Ok, so I got invited to SecondLife, so I signed up for an account. I had a really funny experience my first time in. I'm standing in the virtual street and other people pop up. I am standing with my back to the screen and there is another person in front of me. One of us moves a little and I see that the other person is wearing a tee shirt and undies. I ask him a question, which I think is how he realized that I was there. As soon as I typed my question in the chat box, he took off as fast as he could off-screen. I'm sure it was his first time too; he either hadn't figured out how to put clothes on or hadn't gotten there yet.
The thing I found interesting, though, is that he was embarrassed about his Avatar's lack of clothing. He was shy, as if I could tell who he was. It was an interesting revelation for me, and I'm not quite done processing it. Clearly he was projecting his own feeling of exposure to his Avatar. I'm sure that is not uncommon and I wonder; is SecondLife just about creating a new identity, or seeing your current identity played out in front of you?
The Dawson Family
2006-2007 photo collage
Tree
Is this one tree, or a bunch of little trees collaborating?
Another cool tree
This was in the corridor dividing the street where my class was held. I felt like there should be a cover charge just to go in this shopping district.
Sunshine on the waves
Isn't it beautiful?
Waves
These are the waves I learned to body surf in. Yes, really!
Pink Flower
These flowers were on the grounds of the Hilton, where we stayed.
1 comment:
A couple of things: first, since you were entering for the first time, you were on Help Island, a mandatory stop for all new users so, yes...he was a brand new user too! Second, there has been a LOT of research done in the area of online identity and its implication for several things including communication (most of this research was done "pre" SL, in the area of online chatting, posting, etc.) You might want to take a look at the online journals at the Cowles Library to see more up-to-date research on SL identity in particular. The more "realistic" 3D rendering of the avatar is creating many interesting additional situations (such as, why do some people create avatar that looks like themselves in RL (real life), what they desire in RL, or something completely different like the opposite sex, a robot or a furrie. Or, as you observed, modesty)
Post a Comment