The Avatar Project. Finally, A Practical Use for Second Life - ReadWriteWeb. When you think of virtual worlds, the first one that probably pops into your head is Second Life, but in reality, there are a number of different virtual worlds out there.
There are worlds for socializing, worlds for gaming, even worlds for e-learning. But one thing that most virtual worlds have in common is that they are places for play, not practicality. (Yes, even the e-learning worlds are designed with elements of "fun" in mind). Outside of some reports that virtual worlds will replace web conferencing in the enterprise, we haven't seen a lot of innovation in this space which would make businesses sit up and take notice. However, that may be about to change thanks to new software that lets you perform data visualization and manipulation techniques within the virtual world environment. About Glasshouse How it Works: CICP (Think HTTP for Virtual Worlds) Data Viz for Anyone: From Spreadsheets to Biotech Depending on company size, there are three different levels of service available. Virtual world offers new locale for problem so. University Park, Pa. -- Second Life, a virtual world created in 2003 by Linden Labs, currently boasts more than 12 million users worldwide who go there for everything from college recruiting to shopping.
Now, Penn State researchers are investigating how virtual teams can better solve real world problems by collaborating in Second Life. Nathan McNeese, undergraduate, psychology; Gerry Santoro, assistant professor, and Michael McNeese, professor, information sciences and technology and psychology, all from Penn State; and Mark Pfaff, assistant professor of media arts and sciences, Indiana University-Indianapolis, created an experiment in which students formed teams and were asked to solve a problem, posed by a video, using different meeting styles.
The researchers set up 10 teams to work face-to-face, 10 teams to work through teleconferencing and 12 teams to work as groups of avatars in Second Life. An avatar is a computer user's representation of him- or herself. Linden Lab: Investor strategies and profitability : Kzero. Second Life’s user economy shows strong growth. Second Life’s user economy shows strong growth Wed Aug 27, 2008 9:55am PDT By Eric Reuters SECOND LIFE, August 26 (Reuters) - The real-world economy may be slipping into recession, but the global slowdown isn’t impacting Second Life. According to recently released company statistics, Linden Lab’s in-world economy is larger than ever. Over 61,000 avatars earned more Linden dollars (Second Life’s in-world currency) in July than they spent. User hours grew for the fourth consecutive month to 34.7 million in July, also a new record. Economic activity grew briskly. The sole dark spot for Second Life was the continuing decline in premium accounts.
The principal benefit of a premium account is land-ownership privileges on Second Life’s mainland, where avatars have neighbors and enjoy a sense of community. In recent months Linden Lab has announced a series of beautification and zoning initiatives in an attempt to restore user interest in the mainland. High risks, high rewards in virtual finance. High risks, high rewards in virtual finance Thu Dec 6, 2007 12:47pm PST By Eric Reuters SECOND LIFE, Dec 4 (Reuters) - In many ways, the SL Investor’s Bank (SLIB) is like any financial institution, with ATMs, mortgage applications and friendly staff. But the bank offers rates that would make a real-world investor stagger: more than 92 percent annually on a termed deposit. The promised returns assume, of course, that the bank will still be solvent when the investment comes due. “Second Life banking isn’t safe, by any means at all!”
Even as Linden Lab shies away from acknowledging the “virtual economy,” over the past year Second Life has acquired many of the instruments of a sophisticated financial sector. But there is a clear downside. How do banks like SLIB cover the outsize returns they promise to investors? But to veteran observers of Second Life finance, who have heard similar rationales from Ginko and other failed banks, the purported business model rings false. “It looks like a Ponzi. Communist Robot - Where do you stand on the future? Second Life's 2nd value: Testing ideas. Virtual Pedophilia Report Bad News For Second Life. Giving your Facebook profile a Second Life. If you are like me, you probably have some of your Second Life friends among your Facebook friends.
And until recently, we had no good way of connecting the two worlds. But now we can; and there isn't just one, but two Facebook applications that can help you with that. Second FriendsThe first app (by release order) is called Second Friends and was developed by Art Fossett(I'm using the developer's SL names in both cases). The app lets you display your avatar name and picture and a list of your Facebook friends that are using Second Friends on your Facebook profile. To use the app you need to do two things: you need to add the app on Facebook, and you need to pick up a personal key at an in-world kiosk on Eduserv island (you can reset the app and get a new key anytime).You can then enter the key and your avatar name in the Second Friends form in Facebook. Second Life in Education » educationaluses. CSI:NY Comes To Second Life Wednesday. Second Life is bracing itself for an influx of new members this coming week with the long awaited episode of CSI:NY does Second Life to be shown in the United States on Wednesday.
The episode will see Mac Taylor (Gary Sinise) entering Second Life to pursue a killer who has killed a Second Life user in a case of virtual stalking gone too far. CSI:NY fans will be encouraged to join Second Life and investigate the case by following a link on the CBS website. CSI:NY will have three options for CSI-related inworld activities. The first option will allow viewers to walk around virtual New York buildings and visit a CSI lab and play forensic games. The second option consists of a game called “Murder by Zuiker,” a unique murder plot which can be solved by users finding clues. The big tie-in gives new users the ability to become CSI investigators, complete with field kit and tools, and are given a chance to interview suspects and to solve the murder featured in the actual CSI:NY episode.