Second Life

Virtual worlds like Second Life came with the promise that all of the limitations of this terrestrial sphere would vanish. Sickly hermits desperately in need of the sun’s rays could live their second and better lives in peace and adapt an avatar that reflected the extent of their own imaginations. The ugly could be good looking, and a cyber-race of hobgoblins could lie down in unity with virtual unicorns… or something like that. But that’s not exactly how it’s turned out according to a recent study conducted by two social psychologists at Northwestern University. They logged on to There.com , which is like Second ... Read Full Story

If IBM and the virtual online world called Second Life have their way, New Zealander Nathan Keir, better known as his avatar, Kermitt Quirk, one switched-on purple gecko with a shock of green hair will soon be free to travel to many virtual worlds, keeping the same name, look and even use the same digital currency.   Virtual worlds can seem like carefree, unconstrained environments where you can virtually do and say just about anything you can imagine. But there’s just one tiny problem; there’s no way to get out. Currently, once your mini-me is built, it will never leave the confines of the ... Read Full Story

There's a thought provoking post from commentator Dusan Writer who talks about virtual worlds one day giving us a form of immortality. The idea is that an avatar could be programmed with our behavioural traits and preferences and then carry on living a life in a virtual universe that wouldn't be subject to biological limitations. Second Life founder and former Linden Lab boss Philip Rosedale is quoted in a recent book as saying that he could envisage a point where one day he could be uploaded into code and "live" forever." At the moment, that's of course not possible as avatars are still the ... Read Full Story

Triathletes, I'm excited to announce that SL Triathlon has a new real life sponsor: DBM Nutrition, the creators of Kona Endurance - World-Class  Endurance Supplements, Energy Supplements and Recovery Beverages. Kona Endurance are offering a free sponsorship deal to real life athletes! Come to SL Triathlon in Second Life and learn more in our expo booth. http://slurl.com/secondlife/Kona%20Island/26/40/22 Read Full Story

This post is in support of Blog Action Day . Is it possible to have environmental concerns in a virtual world? Are there negative environmental impacts that could occur in for example SecondLife , for which Linden Labs has no cure? Are there repercussions of environmental issues in a virtual world that carry over into the real world? Is it possible to have environmental concerns in a virtual world? I think there are environmental concerns prevalent in SecondLife such as the role of real estate excess and pollution. When someone in SecondLife starts an avatar or buys property and then abandons the world – ... Read Full Story

" A virtual world is a computer-based simulated environment intended for its users to inhabit and interact via avatars. This habitation usually is represented in the form of two or three-dimensional graphical representations of humanoids (or other graphical or text-based avatars). " (Source: Wikipedia ) A conference held in a virtual world The expression " virtual world " usually brings up to our mind the idea of a 3D environment that typically appears similar to the real world, with real world rules such as gravity, topography, locomotion, real-time actions, and communication. It is a kind of " alternative world " that was conceived to ... Read Full Story

Virtual Worlds Conference 2007 that is! I will do my best to cover the event despite the fact that my Dell is crapping out and the battery is only lasting 30 minutes. Great timing for this to happen, thanks Dell Anyhow, there were some great announcement today that coincided with the event and I recommend you take a look. One Avatar To Rule Them All A "Sheepish" Way To Browse Second Life Stay tuned for all the goods from the show! Tags: virtual worlds , vw2007 , virtual worlds , san jose , electric sheep company , IBM , Dell , Avatar Read Full Story