Week 4 - Blog Posting #7 -Second Life

I'm not a big fan of Second Life. The other night Gary Milton and I spent countless hours searching for our group. Not once during that time to I say to myself, "This is a must have project for interactivity." I find it cumbersome and not easy to use. I think the outfits and graphics are generic, and while the concept is awesome, the application leaves a lot to be desired. Since the beginning of my Master's program, I have been playing around in Second Life, but have never found it that fun.

Many of the features in it don't seem to be that interesting. I did enjoy learning about how beer is made, but for the most part it hasn't been all too exciting. I have visited many parts to include a nuclear reactor, and nothing truly moved me.

I still can’t see how anyone could conduct business on Second Life. I have tried to converse with people on it, and I find that unless both you and the person you’re speaking with his fluent in Second Life, the message you are relaying would be lost in fumbling the controls. I do think that if you are trying to show how something works, this would be an ideal way to do it. I just think the graphics have not caught up to the vision. I think with time, this could be a great places to conduct business.

However, I can say that I visited Camp Darfur. Everyone should have some knowledge about Darfur and the civil unrest and genocide that has plagued that region. It is sad, and makes you think, but the graphics they create don't do a tragedy like that justice. I think the graphics and controls make something as important as Darfur seem less important. I was too concerned about who was there, and how to move towards them that the background lost it's luster.