Second Life Virtual 'Realities' More Real Than Ever

Recently I ran across an article at CNN.com about a Second Life couple whose online affairs resulted in a divorce. My first thought was "what took the media so long to figure this out?" But my second thought was "is this really what should be the focus of virtual world realities?"

Second Life virtual worlds have been rivaling reality for some time now, but sexual affairs in the virtual world should be the least of the media's concerns. Instead the media should start focusing on questions like how a virtual world could transform our realities in the "real world", including perhaps even our economic future but most especially, our personal and professional lives as well as how we think about the world around us.

In case you are not familiar with the Second Life world, it is a virtual reality "game" in which users log into their account (a made up first and last name, mimicking real life). Once logged in, users create their own virtual "person" or avatar. The avatar interacts in this virtual world in ways very similar to the real world. Money is exchanged through the purchase of Lindens. There is even an official exchange that handles all the buying and selling of Linden currency.

Lindens can be used to purchase land, which the court has recently ruled is just as binding and legal a purchase as in the real world. There are malls to purchase clothing, jewelry and furniture. Virtual in-world books and magazines sell advertisements, or are designed to teach users how to program small scripts to create anything from a teleporter (an elevator without the pesky earthly physical requirements), a door opener and security for your virtual home, or shoes that are programmed to make a clacking sound on the floor as your avatar walks around shopping. My stints in the Second Life world have included creating my own art store, in which I took my digital photography and photoshop creations and created virtual world paintings, photography and other artistic efforts.

Last summer I was involved with the Second Life Shakespeare Company - a group dedicated to bringing ShakespeareShakespearean live performances to the virtual world. As a performer, my avatar dressed the part, while I provided the voice through a microphone which streamed my voice act into the virtual world for everyone to hear. I moved my avatar around the stage when necessary at the same time.

A person can get lost in the myriad of opportunities, including underwater sea adventures (real looking fish, coral reefs and plant life included), museums, classrooms, art, music, technology, anything in the real world, is available, in some form, in Second Life.

Of course there are many opportunities available in which there is no real life corollary, such as when my daughter and I went whale surfing, or when a friend and I took a rose petal flying tour of one of the most spectacular recreations of a rain forest I've ever seen. In Second Life one is not bound by mere roads and sidewalks - flying is an art form in and of itself, and when fully immersed, one has to wonder why God didn't allow humans the same privilege.

One can, however, get too much of a good thing. The world allows you to immerse yourself in something that is strikingly real, yet can suck all the "reality" out of your real life world. In addition, there are the added "realities" of virtual life worlds.

For many, the virtual world is nothing more than a game, but for many others, the virtual world is just as "real" as the real world. This is where the problems begin. As an example, shortly after creating my first avatar in Second Life I met a wonderful gal who helped me learn how to maneuver in the virtual world, told me how currency worked, where to get the best deal on land, and what to avoid while I was there.

Our friendship grew very close and, because I was having a particularly rough time in the "real world" her friendship was at the time a God-send. At some point we realize that she also lived in the same state, so we made plans to meet. A few days later my friend arrives at my home, but instead of the "fun loving mother of two" there stood a man in his late 60s, cane in hand.

After my brain sorted out that this "reality" was obviously not the same as the one I had built online in my virtual world, I had to face the fact that things are not always as they seem. Although I may take everyone I meet online at "face value" there is no way of knowing for certain who is lurking behind that male or female facade.

So the experience of the couple in the CNN article is something that doesn't surprise me at all, and in fact is something that should begin to raise warning bells, but not for the reasons one may think.

There is much speculation that the virtual world will be so competitive with the "real world" at some point in the near future, that it behooves us to begin thinking about how this could affect everyday real life. The virtual world has the potential to change reality for everyone, whether we like it or not. One such reality is the "real" virtual world economy that has developed as a result of this technology. Is it possible that our world economy could be completely transformed by something that is, technically, not real? There seems to be no question that these virtual worlds will transform everything else.

Instead of focusing on the trivialities of a Second Life sexual affair, perhaps the news media would be more benefited by starting to ask the questions that are really news worthy, such as how this virtual world could encroach the realities we today take for granted.