Second Life Part I: An Introduction to Participation Media

I first learned about second life when I found this video on google videos last week. Second Life is not really a game although it is massively multiplayer and it is online. You create and customize your own avatar . Via a third person POV, you explore an intricate online world where thousands of other people are online creating and interacting with each other.

One aspect of Second Life I find interesting is that the users, called Residents, are responsible for creating much of the content that is seen. User created content is not new in the world of games and I think this is a brilliant approach to maintaining a virtual world. You are not limited by the objects and locations that are there today. Tomorrow it may be different. This is how content is kept fresh and interesting; it doesn't get old.

Those who are familiar with 3D creation and image manipulation software such as 3DS Max and Photoshop, will feel comfortable with the object creation tool built into the Second Life interface. However, there is still a learning curve. To aid users with learning, SL made another smart decision by creating online classes in virtual lecture halls and open spaces. There are schedules available informing you of upcoming classes in various subjects from creating textures and objects to making (real) money in the Second Life world by offering design services.

Aside from the geeks and the freaks, who would be interested in this? Well, SL noticed the overwhelming success of MySpace and are attempting to convert the success of MySpace to a virtual world. Suzanne Vega performed live in Second Life just a few days ago (aug . You can see the video here. Duran Duran will also perform in the next month or two. There's more on the music scene in Second Life here.

Corporate interest is there as well. Starwood Hotels will launch a new hotel in Second Life. The real world hotel will open sometime in 2008. Starwood plans to gather feedback from users. CNET has an article on the Starwood Hotel "ALOFT" here.

I have always been interested in Virtual Reality and CGI. While in college in 1992, I can remember reading the book Virtual Reality: The Revolutionary Technology of Computer-Generated Artificial Worlds - and How It Promises to Transform Society, by futurist Howard Rheingold. Fast Forward 14 years later, I was surprised to find that he was particpating in an in-world Second Life interview here discussing the impact of online social communities. I realize that I'm still interested in virtual reality and the potential for virtual communities like Second Life.

By showcasing bands, inviting speakers, and marketing their unique technology to companies worldwide, Second Life is well positioned to lead the future in VR.

Second Life Part 2

I had briefly played around with SL last summer to see what all the buzz was about. Initially, I was very impressed, though I didn't do much more than explore the different islands of the virtual world. I was a little disturbed by what was going on with some of the "residents". There were areas that allowed you to purchase strange objects and animations that I can only assume were intended to be used for cybersex. That immediately ruined it for me and I uninstalled it. Why invest so much time in something that would be used for that? It wasn't the only thing going on, but it existed throughout.

I have since read more articles about Second Life and the potential for business and marketing. After installing SL again, I noticed the graphics engine seems a bit improved. The orientation area where you begin is much easier to interact with and to navigate. This has renewed my interest in SL and its potential.

I need to find the time to learn more on how to build and texture 3D objects and animations in SL. This requires a premium account which I'm not quite sure I'm ready to pay for. It could be interesting to start a consulting business that would help companies use SL as an opportunity to promote their goods and services.

Some of the High profile brands with a presence in Second Life (April 2007):

(View as Map)

Warner Bros
Cnet
Fox Atomic
Intel
Sun
Pontiac
Comcast
Laguna Beach
NBC
One Manchester
IBM
Addidas
Reebok
AOL
Dell
Weather Channel
AMD
Nissan
BMW
American Apparel
Colorado Tech
Ohio University
MIT
Cornell
Princeton
University of Minnesota
Mercedes
University of Herts
University of Oxford
Logica
UNC
Toyota
movietickets.com
Philips
STA Travel
Autodesk
ING Renault F1
Cisco
Murray State
Woodbury University
Telus
Unitrin
University of S Denmark

Second Life is a complete waste of time.

It finally hit me. I had to read the comments left by these diggers to realize that there really is no point to second life. I thought that it might interesting to build objects because I've always been interested in CG/3D Animation. What was I thinking? These guys are absolutely right. It's nonsense. Now that I think about it, the graphics do suck, the laggy connections don't help either. The world is dominated by furries (anthropomorphic animals), cybersex freaks (scary), and the few who were there buying virtual land during the land rush. I agree, the major corporations ARE just trying to be cool and the SL is just one big over-hyped 3d chat. I guess I got caught up in the hype.

God, before I waste any more time with it, I'm going to remove it from my PC.

Google's Lively

Google has released their own virtual world called Lively.



More about Lively:

http://www.alleyinsider.com/2008/7/google-no-sex-in-second-life-killer-lively-goog-
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080708-hands-on-googles-lively-social-3d-world-is-20-percent-done.html
http://blog.searchenginewatch.com/blog/080708-181651

Virtual Worlds

Virtual Worlds


Businessweek.com has posted an article about the Virtual World Gold Rush which details the growing popularity and the resulting business opportunities of various online virtual world's.

What do the virtual world's offer to advertisers?
Due to their appeal to adolescents, virtual world's offer a direct link for advertisers to market to the prized teen demographic.

Traffic to these sites continue to grow exponentially.

... consultancy Gartner (IT) predicts that 80% of active Internet users will join a virtual world by the end of 2011.

A short list of virtual world's

Club Penguin (kids)
http://www.clubpenguin.com/
(new horizon interactive)

Webkinz (kids)
http://www.webkinz.com/index.html
(ganz)

RuneScape (teen/gaming)
http://runescape.com/

World of Warcraft (teen/gaming)
http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/index.xml
(blizzard)

Second Life (teen/adult)
http://secondlife.com/
(linden labs)

Habbo (teen)
http://www.habbo.com/
(sulake)

There (teen)
http://there.com/
(Makena Technologies)

Playdo (teen)
http://playdo.com/eng/munity.asp

Worlds (teen/adult)
http://www.worlds.com/

Virtual Magic Kingdom (kids)
http://vmk.disney.go.com/vmk/en_US/index?name=VMKHomePage
(disney)

Weblo
http://www.weblo.com/
(Oak Investment)

Virtual MTV (teens)
http://www.m80teams.com/register/index3.html?virtualmtv
(viacom)

Coming Soon:

PlayStation Home
(sony)

At my place on right on the beach...life is good.

I accomplished what I set to do which was to live near the beach. Last weekend, I sat out on the beach and got a sunburn. The ocean breeze is so nice that I didn't realize I was burned until I got home.

I met my first match in SF and we immediately clicked. We met for dinner at Pacific Catch over off of Chestnut. I took the 30X (marina express bus) from downtown and it dropped me off not far from the restaurant. The week before I met an old friend for dinner at Mas Sake in the same area. Anyway, after my match and I ate dinner we walked around the area and celebrated her new job at Harry's, a bar she recommended.

I drove down to Palo Alto yesterday for the second date with my match. Today we went to Moss Beach, spread out a blanket and chilled on the beach for about two hours. We then drove to Half Moon Bay and had lunch before returning to Palo Alto. I got sunburned again. More importantly, I am really enjoying the time spent with her. She is the most interesting person I've met in a long time. She is also beautiful and fit. She is very much California - smart, environmentally conscious, and exercises regularly.

I've started running again and hope to be back in shape within two months. I'll buy a bicycle soon since it's a great form of exercise and there are some great routes around and outside the city.

I've scheduled the move for my stuff in storage in Dallas and expect it to arrive in here in SF in about two weeks. I still need to purchase a mattress and sofa.

Quitting my job to move to California was the best decision I've made in a long time.

Don't believe the hype. (iPhone)

I may be off the mark on this one but I think the Apple iPhone isn't going to be as great as everyone thinks. I agree with PC Magazine's Jim Louderback opinion that the iPhone will intially sell well then sales will begin to slow.

Here's what Mr. Louderback says:

Cumbersome, slow e-mail and messaging: Lance seems to think that the young, trendy technorati will flock to the keyless phone, but he's forgetting one key fact: Those youthful customers use their phones for far more than just verbal communications. Texting and messaging are incredibly important to them. And older buyers, who have more disposable income, are addicted to e-mail phones, including the BlackBerry and Treo. That's bad news for the iPhone for two reasons. First, it lacks buttons for dedicated and rapid-fire texting and e-mail. And second, Apple saddled it with a slow-as-molasses GPRS radio, rather than the relatively peppy 3G-based HSDPA service Cingular is rolling out around the country. So instead of e-mailing and messaging at near-broadband speeds, iPhoners will be stuck in the slow lane—except when they're within range of a Wi-Fi connection.

Slow Internet:

That poky network connection also means that Internet browsing on the iPhone will be a painful experience. Modern phones with high-speed networking are adding in all sorts of interactive features, including 3D maps, advanced mobile search, streaming audio and video, and much more. The iPhone, again, will not be able to participate in the mobile Web because its networking features are fundamentally flawed. It'll be like trying to drive a Vespa on the autobahn.

High Price ($499, $599) and Poor battery life are other reason's.

Yes, you're going to be really cool and suave the first month or so with that iPhone. But after you go to a party and three other people have one as well, it'll seem less alluring. The true trendsetters will move on quickly (probably to Helio's Ocean), leaving the iPhone to those with more money than taste.