Is SL a training ground for RL?

[Pamela Galli]

It seems like a lot of people come here -- I am assuming they are very young -- who are puzzled and dismayed to find that in SL no one wants to hand them money, or give them a job when they have no skills, or make everything free (for them if not for everyone) -- and no one feels particularly chagrined when the poster tells a tale of being insulted and abused, or feels in the least responsible for the quality of the poster's SL experience.

 

Which has pretty much been my experience with RL.  Has SL become a training ground for RL?  Like, find it out here first?

[Melita Magic]

It can be. Not only in that way but in others.

Those who find socializing difficult are able to be more open and friendly in SL. Those who haven't run a business or held a job before find out that it isn't all roses, even virtually. Others find confidence in sharing their music or skills or talents for the first time. SL can be a safer way to do those things. 

And then maybe it can be a mini lesson for those who haven't yet learned that the world isn't their parent, and generally, they will have to pick themselves up when they fall. It's a hard lesson, but is better learned sooner than later.

FWIW I do care when someone seems genuinely at a loss, but, mostly what we see in the woe is me, terrible tale, topic starters is drama.

[wiked Anton]

Rl was like that first, so no, not in that way...........more like RL was a training ground for SL, only in SL they can get away with more bad behaviour than in RL

[Randall Ahren]

Regions are abbreviated as "sims" as a shorter term for "simulations" for a reason. Hence, there are a probably a few people out there that believe SL is a simulation of RL in many respects. Concerning business, I think SL would make a great tool for colleges and universities. At the beginning of the year, all business students are required to start up an enterprise in SL and at the end of the term, report on how profitable it was. It's a lot easier and cheaper to start a business in SL than in RL. 

[Dresden Ceriano]

Well, in RL, there really isn't a place to come to in order to arbitrarily complain about stupid ridiculousness.  Most of these little bitches think they own the whole damned world, how horribly mistaken they are when they grow the hell up and realize that no one really gives a crap.

...Dres

[Pamela Galli]

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Randall Ahren wrote:

Regions are abbreviated as "sims" as a shorter term for "simulations" for a reason. Hence, there are a probably a few people out there that believe SL is a simulation of RL in many respects. Concerning business, I think SL would make a great tool for colleges and universities. At the beginning of the year, all business students are required to start up an enterprise in SL and at the end of the term, report on how profitable it was. It's a lot easier and cheaper to start a business in SL than in RL. 

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Now that is a damned good idea for neophyte business people!

 

I guess it is a good idea for all kinds of ppl who don't know how things work in the RL, for whatever reason.

[Dresden Ceriano]

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Pamela Galli wrote:

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Randall Ahren wrote:

Regions are abbreviated as "sims" as a shorter term for "simulations" for a reason. Hence, there are a probably a few people out there that believe SL is a simulation of RL in many respects. Concerning business, I think SL would make a great tool for colleges and universities. At the beginning of the year, all business students are required to start up an enterprise in SL and at the end of the term, report on how profitable it was. It's a lot easier and cheaper to start a business in SL than in RL. 

---

Now that is a damned good idea for neophyte business people!

 

I guess it is a good idea for all kinds of ppl who don't know how things work in the RL, for whatever reason.

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I'm absolutely ignorant as far as dating and loveless copulation goes... what kind of tools do you have to offer?

...Dres

ETA:  It would make more sense if I wasn't so drunk and knew what I was talking about.

[Void Singer]

art imitates life

[Venus Petrov]

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wiked Anton wrote:

Rl was like that first, so no, not in that way...........more like RL was a training ground for SL,

only in SL they can get away with more bad behaviour than in RL

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I do not think this is true.  If someone exhibits poor behavior, one can mute them, AR them (depending...), ban them, etc.  People only 'get away' when something is tolerated. 

[Venus Petrov]

I think that I understand what you mean, Pam.  When I rezzed in SL, I expected nothing.  I would never beg for anything in RL, so why would I do so in SL?  People have different expectations.  These people may be disappointed in RL when similar expectations are not met.

[Pamela Galli]

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Dresden Ceriano wrote:

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Pamela Galli wrote:

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Randall Ahren wrote:

Regions are abbreviated as "sims" as a shorter term for "simulations" for a reason. Hence, there are a probably a few people out there that believe SL is a simulation of RL in many respects. Concerning business, I think SL would make a great tool for colleges and universities. At the beginning of the year, all business students are required to start up an enterprise in SL and at the end of the term, report on how profitable it was. It's a lot easier and cheaper to start a business in SL than in RL. 

---

Now that is a damned good idea for neophyte business people!

 

I guess it is a good idea for all kinds of ppl who don't know how things work in the RL, for whatever reason.

---

I'm absolutely ignorant as far as dating and loveless copulation goes... what kind of tools do you have to offer?

...Dres

ETA:  It would make more sense if I wasn't so drunk and knew what I was talking about.

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Tools? People use tools?

[Void Singer]

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Pamela Galli wrote:

Tools? People use tools?

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 >.>

<.<

yeah, what's wrong with that? =D

[Pamela Galli]

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Void Singer wrote:

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Pamela Galli wrote:

Tools? People use tools?

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 >.>

<.<

yeah, what's wrong with that? =D

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Oh you must mean date tools like eyeliner. Yeah, that stuff really works!

 

 

[Void Singer]

uhm, sure... that's totally what I meant... yeah

[Randall Ahren]

SL also provides training in the area of relationships. From the relatively short duration of partnerships and marriages in SL, it should be readily apparent to the participants that romantic love does not last. Basically, it's a simulation of rl relationships at an accelerated pace.

There is also some  things you should not do. Near the top of the list is never send money to a romantic interest that you haven't met in RL. Also pretty high on the list is just because they sent you a photo of them in RL doesn't mean the photo is actually of that person.

There are also lessons on how to sustain friendships and how to suddenly end them. 

 

 

 

[Ann Otoole]

People hear stuff over time and then show up and expect easy money. Fact is, back probably before my time and in 2007 it was easy to make money in SL in certain "sectors" rofl.

For example in 2007 I could make 15k a day easy by simply hosting events. (It was hard work because back then SL sims handled 100 people all the time and there were no vote bots) People were loose with their cash before the recession wiped disposable income off the planet. Now people are shocked when I tip them L$500. Back when I hosted in 2007 I got L$1000 tips routinely. That free spending environment is where the rumors of easy money in SL got going. Those days are over. But nobody told the new guys lol.

Times have changed. If people want to make money now they have to create and market content that is superior to the established artists of SL. An unlikely prospect unless the new resident came from the video game community and was a 3D modeler there.

[Jesica Dragovar]

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Pamela Galli wrote:

It seems like a lot of people come here -- I am assuming they are very young -- who are puzzled and dismayed to find that in SL no one wants to hand them money, or give them a job when they have no skills, or make everything free (for them if not for everyone

---

 

I've gotten so much of these, one of the worst was someone who was ONE DAY old, joined a product support group I'm in, and randomly IMed me, then TPed me to the main store

 

me: "anything I can help you with?"

them: "I like [this product], a lot and I really want it"

me: "yeah it is pretty nice, I have  [similar product] myself and I use it a lot"

them: "I don't have any money"

me: "yeah well you're new yet, you'll get some in time, if all else fails you can purchase Lindens, but there's always plenty of jobs in SL"

them: "I don't want a job, so are you gonna buy [product] for me or not?"

 

[Ian Undercroft]

I suppose that it depends upon the personal characteristics of the individual in question as to whether SL is "training ground" for RL. I can see that interacting with others in SL may provide those who are shy in RL with some greater self-confidence.

However, I've always thought that the communication skills required to enjoy SL from a social perspective are the same as those required to enjoy and succeed in RL. SL attracts it's fair share of RL "losers" and "freeloaders" and those people are likely to appear as "losers" and "freeloaders" in SL too. They tend to discover, sooner rather than later,  that SL is equally an unfulfilling as their RLs. 

[Ellyn Elan]

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Ian Undercroft wrote: SL attracts it's fair share of RL "losers" and "freeloaders" and those people are likely to appear as "losers" and "freeloaders" in SL too. They tend to discover, sooner rather than later,  that SL is equally an unfulfilling as their RLs. 

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/me WAILS!  Mr. Undercroft I don't even KNOW you and you are being so mean!

/me sniffles. I know my SL and RL are unfulfilling but but but didja hafta tell everyone?????

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:matte-motes-wink:

[MoiselleErin Teardrop]

One thing you just cannot do much in SL that men tend to do a lot in real life -

In SL they cannot exactly say they are coming to town (to the SL sim I guess) on business and want to meet up in a hotel by the airport.

 

I think the fact that avatars are pretty much the ideal representation of beauty (as close as you can get with a digital human in an RPG) is kind of a buzz-kill for many cause of course in real life, very few of us are as sexy. Well except for me, my avatar is jealous of my beauty. She wants to be me.

[Randall Ahren]

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MoiselleErin Teardrop wrote:

I think the fact that avatars are pretty much the ideal representation of beauty (as close as you can get with a digital human in an RPG) is kind of a buzz-kill for many cause of course in real life, very few of us are as sexy. 

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Yes, but you would rather have sex in RL with someone who is not nearly as sexy as the digital representation of your online lover or sex in SL?

[Dresden Ceriano]

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Randall Ahren wrote:

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MoiselleErin Teardrop wrote:

I think the fact that avatars are pretty much the ideal representation of beauty (as close as you can get with a digital human in an RPG) is kind of a buzz-kill for many cause of course in real life, very few of us are as sexy. 

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Yes, but you would rather have sex in RL with someone who is not nearly as sexy as the digital representation of your online lover or sex in SL?

---

There are a few things that are much more plentiful in RL than in SL, and with good reason... booze, light switches and, for extreme circumstances, paper bags.

...Dres

[Void Singer]

I dunno... if a persons standards for RL are informed by SL representation, they could either never get a date, or never want for one.... it all depends on how you look at it.

[Lear Cale]

Absolutely!  I'm training to be a dragon!

 

 

Seriously, SL is a training ground where we learn that we really drag our problems around with us.

It's also a great place to learn that running your own business can be rewarding, despite being a huge pain in the ass.

[Poenald Palen]

In SL there where money trees, campingsites and someone was chatting with me and gave me 10L...this was at ONE sim...and a wierd one that many might not have liked due to camping. It was at Jimney, that was teh sim name..or jimney was beside it. Someones Hong Kong....gone now, and obviously the reason was you can't give away money and all that...BUT, that is what LL did!

LL used to pay people for referels (they still do BTW, check out the RegAPI or whatever if you are a website making kind of person) and that was not all. There used to be (this was before my time) money for making a place popular or something. Voting maybe? Not sure...dwell? I heard about this, but it was before my time. 

Money trees are still around, I saw one...put a tiny bit in it. I returned the favor of 10L that someone gave me, and a few times more. I have also done other things to where people in RL have recieved money. Kiva helps people all over, sadly...even in the devolped world people end up begging for a few hundred dollars for tools or some equipment! Right now, I need to get a part for some gear and that 100usd$ or so will help me. Since I had won money for a design concept...well, I gave some to help folks out. It was spread out...so, well Kiva recipients might have gotten a tiny bit form me BUT that will help them with anything they would need...when you have nothing much, even a needle, some thread and some advertising money for a classified ad can go a long way! I wasted the 10L gave to me, camped for some more. I drove endlessly, falling asleep at the pc even lol...but that is not hard for 2L a lap. I went through 4 sim crossings in each lap! I got on the top 10 board to win a tiny bit more once....it took about a fourty five seconds to a minute for each lap and then there where crashes....lots of them! I remember other silly camping stuff....I figured it was normal. When I made stuff I finally went and looked at other forums....wow, I was stupid! Camping was hated, it was skewing search results and basically I could have made stuff and made way way more....but, at the time...well, it seemed normal. Many avatars did this, and it was all they did. They would run bots, camp at a bunch of places and go grab all themoney they could from money trees. They pulled it out into RL money and so on..I sort of kept minen in world and payed a bit rent, supported a location or two that way....not entirely lol. I mean, it was only one of 20+ who supported the place a bit...but, either way I was happier than camping and had made a tiny company. I heard of pepole making real life wages before, figured out most of it was land and sort of kept learning.....but my life is a total mess and not something I can explain easily....basically injustice keeps me from living a normal life....no, not a drama thing....reall crime stuff commited against me, but I am not able to do much. Speaking about it anonymously here is not a big deal, no one beleives me and simply says I am nuts....such is life....real life anyway.

So, yeah....people have been sort of helpful here. I mean, besides the stalking that causes me to recede from socializing in ANY venue....which is sort of a art mimicing life....no, just the fact SL is not art aone. It is platform, a virtual world platform....virtual worlds are a bit more than that and are only begining. When all the bugs are worked out, some little tricks with speading up some stuff and tweaking and the fruits of the scientific research to come arriving at a maturity...well, many will have no choice but to use a virtual world...it takes less energy. Energy is movement....movement is life, nothing more or less can be said of it. Less IS more! Less usage of energy will equal less life wasted and more gained. Humanity can not replace, say...a million years of energy it has extracted during the modern period of industrialisation. We will not be post industrial until the whole world is advanced enough to be simply upgrading and so on.....we need plants to grow walking sticks and NOT cut the trees and use energy...that is tough, but not impossble. Right now you can wrap a small sappling around some guides and viola....you have a formed component. Bio engineering will lead to better wood for this job that might...well, say follow light of a certain color or maybe grow small roots out below it's trunk and grow along a pattern of water. I mean, I am simply a tiny bit of a sci fi fan, but we have stuff that does this...and those items have genes! So, humanity will continue to make more strides to help people live longer, make people safer, make people healthier and make mental abilities more efficiently used....yet we say life is about ignoring, being incompassionate and so on....RL is all of these things and no one will help people for no reason. Well, this is true...sadly, which is why money was invented....it is the one thing that broke the barriers the general population have. They can't imagine more than X amount of people other than a small visual image of a crowd....we don't, as a socieity, understand all of the actions of those groups enough and prediction comes more true witih more hymogany....but hemogyny leads some to break the marching rythm, they switch to another drummer....so all the predictions get upset. All this stuff about guessing can even be harnessed! Wall street is but one simple example of people trying to use the oddities of crowds to somes advantage, the funny thing is that each one is trying to out do the other of thier money!! Not only does it use predicting crowd behavoir BUT it also uses the fact people will intentially try to lead another astray to make gains for themselves! The streets workers make money one each transaction, win or lose....just reaping money in like it is simply a spring that flows this stuff up on the pressure of greed that heats up the spring from below....crazy stuff man lol.

It is easy to get money from people in the short term...just have lots of it to start with! I mean, you can still lose it BUT....chances are you will gain some back. Money eases things, makes people less protective and uses peoples wish for more than the jones, not to keep up...to surpass...to make THEM follow....even if you make them buy something that will slow them down while you secretly laugh as you look at your second and more potent purchase you didn't show them....you can waste thier last dollar and get so far ahead...you just need one more than they have! Risks, rewards and basically you are lost in a huge game and meanwhile people skim this off and some get your money and give it away to help something a bit more neglected than your wardrobe, your electronic hair removal or your fancy gadget collection....every now and then the forces that push one thing create a wake that sucks a whole bunch of effort into something else and peopel justify thier actions by this....ALL of the actions, so....all feel happy at some point. The ones who like to be sad, they can be sad! The ones who wish to sit and do nothing...hopefully there are enough crumbs around...and so on. SOme like to help people. I have met those people, and I also helped at least 2 others in a similar way  as far as the 10L donation...one that was not solicited as far as I can remember.....I helped at least 2 others this way, without them askiing even. Why? Why not! No, I don't do this again....just that 2 or so times. I also did not do camping, it was a failing thing....just didn't work out well. I wanted to hire someone to look after my store BUT I can't ....I have no traffic, not much work to do because I have to do it due to permissions system and I didn't get enough interest to really go and build a big group and get alot of sales and hold events. OTherwise, I could have hired someone for a tiny amount of play money and new product releases for free to run the events...I am stalked in RL....so...yeah, no point. Every interaction becomes a excuse for people to remind me about it...so...yeah, pointless really....not much reason to do anything at all....but, people seemed to try and be kind now and then.

So, maybe they where all kind to hurt me....there is no kindess in second life...just greedy jerks and evil people? I don't log in much, but I would be seen as being greedy because I don't give stuff away anymore......I guess I might have been a jerk on occasion to...not evil, but a jerk in some way? Ah, anyway.....just thought I would be positive about humanity for a bit....but really, I can't say they where just nice people...the camping was to get more money via more attention. The 10L and money trees? Maybe all alts of the sim owner? Well, I put in a tiny bit into a money tree a short time back...so...at least I know ONE avatar gave something with hope a new person would get a few L's and can use it for a upload and start thier biz.....but really, we all know it might have been a gold farming alt of a chinese sweat shop.....like I said....I realy do feel like there is little to now point. BUT, kiva might help....the other ones would to...the time I raised a tiny tiny bit for cancer might have....right? But, all this could be seen as self serving because a)I could be in harms way and those charities can help via thier research or other efforts (wel...I am not going to be born a child with illness...but, hey....reincarnation might happen for all I know! maybe the next hitlar is a cancer survivor...ooops! ) but...yeah, seemingly no point at all really...everyone is evil, which is why they wish for all others to die and only support cancer research to help themselves and so on....in fact, if all of the worlds ailments where fixed we would see a world war over leasure grounds....one group wants to make less people or wants unhindered access to one geographic area or two...so, they assasinate the government....basically, tourist workers will start a world war to make more money along with vacation crazed people! Real estate agents would oppose them to preserve the sales of holiday homes that churn and add to that governments who make a lot by segregating.....port tax crazy countries especially. Add to all of that some Parkour, ninja stars and some crazy new universal international language.....maybe even some new religion or something....like, some kind of event to gather the more spiritual into fighting as well....great movie stuff...maybe. But, RL? Nah, we will see more ripping off and crazy amounts of odd near sightedness that is totally justified due to a) astroids and Godzill and also b) NO way to trust with scarcity of energy.

All about the Joules and the astroids man....seriously, much of the worlds pains are based on these to things colliding. NO research from reduced usage and internal strife and riot costs = less tech to fight astroids....seriously!

 

I mean in a nut shell...the world is to evil to survive, but we will continue to ease the pain for at least our own circle...so, get a circle or say "forget the circles, go to hell you bastarding wierdo's" and help people randomly, anonymously even....just don't let them stop you....save the world, or even just your freinds....it matters not...we will end up with wars from lack of energy or end up fighting astroids unprepared....one missed missile or a short sighted tech investment.....bad stuff happens and all of the earth erupts and your circle canobalize the resources of itself until it dies off in a bitter winter cold under the dust that hides the sun.....either way, the only way to get a chance of survival is to be a horribly HUGELY intelligent, be on a space program or be a very very well loved and important politician...ironically, this means you are at teh forefront of working on tech and technique to get rid of the astroids.....yet, you don't need to! If you let them all die...you get to choose a harem (most of these folks...yes, you guessed it...are male!) of females with good and diverse genes to mate with! Yes, even all red heads will not make it...there are simply to many to fit on the space ships I bet.....sadly....they don't need the world...they can go to anther, breed ONLY smart healthy genes and populate a space station. Then, when they are done creating a smarter and more healthy (read less miserable over worries of cancer and so on) population via selective incemination and so on.......welll, they can come back to the earth many many years later and it is all theres...well, thier great great great grand childrens. The world will have smarter people who are more easily trusting because they where all very tightly knit and had to save humanity....they will learn history and attempt to seriously never make those mistakes again.....forever humanity will have no worries about natural threats as they fund the exploration of the stars.....no worries of death as they work toward eternal life....no way will they recreate the horrible TV show I hate or invent 'TV dinners'....never will they make bad jokes or promote bacon....the world will forge into a new future with better care takers....who will all look like supermodels and will have gotten rid of all men....the only way to stop it all....I will hide in my bunker and then emerge...the only man on earth.....yes....at least one of them will succomb....the, there will be no worries...until the...well...carry on making stuff and so on!!! Yeah, the future it awsome!!!!! /me stacks another freeze dreid buritto up in the bunker and laughs as I take supplements to and use colloidal silver to make myself live forever!!!