Posted by Chris in Computers, Sociology.
Tags: dissertation, MySpace, Second Life, social capital, Sociology
Today I decided to install the Second Life client and try it out. I didn’t really know what to expect, but once I’d got to grips with the controls and interface I was away. Problem is, it didn’t seem too exciting. Don’t get me wrong, it’s pretty impressive, a 3D online world created by many users, with the ability to build your own buildings, objects, gestures, games, clothes and more. In some ways it has the characteristics of MySpace profiles – easily customisable and with the potential to create add-ons. However, this is in a very different context – that of a virtual world, rather than a web page. It is a 3D highly interactive visual reflection (all be it a fantasy one) of real life, as opposed to the 2D and less interactive images and text of a web page. Obviously the lines are somewhat blurred in this distinction – Second Life has textual elements, and MySpace has some interactivity.
That said, there are some similarities between the two. They both reflect real people’s interpretations of themselves, and leave the user completely in control about what they reveal about themselves, true or made up! But they both have their limitations too, they’re both run by companies who have made a lot of money from them, and are eager to continue to do so, so they are commercial tools. They both have numerous users and companies also trying to make money from them – in the virtual currency of Linden Dollars (in Second Life) or real money directly from MySpace. Often these users are the most obvious, but also the least creative, as once someone discovers a way to use a tool to make money, it’s never long before it is cloned across the network, with a monotonous originality.
Ultimately, MySpace will probably never truly be ‘my space’, it’s limited far beyond what I could create if I were given a real space and some creative tools. I wouldn’t put adverts in my space, but I might need a budget to incorporate any level of multimedia into an empty room, which of course is free and easily possible on a website. Second Life, I believe, is equally unlikely to become ‘first life’, not because graphics or connection speeds are an issue, and not even because it lacks the vibrancy or variety of people and services available in real life. Simply put, I don’t think it will ever be more interesting than real life because, well, it isn’t real life! I might be able to create and decorate my room (without adverts) in Second Life, but I can still only interact with it through a screen and keyboard. I can’t taste, smell or touch anything in it, and even if I could, I’d know it wasn’t real. Don’t get me wrong, I think the development and progress made with these networks is a great feat of technology, and invaluable in many scenarios, but if we’re talking about what it does for society? Well, I’d rather meet real people in real life than virtual characters on a screen, because virtual characters will always be limited in one way… their ability to be real.
So for now, I’ll stick with creating ‘my space’ in ‘first life’, although I will still talk to my ‘real’ friends on Facebook…
Posted by Chris in Sociology.
Tags: dissertation, informal education, Second Life, social capital, Sociology
Second Life: An online 3D virtual world
It’s been a week or two now since I finished my latest two submissions for university, and it’s about time I started to think about writing my literature review for my dissertation. I’m writing about the effects of Teen Second Life on Social Capital, and what that might mean for youth workers. I had to change that after I found my previous topic (similar, but looking at online network websites like Facebook had already been done).
Poking around the internet today, as I started to hunt out interesting stuff about Second Life, which I have to admit, I don’t know a lot about. I understand some of the basics, but I think I may have to sign up for an account to get a bit of a better idea about it. Fortunately, lots of other people have more of an idea about it than I do, and I found a series of research articles looking at the use of Second Life in universities, colleges and schools in the UK. Over 80 percent of UK universities are using Second Life in some way for development or teaching. That is an astonishing figure to me!
I’m really interested to know if there are many (or any) UK based informal education institutions using it to develop community, or even just community groups utilising it in some way. If so, did the group exist in real life before Second Life? Or did it start in Second Life and develop to real life? Perhaps there are some groups whose main interaction is on Second Life, and not in real life? Are we going to see youth workers employed only to work in Second Life? Indeed, will such youth workers end up paid in Second Life, by virtual organisations, and have to convert their pay into real money before being able to spend it? Extreme, I know, but there are others out there already making a living with their job on Second Life alone. This article on ABC News from August 2007 describes those numbers as still fairly small and income as unreliable, but I’ll bet it’s on the up. (And plenty more opportunities for real life jobs based doing something in Second Life, like at the Electric Sheep Company)
Posted by Chris in Blogged.
Tags: blog, flat, mac, social capital, technology
Isn’t it funny when you predict you’ll forget something then you do? I managed it pretty much right on target! My first post here, back in January 2007 (almost 2 years ago) estimated I’d make it about 2 weeks before I forgot about my blog, or otherwise got too busy to bother. I did. About 2 weeks later.
2 years later, I’m here to write again, and hopefully I’ll last a little longer this time. I’m not quite sure what I’ll write about, or who will read, but I’m underway, and looking forward to interacting with a few more people in the blogosphere.
Likely topics that will be on their way soon include musings about sociology, and in particular, Christian youth work, social capital, technology (I’ve recently been converted to Mac, but I still have to use my PC for a few things), and big stuff and thoughts in my life (currently, buying the first house for my wife and I).
Well, that’s all for now folks, but watch out for a few longer posts on those topics, coming to a web browser near you soon.
