Mod4BlogAssign- The Disruptive power of Second Life:
Second Life began in 2003. It is free online virtual 3D worlds initiated by Philip Rosedale, chairman of Linden Labs. Residents can actually build their own worlds. They interact through Avatars where members can explore, meet people, do business, and share knowledge. Second Life is intended for people sixteen and older, but the average age is thirty two. People have the chance to build worlds, visit places, and purchase items that they may not be able to do in real life. In Second Life, anything is possible.
Second Life is a disruptive technology because it is unavoidable. People can be who they want to be and work where they want to work. There is fair ownership in the economy. There is a challenge for people to learn faster, be more creative, and be a better person virtually than in reality (Rosedale, 2008). The innovations that it displaced are AAAs (open source games), MMOs (massively multiplayer online games), and RPGs (role playing games). Second Life is not a game, it is a social experience. It is a place where you can show off creativity, curiosity, and share amazing ideas that you may not be able to do in the real world. It is better than a structured game. I believe Second Life will be around for a long time to come. I believe it will evolve. For the next decade virtual worlds will be how more people interact (Rosedale, 2008). The social benefit of Second Life is the lack of culture (Rosedale, 2008). In the virtual world, you can become anything you want. A female can become a male, A Hispanic can become Caucasian, a person can become an alien. While the economy in the real world was in trouble, Second Life economy was booming. In Second Life, people implicitly and inherently interactively share information. Businesses utilize the site for training purposes. People across the globe meet and collaborate. In my industry working with elementary students, technology is evident. Students are used to playing video games in 3D. Teachers are expected to utilize technology across the curriculum. Second Life would be advantageous to students. They could create their own avatar and interact in a classroom.
Rosedale, P. (2008). Philip Rosedale on Second Life [Video]. Retrieved from http://www.ted.com/talks/the_inspiration_of_second_life.html.
Hindman, B. (2012). Retrieved from fir http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/06/26/the-soapbox-the-death-of-aaa/
Hi Tracy,
ReplyDeleteI believe there was an emerging period for Second Life. This might have been between 2003 – 2006. Linden Labs was innovative to integrate “Avatars” from 3D and virtual images to give birth to Second Life. The interactive opportunities of people are diverse which means that new dimensions of social and academic life are trending globally. Second Life has both a personal and a social blend. I saw that there is a restriction for participants by age limit, but how can there be such restriction from Linden Labs when there are such intriguing games and to an extent educational value for learners below age 16 years?
The innovations and attractions in Second Life really call for responsibility and economic viability for its development of personal property if you want to move at a faster pace with your Second Life Community. It is amazing how people will invest financially to suit their mental satisfaction. Games are fun, from a physical perspective. Second life via the computer gives a greater participation developing mental capacity and cognitive processing of information. Information is from symbols, text and the entire graphics, and the prediction and reflection by participants. While it is perceived that there is the lack of culture in social world, culture can transform to new and different way of life. Second Life is advancing with the technology culture and intellectual development. If Second Life was to wipe away people’s identity from an innate cultural perspective, what do you do think might happen for the next generation?
I believe the technological perspective of 3D representation of Avatars in a virtual world will impact immensely on education for K-12. If Second Life is created with an education models to facilitate for the young learners, in formal education setting, I predict even ten years ahead in a productive learners'environment.
I enjoyed reading your informative post.
Tracy,
ReplyDeleteYou mentioned that Second Life is designed for users 16 years old and older, which extremely limits the amount of users in the K-12 education field. I wonder what the reasons would be to push Second Life's integration into this field when there are other virtual reality worlds available for such age groups? I agree that Second Life still has room to grow, and perhaps a focus on education will be a possibility. Although, I am not sure that Second Life has completly displaced multiplayer online games, as XBOX has continued to increase their features allowing users to create their own avatars for social interactions as well as gaming. As you mentioned how today's students are already familiar with creating avatars and interacting online for gaming, how do you think the transition will be for students to start participating in virtual worlds for learning? Good post!
Hi Tracy,
ReplyDeleteSecond life looks more like a chat room to me. However, the enormous power to create three D environments makes it very useful for educational purpose. Students can show their creativity. Business organizations have started to use it for their conferences, and video conferences will probably be replaced soon. Did you have any personal experience with 2nd life? If so please share.
Good post.
Anwar