Second Life Viewpoint June 16, 2008
Posted by champion in : SL Introduction , 1 comment so farI believe that many people do not truly relate to Second Life. They not only worry about Second Life would be the place gathered people who disembody, but also easily make people become escapism. In my opinion it’s inevitable, don’t you see it constantly happens in this realistic society? Why we just don’t think about it as well.. In point of 3D interaction, do any actual needs exist?
When I first contact with internet, I always argue that sooner or later web interaction will develop into a 3D virtual reality, a world which does not exist in fact. Even in 8 years ago I made an advance to company about my idea, trying to realize the hope of virtual reality as earlier as possible.
If we don’t count in web2.0, the web interaction between Amazon.com and users is one of the best. However, did you ever think about when you go around in a Amazon shop, you might meet someone you don’t know but you share learning experiences or talk about what book is great to each other? It does not easily happen in reality but it does in Second Life. Did you ever think about that while you are not sleepy at night, you have a virtual call to your friends or children who study abroad far away, and you date them to meet at the coffee plaza in front of Amazon and then maybe go for a concert?
Or think about it again if someday the portal site were not just a site anymore, it becomed an airport in virtual. Except the security control of entering-leaving country, if you wanna go to mainland China from Taiwan, you might not go without throughing some stations in third area. Oh! my god!
As long as you put on your head mounted display, your eyesight will change at once. To enter a space which never exists, and develop into merchant and customers, employers and employees, teachers and students with someone who you might never meet in relaity, and even develop into friends, loves or couples through virtual rencounter, The world become more flat..
In reality a group CEO is taking a flight from Taipei to San Francisco to discuss a new cooperation.
In several hours after take off, he has in advance heard the latest briefing came from San Francisco RL in vitual head office’s meeting room with the related department’s heads who were in Vietnam and Shanghai. And he not only has made a final run-through on white board but also confirmed all matters. After arriving at SF he would meet with the other side directly. Although it is the first time they meet each other, they don’t’ feel strange at all because they had plenty of cooperation experience in virtual before this. Although it’s the first time being in SF, he is familiar with the streets and traditions of SF very much through the tour guide in virtual early.
Honestly, we are not far away from such a science plot and it has already happened. We can achieve it if we have a simple installment like Wii and a simultaneous drawing board. What do we lack except the reality level? Of course we don’t know this virtual reality just Second Life or not, but apparently Second Life plays an indispensable role on th way.
Pics: Second Life in virtual & Washington Sweden Embassy in reality (from http://www.saabvideos.com)
http://blogs.villamood.com/james/2008/04/07/245/
Second Life Game Type
Posted by champion in : SL Introduction , 2 comments
Earlier on blog someone asked me “is Second Life classified to MORPG game type or not” and “what’s the difference between Second Life and common fighting games”. Because I don’t know too much about all game types so I looked up Yahoo knowledge and also refer to many portal sites how they classify Second Life. It’s hard to avoid that many players associate Second Life with online games like “Lineage” or “World of Warcraft” when they first heard Second Life. Many people assumed that Second Life were the web version of “The Sims” as well. To aim at this part I made an introduction in detail at the post “Seconf Life Brief“, so we just only talk about game types here..
Actually I never regard Second Life as a kind of game. I always say it’s more suitable to see Second Life as a “3D interactive platform”.
But since Second Life definitely presents a game style, so let’s reserch Second Life and other game types and codewords.
“MORPG” According to the meaning of word itself , it should point Multi-user Online Role Playing Game. There is another kind of abbreviation is “MMORPG”, a more “Massive” is in front, I guess probably it points at Second Life this kind of large-scale Multi-user role playing game. But what is role playing? I used to think it means acting a role in a game story, the game like Second Life without setting the action, shouldn’t be the part of it? Then I check and find out the way that ID-hiding groups or interactive games are both called RPG. By this Second Life undoubtedly is a kind of RPG. As for the fighting game we ofter mention should be the part of SLG.
In Second Life some people go to specific fun area, they accouter themselves and divided into groups to fight. But it’s absolutely not online first-person shooter game. Just like occasionally we go to paintball field in real world. It’s only specific time and place so just to become SLG at times :).
But eventually I wanna remind everyone we should take Second Life as a 3D interactive platform, not merely a game.
Here are some references about the contrast of game type abbreviation:
ACT = Action Game
AVG = Advanture Game
FTG = Fighting Game
RCG = Race Game
RPG = Role Playing Game
SLG = Simulation Game
SPG = Sport Game
RTG = Rhythm Game
STG = Shooting Game
PZG = Puzzle Game
TBG = Table Game
ETC = ETC Game
http://blogs.villamood.com/james/2008/02/25/186/
Second Life Brief
Posted by champion in : SL Introduction , 2 commentsSo far the membership of Second Life is over fourteen million and it’s increasing fast.
January 2007, began from England and USA, eBay had announced that they would crack down on all virtual goods sales such as currency, clothes and weapons except Second Life.. “Second Life”, a 3D interactive platform published in July, 2003, was developed by Linden Lab. The reason we call it 3D interactive platform is we really can not simply consider Second Life as a game. To the people who get used to playing online games, I think they would be at a loss as to what to do when they first face Second Life. In Second Life you don’t have to waste time on upgrading, and there is no target and mission inworld ,either. It’s great for you to “game” your second life, but more and more people nourish a dream with entrepreneurial attitude to do efforts to Second Life. Some people even expand their Second Life’s fruition to their career in real life.
A resident named Kermitt Quirk earned a great deal of money by creating a simple game called “Tringo” in Second Life, even Tringo was moved to real world to keep on making money. A Chinese descent person named Anshe Chung is the most famous estate developer in this virtual world. Anshe is not her real name, she teaches in Germany in real world. Because of fast expanding of business, Anshe also grouped a team for estate design of Second Life in China in real world. She made 250 thousand dollars in one year and that also made her become the magazine cover of “Fortune” and “business”.
Besides, many well-known enterprises including Reuters and IBM, they all station in Second Life 3D interactive platform. On one side they provided employees for cross-area
interaction and video environment, on the other side they expanded their virtual route. Even Dior, before their new-season products being published, the products were displayed in Second Life first, and Dior followed up by a “real-life” show at the Orangerie Museum. The group “Starwood”, who owned well-known hotels like Sheraton and so on, also moved a hotel from real world to Secomd Life. In fact this Aloft hotel willl be completed in 2008, Starwood wished to make use of this virtual hotel in advance to observe avatars how to use the facilities, at the same time collect the appreciation about Aloft.
“Second Life” is just like real life, there is no any scenery and story known and planed in advance, Linden Lab just provide a 3D platform for residents. All people, matters, places and stuff were created, built, developed by residents themselves. If you definitely wanna ask me what’s the limits in Second Life? I think that might be your imagination.
If you still hope that Second Life were a kind of online game you can play for fun, in that case what Second Life can provide for you is the same as real world can. The recreation services and products created and developed by players themselves are various. You could accouter yourself and go to battle-area for a fight. If you tire of those fighting games, besides recreation ground, you can go dancing, encountering, parachuting, surfing,
skiing, boating, vehicle-speeding or just drive a helicopter and fighter into the sky. As long as you have money, even Transformers could be your own. There are also people buying lands, building airports, gardens, villas in Second Life in order to atone the unsatisfied creature comforts in real world. It is also rife with many adult places here just like our real world, um.. that might make you lose your mind so let’s not pay too much attention to this part.
As a matter of fact, so far some area’s people who concentrates on Second Life is as little as you see. I think the most important reason might be its English environment. Although Linden Lab has provided language-selection, but some are still used in English(like the names of object and item), however it’s easier. Communication in mother tongue is common between friends and relatives(actually every language is ok as long as you both understand). Besides as a result of not knowing the opposite too much, so general conversation is mainly English. It’s great that conversation by “chat” needs no listening and speaking ability and you can make use of your electronic dictionary spontaneously. Sometimes you don’t focus to each other but never mind, that’s what always happened on me..
Whether English operation or conversation with foreigners might not cause any problem. But in the beginning, I think you may confuse with how to get clear of Second Life from those different words on secondlife.com. To know what’s this? How to start? What’s the fun? Otherwise who would be so silly to crazy about it(in face I’ m one of them..)? That’s the most important reason why I seted up villamood.com(for Taiwanese..). Alone in Second Life, I barely chated with people and made some friends, but still something lack when I get along with these foreigners. If you need Chinese explanation about Second Life, you can go around my blog. I will continue increasing the contents, if you have any question you can use the discussion area or reply the post, I will answer you as soon as possible.
