For my class assignment, we were required to create an avatar (a digital simulation character in a virtual world) in Second Life. This site, or rather lifestyle encourages an individual to “have fun, flirt, or simply flaunt [his or her] creativity in a world where [one] can experience and create anything [he or she] can imagine. Created by former Linden Lab CEO, Philip Rosedale, dreamed of virtual worlds connected with one another that would encourage dreams to come true. Second Life was created in 2003 and as of 2011 has about one million active users.
As a novice user I was a bit unsure of what I agreed to in my free account. Immediately “landing” on the Second Life Welcome Island, one becomes acquainted with the basic tools and steps to explore Second Life. After, I continued to build my personal profile and change my avatar figure from a floating blimp-like boat to a robot. As I entered into another portal which took me to an unknown island I found myself interacting with people. And on occasion, beyond the chat window, I would hear people trying to talk to me through my headphones. I was 1) afraid to respond and 2) did not know how to set up my microphone. I continued to venture through several “realms” and just explored these unknown places, but for myself, I think I was looking for a greater satisfaction in Second Life.
That greater satisfaction sprouted from exploring in the real world and being pleasantly surprised or even scared of the unknown or what I came across. But almost immediately, I was fixated on the fact that Second Life is in fact, just a virtual simulation for me. There is no connection for me and my avatar and the people I am interacting with. For myself, I believe that facebook is even pushing the limits of interaction with other people without having face-to-face interaction. And Second Life completely removes my being (my physical being) from even revealing itself to other new individuals I come across. This is just the first or second day I have been using this so I hope that I can find, perhaps more fulfillment in using this free virtual simulation site when I continue to use it. But for now, I think I still prefer the real world and what is has to offer to me.