tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4485285597118810468.post1801004814275852500..comments2023-06-08T06:39:23.013-07:00Comments on Counterpower: Second Life: value?Marc Bousquethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00994490111371549591noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4485285597118810468.post-83305343138193643082008-04-15T21:35:00.000-07:002008-04-15T21:35:00.000-07:00Some folks don't -- for whatever reason -- recogni...Some folks don't -- for whatever reason -- recognize or value the fact that Second Life has its own emerging culture and economy, and is, in psychological terms, for a growing number of residents, a real "alternative place" for conducting business and spending leisure time.<BR/><BR/>Those who have difficulty with this concept might instead simply look at SL as a platform -- globally connected, multimedia-enabled, intrinsically free-to-use for simple residents -- whose power and flexibility exceeds that of any commercial conferencing system now extant; and whose power to facilitate and offer access to immersive content is unmatched.<BR/><BR/>We just did a business-to-business event in Second Life for 2100 registered audience, on the topic of metaverse development and marketing. Our audience -- most of them executives and technology creatives in key positions with the Fortune 1000, large universities, the US government (multiple divisions), state governments and major institutions (including the MacArthur, Ford, Wallace and Gates foundations, for example), spent six full days with us, listening to live presentations from folks like Mitch Kapor ... and actually hanging around to talk with him, afterward. It was all free (to attendees, not free to our sponsors Sun and Cisco). Nobody had to leave their desks. And the carbon cost for the whole event was 333% smaller than for an equivalent "real" event in a major destination city.<BR/><BR/>In the course of attending, our guests talked among themselves, networked, shared contact information, made deals, and did everything else people expect to do at real-world events. All that was missing was the cost, the disruption, and the environmental damage of conventional business travel.<BR/><BR/>Dude - that's profound. And it makes this stuff like gravity. So my suggestion is: stop laughing, spend more time in these environments, and figure out the appeal. Because in ten years, you may not be able to get a white-collar job without fluent 3D skills. And in the advanced reaches of tech, education, marketing, communications and media, they'll laugh at you if you can't swim like a fish in these environments.Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09795330872701430759noreply@blogger.com