Metaverse of Second Life
Its hard enough trying to manage one life. With all the responsibilities; friends, money, job, home, pets, are just a few of the things that exist in our every lives. It’s a difficult real task that makes everyday life and yet sometimes stressful. But its real and there is no way to avoid it. You can try to sleep all day call in sick to work, put the bills aside for one more day but no matter what its still exist in our minds and our lives.
By now your wonder what I’m getting at here. All of the above is already realized I know but what if you could avoid this, start fresh, with a different identity. Maybe even no identity. If this sounds interesting to you then there is something out there for you. Its called Second Life. If your reading this Blog then you have most likely herd about this as a avid user of the internet. I once tried second life for a week or so about a year ago. I found a link for it on one of your blogs. At first I thought it was a game something like that of the Sims or Myst. I quickly found my self lost in the cyber space. Unfamiliar with the lingo although I felt somewhat familiar as if instinctually understood it. All of the aspects that make up our everyday life exist in a similar form in Second Life. All of the social and physical things of actuality exist in second life as pixels on the screen. They are not tangible but can be acquired as means of satisfaction. There are thousands of people spending hours a week in front of their computers everyday in this cyberia. They are shopping, socializing and creating objects in the metaverse. You can hear wind while drink virtual cocktails make some one else laugh all while sitting on the deck looking at the sunset in your virtual home.. There is an actual NOAA
station in Second Life. And its not the first real world organization to enter the second life. Actual companies are entering the cyberspace in an attempt to cash in.
Anyone is welcome and it can all be yours for a small fee. Its only a few dollars a month to join SL but it can be expensive or lucrative once you set foot in the metaverse.
There is currency called Lindens and currently the exchange rate is 300 lindens to a dollar. It amazes me that real money is changing hands here in this virtual space.
Second Life may be the first sign of what computers are bringing to our existence. It hard to imagine second lives possibilities as to coexist with reality. It may not continue to grow. The current Hype could be just a current fascination with the concept. It may be more interesting if it found newer ways to exist outside of the home. Say at the local coffee house with a web cam and a laptop. Friends could see your favorite artist with you at the same time. Attend Classes together, shop for items in the real world while in a virtual store. It seems likely to appeal to many.
As television brought images of the distant world into our homes. Second Life is bringing the distant world to our fingertips and its only limited to our imaginations. What boundaries are there in cyberspace vs actual space? This metaphysical world is growing quickly, and unlike the physical world it changes with a flick of the mouse. I’m skeptical and curious at the same time. There is so much that I want to say about this but not enough words to describe it. Personally I’m going to stick with one life for now. That’s enough for me to manage. Like many of you who read this I prefer real friends not talking with avatars. One could become a vegetable pretty quickly using the time consuming second life. I’ll leave it at that.. I would love to hear what you think?
Some articles to check out;
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_18/b3982001.htm
http://www.slatenight.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=85&Itemid=40
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/18/business/media/18avatar.html?ex=1316232000&en=39bbb4311d3bf16b&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Life
