Second Thoughts on Second Life (followed by thirds & more, no doubt)

Well, I have now had some time to familiarize myself with the medium, the machinery and the process of developing a new 'sense of self' -- which means learning to fit into a self image that cannot be the same as what I see in the mirror each morning. No small task, at my age! (But I do love the hair!! And the swirling dresses...)

Because, it seems to me, having struggled to feel even slightly comfortable moving arms and legs that are not attached to me in real life, that really, whether the body is in Second Life or first life, it is just another avatar.

And as far as our brains can see and figure it out, life is ALL Second Life. We are who we think we are, and whether we act in the real world or a simulation, the brain/mind thinks it is the same.

Case in point: dancing. I do not know how to tango, and have never had the chance to learn in real life. It may even be impossible for me physically to do so at this late a date.

But I regularly go dancing in Second Life with my husband, in lovely dresses, great hair, and with a skill and grace not matched in the real world.

When we finish, as far as I can tell, my brain (and my heart) thinks we really went dancing! True, I'm not as tired, and my feet don't hurt as much as they surely would, if I had been wearing such silly high heels, but I feel wonderful!

And we are not limited to going to a dance hall or party. We can go some place lovely and private -- and not practical for dancing in real life -- such as the beach at midnight....

This phenomenon makes me wonder how many other activities and learning could transfer in the same fashion. (Considering the popular notion that the 'game' is supported largely by cybersex, one could worry some!)

It can be particularly valuable, I think, for shy people to practice social skills. How about a place to try out public speaking, hone our political/sales pitches, try out a new fashion statement? Living out one's fantasy life is surely the most popular activity in Second Life, and not everyone has always wanted to be a madam and run a brothel, LOL.

And, of course, it is immensely popular with folks who are physically, socially or emotionally limited in real life. Hey, you can walk, run, dance, hold leadership positions in a group or business, and even fly in Second Life! You can be six feet tall and a hunk -- or a windup doll, troll, elf, fairy, knight, dragon, robot -- or even a piece of furniture!

You can fly a plane, sail a boat, drive a train, lead a dance group, open up your own coffee shop, even make a nice income in real life designing and selling clothing or furniture used in Second Life.

The most exciting aspect for me at the moment (apart from playing dress up in lovely clothes and hair, of course) is the shear variety of humanity available for interaction. At any one time, there are upwards of 50,000 people on line in Second Life. These people speak lots of languages, are different ages and backgrounds and nationalities, but they gather in interest groups, some of which overlap with mine.

Dancing, chatting, making music, taking in a concert, listening to a speaker, exploring a new park, building a house, (going shopping!), giving a poetry reading...the activities are endless (and not all about sex). Lawyers and psychiatrists have office hours. Self help groups convene. Yoga, Tai chi and other religious and meditative activities are available, often in special gardens or buildings designed for them. All of this 24 hours a day (barring computer and internet glitches, of course).

So, if you are fan of New Orleans jazz, for instance, you can get together at a jam in the French Quarter, without having to travel or pay much attention to time of day. You can talk to a Dane, a South African, a street musician from NOLA, and you have expanded your horizons tremendously.

That is just SO cool!

Granted, I do not hang out or visit most of what's happening in Second Life. I am not interested in everything that goes on. But then, I'm not interested in most of what many people do in Real Life, either. Hey, I don't even watch TV -- let alone race cars, write new computer code and scripts, go hunting, run for congress, go to bars or rock concerts, run a bar or organize rock concerts, climb mountains, jump out of planes, or engage in sex with strangers!


But I do love to go dancing with my honey out on Cape Cod SL....

Thoughts on Second Life...

Well, of course, those of us who have passed the climacteric are already in our third life -- 1)childhood, 2) childrearing, 3) maturity (er, hopefully)...

I finally went to see what all the talk was about Second Life, which is a multiuser online game setting that has 30,000 folks and more playing at any one time.

[For those of you unfamiliar with multiuser, real time gaming: Second Life provides a venue driven and designed by the participants, for the purpose of living out their fantasies -- to one extent or another. That can seem to some of us like a chance to get a bit out of hand, perhaps, but it's probably a lot safer than acting out in Real Life, LOL. What is particularly exciting about this kind of game is that thousands of people can interact in many ways that would not be available to them in RL. To see a video presentation go to this page, and click on 'video'...]

Friends, relatives and online correspondents have been chatting up SL for a long time. (3 years in the computer world being practically an eon) I went and took a look at the beta release several years back, but opted out largely because it cost a monthly fee in the beginning. Now, of course, my MAC is too old to run it; but one of our younger PCs will play. And, it is now FREE for basic playing.

One of the attractions for people who have talked to me is the freedom to wander about and strike up conversations with anyone who looks interesting. (By moving the cursor over their avatar, personal profile info is available, such as screen name, age, interests, etc.)

Many people do not feel safe, for whatever reasons, to just wander into a crowd in real life and just start talking. Particularly if the person they are considering talking to happens to be dressed as a giant purple-striped white tiger! Or a Goth queen. Or a tatoo-covered giant in black leather and chains. Or even a gauzy green fairy, complete with wand that shoots sparkles...

Or simpler, yet -- how many would be willing to stroll about in a strange neighborhood or landscape, just looking at the view? Or walk into someone else's house, garden or shop, just to see how it was designed. (In Second Life, if the owner/creator didn't want you to, it would be private and you wouldn't be able to, as I understand it.)

No, it appears to me that SL has indeed taken on a life of its own, growing hourly as business, politicians, religions and educational institutions begin to set up shop. (Linden Labs, the source, presently has 30,000 servers, and still experiences periods when too many users want to be there and it slows things down or crashes altogether.)

What is the point of all that computer power?

Say you had always wanted to be a pointy eared waif of a female, who could dress in veils and maybe even have wings? Design your avatar and think up a name and away you go.

Always wanted to open a coffee shop where poets could hang out, maybe have jazz concerts on a few nights a week? Design it and they will come: the customers, the poets, the musicians...

Real life musicians, poets, and speakers of all kinds (as well as wannabes who are practicing their skills) are visiting and/or setting up shop in SL. Real money is changing hands, here, in such large amounts that it boggles the mind (millions of US dollars a day). Politicians will no doubt frequent the place, as the election draws nearer, and there has already been one debate, at least.

However, while I can see the potential attractions, especially for trying out new behaviors, learning new things, interacting with lots of new people who might live across the planet -- and, of course, the potential for negative stuff, as well, is no different from any other medium --

For me, Second Life just doesn't click. Yet. I have been trying to figure out why for a couple days, and this is what I think so far:

Firstly, maybe I don't need a second life for socializing. I mean, I already wander about and talk to anyone who looks interesting, LOL. It never occurs to me that I shouldn't stop to admire someone's lovely garden, or interesting house. Or beautifully tricked out old Dream Machine (motorcycle) in the mall parking lot! Or even the puppy who is walking his person through my neighborhood.

Perhaps I'm not exactly in the norm...? I don't know, except that I do remember seriously embarrassing my teenage children (you know who you were) in several past episodes...

Like that time outside a restaurant where two great big gorgeous red motorcycles were parked in shining fingerprintless perfection. One of them had a yellow rubber ducky stuck in the chrome spokes of its front wheel. Well, you know I hung about and asked the middle-aged biker dude what that was about!

The other problem I have with the game is that its graphics, however superb and steadily improving they are, still aren't as detailed as real life. I end up feeling sensory deprived. Not only are the incredibly complex levels of natural substance missing, but the density of information is only about 1-2% what it would be standing on the beach in RL.

Here's a screen shot Uploaded to Flickr! on November 17, 2007, by Andromega:It is stunningly beautiful, one of the best I've seen, but not yet the norm.

And here's another outstanding one, Uploaded to Flickr! on November 20, 2007, by Wildstar Beaumont

But here is real life -- a gate to the Matthaei Botanic Garden on a sunny, summer day:

Or, how about this Christmas amaryllis, smiling on all comers?

Apparently, I use a lot of different senses to collect information about the world around me, especially when having a conversation. The SL avatars have improved tremendously, but they still can't show the level of emotion and non-verbal cues that make me feel comfortable.

So, I guess my heart isn't broken that my old (4 years) MAC doesn't handle the game. By the time I upgrade, I bet Second Life will be even more mind boggling in its growth, in its technology, and in its community.


Meanwhile, it is rainy day, 20 degrees warmer than yesterday, full of fresh scents and cool mists and the last of the leaves falling off the trees and painting the lawns and streets in yellows and reds and oranges and four kinds of rusty browns...

I'm gonna go for a walk around the neighborhood and talk to people who are out doing the same thing, or else raking leaves on their tree lawns!