Calling anyone willing to help!

[Xamuelsan]

Hello everyone, 

I'm starting to explore this whole Second Life universe, my purpose here is to get to know what do you users think Second Life is special for and how do you think it has kept being a success after more than 15 years from its release. 

I'm a journalism student in Spain (sorry if I express myself wrong, I'm not used to write in English) and I'd love to know about this community and what do they have to say about Second Life. I'm working on an article about this so any feedback would be great, and I'd love to ask more things, if there's people willing to do so, send me a message so I can speak to you.

Thank you for the attention!

[Cindy Evanier]

Just now, Xamuelsan said:

Hello everyone, 

I'm starting to explore this whole Second Life universe, my purpose here is to get to know what do you users think Second Life is special for and how do you think it has kept being a success after more than 15 years from its release. 

I'm a journalism student in Spain (sorry if I express myself wrong, I'm not used to write in English) and I'd love to know about this community and what do they have to say about Second Life. I'm working on an article about this so any feedback would be great, and I'd love to ask more things, if there's people willing to do so, send me a message so I can speak to you.

Thank you for the attention!

Best way to learn about second life is to get out there and explore.  

[Blush Bravin]

This thread is a good place to start reading.

 

[Klytyna]

On 01 November 2018 at 1:31 PM, Xamuelsan said:

I'm a journalism student

 

On 01 November 2018 at 1:31 PM, Xamuelsan said:

my purpose here is to get to know what do you users think

One thing a lot of SL users think, is that we are sick and tired of students coming to SL for no other reason than to... 

Ask us what we think...

This isn't some under-graduate's "test subject petting zoo" or "amateur market research practice zone"...

 

[Love Zhaoying]

The forums.

[Scylla Rhiadra]

On 11/1/2018 at 9:31 AM, Xamuelsan said:

Hello everyone, 

I'm starting to explore this whole Second Life universe, my purpose here is to get to know what do you users think Second Life is special for and how do you think it has kept being a success after more than 15 years from its release. 

I'm a journalism student in Spain (sorry if I express myself wrong, I'm not used to write in English) and I'd love to know about this community and what do they have to say about Second Life. I'm working on an article about this so any feedback would be great, and I'd love to ask more things, if there's people willing to do so, send me a message so I can speak to you.

Thank you for the attention!

Hi Xamuelsan,

You'll have to forgive some testy answers here: although it's not as bad as it used to be during the height of the hype about SL some 10 years ago, the forums do still get a fair number of students asking questions. SL has been treated as a sort of ongoing anthropological/sociological experiment since Tom Boellstorff's book came out in 2008, and (understandably) people here tend not to want to feel like they are lab rats. There are also many students who simply expect the forum to provide them with the answers that they need for the essays that they are writing, without taking the time to explore it themselves. Ironically, had you NOT been upfront and identified yourself as a student, and simply asked (as you did) what are interesting things to explore, the response would have been much friendlier.

In terms of understanding what the appeal of SL is, there are a couple of good suggestions above. Keep in mind that SL is not a "game" in the ordinary sense of the word, although it does include games within it: it is an open sandbox that was designed to allow people to explore their creativity in a virtual environment. Most of the content is user-generated, unlike many other gaming/VW platforms, and there is a still vigorous and robust economy that has developed out of that. Building and creating is an important part of the appeal of the place (although less so now, perhaps, because the growing dominance of mesh objects and avatars has made the learning curve for really good-looking items much steeper).

Most users are not, however, content creators, but rather consumers. And without question, shopping is a huge part of the appeal here, although always as a means to end (whether enhancing one's avatar, creating a virtual "home" for oneself, or just having fun with the things one buys).

SL is also really important as a kind of 3D social media platform, and socializing, making friends, and building communities in-world (and also here on the forums, which have a very strong community) are another huge part of the appeal of the place. The difference here, of course, is that real life identities become unimportant, and are, most often, kept secret: in that sense, we are very different from Facebook.

Experimenting with identity is also really important. People represent as different genders, sexualities, species, or even just "personalities" here. It has always provided for a safe and generally very accepting environment for people who are restricted in RL from exploring their sexuality or sexual identity, for instance.

It's been a godsend for some who are, for whatever reason, disadvantaged physically in real life: you should check out Virtual Ability in-world (I assume it's still there, although I haven't dropped by in years). And for people who are even just painfully shy, SL provides a means of connecting not available to them in RL.

Art, literature, history, and gaming are all fairly important here too, and there are lots of groups and communities built around all of these. If you're interested in art, Linden Lab has the Linden Endowment for the Arts, an area reserved for artists to build installations. Some of it is very good indeed.

Music is VERY big, in clubs and other venues which feature dancing, socializing, and live music. There is a surprisingly wide range of live music performers here.

And then there's, yes, sex. There's lots of it here, and its importance overlaps with the categories I've mentioned above, such as exploring new identities, or connecting with others. Sex is also Big Business in SL. I think sex here is sometimes overemphasized by outsiders, as a way of scandalizing those who are inclined to be scandalized by such things, but it's a pretty important part of life in RL, and there's no reason why it shouldn't be important here as well.

Others, I'm sure, can add to what I've said here: I've certainly not been exhaustive. DO explore yourself in-world, and don't rely on second-hand reports: you are missing the essence of the place unless you experience it first-hand, and without that you are in no position to talk about it with any kind of authority. Check out the Destinations Guide (which is, sadly, often out-of-date) and ask around for interesting places to visit. It's ENORMOUSLY diverse, and there is a huge amount to see and do, as well as a really broad international community.

There has also been a vast amount written on and about Second Life. There are the "outsiders" (academics and others) who have written about it, but your best bet is to search for blogs about SL written by residents here. But seriously, make time to explore. It's the only way to understand the place.

Good luck!

 

Edited November 2, 2018 by Scylla Rhiadra

[Phorumities]

1 hour ago, Love Zhaoying said:

The forums.

Yes when Second Life is slow, the forums are always hopping.... at least until the latest hot thread gets locked.

[Selene Gregoire]

1 hour ago, Scylla Rhiadra said:

it is an open sandbox that was designed to allow people to explore their creativity in a virtual environment.

[Callum Meriman]

3 hours ago, Klytyna said:

This isn't some under-graduate's "test subject petting zoo" ...

Asking for a Dom friend of mine >.> <.< >.> ... Can we collar them all and do an under-graduate's petting zoo?

[Klytyna]

14 hours ago, Callum Meriman said:

Asking for a Dom friend of mine >.> <.< >.> ... Can we collar them all and do an under-graduate's petting zoo?

Living in a university town, within a 1/4 mile of the "clueless middle class pseudo-intellectual drunken teenager ghetto" I can honestly say that the thought of a petting zoo filled with collared under-grads, fills me with horror...

If you want to make one, do it in Australia, far, far away from us...

Somewhere out in the Bush, where the poisonous snakes, spiders, salt water crocs, and heat maddened sheep roam free...

 

[Xamuelsan]

On 11/1/2018 at 2:33 PM, Cindy Evanier said:

Best way to learn about second life is to get out there and explore.  

Thank you for the comment! I will 

[Xamuelsan]

On 11/2/2018 at 8:17 PM, Scylla Rhiadra said:

Hi Xamuelsan,

You'll have to forgive some testy answers here: although it's not as bad as it used to be during the height of the hype about SL some 10 years ago, the forums do still get a fair number of students asking questions. SL has been treated as a sort of ongoing anthropological/sociological experiment since Tom Boellstorff's book came out in 2008, and (understandably) people here tend not to want to feel like they are lab rats. There are also many students who simply expect the forum to provide them with the answers that they need for the essays that they are writing, without taking the time to explore it themselves. Ironically, had you NOT been upfront and identified yourself as a student, and simply asked (as you did) what are interesting things to explore, the response would have been much friendlier.

In terms of understanding what the appeal of SL is, there are a couple of good suggestions above. Keep in mind that SL is not a "game" in the ordinary sense of the word, although it does include games within it: it is an open sandbox that was designed to allow people to explore their creativity in a virtual environment. Most of the content is user-generated, unlike many other gaming/VW platforms, and there is a still vigorous and robust economy that has developed out of that. Building and creating is an important part of the appeal of the place (although less so now, perhaps, because the growing dominance of mesh objects and avatars has made the learning curve for really good-looking items much steeper).

Most users are not, however, content creators, but rather consumers. And without question, shopping is a huge part of the appeal here, although always as a means to end (whether enhancing one's avatar, creating a virtual "home" for oneself, or just having fun with the things one buys).

SL is also really important as a kind of 3D social media platform, and socializing, making friends, and building communities in-world (and also here on the forums, which have a very strong community) are another huge part of the appeal of the place. The difference here, of course, is that real life identities become unimportant, and are, most often, kept secret: in that sense, we are very different from Facebook.

Experimenting with identity is also really important. People represent as different genders, sexualities, species, or even just "personalities" here. It has always provided for a safe and generally very accepting environment for people who are restricted in RL from exploring their sexuality or sexual identity, for instance.

It's been a godsend for some who are, for whatever reason, disadvantaged physically in real life: you should check out Virtual Ability in-world (I assume it's still there, although I haven't dropped by in years). And for people who are even just painfully shy, SL provides a means of connecting not available to them in RL.

Art, literature, history, and gaming are all fairly important here too, and there are lots of groups and communities built around all of these. If you're interested in art, Linden Lab has the Linden Endowment for the Arts, an area reserved for artists to build installations. Some of it is very good indeed.

Music is VERY big, in clubs and other venues which feature dancing, socializing, and live music. There is a surprisingly wide range of live music performers here.

And then there's, yes, sex. There's lots of it here, and its importance overlaps with the categories I've mentioned above, such as exploring new identities, or connecting with others. Sex is also Big Business in SL. I think sex here is sometimes overemphasized by outsiders, as a way of scandalizing those who are inclined to be scandalized by such things, but it's a pretty important part of life in RL, and there's no reason why it shouldn't be important here as well.

Others, I'm sure, can add to what I've said here: I've certainly not been exhaustive. DO explore yourself in-world, and don't rely on second-hand reports: you are missing the essence of the place unless you experience it first-hand, and without that you are in no position to talk about it with any kind of authority. Check out the Destinations Guide (which is, sadly, often out-of-date) and ask around for interesting places to visit. It's ENORMOUSLY diverse, and there is a huge amount to see and do, as well as a really broad international community.

There has also been a vast amount written on and about Second Life. There are the "outsiders" (academics and others) who have written about it, but your best bet is to search for blogs about SL written by residents here. But seriously, make time to explore. It's the only way to understand the place.

Good luck!

 

Thank you for commenting!

First of all, I wanted to make it clear I had a purpose, it's just my way of being, I'm an honest person.

I'm starting to use Second Life with the user I created a couple of days ago, and have already discovered a few things you have written about, but I also wanted to have some personal views from more experimented users, that's all.

I really appreciate the feedback