Virtual Rebellion?
A Cause: Rebels gain a virtual foothold
Okay, anybody who’s taken the time to scroll down my sidebar a bit will see an icon for Second Life. I have succumbed to the lure of a virtual life in which I can look any way I want, and fly, and teleport great distances to attend concerts, take courses in Buddhism, hob-nob with people from all over the world and generally carry on in a way that I wouldn’t — or couldn’t — in Real Life.
The “Revolution” mentioned in this article, is, in fact, old news, and compromises have been worked out. There is corporate presence in Second Life, but I haven’t noticed it unduly disrupting my experience. One has to seek it out; The Weather Channel has it’s own Island — all set up to offer virtual surfing, snowboarding and mountain biking experiences to support their series “Extreme Conditions.” I went surfing: I can’t do that in Real Life. Come to think of it, I’m not much of a virtual surfer either.
But Linden Labs is setting up new “land” all the time, and if you’re quick, just as in the real world, you can get in on the ground floor, even make a few bucks selling or leasing your virtual real estate empire. Or, you can rent, or just squat at a Welcome center. Land owning is for the truly dedicated; it’s not a prerequisite for enjoying oneself in Second Life. Besides, if you own land, you have to pay property taxes….
The population statistics given in the article are only half the story. Sure, there are 2.5 million (and counting) accounts on the Grid, but not everyone logs in simultaneously. The online population seems to vary between 25-40 thousand at a time. Some people signed up for accounts and don’t use them. Furthermore, since this is an international thing, the online population varies with time zone; as one zone logs off and goes to bed, there’s a lull as a new zone wakes up and logs on. On top of everything else, some people have more than one account. I have two, one for a female avatar and one for a male, but I can’t use both accounts at the same time.
As for the non-paying population putting an undue load on the grid without returning anything, that’s a load of cyber-poop. We (I’m one of those free-loaders) still manage to put money into the economy, build things, and contribute to the sum of world knowledge. Charity is high; as one generation of newbies gets integrated, they pass on their knowledge and Linden Dollars to the next generation. Those with freebie accounts will either upgrade if they are truly enjoying the experience, or will log out one day and never return.
So, maybe I don’t get what the so-called revolution was about. Does it matter, in the long run, if the real estate companies are making all the big money? I can’t afford a home of my own in real life, either: I don’t expect my landlord to give up his business so that I can. And, I’m certainly not in Second Life to earn a living, never mind a great fortune; I’m just there to get out of myself, be in a community and have fun.
The folks who worry about corporate oppression just have to remember America Online’s eventual fate. Once AOL stopped allowing user-created content, and sold out to the big corporations, the users start drifting away. Now, AOL is just another bump on the information super-highway.
And, yes… there really was an invasion of giant cocks.
Update: I went back to the Second Life website to check my stats. The number of accounts is in excess of 5 million, 1.6 million of whom have logged on in the past 60 days (doesn’t say if those are unique log-ons) and over 250 thousand US dollars have changed hands in the past 24 hours. Pretty good for a non-real country…
April 2nd, 2007 at 5:56pm
Love your Blog and art.
The virtual SL revolution must be against two things: first, an overpowering corporate presence fueled by cubic dollars, and second, voice chat. The beauty of SL is observing the creativity and entrepreneurial ventures of the Avies, and watching the society unfold, warts and all. I only hope that corporations, if allowed, are limited to their own island sims so as not to pollute current destinations and disrupt the fundamentals of SL society.
As for voice chat, I believe it will destroy that fine line that keeps SL separate from RL, and that fine line is text. As soon as voice is introduced, it becomes real life people communicating, not Avies, and the SL fantasy–and reason for being–is lost. My 2 cents.
I would like to add that after reading through your blog, I find you to be quite inspirational. Keep up the good fight.
(Didn’t know about the alter-gender though. I’m sure that would be an interesting read…)
April 2nd, 2007 at 7:32pm
Thanks, Tom.
I’m wondering how, exactly, the corporations could pollute current destinations. It’s rather like pornography: If you don’t like it, don’t look at it. And, considering how long it takes a view to rez (attain sufficiently clear resolution to see anything, for you non-SL’ers), ignoring corporate logos should be easy. It’s when the corporations begin to dictate what content appears, or Linden starts to limit the content users can create that Second Life will start to go the way of AOL.
As for voice-chat, I agree with you entirely. I’m microphone-a-phobic; I can’t speak into a microphone and even telephones are problematical. I’m certainly not go to speak into a mic to express my fantasies. Voice-chat will be utilized by a certain few, and will have its place in certain venues, but I haven’t “spoken” to an AV yet who is particularly interested in it. Only time will tell.
PS: Do I know you in SL?
May 11th, 2007 at 6:48pm
Hi Arondelle,
It has been a bit too long replying but that is what things such as RL do. First, it looks like voice is on it’s way, including ‘gestures’. We could form a ‘no voice’ group so other Avies will know to only type to us
. As for the corporations, I thought about your points and agree that the main issue will be if marketing- and image-driven companies begin to demand a certain style in SL so their own images will not be compromised. Think about what has happened to NASCAR. The logos will be an eyesore but as you say, by the time rezzing takes place I will be gone anyway.
BTW, check for friends list for initials DN.
TTYL