Kira Johnson's Reading Diary:

1.) Linden Lab cracks down on Second Life casino ads
By Adam Reuters
(http://secondlife.reuters.com/stories/2007/04/05/linden-lab-cracks-down-on-second-life-casino-ads/)

This article was interesting in that games like Second Life have created a whole new realm. In that this place is fictitious yet occupied by the characters of actual human beings, it is hard for lawmakers to distinguish was is and isn’t legal with regard to such issues as online gambling.

2.) Study on Second Life and the pursuit of happiness
By Adam Reuters
(http://secondlife.reuters.com/stories/2006/12/12/study-on-second-life-and-the-pursuit-of-happiness/)

The study that this article discusses runs contrary to what I would have expected about Second Life users. In that my perception of those who use such a program would be more inclined to have problems with face to face social interaction, the article says that they are in fact happy people and it is also the use of this program which adds to their happiness.

3.) Congressional Democrats’ agenda gets SL stage
By Adam Reuters
(http://secondlife.reuters.com/stories/2007/01/02/congressional-democrats-agenda-gets-sl-stage/)

This article talks about the use of Second Life as a means for Congressional Democrats to reach out in a non-partisan way, especially to Republicans. I was surprised that a program such as second life (which I had never heard of before this class) would be attempting to make such strides in the political realm.

4.) Virtual reality TV: Big Brother to launch in SL
By Adam Reuters
(http://secondlife.reuters.com/stories/2006/11/06/virtual-reality-tv-big-brother-to-launch-in-sl/)

This article brought to me a new idea of the concept of reality tv. While most people recognize the scripted nature of such programs on television, the SL version made me think that possibly people would be able to present themselves in a more realistic way.

5.) Europe takes lead in Second Life users
By Adam Reuters
(http://secondlife.reuters.com/stories/2007/02/09/europe-takes-lead-in-second-life-users/)

I was surprised not only by the fact that a vast majority of SL users are from Europe, but also that a majority of users are over the age of 25. This was interesting to me in that I would associate game usage as being something that the younger age set would be most interested in.

6.) Charity raises funds with homeless avatar
By Adam Reuters
(http://secondlife.reuters.com/stories/2006/12/20/charity-raises-funds-with-homeless-avatar/)

I found it interesting that some people on SL are interested in raising awareness for certain causes, rather than simply playing the game. It ties into my who fascination with this sense of a dual reality which is at hand when one plays this game.

Articles:

“A Rape in Cyberspace” by Julian Dibbell

The most important thing which I took away from this article was that there are some people who feel like committing a crime in cyberspace on such programs as Second Life not only warrants punishment, but also invokes a true sense of pain on its real life (RL) victims. Although the rape that occurred in the virtual LambdaMOO house didn’t result in physical violation of anyone involved, it was truly an emotional violation of the participants which caused a “woman in Seattle. . . [to cry] posttraumatic tears.” Though the act wasn’t physical, it was in fact a form of sexual harassment, and that is what some argue should warrant punishment.

“Chapter Five:Multi-User Dungeons and Alternate Identities: The Virtual Community”

The beginning of this article really bothered me when it talked about the hundreds of hours that one can put into the creation of a character. I wanted to shout at them and tell them that those precious hours could have been used in a much better way…in real life!!! While people in the article defend their game-playing, I think of all the good that could be done in the real world with their time and energy. How about volunteering for a charity…helping others? Although I think that the idea of “dissolving boundaries of identity” is interesting, I feel like people would be much better served to do so in the real world…I think it is a truer test of character to explore one’s identity in the real world rather than behind the comfort of a glowing screen.