About Copper Robot

Copper Robot is a live interview show hosted by veteran journalist Mitch Wagner, alternate Sundays at 6 pm PT in Second Life, at the Seaside Theater on World2Worlds Island.

What kind of interviews do you do?

We interview anybody who has anything interesting to say, on subjects including technology, books, politics, television, pop culture, science fiction, Second Life, and more. Past interviews include science-fiction writer Charles Stross, and cast of the Web sitcom "The Guild," including Felicia Day, who appeared on Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.. We also had P.W. Singer, a scholar the Brookings Institute, who talked about his recent book, Wired for War, about real-world battlefield robots.

Mitch Wagner? Who's that?

Mitch Wagner is the Copper Robot. He is a veteran technology journalist and executive editor for InformationWeek.com. He is a leader of InformationWeek's social networking and community strategy. He writes about Apple, social media and Web 2.0. In addition to writing, Mitch podcasts, creates Internet videos, and is one of a team overseeing newsletters for InformationWeek. He was previously a reporter and editor for InternetWeek, Computerworld, Open Systems Today, and the New Jersey Herald.

I'm not in Second Life, but I want to catch the show.

No problem! Watch the live video.

What if I can't make it at the time of the live interview?

No problem! We'll post recorded video on the Copper Robot blog.

What if I don't want to sit and watch the video at my computer?'

No problem! We'll post an edited, audio-only podcast a few days after each interview. Watch for it on the blog.

What if I don't want to keep coming back and checking the blog to see if the podcast is up?

No problem! Just subscribe with iTunes or your favorite podcasting software.

What if I don't have a computer?

Well, then you're screwed.

Sounds great! How can I find out who you have on upcoming shows?

Visit the blog regularly, or subscribe to the feed in your RSS reader.

Or sign up for our Copper Robot Google Group to get e-mail updates.

Or sign up for our group in Second Life -- just log into Second Life and search for "Copper Robot" in Group search.

Or follow Copper Robot on Twitter.

You keep talking about this "Second Life" thing? What is that?

It's a virtual world -- a 3D representation of a physical world that exists entirely in software, where you can log in and look around at buildings and landscapes, and make friends with other people who use Second Life. Build, play and listen to live music, create art and share it with other people, give or attend live performances, play games, make movies, create photos, run a business, and more -- pretty much anything you can do in the real world you can also do in Second Life.

You can also fly.

Second Life has about 650,000 active users worldwide.

Oh, yeah, I remember a lot of hype about that a couple of years ago. I thought it went out of business though.

No, not at all -- the hype was ridiculous, but Second Life is still around and thriving. According to Linden Lab, the company that creates and operates SL, it's growing and profitable.

Sounds great! Where can I sign up for Second Life?

Right here. Send me an instant message once you're signed up; my Second Life name is "Mitch Wagner," same as my real life name.

Is Copper Robot a solo operation?

Absolutely not. Our hosts are World2Worlds, which manages events for real-life businesses in Second Life including Intel, Cisco, Sun Microsystems, IBM and Microsoft.

Also, Crap Mariner gives us a lot of crap. Visit the Copper Robot Flickr Group, which he set up, for photos of past events.

Why the name "Copper Robot?"

I'm glad you asked! The copper robot symbolizes, um.... the dehumanization of the modern zeitgeist in the face of the existential realpolitik of... um....

Oh, heck. There is no great, profound reason for the name.

I like robot avatars in Second Life. I like the sound of the name "Copper Robot." So I found an avatar called Friendly Robot, made by Ed Bumstead -- visit his shop, ED Creations.. I customized the avatar a little bit, and the Copper Robot was born.

I love Ed's UbernNerd Avatar too.

I want to talk to Mitch about suggesting an upcoming interview/giving him piles of money/a restraining order. How can I get in touch with him?

My e-mail is [e-mail]

My Second Life name is "Mitch Wagner," same as my name in real life.

Skype: Mitch.Wagner

Twitter: MitchWagner

FriendFeed: MitchWagner

Is Copper Robot affiliated with InformationWeek, its parent company, TechWeb, or TechWeb's parent company, United Business Media?

No.

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