Part 7

Virtual worlds, such as Second Life, have many professional implications as well. Because it can be completely self-paced, it’s great for tutorials, training, and the development of skills. This can be very valuable for businesses as well as job seekers looking to add and develop new talents and experiences. It’s also a useful tool with presentations, panels, and discussions. Professionals are able to meet virtually with accommodation to busy schedules and cross-continental members. In addition, productions would be able to test out new product designs. A virtual prototype would be able to be designed and user-tested. Members of these virtual worlds would be able to give their feedback and provide valuable market research. Other businesses that may benefit include architectural design, modeling, interior design, and urban planning.
Also, a person might exercise a second language in a virtual world. It’d be able to give written as well as verbal communication practice. This allows for cultures to connect effortlessly, giving a whole cultural immersion. Besides, language barriers, virtual worlds also allow for cultural exchange and virtual tourism. Thought it may be purely virtual, the essence of a society can still be represented.
Everyone is capable of benefiting from these societal implications. At times, there’s a divide between technological ability and comfort. However, the aptitude to adopt such technology is there if the user is willing to learn. Informing people about the social and professional benefits will encourage them and provide interest.

Aside from the benefits of implementing second life into businesses, second life is a great recreational tool as well. Flying around space, meeting people from other countries, getting a house at twenty-on, all seems like a dream. However it isn’t. Virtual worlds have created new opportunities for people to become someone other than the person they are at their nine to five. Creating an account in second life helps create an anonymous new you, or avatar should we say. Besides having the ability to sit in your sweatpants, on a Tuesday night in Wisconsin, and go to the Aftershock night club in San Francisco, Second life has a lot more to offer for an avatars social life. Given our social debut to second life we had the opportunity to see what this new virtual craze was all about, and why people might prefer it to meeting new people in person.

In the Module 6 article by Jackson, it explains the optimistic hopes for information technology, explaining that the internet will hopefully facilitate a more equitable distribution of social, economic and political goods and services.” (p.142). Joining the mainstream virtual world of Second Life individuals have the ability to become more social under their anonymous identity and become a part of a virtual society. Not having the social anxiety of meeting someone in person, socializing in a virtual community or group creates a less stressful environment. Second life allows people to interact and communicate through chatting with people across the world, for free. Having the ability to fly around a digital world, visit the apple store, check up on the news, or even go to the extent of visiting an exotic club, second life can cater to any individual, or avatar. Moreover, the use of Linden Dollars is available to buy land, houses, clothes and so forth. The more comfortable people become using the internet and virtual worlds such as second life, the higher the possibility of a “digital divide” disappearing. The international Linden Lab creation of second life gives individuals an outlet from their normal lives, but they can still live a highly social life online.

Despite Jackson’s findings that the use of internet amongst different races and genders (primarily African Americans and Women) with low incomes showed a similar low usage amongst African Americans as well as European Americans, that held similar levels of education as well as income. There are roughly thirteen million accounts as of March 2008.

Second life has the ability to benefit organizations as well as fit into peoples everyday lives for fun. The avatar alter-ego is a fun new way to meet people and see new places, all in the comfort of your home.