with a satellite dish coming out of my eyes, and just explore the world, waiting for the inevitable "Flying Hitler heads sining Bette Midler" attack.
Gil: If the site you're pimping lacks flying penises, I don't see the point. Second Life is an incredibly boring game without all the weird stuff from the goons and all the other griefers.

Also, Room 101 gets major bonus points for the name. If I had the 3D modeling or scripting skills, I'd be right there with them.
ROFL @ SilverStar.


Seriously though, that crab has made history!
BWAHAHHAHAH
[...] Original post by GamePolitics [...]
It would of been funnier if somone assinated her character too.
Beware the GIANT ENEMY PENISES which will strike the server for MASSIVE DONG, crashing them! o.o
If i had the coding, I'd do the same exact thing but instead with the opposite gender's. It'd be raining...well ya know.
I'm sorry.

But you can't just read this article without laughing. I'm sorry. It's immature, but it's so freakin' funny...
So...does this mean Second Life just got wanged?
"Second Life Event Interrupted by Flying Penis Attack"

*Dies*
@-Jes-, Gil

I figured as much for SL's official reaction. I was thinking more of the general public. Would they understand that this is akin to a protestor bursting in on live coverage, or would they pull a Superbowl and try to hold SL accountable for content not 100% under it's control...

(as an aside, in Canada they just have to put a disclaimer saying it's live, and they have no control, so if something happens, tough. ;))
Well, if R-101 actually have a pont they're trying to make, then that's fine that they're protesting whatever it is that they don't like in game (though still a pretty dickish way to go about it). If they don't, then they're just a bunch of giant flying dick-tards.
Something Awful has an article of the 'attack' here: http://www.somethingawful.com/index.php?a=4336

It has screenshots, and video.
Oh God.. I wish I had been there.
The second one Jabrwock.

Usually, when a sim-spamming attacker (using anything from multiplying dildoes, million-poofers and whatnot) is caught, reported and found guilty, the scumbag is permabanned, both on IP and mail-adress.

PheonixZero: well I suspect that it multiplied on a few sec's delay (most sim-nukes tend to do that).. So the first (few) active one would most likely have rezzed properly, texture/color and all, and the rest would look just like it.

What's kinda sad though, is that you can actually find shops that sell Sim-nuking briefcases.
At least they didn't multiply...
Wait.... SL was up and running long enough for this to happen? I'm surprised.... I wonder if the plying penii showed up first as untextured shapes and stayed that way for several minutes on the overloaded server, heh.
I'd believe the second one, Jab. I'm sure their Terms of Service would enlighten us better in this matter, though.
Now here's the real question. Can SL be held responsible for distributing images of the flying penises to all the computers/players present? Or will this be treated the same as some lunatic showing up to a public intereview wearing a penis costume and throwing penis dolls at the camera before the editor cuts the feed?
It's not just SL minus flying johnsons, it has it's own spirit and fun to it. I simply bring it up because it's in the same vein.
And still this is more dignified than regular politics.
Flyinig penises? You can actually do that shit on Second Life? Too bad it's too late to ask for that game for Christmas. ;)
That's why I prefer There.com

Stuff has to be approved by someone to get in world and they're no scripting. It's harder to make items this way, but no flying penises. The world's kept nice and PG13.
Sadly, I'd like to say I'm suprised, but I'm not. You know, if you're gunna hold a serious interview, you might want to find yourself a nice private sim that griefers can't teleport to, before you go forth with it. Or at least make a nice space that autoreturns stuff that isn't your own stuff. That works too.
There.com is purty http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xho7DZE5Ato

There.com - No Extra Appendages http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwRFEWjng_M

Okay, I'm done. Is there any indication this kinda stuff doesn't happen on the SL teen sever? *cough*segregation?*cough*
[...] ZDNet is reporting that a virtual land owner in Second Life is sending DMCA takedown notices to persons using screen shots of the now infamous, to put it bluntly, flying penis attack at a CNET interview with that person. There are several problems with this tactic, as ZDNet notes. Although the person has copyright in their Second Life avatar, that does not mean that they can control all uses of their copyrighted work. They certainly can’t stop fair uses, of which the reports including screenshots almost certainly qualify as. [...]
[...] UPDATE: #2: Add to that list Tim, Lauren, Brad, Jason, Brian, Keira, D’Arcy, Robin and Arjun. That’s 20 freakin’ people from one conference. That’s it, NV 2008 will only occur in Second Life. That’s assuming, you know, we can avoid the flying phalli and grey goo. [...]
[...] @desc Uncanny Valley as You are standing in a wide valley. Streets criss-cross each other in all directions, and a profusion of buildings in a mind-numbing range of architectural styles cluster around you. When you look at them, your gaze seems to slide across their surface, as if the texture of the bricks and wood were somehow slick and insubstantial. People pass by, all well dressed and with unusually clear skin. A flock of flying penises — all identical, in a fetching shade of Barbie(tm) pink — flutter overhead. [...]
[...] I don’t know about Second Life though since I’ve never played it. From what I understand, players can create almost anything in the game. This means there is a lot more scope for evil mischief. Maybe the terrorists are planning on sending a million flying penises to disrupt the next sitting of Congress or the Australian Parliment. As that Dwarf in the Burning Steppes says, (I can’t remember his name) that will certainly scare the children. [...]
The plural of penis is penes - like crisis, thesis, ellipsis ...
absolutely hilarious though.
[...] Oy vey. Expect a lot of news about flying penises. [...]
[...] PS: Don’t be scared if you encounter your first furry or manage to walk into a phallic thunderstorm…just be nice! [...]
[...] Por un lado, el PP parece dispuesto a sabotear los debates en televisión con Zapatero. Por otro, Gaspar Llamazares se siente excluido y reclama un debate a tres. La única salida es que todos acepten la invitación del líder de IU para que el debate tenga lugar en Second Life. En este mundo virtual, y gracias a la tecnología 3D, pueden salir mucho más guapos, contar con la participación de directo de cientos de periodistas espasmódicos (porque no sabrán cómo controlar sus avatares) y arriesgarse a recibir una lluvia de penes de color rosa sobre el escenario del debate, algo que ya ha ocurrido en un par de ocasiones (una travesura de programadores experimentados con mucho tiempo libre). [...]
[...] The mind reels. You think Second Life is freaky? This is going to take flying e-pensu to a whole new level. Home will not be nearly as hackable as SL in terms of geometry (one needs a dev kit and Maya to actually sculpt spaces), but frankly I think a company like Durex will be more than happy to out-weird the minor gimmicks we’ve seen in other virtual spaces. [...]
Late April Bullshit from Blackboard...

I must seem like some shrill Communist the way I hate on Blackboard (the software and the company.) Sorry, it’s like paying half your income in tax to support the needy and watching your money go to your wife- and child-beating loud alcoholic as...
True

People are addicted to any kind of games thats a fact. I don't blame people for buying real estate (in a game) with actual money and all that i mean it's their money in the end... but protesting with flying penises ? thats original at least. I think the idea was to draw attention and by god they did it. marire penis

Ne quid nimis.

Re: Second Life Event Interrupted by Flying Penis Attack
I just wonder how come it took so long for me to read the story. I guess I should come check gamepolitics more often. It's truly a funny story. The question that still remains in my mind is what else can this guy do? If he managed to get this done, perhaps he can also read our credit cards or steal our secondlife accounts. __________ Eddie Petosa - linux dedicated servers programmer.

GamePolitics ShoutBox

Posted 11/07/09 at 10:58am
JDKJ: Which could be explained by both (a) and (b).
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:56am
Austin_Lewis: JDKJ: You forgot C) the fact that, for some reason, every time he did something that would suggest he shouldn't be in the military, let alone an officer, higher ups ignored it or let it slide.
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:51am
JDKJ: Part of the problem is, I believe, that (a) the Army had a lot of time and money already invested in him and which they were unwilling to simply write-off and (b) an increasing need for the type of skills and services he provided.
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:48am
JDKJ: And that even if he was begging not to get cut loose, he was apparently a real good candidate for being cut loose, anyway.
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:11am
JDKJ: @chada: And while Kennedy once noted that there's usually more than enough blame for everyone to get a slice, the possibility that the Army was unwilling to cut loose someone who was asking to get cut loose could be a factor.
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:07am
ZippyDSMlee: *noms on his feet*..nomnomnomnom*droooll* ...wuuutttttt uuu looking at?
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:05am
JDKJ: I'm no psychologist, but I'm told that crazy people have a tendency to do crazy things.
Posted 11/07/09 at 10:03am
chadachada321: Whoops, was out of the convo for awhile. I do wonder what type of ammo he used etc, but the real issue is WHY he did it, not HOW
Posted 11/07/09 at 09:56am
JDKJ: But if it turns out that they actually did, they'll have Hell to pay.
Posted 11/07/09 at 09:45am
JDKJ: And I'd tend to rule out the possibilty of FN Herstal supplying restricted ammunition to someone merely because they're ordering it from a military base.
Posted 11/07/09 at 09:37am
JDKJ: I know you don't leave your gated community and get around much in dark alleys, so you may be surprised to learn that there's this thing called "the black market" where, if you've got enough money, ain't too much of anything which can't be bought.
Posted 11/07/09 at 09:36am
Austin_Lewis: Or, maybe he or someone else at the base ordered the SS190 from FN Herstal.
Posted 11/07/09 at 09:32am
Austin_Lewis: the hands of private owners. They run about 300 dollars minimum for a box of 50, and boxes of AP 5.7 are extremely scarce, mainly residing in the hands of Class III stores or individuals who for one reason or another got a demo box of it.
Posted 11/07/09 at 09:30am
Austin_Lewis: There are other firearms that fire the 5.7. However, I too would like to know where he got the ammo and what kind was used. Maybe Hasan, planning not to live through this, went out and bought one the boxes of SS190 that are floating around in
Posted 11/07/09 at 08:44am
JDKJ: And it isn't yet clear what type of ammunition Hasan used. It's strange that he purchased a gun but didn't purchase ammunition for it at the same place and time. Especially because the calibre required is peculiar to the actual gun.
Posted 11/07/09 at 08:40am
JDKJ: We can sit here all day and debate the relative merits. However, I think the events of recent days suggest that an FN Five-Seven ain't exactly the same as that Daisy BB gun you got for Christmas when you were a kid.
Posted 11/07/09 at 08:38am
Austin_Lewis: JDKJ: tumbling can be quite dangerous. However, the rounds that commonly tumbled were variants of the SS90. Civilian ammo tends to tumble far less commonly.
Posted 11/07/09 at 08:33am
JDKJ: I understand that while they don't have much expansion effect, they tend to "yaw" on impact. Yaw can be almost just as damaging as mushrooming.
Posted 11/07/09 at 08:30am
Austin_Lewis: JDKJ: Except when one considers the lack of expansion for the 5.7, it basically ends up leaving a far smaller hole.
Posted 11/07/09 at 08:29am
JDKJ: But if the latter's travelling at close to twice the speed of the former, there's a compensatory effect on the weight difference.
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