Experimenting with Second Life

I really enjoyed this aspect of Second Life, mainly because I find it to be somewhat similar to The Sims 3. I enjoy creating and designing my Sims, and I also enjoyed experimenting with the different outfits, hair styles, and body types in Second Life. Here is a picture of my original avatar I created when I first started Second Life. I really like this outfit and hair style, and was hesitant to create a new avatar! Even though I did not want to "get rid of" this avatar, I did create a new one to experiment with. Here is a picture of the new "original" avatar I selected before making any changes to her clothes and looks. I decided to first look through my inventory in the library folder to see if I could find something I liked to experiment with. I tried on a few different selections, and finally decided on the female musician outfit. I was not a big fan of this look, which is why I decided to experiment with it. As I got going, I decided to start with changing her physical appearance. After I got that all changed up, I was actually pretty satisfied with how she looked. After trying on different clothes initially, I decided I did not want to mess with that anymore. Here is the picture of my second avatar's finished product. Overall, I did enjoy experimenting with Second Life's avatar creation.

Second Life, Round 2!

As I started the second tutorial, I was interested in getting into the "hang" of this. Being able to explore a new location with guidance was a great experience for me. I enjoyed learning about what I can do in Second Life. I even was able to interact with another resident! I also learn best by doing, so this was a great learning opportunity for me to experience. First, I just explored the signs, reading what they said and doing some of their suggestions. Once I finished the guided tour, I explored the island a little. I went downstairs, chatted with another resident, and then walked (and ran) around the island to check out other locations. I captured two photos during this experience; one of me at the beginning before starting the tutorial. The second at a location that I thought looked pretty interesting.

Second Life Intro

After completing the first tutorial for Second Life, I would have to say I am not quite hooked yet. It does seem intriguing, however, I just do not see this as something that I would enjoy to use. Second Life is an online virtual world. To start, you sign up (for free) and create an avatar, which you use to explore the (virtual) world, meet other residents, socialize and  participate in individual and group activities. Second Life is intended for users 16 years and older.

I started playing The Sims 3 after my experience with that a couple weeks ago, and became hooked to that. When I started exploring Second Life, I kept noticing little differences between Second Life and the Sims 3 throughout the tutorials. I find it hard to adjust from The Sims 3 to Second Life, especially when I was personalizing my avatar.

Overall, I think that Second Life does present our society with a lot of possibilities and opportunities, especially in the field of communication. However, because of age restrictions, I cannot see myself using this program again in the future, aside from my EIT class.