Have you ever imagined yourself as someone different? Taller? Thinner? How about with Polka dot hair, scales, and the power to fly? There is a world on the Internet called Second Life that can let you do just that from the comfort of your real life.
Second Life is an immersive multi-player 3D space that's not so much a video game as it is a virtual experience. Similar to the real world, you can meet people, visit places, and buy things with real currency. It's populated with subscribers (called Residents) who create a customized identity, or avatar. Don't feel like walking? You can fly for miles. You converse using text dialogue or voice chat. And you can change your appearance (including your gender) at any time.
Linden Labs, which created the software program, says there are more than 900 million square feet of lands categorized as islands to visit... and purchase. It's so lifelike, Second Life has even been impacted by the sub-prime lending crisis.
Part of Second Life's success has been attributed to the participation of real world businesses and institutions. Shoemaker Adidas and Reebok have several stores open to customers. You can check out a new car made by Mazda or Toyota in a virtual environment. Starwood Hotels is debuting a new hotel brand by designing it first in Second Life and getting feedback from visitors before it builds the real hotel in the real world.
The American Cancer Society holds a version of its Relay For Life fundraising event in the virtual world. Second Life has even made the crossover to television with an MTV produced show and a spotlight on the CBS series, "CSI: New York."
Because of its popularity with college-age students, most of the major universities have set up interactive classes and curriculum in Second Life. Harvard Law School, USC, University of Texas, and University of Ohio all have a presence. Locally, U.C. Berkeley, Stanford, and San Jose State are participating.
Recently, researchers at the Polytechnic Institute successfully created a virtual 4-year-old boy in Second Life that runs on artificial intelligence and has been able to act and respond very similar to a human child his age.
One nice feature is that you own the intellectual property rights to anything you build in Second Life. This can be really exciting if you come up with a new fabric design or innovative way to architect a house.
Because Second Life is 3D, it's important to have a fairly powerful computer to access it. Although I saw a friend launch into Second Life on a PC running Windows 2000 without too many hiccups.
To provide a safe atmosphere for 13 to 17-year-olds to interact, Linden Labs launched Teen Second Life, a youth-oriented counterpart to the main program. The basic difference is that nudity, profanity, and violence are not allowed.
Coupled with the fact there is so much choice and not just one car to look at, which when you go to look.
Posted by: auctions | July 06, 2011 at 09:07 AM