The Object of our Challenge

We have a new item to be found within Miniature World's Isle of Minutia, it's a parachute stuck in a small bramble, if you click it the wind will blow you away on the chute... but before you do that grab a screenshot and send it to us, if you are the first you will be awarded a Free One Day Pass to Miniature World, with the added bonus of being able to bring a friend along at a discount.

Be the first to find this 'Object of Our Challenge'. Click here for details. http://miniatureworld.com/FreeTicket/

First Screenshot found!

Congratulations to Nathan for being the first to find the 'Object of our Challenge'. We are pleased to award him a Free One Day Pass to Miniature World and a further discount for any guests he may choose to bring along. Way to go Nathan. Here is his screenshot.

Get a Free One Day Pass to Miniature World

Somewhere within Minutia is the "Object of Our Challenge" simply find it and submit a screenshot. If you are the first one to send it in, we'll authorize to you a FREE One Day Pass for entry to our popular attraction the next time you are in downtown Victoria BC.

Click here for details at this webpage http://www.miniatureworld.com/FreeTicket

Find this shop in the Isle of Minutia and be the first to send in the screenshot.

Minutia moves to the Active Worlds Server!

This is an update for all 'Minutians' who signed up to enjoy Miniature World's virtual reality, The Isle of Minutia.

Since its inception and launch in 2012, as part of Miniature World's 40th anniversary, hundreds of people have signed up to explore the Isle of Minutia, a unique online extension of the popular Victoria BC attraction. Originally, the application was released as a stand-alone virtual world, however recently the Isle of Minutia has been moved in cyberspace and now resides exclusively within the Active Worlds Universe (you can uninstall any current version of Minutia you may have). Active Worlds is itself celebrating their 20th anniversary this year as the oldest and most trusted virtual worlds Universe!

The move to Active Worlds opens up access to people with both Mac and Windows PCs alike to download the 3D browser!

 

Minutia Memberships are not affected other than the need for members to update their 3D browser software by going to www.activeworlds.com  and downloading the appropriate version for your system. Once the software is installed, it is a simply matter of clicking and running it from the AW desktop icon. 

TO UPDATE YOUR ACCESS:

1. Please go to www.ActiveWorlds.com and download the free 3D browser now.

2. 

The Active Worlds Browser will install to your hard drive and create a Desktop Icon on any 

Windows or Mac computer. 

3. Double-Click the AW icon and at the login click the Immigrate button.

4. 

Choose an initial Avatar and select a name and password.

Once you log in, 

1. look in the Worlds list on the left for - Minutia - 

2. Click It to teleport directly there and then... 

3. immediately select, from the Teleport Menu: 

- Make This my Home -

YOU'RE DONE!

Each time you run the Active Worlds browser, from then on you will enter and land in 

the Isle of Minutia, by default.

Miniature World extends its thanks to all who have taken the time to explore our little world and invites you to continue enjoying  it within the Active Worlds Universe.

As always we appreciate if you would spread the word by sending your friends to http://minutia.ca/passports to register for free.

Have a great summer, and by the way,  feel free to send us your best spherical photos, it's an excellent new feature in the Active Worlds 3D browser!
Cheers.

Artist3d
Minutia Support.
www.minutia.ca
www.miniatureworld.com

Isle of Minutia gets major Upgrade!

The Isle of Minutia is pleased to announce that it has received a major upgrade to its 3D World Browser from version 5.2 to 6.0

* All Minutians should take note that the previous version will no longer work. 

If you have not already received our update notice, (check your spam folder too) it is highly recommended that you contact, by email: support@minutia.ca for a private link to the free upgrade.
Anyone is welcome as always to register for free access by going to:

 http://minutia.ca/passports

Once you install it you can uninstall the previous version. The new version will show up as a new icon on your desktop called "Minutia 3D".

We are excited about this upgrade as it gives a new specular lighting to our world, particularly in the beautiful reflections in the water during our many sky transformations. Throughout our day to night sequence, the water ripples spectacularly as the ocean laps upon our shores and the rivers intertwine throughout our little isle.



There has never been a better time to try our virtual kayaking!!
Enjoy.

Artist3d

Witnessing History

The next best thing to being there is when the visual and sounds become immersive. The unique thing about virtual 3D environments is the extra-sensory involvement that is possible. But there is something quite different here, even from an IMAX film and that is the relationship of observer to image. Suddenly it feels more like being transported to a place where one is viewing the experience from the inside out, meaning that one immediately gets the sense of being a visitor walking around inside the 'movie' in a spacial perspective. One can even interact with it and of course with others in a group it all becomes quite convincing.

Here we see some of the possibilities this genre of computer simulation can present in terms of immediacy, a virtual field trip to a Royal British Airfield around the time of World War One.

Arrange a virtual field trip here: http://miniatureworld.com/nw_field_trips.php

Minutia opens doors to school and group Virtual Field Trips

When one looks around the web for bonified virtual field trips, it is easy to see that the idea is stretched rather thinly to include panoramic photographs, video walk-throughs and automated camera views. The Isle of Minutia presents a far more authentic interactive environment where groups and classrooms can login together and enjoy the comraderie of fellow members and classmates as they hike around the landscape discovering all this little online isle has to offer. And there is a lot here to see as each theme area has been developed to represent everything from a historic depiction of Calgary in the 1890s to a full-blwn science fictional asteroidal mining base out by Jupiter.

Notably this is the 'virtual field trip' we always expected from our computers, it simply took awhile for processors and high speed internet connections to catch up with our imaginations and expectations. This highly technological genre continues to evolve and the Isle of Minutia is an excellent, safe, non-violent environment to introduce young people to 3D interactive worlds in spaces they can share together under the same sky.

Schools and groups can book a field trip by going to the Miniature World website and selecting "Field Trips" where they will find that for a low flat rate, up to 30 computers/students can arrange a morning or afternoon online class field trip quite easily with as little as 48 hours advanced notice. Once a virtual field trip is arranged the teacher or instructor is sent a copy of the software to test their systems (Windows-based desktops or laptops only), a short online meeting within the virtual world is set up and any customization is made to prepare for the sojourn.

If your school is local to Victoria BC be sure to check out the real field trips to downtown Victoria, BC as well because Miniature World itself has been entertaining groups and classes for over 40 years with exciting Field Trips to see their over 100 displays and dioramas.

Minutia Population still growing...

Statistically speaking our Minutia population is still relatively small and as it turns out our first major Challenge was put on hold by our sponsor Miniature World in order to give us more time to grow our citizenship so that we can get a greater percentage of participants competing.

Our recent attempt to launch a challenging Treasure Hunt worth $1000 indicated that there are not quite enough citizens wanting to participate and so our immediate goal is to continue growing our population.

We are hoping that our current citizenry can help us out by 'liking' us on our Facebook page and more importantly telling at least one friend about our miniature online world. The fact is that virtual worlds are a lot more fun when you invite friends to join you you at the same to meet and explore around, go for a horseback ride or kayak through the various waterways. Send a friend to http://minutia.ca/passports to sign up and thanks you.

With a Minutia day passing every two hours the lighting and ambient atmospherics creates a beautiful array of sky changes and soundscapes as the sun rises and sets throughout the Isle of Minutia.

Those of you with pre-citizenships should remember that you can easily upgrade to a Full Annual Citizenship by finding and claiming by clicking any 10 individual Passport Stamps placed in relatively open view within each theme area. With full citizenship you will be able to customize your avatarm create friends list and be ready to participant in challenges when we do launch them.

Be sure to check out our Minutia link page here http://minutia.ca/update/links.php

The Game is Afoot... watch for email announcement soon!

Hardly out of the gates of 2013 and the Isle of Minutia is about to present one of its first major challenges! To all Annual and Founding Citizens who are eligible to participate keep an eye out for an important email which will explain the nature of this little virtual Treasure Hunt. There just may be real gold in them thar hills!

To all pre-citizens who may only need to find a couple more passport stamps to gain a full citizenship you can always go to the Trading Post in the Land of Gulliver to fill out your Annual Passport. Of course you can also simply purchase your Annual Passport Citizenship here http://minutia.ca/passports

Watch for a major announcement in the next coming days, it gonna be fun.

Latest Snapshot: Aerial Perspective the Thesuvius D-Zone

Is Santa actually coming to town?

Well for sure he has arrived on the Isle of Minutia! You may have to do some hiking around to find his workshop but it is all in good fun!(Hint... it's in a rather snowy and cold region of Minutia ) And don't tell anyone but on Christmas morning you may just find a special gift... but only to those who can figure out a way to get inside his snow bubble. ;-)

Check it out.

Thesuvius D-Zone Discovered in a Shed!

It was mystery for a while among Minutians until a recent teleport station was found in an old shed dating back to the early 1900s. Oddly enough, this strange conduit existed long before either space travel or vicarious experiences through avatars were available. The Isle of Minutia continues to expands its theme areas and with the Thesuvius D-Zone now in place there are over half a dozen major areas to explore and enjoy in this worlds within worlds. A well deserved escape from your daily routine. It is fun to explore around and see how long it takes to find all the secrets in the search for Minutia... Video: http://youtu.be/GnwimD-xEN0

Elusive Pecunia Arbor Found and Harvested!

To All Minutian Citizens and Pre-Citizens We're having a little ceremony in the Isle of Minuta at 2:00pm Pacific Standard Time TODAY to present a cheque to our Citizen 102 Minic for finding and being the first to Harvest the elusive Pecunia Arbor Tree!!! Minic was fortunate enough to not only find the tree but she waited until it fully ripened and so was eligible to receive its maximum value upon delivery!

We will be meeting in an open field (the entry point has been adjusted to this location) and hiking a short distance to the hidden location to present the cheque to Minic.

Everyone is invited to not only see the location of the tree but have a short meet and greet with fellow "Minutians". The ceremony will not take long and we hope you will join us at 2:00pm PST this afternoon November 12, 2012.

Login as a Minutian by running the Minutia software and clicking on the Minutian button and entering your Login and Password as indicated in your original Signup email

Cheers and hope to see you there!

Artist3d Isle of Minutia

I.O.M News Copters Monitor the Harvest

According to recent reports Isle of Minutia I.O.M. News helicopters were out in full force monitoring the elusive Pecunia Harvest for a potential delivery of the crop which was rumoured to have fully ripened before any citizen found it!

Alas the delicate harvest worth up to $128 cash, spoils completely within 12 Minutian Days and the elusive tree disappears to begin its growing cycle all over again. Those with a current Farm Report http://minutia.ca/challenges/reports/farm_reports.php can track its value but some citizens say they have found free copies left hanging about. Hard to say ;-) One farmer was heard to say, these tourists who visit Minutia should look at becoming annual citizens at a fraction of the cost of what a single harvest will bring in. http://minutia.ca/passports The Season of the Harvest Continues...

Details: the Pecunia Arbor Harvest 2012

To All Minitian Citizens and Pre-Citizens of the Isle of Minutia

The fragrant Season of the Pecunia Arbor Harvest is upon us on the little Isle of Minutia!

Miniature World is sponsoring a payment of up to $128 Can. funds for a harvested crate of virtual reality fruit called Pecunias from the elusive Pecunia Arbor Tree. This unique little tree is known more popularly by 'the locals' as the Minutian 'money tree' for its potentially valuable crop. While one often hears that "money doesn't  grow on trees", alas the unique atmospheric and environmental qualities of Minutia's virtual environment provides excellent conditions for the elusive Pecunia Arbor.

Please see http://www.minutia.ca/challenges/ for all Faqs and Details about the Harvesting the Elusive Pecunia Arbor Tree.


See also www.youtube.com/embed/qA86LYjH3Hw

It's the Season of the Harvest & Trading Post Opened in Land of Gulliver!

Minutia's Season of the Harvest is a special time of the year where something equivalent to the search for the great pumpkin becomes the the Search for Minutia's elusive 'money tree' also know by its Latin name the Pecunia Arbor. It is so elusive that whenever someone picks the fruit, it disappears and pops up somewhere else and so the hunt is the challenge!

The locals call it the money tree because they say it smells like money but the real reason is that Miniature World offers up to $128 a crate for the harvested fruit which grows more valuable as it matures. Citizens of the Isle of Minutia who check the daily Farm Report can keep track of the value of the tree as it doubles every day until it matures.

The Isle of Minutia features a Testing Tree at the centre of the little world that everyone can practice on so they are prepared when they find the official tree to harvest and deliver it quickly! Harvesting is as easy as clicking each fruit until the lid on the crate appears sealed at which time the citizen simply clicks the lid and fills in the delivery form. If they hold an Annual or Founding Citizenship and are first to deliver a crate then they can, if the harvest is not too young, receive straight up cash for their delivery! Then the hunt begins again!

So it is all in good fun and the Season's Pecunia Arbort hunt is on as of October 17th through till the new year at least depending on growing conditions.

TRADING POST OPENED in the Land of Gulliver.

Citizens will be happy to know that the first official Minutia Trading Post has opened in the Land of Gulliver and it is there that any final Passport Stamps can be purchased along with real tickets to Miniature World downtown Victoria and other items that are cool to have when hiking around the Isle.

Daily Farm Reports are also available for anyone who has found a Pecunia Arbor tree and wishes the most up to date information about the value of the harvest at any time. Annual Citizenships are also readily available at the Trading Post. Check it out.

Pre-Citizenship is free if you want to just check the Isle of Minutia out. Go to http://minutia.ca/passports

Minutia to Open Trading Posts!

The last month or two has been a busy time on the Isle of Minutia with a slow but steady growth in the population. We have many Founding Citizens claiming their complimentary Passports and an excellerating stream of Pre-Citizens joining up! (Pre-Citizens can find and collect Passport Stamps and earn a free Annual Passport Citizenship)

Any day now, the first opening of a Minutia's Trading Post is scheduled and it will be located in the Land of Gulliver. There are a lot of items that will be available at the Trading Post including a quick way to finish filling in a Citizenship Passport as well as items to enhance the Minutian experience, like personal riding horses and you guessed it... personal hoverboards. You will even be able to pick up tickets to the 'real-world' Miniature World in downtown Victoria!

Stay tuned, they say "money doesn't grow on trees" but of course that may only be a limitation of the so-called 'real world' ;-) All pre-citizens and citizens will soon be receiving an email regarding HARVEST TIME IN MINUTIA!




 

Mini Creations first Isle of Minutia "Real World" business affiliate!

The Isle of Minutia received its first application for a limited number of free shops to be placed among its many theme areas. Pre-citizen Minic, aka Pat Weber of Shakespeare, Ontario was one of the first responders to a call-out for interested people in the 'miniatures' industry to set up shop in our miniature Miniature World.

All 'real-world' shops set up in Isle of Minutia link directly back to the respective business's web site and although it will be awhile before the population of Minutia grows, those early birds who show interest are in for special treatment and a significant presence in this little world. Ambient soundtrack and video is also an option to add to the interior of the stores.

The theme areas within the land of Minutia are many and varied and in this case Minic chose Land of Gulliver which she felt best suited her store which is not only online at http://www.minicreations.ca/ but she also  has a real world store at 100 Huron in Shakespeare, Ontario.

In business since 2009, Mini Creations, has become part of Minutia's bridge building efforts between the virtual world and the real world, not just for the obvious fun... but profit. The Isle of Minutia welcomes Minic as a Minutian with enthusiam and a sense of mutual wonder at what is possible in the 21st century!

86,400 moments in a day. Enjoy a few on the Isle of Minutia!

Avatar Added:
Our 17th century violinist has been added. "you'll already know how to play" ;-)

HELP FILE update:
A few people have asked for a printable list of keyboard commands available from within the Isle of Minutia and so I have compiled an addendum to the Help files http://minutia.ca/help called "Keyboard Commands" with a link to a 'Print Friendly' page you can print. While navigation is fundamentally as easy as using the Arrow Keys to maneuver, there are a number of other options worth noting that add to the ability to get around Minutia and offer configuration options you may appreciate. Map overview coming soon!

Citizenship can be free:
Currently we have initiated an 'earn a free Annual Citizenship' option that will also extend to existing Citizenships an entire additional year for free. It is all about the 'mojo of curiosity' in Minutia, if you find the 10 individual Verified Passport Stamps placed throughout the lands and send us a confirmation through the form that pops when you click on each one, then, we update your Passport Account accordingly and issue a Citizenship or extend your existing one. Those who have their Minutia Citizenship already, know the fun of customizing one's avatar and that option and the authorization to participate in challenges and rewards is reason enough to make sure you have secured one. The final treasure far outweighs the initial value of a citizenship! You can of course purchase an Annual Minutia Citizenship here. http://minutia.ca/passports

Expansion Update:
Two more Theme areas are being developed: you can watch them grow if you can find them... ;-)

Where is everybody?
Well aside from who wants to be in front of a computer on a hot summer's day?, realistically there are 86,400 moments in a typical day so, with Minutians coming in from a variety of time zones and personal schedules, those are the odds that you will meet someone randomly until our populations grows considerably. Of course yours truly is in and out of there on a regular basis but from experience, it is a lot more fun going for a virtual horseback ride with a friend so be sure to meet friends at a pre-arranged time via email, you can use the contact list to see when others are online if you add them.  That said, if you know a friend who might be interested in our little world, please let them know about our free pre-citizen accounts available now off the http://www.miniatureworld.com/ website from any Isle of Minutia link. A pre-citizen account is almost entirely functional and there is a nice list of some great avatars to choose from. And pssst... any referrals that become citizens will add a month to your own if they mention you sent them.

That's all for now

Artist3d
Co-ordinating Architect
www.Minutia.ca/help
support@minutia.ca

UFOs spotted on the Isle of Minutia?

Three strange unidentified 'floating' objects suddenly appeared in the sky above the Isle of Minutia and it has visitors and  the citizenry wondering if some kind of extravirtualesstrial beings have taken up residence in the air space above the tiny little isle. A spokesperson from Minutia said they just appeared out of thin air and seem to have positioned themselves in a stationary geosynchronis orbit. "We are still looking into who or what they are and what purpose or threat they may present... but so far they just seem to be observing us."

Meanwhile the long summer days on Minutia continue to clock in every two hours. It would seem all effforts to make contact with these 'visitors' bounce off some kind of force field. More later.

Minutian observes strange phenomenon in the skies above the Isle of Minutia July 21th 2012

In Search of Minutia...

EARNING A FREE ANNUAL MINUTIA PASSPORT CITIZENSHIP

While  an Annual Minutia Citizenship Passports works out to only about $3.33/month, the Minutian Admin has decided that since it is an all ages family oriented online world there should be a way to get a citizenship for free, particlularly for children.

So, throughout the Isle of Minuta there are a series of 10 different Passport Stamps that you can collect to qualify for a free Annual Passport. When you find one you simply click it to claim it in the Immigration Booth .If you use the same email address and name we should be able to track and award you a citizenship when you have found all 10.

Example: The miniature Miniature World Passport Stamp

Citizenship enhances the features that are available to you including being able to customize and save various versions of your Avatar, keep a contact list and participate in claiming various rewards you may also find 'in them thar virtual hills' ;-)

Existing citizens who have paid for an Annual Passport can also get in on the 'search for minutia' by finding all 10 of the different Passport Stamps and extending their citizenship by another year.

They are not meant to be particularly hard to find but curiosity and an eye for 'minutia' is an asset.