Voice of a Leader in Second Life

John Lester, or in "Second Life" Pathfinder Linden is the academic program manager at Linden lab.  He notes that he sees a "growing interest in higher ed as a logical devlopment.  'Second Life gives both students and faculty a new medium for exploring things like distance learning, experiential learning, simulation, and scientific visualization in a fundamentally collaborative environment." He believes that this allows people to find a familiar gaming platform where teachers can engage students in the virtual world medium because they find it appealing. 

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"Second Life" simulation in real life with real people

Just wanted to throw some humor into this.  Here is a video on "Youtube" that shows real life people simulating what "Second Life" life is like in our world. 

Video

Here is a video that explains what "Second Life" is and gives an overview and introduction.

Second Life Timeline and my vision for Second Life

• Philip Linden was in the shower and envisioned the basis of "Second Life" and decided to build it.
• Andrew and Philip Linden composed Linden Lab and used it to build and house "Linden World" which now known as "Second World".
• Alpha "Second Life" in March 2002 with a handful of residents
• Beta "Second Life" in November 2002 for closed beta and then April 2003 for the version open to the public.
• June 23, 2003 the first version of "Second Life" was open to the public.
• 1.1-2.0 versions have since been used and improved. 
• 5 years later in 2008 "Second Life" is going strong and growing fast.

I believe that "Second Life" will continue to flourish with more people taking part in it.  It's like how computers were something some people had and some used, now most every household has a computer and uses it.  I see even more businesses and schools utilizing it as a tool to improve and reach out to clients and students.  It is a wonderful emerging tool for technology and the sky seems to be the limit. 

Diffusion into Education

This is a wonderful tool for education because it provides an opportunity for students and faculty to learn in a virtual world that has professional qualities.  There is no cost to register, but there is a cost to have land and privacy, which is highly desired when trying to keep "Second Life" professional.  It is a public virtual world, so there are some issues that could arise when dealing with the public.  "Second Life" has a webpage with information regarding how to purchase private land and how to afford it and maintain it.  

There is very little that is required in order to use "Second Life".  It is easy to download, and MAC, PC compatible, costs nothing to register, and takes a little time to make an avatar, but other than that it is quite simple. There is a form a creativity and self-expression that is involved with representing yourself in your avatar. You can be as professional or imaginative as you can think of.  It is another way for people involved in something together to bond on another level. It is fairly easy to use because of how the tools are setup that are similar to a webpage. 

Education in Second Life Land

"Second Life" was made to be a virtual world for people to enjoy online.  Some people have found the virtual world to be more than a game or simple fun, they have found it to be revolutionary education tool.  There are colleges, organizations, businesses, non-profits, etc. all are using "Second Life" to educate their students and staff along with the people viewing the information provided.  

One example of an organization is The Association for Educational Communications and Technologies (AECT) and how they have implemented "Second Life" into their association as a place for members to meet to discuss ideas and present information.  There is a wonderful webinar regarding AECT using "Second Life".  The AECT website about them in "Second Life" gives a nice introduction and details on how to use AECT resources and experience them in the virtual world. 

The "Second Life" website has a page for education and explains how the virtual world can help with education and a program.  There are examples of some of the Universities and Ivy Leagues such as Princeton that are using "Second Life" for their education programs. 

Example of Land

Second Life Currency

Linden Dollar

Overview of Second Life

Registering

The first step to entering the "Second Life" world is to register, which is essentially free.  You download the "client program" called the "Second Life Viewer", which allows the users to play the game.  Users in the game are called "Residents" and they choose an "avatar" or virtual world character to represent themselves in the game.  This is how residents interact through out the game for socializing, meeting others, taking part in activities and events, and shop virtual items and real world items.  

Economy

There is an economy and real estate in "Second Life" that is all it's own, but functions like the real world kind.  Residents can buy and sell land and items.  Some businesses sell virtual products such as fashion for avatars or movements.  There are also businesses in the game that sell real world items that you order online.  When you register it is encouraged to put a credit card on file because when you buy land or merchandise it does cost real world money.  In order to purchase things in "Second Life" you use the Linden dollar (L$).  The economy is said to be L$266 to $1 real world dollar. 

Real Estate

There is a "Land Use Fee" referred to as a Tier with fees ranging from $5 to $195 US for an entire region.  There are three kinds of land in "Second Life".  There is mainland, which is Estate land owned by Linden Lab.  There is Private Estate land, which consists of Private Islands or Regions.  These have different rules and prices.  There are also Openspaces, such as country or oceans that can only be purchased by residents that own previous private estate land. 

Business

Business in "Second Life" is virtual and real. Residents can buy virtual merchandise for 

their avatars or houses. They can also buy real world items via the game. People have buildings

with their businesses in them and their items on display, whether virtual or real world.

Second Life Briefing

Imagine a world that you can make friends, network, shop, and have your dream house, clothes, and vehicle.  You can be whatever you want to be.  A person that in life is less than desirable or successful can be those characteristics and live out their dream.  The virtual world of "Second Life" is where all of this can be possible. "Second Life" is an internet-based virtual world that was developed by Linder Research, Inc, or referred to in the game as Linden Lab and was presented on June 23, 2003 to the public.  Five years later "Second Life" is successful and growing by the millions internationally.