What's Your Story?

[gceniceros209]

Hello everybody,

I am new to this game and haven't had much experience in meeting other people. I was just curious as to whether people actually create meaningful relationships with other residents. I was hoping some of you could share your stories of some of the most memorable moments you've experienced in Second Life. What is you're favorite aspect of Second Life and why do you continue to play it? What kind of impact has Second Life had in your real life? As you guys can probably tell, I'm a college student and I am writing a research paper on this virtual community. I would love to make friends and would appreciate it if someone would show me the ropes. So far, my experience in Second Life has been pretty positive but I know there's a lot more to see.  Please share your stories with me.

[Fionalein]

Yes it happens I made and lost some friends. Didn't gain any RL friends yet though.

Edited June 17, 2018 by Fionalein

[gceniceros209]

2 minutes ago, Fionalein said:

Yes it happens I made and lost some friends. Didn't gain any RL friendy yet though.

Is the way you interact with people in Second Life different than how you would talk to people IRL? Did you start playing Second Life in hopes of making friends? Are you part of any groups in Second Life? And thank you for responding to this thread Fionalein, I appreciate it. 

[Cindy Evanier]

19 minutes ago, gceniceros209 said:

would appreciate it if someone would show me the ropes.

Start by filling out your profile.  First step to making friends is let people know your interests, likes dislikes and a blank profile can be offputting.  Join groups that interest you and explore.  Friendships will come

[Cindy Evanier]

23 minutes ago, gceniceros209 said:

As you guys can probably tell, I'm a college student and I am writing a research paper on this virtual community

Oh missed that bit.   Is it that time of year already?

[Dillon Levenque]

Quote

You'll get some snotty answers but I'll try to be as polite as possible. My advice:

*Join Second Life (Great! You did that already.)
*Explore ten locations from the Destination Guide
*Take a Beginner class.
*When people talk, listen.

At the end of summer or two weeks before your paper is due (whichever comes first), come back and ask any questions for which you still need answers. Two or three at the most, please.

You haven't even scratched the surface; YOU'RE NOT READY to have the discussion you're asking for.

 

[gceniceros209]

1 hour ago, Cindy Evanier said:

Start by filling out your profile.  First step to making friends is let people know your interests, likes dislikes and a blank profile can be offputting.  Join groups that interest you and explore.  Friendships will come

Hello Cindy,

Thank you for the advice. I know having a blank profile is kind of a red flag. I haven't put much effort into developing my profile yet but I will spend the majority of this weekend trying to fix that. I'm just a little disappointed in myself for not doing this sooner lol

[gceniceros209]

1 hour ago, Dillon Levenque said:

 

Hi Dillon,

I appreciate your honesty and politeness. I agree with you, the questions I'm asking should be asked after I have a better understanding of Second Life. It's rude to just enter into community and start asking questions without you having observed the dynamics that encompass these spaces. I have a lot to learn but I am extremely short on time. I'm taking a summer course and this final essay is due next week. It would be disrespectful to think one could know all there is know about second life in such a short time span but I have to do what I can. At this point, I have to settle with small taste. Thank you for you honesty and advice. 

[Rhonda Huntress]

3 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

I am new to this game

So what's your score?

[LittleMe Jewell]

4 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

... As you guys can probably tell, I'm a college student and I am writing a research paper on this virtual community......  Please share your stories with me.

No.  Not until you've done some inworld research - i.e. develop your own SLife first.  Then stories can possibly be swapped.

[Rhonda Huntress]

OK, let me go through this ...

 

22 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

I am new to this game
-- This is like saying water is wet.  You still see it as a game.  Therefore we all know you are new.  You are new so of course all you see is a game.  There is a wonderful and long running debate about "is SL a game" that has no real answer but as long as all you see are pixels and NPCs, the underlying meaning of the question is lost on you so the answer is pointless.  Go level up and then we can talk more.

 

and haven't had much experience in meeting other people. I was just curious as to whether people actually create meaningful relationships with other residents.
-- Yes.

I was hoping some of you could share your stories of some of the most memorable moments you've experienced in Second Life.
-- After 10 years there are too many for me to remember.  Not just moments, but long term relationships with their own ritual behaviors.  Like the countless times Clover has modeled her new find for me or the Wednesday night date nights.  It is not always "that one night when" but more like "that last decade with her."

What is you're favorite aspect of Second Life
-- Meeting people from cultures all over the world that I would never have a chance meet or experience in meatspace.

and why do you continue to play it?
-- See comment above.  I don't play it.  I play pictionary, I play Greedy Greedy, I play dress-up, I play naughty professor.  I don't play SL, I live it.

What kind of impact has Second Life had in your real life?
-- For me the impact in RL would be subtle.  There is nothing I can point to and say this is because of my experience in SL.  However I can say with full honesty that the people I have met have changed me.  I would not be the same if I never found Second Life.  This is just like, for example, a history club I belong to for many years when I was younger.  You can't spend time with other people and not be changed to some extent.  It is not the platform that causes the impact but the people you meet who influence you.  SL's impact has been to increase my understanding of other people and cultures.

As you guys can probably tell, I'm a college student
-- Wow.  No Shine-o-la?  Gee, that has never happened (this week).

and I am writing a research paper on this virtual community.
-- Yes!  Now you are starting to think right.  Virtual community; not game characters.

I would love to make friends
-- Join some groups in world that interest you.  Maybe find some discussions to attend.  Pick a place you like, go there every day and say hi to everyone that comes in.  Act like you belong there.  After a week, you will not only belong there but be the reason people stop by.

and would appreciate it if someone would show me the ropes.
-- Oh .... you're into shibari then?

So far, my experience in Second Life has been pretty positive but I know there's a lot more to see. 
-- For the most part, the vast majority of people are positive.  Even the grumps have their positive sides and their reasons to be who they are.  There are very few truly evil people and I hope you never meet one.  At worst you will probably find a few that you simply don't get along with and in SL, you don't have to.  

Please share your stories with me.
-- I swear I never heard him say "most people only take half."
-- No ... how about a different story.  Once upon a time, there was a land of magic, or was it science, because everything on the cutting edge of knowledge can be seen as magic.  People who manipulate clay or chemicals or the in-perceivable dimensions can all be called wizards in their own right.  One young woman was such a wizard.  So young that the idea of failure was nothing to be afraid of.  Wrong was just a new experience.

 

Edited June 17, 2018 by Rhonda Huntress
Fix too many mistakes made on a phone

[Cindy Evanier]

3 minutes ago, Rhonda Huntress said:

and would appreciate it if someone would show me the ropes.
-- Oh .... you're into shibari then?

And the winner is!  

I am still cleaning pepsi out my nose after that one

Edited June 16, 2018 by Cindy Evanier
pepsi fuelled typo

[Zeta Vandyke]

14 minutes ago, Rhonda Huntress said:

I play naughty professor

 

10 minutes ago, Cindy Evanier said:

And the winner is!  

Had already declared her winner after that first quote  

[Talligurl]

It is a bit like trying to do research on the natives of the Amazon rainforest by sending a survey in the mail.

Edited June 17, 2018 by Talligurl

[Phorumities]

Phorumites is an incorporial entity that exists only in the sl forums, whos mission has been a search for intelligent conversation.

Phorumities regrets to state that so far it has been a largely unsuccessful endeavour.

[Skell Dagger]

42 minutes ago, Phorumities said:

Phorumites is an incorporial entity that exists only in the sl forums, whos mission has been a search for intelligent conversation.

Phorumities regrets to state that so far it has been a largely unsuccessful endeavour.

Oh come now. Intelligent conversation has to come from both sides, not just one. You can't just chuck any old ball onto the pitch and expect Ronaldo to boot it back at you.

[Alwin Alcott]

17 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

 I haven't put much effort into developing my profile yet

but you expect "us" to tell you about our meaningfull precious relationships and deepest experiences??

You don't even take "us" SL residents serious. Make some REAL efford and become one too. After that come back and ask... but you'll have your own experiences by than.

[Skell Dagger]

20 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

I was hoping some of you could share your stories of some of the most memorable moments you've experienced in Second Life.

• Proposing and getting married to my SL partner
• Lounging in a hammock with sounds of surf and tropical birds playing and a chilled-out soundtrack through headphones and feeling myself relax in real life
• Every time someone likes something I've made enough to actually pay me for it
• And hundreds of other moments that, over the course of 11 years inworld, have blended into my life here

20 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

What is you're favorite aspect of Second Life and why do you continue to play it?

All of it. And I don't play it; I live it.

20 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

What kind of impact has Second Life had in your real life?

None. I knew my partner before we both came into SL, but he has been the biggest impact on my real life.

20 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

Is the way you interact with people in Second Life different than how you would talk to people IRL?

Why would it be different?

20 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

Did you start playing Second Life in hopes of making friends?

No. I started living in SL because my partner introduced me to it as a cool world where we could be who we wanted, make things we wanted, roleplay and dance and get to be together in a physical way that we can't be in real life, since we live a long distance from each other.

20 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

Are you part of any groups in Second Life?

Yes, 60 of them. Mostly shopping groups and a couple of customer support groups.

18 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

It's rude to just enter into community and start asking questions without you having observed the dynamics that encompass these spaces.

Then don't ask questions and instead focus on observing those dynamics. If you go into any online environment with a virtual clipboard and start just throwing questions at people then your interactions with those people are not genuine social interactions. When you get to the interviewing-for-a-job stage of your life you'll understand that a bit better.

18 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

I have a lot to learn but I am extremely short on time. I'm taking a summer course and this final essay is due next week.

You've been inworld for almost an entire month (23 days as of today). That's a decent amount of time to jet around the grid, join some social groups and clubs, and observe the social dynamics therein. Granted, it would only be a small slice of those dynamics, but it would be enough to write a reasonable essay on the subject.

18 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

I know having a blank profile is kind of a red flag. I haven't put much effort into developing my profile yet but I will spend the majority of this weekend trying to fix that.

As of right now (Sunday afternoon), your profile is still completely blank...

Edited June 17, 2018 by Skell Dagger

[Syo Emerald]

22 hours ago, gceniceros209 said:

I was just curious as to whether people actually create meaningful relationships with other residents.

It sounds like this idea seems to be very foreign and unlikely to you. I'm suprised, if thats the case and wonder why you would consider it to be so strange and rare.

[Fionalein]

49 minutes ago, Syo Emerald said:

It sounds like this idea seems to be very foreign and unlikely to you. I'm suprised, if thats the case and wonder why you would consider it to be so strange and rare.

One word: millenials 

[norajulian]

44 minutes ago, Fionalein said:

One word: millenials 

Please be aware that millennials can be blamed for anything bad in SL, too. So if you have a boyfriend and they break up with you - a millennial probably stole him. Tier expired? Millennial. Your favorite pants fall into SL doom? Millennial. Be aware. They're everywhere. 

[Fionalein]

Just now, norajulian said:

Please be aware that millennials can be blamed for anything bad in SL, too. So if you have a boyfriend and they break up with you - a millennial probably stole him. Tier expired? Millennial. Your favorite pants fall into SL doom? Millennial. Be aware. They're everywhere. 

The bad thing is: the new college kids technically are not even millenials anymore - but they just lack any distingusing trait differing from the millenials at all. So I continue calling them such until they make their mark on the world. 

[animats]

Go read Irana Pei's blog, "Living in a Modem World".

That should give you enough information to fill up your essay. Second Life has been well covered by others. Given your timetable, you don't have enough time to collect new data. Read the literature and summarize.

[Theresa Tennyson]

9 hours ago, Skell Dagger said:

Oh come now. Intelligent conversation has to come from both sides, not just one. You can't just chuck any old ball onto the pitch and expect Ronaldo to boot it back at you.

Even if it's wearing a hat...

Edited June 17, 2018 by Theresa Tennyson

[kamsing]

I don't know what the last few messages were about! It took a while before I realized you were just joking. Back to Ronaldo!