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University Students Get A (Second) Life

by Tolu Ogbechie
11/20/2007

University student Matt Griffin has two lives, one in this life and another in Second Life.

Three or four times a week, he logs on to Second Life, an online community built and owned by its residents and joins his avatar ‘Rufio Rau’ to the other 9.7 million avatars in Second Life.

Second Life has been around since 2003 and now more people are logging on. Whether they do it to experiment or to find solace or as an alternative to Facebook, new avatars appear daily.

An avatar in Second Life can buy land, build houses, start up a business, have relationships, get married, do most things you can do in this life, and do them looking better than the average person.

When you get tired of living in this reality, you can shut your door, open up your computer and enter another world.

“There are different opportunities for an avatar in Second Life,” Griffin said, “and some people do feel more comfortable in Second Life and even spend more time in the Second Life world than they do walking around our own.”

At 4:15 p.m. on Sept. 26, 2007, the Linden dollar, the official currency in Second Life, was trading for 269.8 Linden dollars to the United States dollar. Second Life is so important to people that in August 2007 more than 300,000 people spent close to 30,000 United States dollars in Second Life.

What do they do with their money? The opportunities are limitless: they buy land, they go to bars and buy drinks, they buy houses and furniture for their houses, they attend concerts and everything else people do in real life.

“Many residents develop a friend base in Second Life that is completely separate from their real life friends, with some men creating female avatars and vice versa,” said Griffin, who also does research in Second Life.

The regular Joe can be the most muscular, handsome, suave and perfectly animated avatar in all of Second Life; the shy girl can be a disco queen.

Here lies the draw of virtual worlds. One can have a 'real life' in a simulated world. You have the chance to become someone else.

Some people see Second Life as a trend that will eventually die, while others believe it is the next ‘big thing’ for the Internet.

“I don't know how long the interest will hold,” said Kelly Jones, a senior at the university, “I think it is popular because it is new and different and has a psychological hold.”

But to some, Second Life has become vital and is continuing to grow. It has such a strong following that it requires its own online newsletter, “The Second Life Herald,” and almost 10,000 blogs and blogposts have been written about it. Real world businesses like Toyota, Sony BMG and Armani are opening up businesses in Second Life. The university has a course in the New Media Institute taught by Dr. Scott Shamp in Second Life, who sees it as a new way to view and interact with information on the Internet.

“Second Life may be vital to coming generations,” said Alicin Hendricks, Senior, “It is more interactive and that seems to be where the Internet trend is headed.”

It has grown into the strongest virtual reality currently online. Joining Second Life is free. Log into the website, download the software and create your avatar. Now you are set to explore, create, connect and compete with any avatar you see.

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