Alright so my class forced me to make a SecondLife account. If you don't know what it is heres an introduction
Before you make fun like I do this is what the article
More Internet Users Get a Virtual Life says:
Estimates vary on how popular the virtual worlds will become. Technology
research firm Gartner forecast this year that by 2011, 80 percent of active
Internet users will have a "second life" in some sort of virtual world. Another
research company, eMarketer, predicted last month that more than half of U.S.
children and teens who use the Internet - about 20 million people - will visit
virtual worlds by 2011.
I always wondered how these things actually worked but I figured it was for geeks and fat creepy men who use a female alias to do terrible things. So I set it up and spent about four hours setting up a person going through the tutorial FLYING it was good stuff. This was about a week ago and I haven't really touched it since. Why?
I found out to get clothes or build houses and actually do things on these programs you have to spend Linden's which is money, that you buy for real money. You either put money on your account or get a JOB in you're second life to get money to dress this character, you.
I looked this over and said to myself. Why would I want to do this. I avoid getting a job in the real world because it is boring or spend money for that matter. Why would I want to have to do it twice. I have enough going on in my own life to have to deal with a panda looking me. And you know who deals with this. People who are so weird they can't leave there house because people are afraid to meet them. Or they aren't the girl with her stuff hanging out with designer clothes. No it's a fat guy with a stained wifebeater hunched in a gamer chair. That won't work for me.
8 comments:
I agree with you completely. I find no interest in "pretending" to have another life equally as judged, manipulated, and stressful as the one I already have.
The fact of the matter is.. I see the same fat guy sitting in a chair that you do.
If you really need this in your life I think reevaluating your priorities is in order. As well as, maybe taking some social education classes. Learning and applying these things to the real world wouldn't be such a bad idea.
Haha I agree with both of you. I've been that "geek" to play RPG computer games(Role Playing Games) and if always found myself thinking about the other people I was playing with. Now, I don't think i exactly fit the "fat guy sitting in the chair" discription, but I'm sure over half of my 'friends' on World of Warcraft were much closer. It is weird to think about the other people you're interacting with in Second Life.
And for being able to start over in Second Life...I agree with Brain...I like my first life just fine thank you!
Steph: No way you are on these things really? That takes away a lot of misconceptions you are a cool looking person. I might be wrong I'll make note on my next post
Brian, don't be a shmuck. haha. Maybe YOU have some misconceptions about what cool people are doing. Or maybe you aren't as cool as you thought... (just kidding)
On a more serious note, I've never been into these sorts of cyber worlds either. I think there is alot of potential to bring people together - different cultures, different views, etc. But there is a stigma attached to this sort of activity - the fat guy sitting in the chair, the pedophile looking to meet young boys and girls online, the creepers. If the stigma wasn't there would be more enthused to participate? Could we be cool like Steph?
That statistic you quoted is interesting. That 80% of people will have a "second life" in one of many programs or games. I wonder if/when the world will get to the point where the average person spends more time in the virtual world than in the real one.
your post definately made me laugh. Although I don't find Second Life all that interesting, I can still see why it has value for some people. Besides, its kinda fun to fly around and what not, even if most of the people playing are weirdos. Like anything else, I think Second Life is good in small doses.
ooh brian, like i said earlier always entertaining to read your post, you should introduce a power ranking at some point on something..
Anyway i think almost everyone in our class has a similar feeling towards second life, and thats probably bc we arent creepy fat men who have no lives. I think that's why there is no appeal for us bc we actually have enjoyable lives in this world. I can understand why someone with no life would won't to create an "alter-ego" per say, but that's something i'm not down with.
Yep; that's what I was thinking. What the name really means is "Secon Chance." Second chance to do the things that you couldn't do in your first chance. And it also means cybernetic, sidentary life since all you do is sit on your computer.
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