Because recently, even in the German blog scene, people are dealing with Second Life, and because, of course, the naysayers and non-understanders are expressing their opinions and everyone thinks they have a view - without actually delving deeper into the matter (sometimes simply stating that they don't intend to do so at all, but of course, one still has an opinion), here's something from someone who has had a second life there since February 2006.
What is Second Life? Does anyone still know MUD and MOO? Text-based platforms for online role-playing games with many users, instead of many stupid computer-controlled monsters? Places where the troll under the bridge was played by another person and you could actually haggle over the bridge price? No? Okay, then the explanation will be harder.
Second Life could be briefly described as an online chat with a 3D world. This describes the technology - but not the content. One could call it a virtual world - but it lacks some immersive concepts. One could also refer to it as a 3D construction platform - but one where other people run around. Or of course, as the largest virtual sex playground in the world - although surprisingly much non-sex takes place there. Music platform for joint internet life music events? Also an aspect. Business platform with micropayments? Yeah, that too.
Second Life is what the users make of it. That's it. If you don't bring any ideas and find it boring and stupid from the start - well, you will also find exactly that there. Boredom and stupidity (hey, and there's tons of that!). But that's exactly what makes the charm - Second Life is a platform. Not a finished game. Here, nothing is presented to anyone without their own engagement.
What does the platform have to offer?
- Micropayment based on the convertible Linden Dollar (approx. 270 L$ are 1 US$) with transaction history and other necessary basic functions
- Communication system with local chat (in the sense of avatars standing together in an area), instant messaging (connection outside the system unfortunately still very clunky) and group tools for classic group formation
- 3D construction tools for relatively simple creation of 3D models
- Full ability to script these 3D models to create interactions, movement models, etc.
- Physics simulation (only Havok 1 - quite minimal) for objects that can consist of up to 31 basic building blocks (also applied to avatars)
- Vehicle simulation via various vehicle models and parameters
- Basic combat functions to realize shooters
- Social networking functions via profiles and friends lists
- Free configurability of the avatar via simple slider systems and optional attachments (and yes, some body parts are realized through attachments)
That was just off the top of my head. I'm sure I've forgotten a lot. The exciting part is not the features themselves - but the integration of the features (combat with airplanes you built yourself anyone?), and the use of all the tools in a world with other users.
This aspect of the "world" needs to be explained further. Because in other systems, the avatar is often tied to a world - in WoW, for example, you can have an avatar transferred, but that's not a walk in the park. In Second Life, all regions (simulators, short Sim) form a continuous world map. Large parts of the Sims are grouped into continents - here, an avatar with all equipment and parts simply walks over the border into another Sim. And we're talking about thousands of Sims (where one Sim covers 256x256 "meters"). The continents are built by Lindenlab (the manufacturer) (two large continents, one in the north, one in the south) or by users who have built entire companies around it (Dreamland and Otherland are probably the largest).
Other Sims are isolated or realized in small groups as islands - they have no direct connection to the continents but can be reached by teleportation at any time by anyone. A nice example is Caledon - an island of now 13 Sims held in a Victorian theme. The islands are usually in private ownership or belong to company presences (IBM has set up 12 Sims as an island very close to Caledon).
Access to the system itself is free - users can do a lot without paying for anything. Here's what comes to mind:
- Attending music concerts (more on that later)
- Exploring the area (unfortunately, barriers are often set up on the continents, so exploring is often clunky there)
- Building in so-called sandboxes - Sims where object creation is enabled for everyone and enough resources for building are available (more on that later)
- Normal chat functionality and group formation - there are interest groups in SL for everything and anything
- Digging through freebie shops where you can find a whole lot of things for free that you can play with
- Programming scripts and playing with the vehicle functions, physics simulation, etc.
- Cybersex in free sex clubs
Of course, some things cost money - if you want to buy something from user shops, you have to pay. Uploading textures costs a small fee. And land - land is the resource in SL par excellence and costs money.
Important when shopping - everything in SL, including the shops and their contents, is created by other users. Although the Lindenlab people (Linden as a last name) have also created content, they are in the minority compared to user content. All Sims, all worlds, many continents and islands - almost everything you see, cities, streets, clothes, vehicles, airplanes, avatars - all created by users. Shops belong to other users, and you buy your avatar clothes from them - not from Lindenlab.
Textures uploads are different - the payment goes to Lindenlab. Land is divided - the continents of Lindenlab are of course paid to Lindenlab, those on user Sims are paid to their owners.
Why do you need land? Land is the basis for the most important resource in Second Life: the prims. Prims are the basic building blocks from which all built elements consist. Every house, every airplane, weapons, beer mugs, wine barrels, chairs, tables - everything consists of prims. Land defines the number of prims someone is allowed to use in a Sim. The base number is 117 prims for 512 square meters - larger land areas accordingly more. A full Sim can occupy a maximum of 15,000 prims, then it's full. So if you want to build things, you need access to land where corresponding prims are free - these are, on the one hand, your own lands, on the other hand (as mentioned above) the sandboxes. In sandboxes, usually a few thousand prims are available for free use, the region is cleared regularly. If you want to put something there permanently, you need to own land.
You get land from Lindenlab or other users. Land can be Lindenland - then you pay a one-time purchase price to the current owner and monthly "taxes" to Lindenlab (for the cost share in hosting, so to speak). Or you can get land on private Sims, both payments go to the owner (and he pays for the Sim to Lindenlab). Or you rent somewhere - then the money also goes to the owner, but you are only a tenant in that sense (pure rent is sometimes cheaper to get, but you often share the prims with several people).
No desire to build? No interest in 3D construction? How about music then? In Second Life, many people have gathered who make music - and live. The musician plays at home and sends the music via microphone and Shoutcast plugin (Apple users like to use Nicecast, Windows users Outcast or Winamp, Linux users Icecast) to a Shoutcast server on the net. The URL of the stream on this Shoutcast server is set in the settings of the land parcel on which the musician plays (for music you also need land - but there are a lot of free music clubs). When a user goes to this parcel, the stream is offered and played via Quicktime. Together with other users in the same corner, you can then listen to music together, discuss it, fool around - just what you would do in the real world. Only here you might be sitting with Australians, Japanese, Americans, and Europeans in one place and listening to music together...
Of course, you can also consider SL simply as a dollhouse and equip your avatar, go shopping (costs money, but you can take on jobs or simply convert hard currency into Linden$), and have fun. Dollhouses are not something unusual, and a virtual one doesn't need to be tidied away.
I have already pointed out cybersex several times, I won't go into it in more detail, I think everyone knows how it works. And if not, maybe Second Life with its conditional anonymity is the opportunity to try it out.
Business is of course a very popular topic outside of SL - sometimes one could think there is nothing else there besides cybersex. It is true in one way, but it is also not true - as already shown, there is a lot more to do there. But if you want a business, what do you do?
- Graphic designers and painters sell digital reproductions of their works in Second Life. There are several regions entirely dedicated to supporting artists. One of my favorite painters in Second Life is Filthy Fluno - funny guy, great painting.
- Fashion designers (and people with a knack for the subject) equip the virtual dollhouse with clothing. And some of the things are really amazing.
- Bobby Fairweather started SecondTunes - a way for musicians to sell their music in Second Life.
- People with a passion for certain times build replicas of historical furniture or buildings and sell them.
- Scripters and hackers sell gadgets of all kinds - from weapons for the combat areas to useful helpers to all kinds of wild things (e.g., an animation system for prim-based sculptures, model trains).
- Sailing ships, yachts, cars, airplanes - in the vehicle area, there are quite a few providers who deliver nice things there.
- The utensils for the repeatedly mentioned cybersex should also work quite well.
Can you live from business in Second Life? Yes. Definitely. It's a lot of work, but I know some who have their main source of income there. And we're talking about quite considerable amounts from which one can already live quite well. But it's a lot of work. Most will rather do it for fun or as a small contribution to at least have free land ownership.
So if someone says that you can't do anything in Second Life, that it's all nonsense or only commercial or just a marketing gimmick - well, they simply haven't looked inside, haven't dealt with it more closely. Asking what you can do there is like asking what you can do in normal life - only in Second Life, many restrictions from real life do not exist. There are also hardly any rules except the Terms of Service - you have to find your place yourself, not much is prescribed.
The system is complex, the software often buggy and clunky, crashes happen, server downtimes, problems with the tools - all correct. Nevertheless, it's fun if you keep in mind what you have experienced there, if you have been there for a while. It eats time - so you should really consider whether that's what you want. Because once you're really into it, it's hard to let go again.
What do I do in Second Life? Building, music events (sometimes organization, often participation), DJ, and chatting for hours. But definitely mostly building. I am an inworlder - I separate between inside and outside, therefore no hints about my inworld existence here. I don't hide it, but I do maintain the boundary between both sides. Others see it differently and strongly connect both sides - this applies above all of course to artists, musicians, etc., but also to business people.
But whatever you do there, the mantra "Have Fun" should be at the top.
And to the critics: if you're not willing to have fun there, don't expect to find or see any. I have no problem with you not seeing any meaning in Second Life - I also don't see any meaning in these endless boring meta-discussions about the meaning of blogging or in the affected self-aggrandizement of some alpha bloggers (or those who consider themselves to be). However, I also don't try to tell everyone how stupid their hobby is. That it's only stupid because they do what they do and that only sociopaths and damaged people can do it...
One could also quote Dieter Nuhr: "if you have no idea: just shut up"
