It seems that technology has allowed for new ways for people to socialize, form and maintain relationships, and access information. Now, virtual worlds have far surpassed any means of alternate communications. Though the foundation of virtual worlds is mainly fictional, these alternate worlds provide practically everything the real world provides. This is possibly why these worlds have the tendency to become so life consuming for so many people.
I was able to find a blog post that comments on the extent of virtual worlds and the people who frequent them. “Millions of people around the world today spend portions of their lives in online virtual worlds.” They go on to explain the endless possibilities that virtual worlds offer including buying property, falling in love, and going to bars or concerts to name a few. These possibilities are more or less the same as those of real life, but they are accessed though a computer and are often fictional. Still, many people become greatly involved in virtual worlds. So much so that Tom Boellstorff studied the virtual world, Second Life, in the same way that anthropologists studied traditional (real world) cultures; by entering Second Life, experiencing the virtual world and observing interactions.
I am intrigued that virtual worlds have become so predominate that they are actually being studied by anthropologists. Though I am beginning to grasp how extensive virtual worlds can be, I have never viewed Second Life as its own culture. This shows that the involvement in virtual worlds is growing, and people are taking notice. I would argue that face to face interaction should hold precedence to socializing via the internet, but for many people Second Life is far from secondary.
Related Link: http://www.experientia.com/blog/category/virtual-world/
1 comment:
I think, though I dont participate in many on line communities outside of class and facebook, that it's interesting that you can communicate with people half way around the world. One nice value from cmc is the cultural versatility that isnt nessecarially possible in real life. you mention interactions on these virtual communities, but I personally can't compare real life interactions with internet. I just dont precieve how you could ever compare meeting someone in a virtual bar and a real bar.I geuss that applications such as second life has become a cluture of it's own, wether people want to accecpt it or not.
Post a Comment