Today we're rolling out an update to JLI. (Hooray!) In addition to the last release's "freeform" texturing feature, the new version introduces lots of bells and whistles, including commentable spaces and fresh content. Read on for the details.

First, here's a new YouTube video showcasing the latest content and features. Check it out, share it around, sign up to try JLI if you haven't already, and invite others to come and comment on your 3D space! Thanks for testing.

This release (0.7.8) adds:

Comments on spaces. (For now, you have to be logged in to read and write comments. We'll soon be adding RSS, social syndication, and optional notifications).

New space templates, props, and objects for you to personalize, including a Beach Resort, Labyrinth, and Roadside Motel.

Enhanced Explore presentation and interface.

Each week, we’ll be sharing the latest from the JLI frontier, courtesy of our courageous beta testers.

Read on for samples of some recently created spaces: more beneath the fold.

Gallery, by Wayner.

Ahoy there, readers!

This is my first of many posts as the new Community Guide for Just Leap In. I have been with the company for a short while, and it seems somebody thought I had a knack for talking to the public, so here I am talking to all of the fine people that visit our blog daily. Since we’re going to be seeing so much more of each other, I thought I’d tell you a little about myself, just to break the ice.

I’m a long time gamer, first time blogger. Online, my handle has been Infirmo for a little over 10 years now. I have worked on some major titles and quite a few smaller games, mostly doing quality assurance. Like many QA people, I started out as an enthusiastic gamer, playing text-based adventures and early RPG and primitive side-scroller games on archaic platforms. I became a frequent beta tester for various games and projects, and eventually landed work in game testing, which I have done off and on for many years now. I have also worked in tech support and documentation for other software projects, including educational software and video editing tools.

But my first love is games and interactive media. The possibilities they afford and the stories they tell are inspiring to me in a powerful way, one that has directed me along (what looks, in retrospect, to be) a very direct path pointing right at the position I hold today.

So what do I do here? Put simply, I’m here to do what you are doing, which is to use the interface Just Leap In has provided to create new worlds, new spaces, and new ways for people to connect to each other. But I’m also here to hear from you, to see what you are doing with the application, to listen to your wishes and complaints, and to learn what you want do to with 3D spaces, interactive media, and social networking. We’re here to deliver what you want, and I’m on the task of figuring out what, exactly, that is.

So, as user myself, I have been playing around with the tools for a while now, and have created what feels like a nice little space.

Here’s a picture:

Here’s Office Racer, a video I made a couple years ago:

Here’s where I might be hanging out with friends, having a coffee:

Hrrm. These pictures really don’t do it justice. You might just need to see it for yourself. Try this:

Use contingent on these terms
[After installing the Player, click above “Click to Enter” to jump into 3D].

A picture may be worth a thousand words. But a 3D space lets every visitor write their own chapter in the book.

From my place we can visit my friends Joanna, Seven, and DJ Simple through portals (doors in this case) that directly connect my space with theirs, or they can all come over for a get-together. We can watch a movie, listen to music, and talk amongst ourselves. If we get a fresh idea for my area, I can change things around and get their opinions of the new stuff.

This is where I like to hang out. Drop by for a visit any time.

Just don’t drink up all my espresso.

“Infirmo”

Community Guide
Just Leap In