Second life is described by it's owners, Linden Labs, as a "3D online digital world imagined, created and owned by its residents". About 400 librarians are experimenting with providing virtual library services within Second Life. Growing from a single storefront in April 2006, they now have over 8 islands dedicated to library services. The Australian Libraries Building opened in November 2006 after we were offered a building on Cybrary City, an Island sponsered by library vendor, Talis. Over 14 Australian library folk are involved with the project.

The technical and philosophical challenges of setting up a virtual library building have been fascinating. If doors discourage people, should we remove them? How about walls? Should image viewers look like television sets? How do you make a purple penguin link to an external library blog site? What would be the best setting for agricultural information?

This session outlines the evolution of the library branch. It looks at the advantages of Second Life for Librarians. It outlines some of the questions, both technical and philosophic, that a library should ask if they are setting up a branch using a virtual reality interface. It describes how project management, communciation and collaboration all happen very differently when hundreds of librarians in many different countries work together in a speculative and creative spirit.