As regular readers know, ever since I did a feature here on water-based activities last fall, I've become a real fan of boating in Second Life; and among other things, this means that I've been regularly collecting various types of boating devices this entire time, and in fact have built up quite the little private fleet by now. I've decided recently to start doing more boating again in the grid as well, because of the problems I've been having trying to attend popular live events (but more on this tomorrow); so as part of that, I thought it'd be fun to detail the various ships that are now part of the ITG armada, and what I particularly like and don't like about each.

Now, as regular readers also know, I'm primarily a bit of a sailboat nut in Second Life, and I have two mid-sized ones now that I'm very happy with and use on a regular basis. Here above is the first one, which it can't be denied is simply the prettier of the two; the one with better textures, a sleeker shape, a more stylized sail, and even with artificial lights embedded for an intriguing nighttime experience. On the other hand, though, this is also the buggier of the two sailboats I regularly use -- the one that's harder to control, the one with less features and realistic feedback. In other words, this one is better for aimless tooling on low-lag days, in a large body of water where lots of other people will see me.

Here, then, is the other sailboat I use regularly; the Esperanta, it's called, powered off the popular and lifelike Flying Tako scripting engine. And it's hard to go wrong, I admit, with any boat based off the Flying Tako system; between the onscreen weather info, the manual control over sail and sheet position, and even the animated flag in the back, such boats (I'm told by professional sailors) are about as close as one is going to get in a virtual world to actually steering a mid-sized sailboat. Now if someone would just make one that's a little slicker!

And speaking of slick, here above is what I have to admit is my secret pride and joy; my full-throttle cigarette powerboat, which can actually be cranked up to a speed about ten times as fast as my home computer can render! Yikes, that's a fast boat! Ah, but it can be set to a barely-moving setting as well, just perfect for my stupid little Mac Mini here in RL Chicago; and when it's moving as slow as this, it's actually quite easy to steer as well. Plus, hey, just look how sharp that thing is; by all rights, I should be peddling coke in Miami or something to be able to afford a boat like this.

Of course, this being Second Life, it's not just the realistic and popular boats out there that are for sale; if you do enough looking around, you'll eventually come across just about every type of floating object out there that exists, as well as lots of objects that don't exist in the real world. Check out above, for example, a cool semi-fantastical catamaran that I own; as the photo shows, this is a perfect option for getting into the smallest and most shallow bodies of water that exist in the grid. And hey, it even comes with an oar that will automatically rez in your hands as soon as you sit down, and which will even animate your avatar to make it look like you're rowing.

And then here is yet another type of specialty boat that I own; a Venetian gondola! Pretty cool, I have to admit, especially since it too comes with a long pole that will animate your av while afloat, and something perfect for such tiny bodies of water as an estate pond or large pool. The only problem, in fact, is that the steering controls are way off; they're obviously designed for a high-end Windows gaming computer, one with precise movements and a beefy 3D-graphics card, with it being extremely difficult for me on my low-end Mac to keep the thing under control.

And it's not just boats that you find for sale around the grid; here, for example, is one of those 'sailboards' or whatever they're called, with jet skis also being a highly popular form of solo water transportation. Such tiny vehicles, in fact, can hold a lot more thrills and fun than a large ship, depending on what kind of water-based experience you want to have, and how complex an environment your home computer can handle.

And finally, here above is not only my newest purchase, but also as of this moment my favorite ship of the whole fleet; a little three-person canoe job, but one specifically designed for elf avatars and other fantastical creatures. Just look at the thing, man; whoever designed this went to a whole lot of trouble, something I really appreciate when it comes time to being a customer. And it's made by the same people who make the catamaran as well, which means that it too has artificial lights baked in, which as you can see makes for just some very dramatic effects while boating in the middle of the night.

By the way, on my latest shopping trip I came across yet another one of those "super-sized yachts" that have me all fascinated right now; you know, one of those g**d**n floating mansions that in real life can usually only be afforded by Middle East royalty. I find the whole concept just really interesting, of living full-time in the grid on a super-sized yacht instead of a house, I suppose because so few of us actually have that option in real life; and let's face it, many of these mansion-sized ships are just a marvel of engineering, full of hidden rooms and unexpected luxury amenities.

Anyway, so like I said, I'll be getting up an entry tomorrow that explains this shift in ITG's editorial direction in a little more detail; and I'll also be getting up a report from my latest boating trip tomorrow as well, a three-hour cruise down the length of the winter section's largest river, along with a ton of photos and some more thoughts from me on the concept of SL as a 3D social network. Hope you'll get a chance to come back then!

P.S. My apologies, by the way, for forgetting the companies who made these ships, as well as their stores' locations. If you know the information yourself, do make sure to add it to the comments, and I'll make sure to update the entry.