Seminar Brief

During the seminar we talked a lot about how these virtual reality worlds can help someone in their future.  Even though many believed that their experiences can help develop communication skills, I do not think it is an acceptable way to create people skills.  You may be able to communicate through words and organize groups of unfamiliar people but talking to random avatars online will not help someone with their face-to-face interactions necessary to get far in today's world.  A lot of business situations especially rely on in-face person interaction that instead of just word-filled emails.  One example everyone will experience is a job interview.  Personally, I have had to deal with vet school applications lately and someone might look really good on paper but it all comes down to the personal interview in order to see how they interact with others.  The people skills I have acquired from my personal interactions everyday is detrimental to getting me where I want to be in the future.

On the other hand, of course, I do believe the technological aspects of virtual worlds can help build electronic skills with technology like the internet.  There are so many things we can use the internet for including information and communication and without the skills to search for topics of interest on Google or IM people with AIM we would be considered technologically challenged and therefore may not be able to get as far in the business world.  Having advanced computer skills is a very valuable thing to have on someone's resume.

I really liked the point someone said about virtual worlds being used as entertainment and I really agree with that.  I did not know why the people in the rape article took the situation so seriously.  When you join a virtual world and create an avatar you have to be aware of the risk of harassment and if you are not a strong enough person to ignore it then you should not be on the site in the first place.  These sites should only be used for entertainment meaning they should be filled with people who create their avatars that are completely separate from their real lives because when people start acting like their real selves it borders on reality and not virtual reality.