My so called (second) life

I must admit, I find those into second life kind of... dorky? It was interesting reading through some my classmate's opinions, ranging from "I can't wait to sign up for it!" to questioning it's true value ("Second Life yielding corporate training results?") though those that have their doubts usually have not tried it out, while the ones that enjoy it have tried it out in some capacity.

I was not surprised to find out that my future employer, IBM, uses Second Life as a means of training and to meet other IBMers out there. During the interview process, some of the managing partners mentioned how their avatar got new clothing. I guess if I want to be cool and schmooze with my future bosses, I would jump on the Second Life bandwagon.

Even though I admit that those into Second Life are kind of dorky, I myself fit into that category. Like Kate, I too went though a phase where I was into the Sims and would create a house for myself, my sims family and multiple pets. There was something strangely addictive about making yourself become a surgeon, or five star general or rockstar while trying to live a normal life (almost like Hannah Montana!).

The Sims was a fun game, though cheat codes could be used to gain more money. In Second Life, you have to earn it or put in REAL money, which kind of scares me. Why spend real money on a virtual world when you could spend it in the real world? Of course, it would be awesome if you could spend virtual money in the real world! Anyways, to put back on my business hat, I think Second Life is a good way to meet people either within your own company or socially, as it provides a way to meet someone that perhaps might live far away and it wouldn't be practical to meet them, and also it makes for a fun social experiment.

Of course, nothing will replace a true face to face meeting and conversation, but it wouldn't be a bad way to start, and I think at the very least, it would make for a good ice breaker if you actually met someone from Second Life into your First Life.