Group 5: "Team Pink" (Megan Gray, Fatina Karout, Stephanie Zimmel, Ivy Cheung): Second Life...Get A Life!

=Introduction=

Computer Science 203 Fall 2008 Term Project -- Tutorial 23 -- Group 5

Group Name: Team Pink

Group Members: Fatina Karout, Stephanie Zimmel, Megan Gray, Ivy Cheung

Title: Second Life...Get A Life!

Media: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3d_fqDcN1s

Technology: Second Life Social Network

Social Issue: Whether Second Life conflicts with its users' social lives or not

=What is Second Life?= Second Life (SL) was established by Philip Rosedale in an attempt to build a virtual economy. With Second Life he was able to create a whole new aspect to internet communication. He formed Linden Lab (now known as Linden Research) in 2003, with the intension to construct a 3-D virtual world where individuals can socialize, play, work and experience an entire different perspective of life in the twenty-first century. Registering for SL is free, and once registered users can create and customize their own characters, called "avatars". One can also purchase products from stores, buy and sell property, work, go to school, or just even hang out with fellow avatars. SL even has its own currency, the "Linden Dollar", which can be easily converted to and from the US Dollar. Not considered an regular PC game, this internet-based social network enables individuals to not only socialize, but has also proved to be a feasible way of applying distance-learning. Though it has a substantial positive outcome, and a vast user-rate, SL has also encountered some concerning issues.

=Pros=

1. Advertisement
Companies can choose to put advertisements in SL. Companies can advertise by putting a message on a billboard just as they would in real life. As every avatar have to wear some sort of clothing and advertisement can be displayed on a t-shirt for example with a logo. Signs can be put up in SL that display information on a company. These signs can appear on boardwalk stalls, in stores, malls and on the roadside. Another way to advertise is "person to person," or "avatar to avatar." There are also media links that can be used, audio and video streams. Companies, such as Reebok [], pay a monthly fee to own property in SL and sell their products for Linden dollars. You can create a store in "Search Places" for $30 a week and an avatar can look up your product. Ads can be put in classifieds and if the store is liked than an avatar can put it into "their picks".

Companies that have advertised in SL in some way or another are:


 * American Apparel[]


 * Dell Computers []


 * Adidas[]


 * Sears[]


 * Calvin Klein[]


 * BMW[]

2. Charity
Charities are moving into the virtual world of SL to spread awareness on many important issues as well as raising money. They are doing this by creating informational exhibits, donation centers and other various events. The American Cancer Society has extended its campaign into SL. The Relay For Life is now occurring in both the real and virtual world. In SL the Avatars have the opportunity to learn more about the American Cancer Society and hear and see stories of those affected by cancer. Performances, roller coasters, treasure hunts, and other activities have been set up to raise money. This event has been running since 2005. In 2007 the American Cancer Society raised $118,000US through this event.



Save the Children has created the Yak Shack on SL. It is a location where avatars can buy a yak for 1000 Linden dollars (currency in SL) and learn more about the foundation. All the money raised goes to the Save the Children foundation.

Diabetes UK brought its Silent Assassin Campaign to SL. This campaign spreads the awareness of diabetes and its many effects on life. Diabetes UK is not only using SL to raise money, but also spreading the importance of living a healthy lifestyle.

WaterPartners International is using SL to inform people that in areas throughout the world clean drinking water is not available. They have created an exhibit in which you can visit villages where there is no clean water and see its effects. Through the use of SL people can get the first hand look at what life is like without clean water without the expense and difficulty of traveling to these small villages in real life. The WaterPartners International also created a World Water Day concert to spread further awareness.

These are just a few of the many charities who are now moving towards the virtual world of SL to spread awareness and raise money.

3. Education
In SL, there are many different educational groups that players can choose to join and navigate around the virtual 3-D world. They could easily communicate and connect with others around the world. Positive educational functions of SL and examples include:




 * Role Playing
 * Players can have a taste of what the history is like by going into the "Shakespearean Play" or "Ancient Rome"
 * Scavenger Hunts
 * Players can find information relevant to their fields of study and build up vocabulary
 * Guided Tours
 * Players can go "inside" a computer and see its structure and components in detail
 * Building
 * Players can enter "English Village" and construct 3-D objects themselves or even with other players
 * Simulation
 * Players can pretend that they are diagnosed with a certain disease and experience the symptoms and effects of that particular disease
 * Quizzing
 * Players can test themselves by taking knowledge tests of their choice, then their answers will be submitted to the "Learning Management System" of SL (such as a SL university) and get marked
 * Professional Networks
 * Players can meet other professionals around the world and expand their business networks
 * Collaboration & Exchange
 * Players can operate a business and learn the structure and essential functions of a business
 * Information Sharing
 * Players can put their lectures on SL and others can access them and get the information that they wanted

People might wonder if there is any language barrier in SL. The answer is NO! This is because SL has a tool called "Language Translation". It can interpret numerous languages for players so that players can communicate with people in different corners of the world. This could lead to information on cultural exchange as well.

Max Weber (1864 – 1920), one the three founding fathers of Sociology, came up with the theory of Verstehen which basically is interpreted as "In order to gain empathy of what an individual does, you will have to put yourself into that individual's shoe and walk a mile in it." SL provides players with excellent opportunities to be some other people with different abilities. From there, players can understand others better both in SL as well as in the real world. This virtual 3-D gaming site absolutely reflects Weber's idea of Verstehen.

Articles and Videos on SL Education:

Could Second Life be Learning's Second Chance? http://www.astd.org/NR/rdonlyres/F3C38970-2C51-4437-9A4E-BDBA9703F2B0/15724/080234.pdf

Second Life Produces Real Training Results: http://www.astd.org/NR/rdonlyres/F3C38970-2C51-4437-9A4E-BDBA9703F2B0/15723/76070844.pdf

Learning Gets a Second Life: Training in the Virtual World: http://www.tk08.astd.org/PDF/Handouts%20for%20Web%202-11/TU202.pdf

Second Life as a Virtual Learning Environment: http://www.dokimos.org/secondlife/education/

Follow the link for a video on the Educational Uses of Second Life: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOFU9oUF2HA

4. Profit


Ideally everyone would love to get paid for doing something they enjoy. This is how SL has attracted thousands of users in the past few years. For some users, profit from SL is just extra spending cash, for others, it is their primary course of income. SL has its own currency, Linden Dollars (L$), which individuals can exchange at $295 (L$) to $1 (USD). By being able to easily exchange currency from one rate to another, SL users are influenced to buy and sell more property, and this isn't just for fun either, individuals have the potential to make millions of dollars. Anshe Chung is a real-estate agent on Second Life who was the first person to make a real profit. She was the first with many others who followed this wealth trend. SL users don’t just put money towards property though; they also use it to buy virtual items such as clothing, accessories and even house ware. Users claim that although the purchases are not real, they still feel the urge to purchase them, because they want to. There are many ways to make a profit on SL, one could sell personal accessories, or get into the SL real-estate business. Regardless what one is promoting, SL offers individuals many opportunities to make a huge profit. However, one cannot just register an account and expect money to roll in, just like running a real business, running a business on SL requires time, effort and commitment and flexibility. SL has been able to draw-in many users, and it’s user rate is still increasing primarily due to the fact that there is a cash reward for playing a game. Individuals find it as less of an opportunity cost when it comes to other social activities, because on SL they can potentially make a well earning.

=Cons=

1. Addiction
With a teleport button within hands reach, SL has caused some individuals to obsess over what is considered as an ideal standard of living, and neglect reality. This addiction, like many other additions, is due to either unaware or ignorant users who deny the ideology that a hobby can turn into an addiction. Users ignore family, friends, careers, and even sunlight, to play this virtual game. Once one’s alter ego is created, individuals have unlimited freedoms on SL, from being a CEO, which would realistically take years of education and work experience, to changing your hair style with a click of a button. These characteristics about SL make it clear to see why it is so appealing to its consumers, but does not prove its feasibility. The consequence of addiction to this 3-D virtual game include neglected social lives, poverty, depression and inclining divorce rates. One individual claimed that he caught his wife having a virtual affair with another user in a different continent, and that it ruined his family. Although one could accumulate potential profits from SL, the drawbacks are far more severe than making a few dollars.

2. Can Cause Problems in Real Life Relationships
With the option of communicating with other individuals in this virtual life problems have arisen from spouses, boyfriends and girlfriends characters "virtually cheating" on their significant other. Online people have found love in cyberspace and it has caused problems in the real world. Recently, a British couple has divorced because a women caught her husbands alter-ego character getting a little L$ pay-to-play action in cyberspace. She filed for divorce citing "unreasonable behaviour" on part of her husband. As odd as this sounds, a defense attorny in the United States says that it is not uncommon and in one week she had seen two divorce cases involving SL that week alone.

3. Everything is Surreal and No Verification on Identities
In SL, players can look and act whatever they want, just by sitting in front of a computer. As a player, you could perform many things such as:




 * fly, surf, snowboard, jump off on a flying object
 * take part in university lecture, learning centre, company meeting, casino, lottery, etc
 * switch from one individual to another at once
 * buy or rent a house or land []
 * travel to different countries, such as virtual Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, etc

Nevertheless, everything happening in SL is an online game and a fantasy, except for money transactions with the Linden Dollar (L$) [].

SL provides the "Age Verification" [] option for players, where players have to enter their real name, address, city/town, province/state, country, date of birth, identification type and number. Before players submit their information, they are required to click on "The information that I am providing is true and correct, and I consent to its verification against public records or government-issued identification." This option is intended to help protect against having possible underage players gaining access to inappropriate or adult content in SL.

Although this feature sounds responsible and secured for players, players who register on this could still lie about their true identity. They may click on the agreement and submit their information as "true and correct", but who would actually know and could confirm on the given information? No one! Therefore, identities are not verified and could also be unreal.

4. Internet Predators
The true identity of each avatar is unknown on SL. This causes the risk of child predators. Even though sex offenders are not allowed in certain places it does not stop them from accessing these sites. Within these sites they can create relationships with others in which they could offend.



Although players under the age of eighteen are not permitted on the site it does not stop them from accessing it. This means that children under 18 have the ability to visit nightclubs and pornography stores, and buy drugs. There is no age verification on SL unless suspicious behavior is demonstrated. Yet this suspicious behavior is often not seen at all as there are millions of users, and if it it’s often is too late. As well a sister site of SL called Teen Second Life was created for user aged 13 to 17. The problem of predators once again arises as there is no way to verify that every user is under 17.

In SL there is a playground called Wonderland. The name Wonderland is possibly a reference to a child porn ring on the internet in 1988. Here there are child avatars, who are most likely played by adults. These avatars are essentially child prostitutes. The adult avatars can then pay these children to fulfill their fantasies. The users who go to Wonderland are essentially child predators. Here the actions are encouraged. These users are both current and possible future child pedophiles in the real world.

Follow the link for a new report on Wonderland in SL http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dN_jr6xjs90

=Conclusion=

How does SL conflict with its users' social lives? There are positive effects as well as negative influences as the outcomes for the use of this convenient technology and popular social network site. One can utilize SL for advertisements, charitable uses, educational uses, and profit generation. Therefore, these selling points look extremely attractive to tons of teenagers and business people. On the other hand, SL could lead to many unexpected impacts on users. These include addiction and neglection of social life, can cause problems in real life relationships, surreal feature and no verification on identities, and can raise the issue of internet predators. As a result, users should consider all the potential pros and cons for their involvement in SL.

=References=

Fatina
http://www.benchmark.com/news/sv/2005/05_29_2005.php

http://internetgames.about.com/od/mmorpgs/a/secondlife.htm

http://secondlife.com/whatis/currency.php

http://doodlezenovka.wordpress.com/addicted-to-second-life/

http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2008/10/17/Life_takes_a_back_seat_to_online_addiction/UPI-52531224294620/

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/UK-News/Second-Life-Virtual-Reality-Divorce-Cases-Will-Increase-Say-Internet-Addiction-Psychologists/Article/200811215151635?f=rss

http://www.benchmark.com/news/sv/2005/05_29_2005.php

http://lindenlab.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/user-hours-per-quarter.jpg?w=556&h=398

http://news.cnet.com/Book-excerpt-The-Entrepreneurs-Guide-to-Second-Life/2100-1043_3-6217117.html?tag=mncol

http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/tech/internet/secondlife.html

Ivy
kronostv.com/secondlife_Logo.jpg

edc.carleton.ca/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/second-life-education.jpg

www.podcastingnews.com/content/wp-content/uploads/2007/12/second-life-ad.jpg

www.sundancechannel.com/UPLOADS/blog/secondlife/blogpost_data/06_27_07/maya_vincent_fly.jpg

www.telepresenceoptions.com/images/Linden_Dollar_ATMs.jpg

http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/tech/internet/secondlife.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOFU9oUF2HA

http://cepa.newschool.edu/het/profiles/weber.htm

http://www.astd.org/NR/rdonlyres/F3C38970-2C51-4437-9A4E-BDBA9703F2B0/15724/080234.pdf

http://www.astd.org/NR/rdonlyres/F3C38970-2C51-4437-9A4E-BDBA9703F2B0/15723/76070844.pdf

http://www.tk08.astd.org/PDF/Handouts%20for%20Web%202-11/TU202.pdf

https://secure-web20.secondlife.com/account/verification.php?lang=en (Note: This requires log in onto SL to view)

http://www.dokimos.org/secondlife/education/

http://secondlife.com/land/

http://secondlife.com/currency/

http://cbs3.com/health/Health.Stephanie.Stahl.2.598218.html

http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/545423/

http://secondlife.com/news/archive/?year=2007

Megan
http://www.secondlifeinsider.com/2006/12/10/save-the-children-sells-virtual-yaks/ [Second Life Insider, Date:December 10, 2006, Author: Aimee Weber]

http://www.cancer.org/docroot/GI/content/GI_1_8_Second_Life_Relay.asp [American Cancer Society]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2006/dec/05/news.voluntarysector [The Guardian, Date:December 5, 2006, Author:Owen Gibson]

http://www.bjhcim.co.uk/news/2008/n810041.htm [Bjhc&im, Date:23 October 2008]

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/emeraldcity/2008/03/world-water-day.html [LA Times,Date: March 18, 2008]

http://www.secondlifeinsider.com/2006/10/24/more-virtual-charity/ [Second Life Insider, Date: Oct 24, 2006, Author:Aimee Weber]

https://www.amazines.com/article_detail.cfm/523462?articleid=523462&title=predators%2Cgaming%2Cvirtual%2Csex%2Crape%2Cdrugs%2CInternet%2CSecond%2CLife [Amazines, June 25, 2008, Author: John Terry]

http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2008/may/06/news/chi-online-predator-alert-06-may06 [Archives, may 6, 2008, Author: Megan Twohey]

http://www.informationweek.com/news/personal_tech/virtualworlds/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=207600559 [Information Week, May 7, 2008,Author: K.C. Jones]

http://chicagoist.com/2008/05/06/congressman_say.php [Chicagoist, may 6, 2008, Author: Margaret Lyons]

http://yellodyno.typepad.com/yello_dyno_blog/2007/11/pedophile-playg.html [Around Jan's Kitchen Table, November 2, 2007]

http://www.linuxinsider.com/story/Kids-in-Second-Life-Does-Danger-Lurk-62917.html [Linux Insider, May 8, 2008, Author: Katherine Noyes]

Stephanie
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3d_fqDcN1s

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/3453273/Woman-divorces-husband-for-having-a-virtual-affair-on-Second-Life.html

http://secondthoughts.typepad.com/second_thoughts/2006/10/dos_and_donts_f.html

http://blog.futurelab.net/2006/11/how_to_advertise_in_second_lif.html

http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Advertising_in_Second_Life

http://secondthoughts.typepad.com/second_thoughts/2006/10/advertising_in_.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/3453273/Woman-divorces-husband-for-having-a-virtual-affair-on-Second-Life.html

http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=01OSKJwXuDM&feature=related

http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=U3d_fqDcN1s&feature=related

www.redherring.com/blogs/25481

http://images.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://bp3.blogger.com/_TopTmpOescE/Rlr89V1G5pI/AAAAAAAAALk/fDJ31IW9-hM/s400/luxury.jpg&imgrefurl=http://gaminginstinct-gaminginstinct.blogspot.com/&usg=__kcckH-i9YPZFS9CYR7PV3IOfL1A=&h=288&w=400&sz=20&hl=en&start=82&tbnid=f1M7qC9yIfhLcM:&tbnh=89&tbnw=124&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsecond%2Blife%2Bcharacter%252Bsex%26start%3D80%26gbv%3D2%26ndsp%3D20%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN

=External Links=

More Articles on SL:

Educators Examine The Good and Bad of "Second Life": http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/545423/

Health: Second Life: http://cbs3.com/health/Health.Stephanie.Stahl.2.598218.html

Second Life in the News: Archive: http://secondlife.com/news/archive/?year=2007