What do you think of this new virtual world ' Second life' where you can literally live a second 'virtual' life?
You can sign up free on the internet, create your own avatar, build your own house, make new friends, become someone totally different, start up a new business, build a new family and start making money with Linden dollars!
In a recent article I read on the ferry on the way over the England, people in the real world who had been unsuccessful in business were amazingly coming into their own in their Second Life, others were breaking down physical and mental barriers in Second Life which had burdened them all their lives.
In Second Life you can socialise, play, work, talk, win awards, communicate through various 'chat' mechanisms, buy, sell in fact do everything you can in the real world and there are currently over 4 million inhabitants!
In the last year, the number of people who had visited Second Life skyrocketed from 100,000 to 2 million. As the population grows, early citizens are learning the truth of Jean-Paul Sartre's famous quote "Hell is other people."
The website is facing the problem that many would-be utopias faced before it: When building the ideal world, it's impossible to change while remaining perfect in everyone's eyes.
The long-standing residents say that they want more influence in deciding the future of the virtual world. More importantly, they want Linden Lab to allow voting on issues affecting their in-world experience.
Would you like the chance to do it all again in a virtual world? What would you do differently if you could have a second life? (And I know that many of us on the Dao believe that we will have many lives) but I am relating this to a virtual life.
You can see more at www.secondlife.com
6 comments:
Hi Swan,
your quote of 'hell is other people' reminded me of a little story. When we die we go to a long dinner table with guests down each side. We are fitted with 4 feet long knives and forks strapped to our arms. then the most wonderful meal is placed before us. the sight and smells are so mouth-watering. But we find that we cannot eat any of it because our knives and forks are so long. Then someone has the bright idea of feeding the person opposite and then everybody can get all they need!
Second Life is intriguing, but I think I have enough to enjoy and keep me occupied in the first life! maybe if I wanted to be someone else, it would mean that I am not accepting the wonders that we are given in real life. Still as a fun pastime goes it sounds good. is that a photo of your alter ego?
Love Bruv
I agree with swann and ciariad,... to me we can create heaven here if we want to despite our frailties, and difficulties, infact it is because of them that we learn empathy , and tolerance .Alot of this is to do with how we frame things, or need to re frame things!
I am no fan of computer games, and feel that although in small doses they can be fun , my great love in life , is being with , and interacting with real people !..so no I don't want a second life , i just want to make this a better place for all !!
Oh no Bruv, Vega Close is already a well known personality in Second Life....I find Second Life fascinating, in a way its like moving to a new country where no-one knows you and you can be anyone you want to be, you can reinvent yourself or do all those things that you wanted to do but somehow never get around to. I felt like that here when I first arrived and it was very liberating.
There was a study carried out on Second Life by a Dutch think tank in December and here were some of their results after interviewing 250 Second Life residents.
“There is, however, a small group which feels less comfortable in the real world but has discovered fantastic social possibilities in Second Life,” wrote study authors David de Nood and Jelle Attema, including retirees, the unemployed, housewives and “those who are ill or physically challenged.”
A large amount of time spent in Second Life “does not automatically have a bad influence on visitors’ social lives,” the authors added. “On the contrary, it seems that it can have a therapeutic effect on those with few friends: as they spend more hours in Second Life, they start feeling happier in the real world.”
Reuters has its own news channel for second life if any of you are interested it is
http://secondlife.reuters.com/stories/category/second-life/lifestyle/
Your comments are of course valid, but I have to remember especially, with my children, that knowledge and technology is going to be their future, and most people these days get their knowledge via the internet. I try to tell my students to carry out their research in more depth by reading books, by using their brains and the knowledge that lies within, but unfortunately, or fortunately, whichever way you look at it, their first port of call for all their communication is the laptop in front of them, the mobile phone, or the i-pod - of course they also talk to each other, but 'socialising' as we know it definitely changing.
I for one, spend a lot of time in front of my computer - on this blog, on my web site and blog, on the School of Design's Campus where all the project communications are carried out, on the web where I enjoy surfing for information and knowledge, or contacts, or research for my projects, and I really love it. But that doesn't mean that I don't have a social life. In fact my web-site has developed my social life, I now have 63 members who I socialise with at various events and I have made some great friendships from it - how would I have built this network of people otherwise?
So I don't think that technology has to be to the exclusion of having a social life or enjoying the 'real world', the 2 can sit side by side quite nicely.
Have a good day one and all Swanx
Hi Swann,
I'm back! Been a bit busy recently doing extra hours at work.
I have never been able to get into computer games unlike the rest of my family, especially Jamesy who is welded to his computer. I personally prefer contact with the real person rather than someone hiding their true personality behind the facade of their dreams.
But each to their own and perhaps some people just have to escape from their lot in life.
Love Namski
Hi Swan,
Very interesting topic. I don't know enough about living in a virtual world. Sounds intriguing, but to be honest, I am praying hard for this to be my last earthly life, so another life still seems difficult to me, virtual or not.
Bruv, I've heard that story before. It's very nice I might add.
Love to all,
Lynn xo
Yes, I like the idea of feeding other people its quite sexy heh!
Swan x
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