Second Life Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Second Life - Research Paper Example On the other hand this application cannot be separated from the lives of individuals because it has proved to play an essential part in people’s lives. Any person who is not aware or is not using the application should reconsider his or her or her priorities in social life. Many companies are using this application to conduct a variety of activities ranging from internal communication, conducting meetings, product testing, corporate communication among others. It presents the companies with an added advantage as they are able to conduct various activities using this application in a cost effective manner. Meetings are easily conducted with people in various regions; products are easily tested before they are released to the mass market to assess the impact they will have on the target consumers. An organization is also able to publicize its activities not only to the people in the region where it exists but also to many other people from different parts of the world. Individua ls using second life live a very different and interesting life as compared to others who are not using it. They learn entrepreneurial skills through the various business activities that are available on second life. Secondly people are able to socialize and get to know each other in the virtual world. Instead of having friends within the same regions individuals can extend their network of friends and enjoy themselves in the various islands that are available on second life. Another important thing about this application is its use is therapy especially treating people with certain disorders or those who have been abused. It is evident from the above points that second life is an important application that has changed the way people and organizations conduct their activities, ranging from communications, product testing, meetings and PR activities to socializing and entrepreneurial activities. This is done without incurring any costs for any of the parties involved. They can use th e application to conduct their activities whenever they are whether for organizational or personal benefit. It can thus be concluded that second life actually plays an integral part in organizations and in peoples’ lives. It is an application that is essential for everyday activities and helps people and organizations in doing a variety of things that would actually not have been possible in the real world. 1. SECOND LIFE Second life as popularly known is the largest 3D online virtual world that was developed by Phillip linden of the Linden Laboratories in San Francisco in the United States of America1. It has tens of millions of Square meters of land considered virtual and more than thirteen million numbers of registered members or users also called residents and a very active economy2. It was launched in 2003 by the Linden Laboratories and has changed many aspects of the virtual world industry. Since it was launched way back in 2003 its developers have continued to improve on many aspects of its functionality adding features such as the VoIP that allows various users to speak to one another in the virtual world3. They have also improved on features such as environmental features that imitate the real environment for example the flowing water, wind and tree movements. Figure 1. Number of user hours from 2009- 2011 on second life Year 2009 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 Months (Quarterly) Oct- Dec Jan- March April-June July-Sept Oct-Dec Jan-March User hours In millions 113 116 109 105 105 104 Source: http://www.metaversejournal.com/2011/05/12/first-quarter-2011-results-for-second-life-steady-sailing/