bradofshaw
Puritan Board Freshman
Has anyone heard about this thing called Second Life?
Wikipedia Article
[video=google;8051735465443594148]http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8051735465443594148[/video]
[video=google;-5182759758975402950]http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5182759758975402950[/video]
OK, I'm 24, and I thought I was at least aware of what's trendy online, but I had never heard of this until today. This is the Matrix folks! An interactive virtual world where you can create your own life, and use real money to buy things and make yourself over. Computer geeks programming items and selling them for real profit and making a living off of it. All kinds of questions of international law, taxes and copyrights, not to mention the moral and ethical implications of a virtual world. I'm not surprised that something like this has taken off, I'm just surprised that it is here now and I didn't know about it.
This is the kind of thing that I would be wary to let my kids get involved in (it's 18 and over now, but there is a teen version and little can be done to stop a kid from signing up under a fake identity), and I would caution others from getting involved in it. But it makes me wonder, with the growth of the internet and the blurring of lines between reality and virtual reality, will programs like this play major parts in our everyday lives regardless of whether or not we want them to? For instance, I never saw the need for a cell phone until about two years ago. Now I never leave home without it. Major universities are already holding online classes in it. If you were a computer programmer, wouldn't you at least consider using this market to employ your skills?
Have I been living under a rock? Should I take the red pill or the blue pill?
Wikipedia Article
[video=google;8051735465443594148]http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8051735465443594148[/video]
[video=google;-5182759758975402950]http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5182759758975402950[/video]
OK, I'm 24, and I thought I was at least aware of what's trendy online, but I had never heard of this until today. This is the Matrix folks! An interactive virtual world where you can create your own life, and use real money to buy things and make yourself over. Computer geeks programming items and selling them for real profit and making a living off of it. All kinds of questions of international law, taxes and copyrights, not to mention the moral and ethical implications of a virtual world. I'm not surprised that something like this has taken off, I'm just surprised that it is here now and I didn't know about it.
This is the kind of thing that I would be wary to let my kids get involved in (it's 18 and over now, but there is a teen version and little can be done to stop a kid from signing up under a fake identity), and I would caution others from getting involved in it. But it makes me wonder, with the growth of the internet and the blurring of lines between reality and virtual reality, will programs like this play major parts in our everyday lives regardless of whether or not we want them to? For instance, I never saw the need for a cell phone until about two years ago. Now I never leave home without it. Major universities are already holding online classes in it. If you were a computer programmer, wouldn't you at least consider using this market to employ your skills?
Have I been living under a rock? Should I take the red pill or the blue pill?
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