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By ABBEY ZENITH
Photos by VERDE OTAARED
 The 3rd Anniversary of Alliance Virtual Library celebrated much more than three years of being a Second Life community library, it marked the completion of the consolidation of our resources and services to make AVL a much stronger and sustainable library. We grew from one sim that held library resources and provides library services to five sims in a very short period of time, mirroring the explosive growth of the entire area that we call the Information Archipelago, which grew to over 30 sims during this time. This huge growth eventually raised questions of sustainability and it was decided to consolidate our resources from the five sims to a much more manageable three sims. This month I would like to write about the changes that consolidation has brought to the library and what you can expect to find on the Alliance Virtual Library sims of Info Island, Info Island International, and Imagination.
Info Island is the original sim purchased by Alliance Library System of Peoria, IL in 2006. Since that time we have had the good fortune to be anchored by three strong library groups: Sci Fi & Fantasy Portal, Mystery Manor, and Internet Communications Technology (ICT) Library. Sci Fi & Fantasy Portal currently under the leadership of Franja Russell has a strong group and holds many events. This year they held a month long celebration of science fiction and fantasy that kicked off with a discussion by author Ursula Le Guin streamed live to Info Island. Mystery Manor, under the long time direction of Max Lundy has evolved from an ancient castle to a manor house to its current open configuration designed to host discussions and events. Both groups provide ongoing resources on their respective genres, making browsing these areas a delight of discovery. ICT Library is well known throughout the library and education communities of Second Life as a place where free or low cost scripts and helpful tools can be found to support education in Second Life. Milosun Czervik maintains the collection and resources there including a demonstration deck where these tools can be viewed.
Over the years Info Island has changed significantly our main library has evolved from a traditional library building to ever more modern designs. The current buildings are open allowing easy access and viewing of the library resources within. Rocky Vallejo, head of collections for AVL, leads a group of dedicated volunteers who create and maintain these collections. They cover many subject areas – from agriculture to performing arts to world literature. We have been blessed to have an art gallery constantly producing new art shows that feature real life and SL artists, under the direction of Teofila Matova. Our Genealogy Research Center, managed by Cindy Elkhart, provides many resources on genealogy and quarterly exhibits and discussions. The Stonewall Learning Center is a Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender resource center, managed by Katt Tomsen, that features monthly discussions and amazing resources. Info Island remains central to AVL as the home of the AVL Auditorium where all large events and meetings take place.
The biggest changes in consolidation came to Info Island International. Info Island International was planned as a library island for an international community. It featured resources based on the world’s largest language groups, all created by librarians and volunteers representing those groups. Two of the areas, the Spanish and the Chinese emerged as strong groups, holding a wide variety of events. In the newly designed sim, the Spanish and Chinese areas anchor what is now known as International Plaza with the other language areas consolidated into one section. This has made room for the inclusion of the library of Illumination, Xinoxi Han’s fabulous library of in-world books and audio books and the Henry James House which now also contains the world literature collection for AVL. Info Island International is home to the Jazz Cat, a modern jazz club featuring weekly blues and smooth jazz events, and to the newly redesigned Second Life Resource Area, a place for those new to Second Life to explore and learn skills. Central to this sim is the heart of AVL – the welcome center and reference desk! Each week volunteers man the reference desk for two hour shifts, totaling nearly 80 hours of staffing. The group, managed by Hypatia Dejavu, consists of both librarians and other professionals who enjoy helping others in Second Life. Reference questions range from simple Second Life how-to questions, to complicated real life research questions.
Over the years we have both served the community and served librarians who have come to Second Life to explore and develop their own libraries. We have an active librarian community in SL and do many events to support professional development and networking. We are very proud to be a center of educational support for librarians and library students. One of the newest additions to AVL is located right next door to the welcome center on Info Island International. The LIS Student Union, under the direction of Adra Letov allows students to participate in AVL activities and to network with working librarians. 
Consolidation required Imagination Island, AVL’s children’s literature sim to move to a spot directly beside Info Island, but other than the move and a few adjustments to make connections to neighboring sims, this island hasn’t undergone the changes of the other two. Imagination is an extraordinary sim that is divided into two sections: Rachelville and Mythica. Rachelville contains the children’s literature areas including a secret garden, a maze, an underwater world, a castle and much more! Mythica is part residential and part resources on myths, tales and fables, with lovely cottages dotting the landscape.
The new configuration of the library resources and services for AVL makes for a more cohesive whole, with the library sims adjacent to each other. We have found that we could do more with less and consolidation actually increased the space for library resources and made resources easier to locate. AVL’s best resource is its volunteers and we feel that these changes will allow individuals and groups on these three library sims more ease and opportunity to serve the SL community. We are looking forward to the future as a library in Second Life and to being able to always keep learning and to keep sharing with SL residents.
The Third Anniversary party put together by Abbey Zenith, Hollyjean Allen, and Adra Letov raised $L13,170 from tips donated by Gabrielle Riel who provided the music. The silent auction for two hours with a SL expert raised $L36,050.
The results of the auction were:
Auctioned Winner
HVX Silverstar Verde Otaared
Verde Otaared Jenaia Morane
Daisyblue Hefferman Ethelred Weatherwax
BrianA Corleone HVX Silverstar
Rocky Vallejo Vallibrarian Gregg
Leeorie Alter Rocky Vallejo
Hypatia Dejavu snow Scarmon
Hollyjean Allen Abbey Zenith
Rolig Loon Adra Letov
Abbey Zenith Biblio Latte
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