Let's Talk About Second Life

I started using Second Life about 7 months ago.  I often wanted to blog about it but always get stuck with the question of actually getting people to (a) understand what it is and (b) to focus on what the point is.  I showed my wife a long while back and she asked "Is it a game?"  I told her, "Not really, well, kind of...it depends...it's whatever you want it to be really."   I was however hard pressed to formulate some thoughts to discuss here on my blog.  Where really was Second Life going?  What is the potential of this type of online virtual space?  Well I came across this video (see below) on YouTube and it is thought provoking.  Watch it.  Let me know what you think?  Then I'll formulate some thoughts in another post over the next few days.

Comments

[Howser]

This is a strange concept but I guess blogging and podcasting would have seemed strange too at their inception. I think the possible value in this type of virtual environment is to bring an added human element to the social networking already going on in places like myspace.

[Stephen]

Very thought provoking indeed. It will be interesting to see how it could evolve. Who would get to choose what I looked like. Could I be the muscle bound character with spikey hair - LOL.

Think it could capture Graham and his need to stand in front of a whiteboard in any meeting environment. It drives folks on the phone batty.

[Sams]

How easy is it to setup a place in Second Life like the company in the video did with Text100 Island? Is it an overly technical process or do they have tools that are easy to use for people like me? I'm intrigued by the idea of being able to setup something like a demo center or presentation center where you could invite potential customers.

[Paul]

There is no added value here. Before you can use this as a PR or ad medium, first you have to ask why would I go there.

It isn't a game. It isn't reality. It isn't connected to reality. It doesn't present anything in a compelling way. It doesn't engage me.

Perhaps there are those who would spend time navigating around in Second Life, but I'd have to ask how engaged are they in real life if that's the case. If I want metaphysics, there are churches and Zen and the like. If I want a meeting, videoconferences do that fine, as does face to face. If I want a presentation, a remote powerpoint does that, and without the confusing distraction of a virtual world that I really don't care about.

It isn't about being imaginative, or about thinking technology is cool, or about "social" media. There just isn't any reason I can see to invest in this for marketing or business purposes. We have plenty enough excuses for empty distractions, but this pushes no buttons for me. I don't even get what that spacey PR lady's point was. I could add a voice-over to any unrelated video background, and it would be equally meaningless and unable to help deliver a message or sell a product.

If this is compelling for you, please explain why.