InformationWeek Second Life Weblog

Old Media, Not Internet, Driving Healthcare Debate: White House Advisor

Mitch Wagner — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 12:20:59 -0500

The healthcare debate in the America has been driven by cable news and other old media, rather than new technologies, according to White House Senior Advisor David Axelrod, adding that cable news networks focused on a small number of angry people at town hall meetings in August, and ignored the larger debate.

University Of Texas Moving Into Second Life

Mitch Wagner — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 10:46:32 -0500

The University of Texas launched a year-long, state-wide initiative to use Second Life in the curriculum for all 16 of its campuses, experimenting with using the platform as a means of providing innovative, low-cost undergraduate instruction involving students, faculty, researchers and administrators.

U.S. Armed Forces Look To Second Life For Training

Mitch Wagner — Fri, 08 May 2009 12:48:13 -0500

The Second Life role-playing and gaming communities are home to dozens of make-believe armies and navies. But you can find the real thing in virtual worlds too. The Air Force, National Guard, and Navy are using Second Life and other virtual world technology for collaboration and training. The armed forces are looking to virtual worlds to reduce the time and costs associated with travel, and create more realistic experiences for users than those provided by flat-Internet applications.

Rumors Of Second Life's Failure Are Just Lousy Journalism

Mitch Wagner — Thu, 07 May 2009 12:33:47 -0500

As a journalist and Second Life enthusiast, I'm annoyed by irresponsible articles that take it for granted that the virtual world is dying, or already dead, or a failure. In fact, Second Life is healthy and growing -- I say this based on personal experience, and statements made by officials of Linden Lab, the company that created, develops and operates Second Life.

Second Life Plays Host To Healthcare Hearings

Mitch Wagner — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 13:16:52 -0500

Avatars don't need health care, but the people at the keyboard do. That's why a Chicago marketer, who previously worked on the Budweiser "Wassup" campaign, organized a hearing on health care policy for then-President-elect Obama in Second Life.

'60 Minutes' Looks At 'Widow Penalty' In Immigration Law

Mitch Wagner — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 00:18:30 -0500

Last night, 60 Minutes reported on a group of hundreds of American widows fighting a U.S. government effort to deport them from this country. These women (and a few men) are citizens of foreign countries who married American citizens, but their spouses died before their residency applications were completed. InformationWeek covered this story in June; one of the widows fighting for her residency is a prominent Second Life artist named Eshi Otawara.

Is It Adultery If The Sex Happens In Second Life?

Mitch Wagner — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 15:46:05 -0500

Is cybersex adultery? That's a question faced by a U.K. couple, who divorced after she caught him having cybersex with another woman in Second Life. She called up the real-life lawyers and kicked the bum out. But is it really adultery if there's no physical contact? Is it cheating if the two people having relations never even see each other, or hear each others' voices?

Join Us For The InformationWeek 500 Conference -- Without Leaving Your Chair

Mitch Wagner — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 16:06:25 -0500

I'm reluctant to declare that real-time events are the Next Big Thing on the Internet, because it seems like a Next Big Thing comes along on the Internet about once a month, and they're mostly forgotten the next day. Still, I've seen firsthand how powerful virtual events can be. They're an emerging trend. And InformationWeek is in the middle of it all.

One-On-One With The New CEO Of Linden Lab

Mitch Wagner — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 18:17:12 -0500

In an interview with InformationWeek, the incoming CEO of Linden Lab said he's fascinated by businesses that grow up in Second Life. He also paid tribute to the "largely unfettered" creativity of the Second Life community. And he declined to comment about whether he's preparing the company for IPO or sale.

Second Life Gets New CEO

Mitch Wagner — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 19:35:30 -0500

The Second Life community today got its first good news in what seems like forever -- Linden Lab, the creator and operator of the virtual world, announced its pick for new CEO. At first glance, his resumé looks like the right combination of business acumen and creativity needed to restart the engines on the foundering ship.

Qwaq Brings Virtual Worlds To Business Collaboration

Mitch Wagner — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 02:39:33 -0500

I had a chance to talk with the CEO of Qwaq the other day. Qwaq makes virtual worlds software optimized for corporate meetings. If you've spent time in Second Life, you know the power of avatars and 3-D spaces to enhance conversations and collaboration. It's hard to explain to people who've never tried virtual worlds, but it's real. Qwaq is an attempt to tailor virtual worlds for business collaboration, adding features that businesses need and taking away features that are harmful.

CNN Creates Citizen Journalism Channels On Web, In Second Life

Mitch Wagner — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 02:11:32 -0500

Budding Wolf Blitzers can bring their news reporting talents to the Web and Second Life using a citizen journalism program run by CNN. Reporters post video, photos, audio, and text reports to the beta iReport site, and have the news appear on the site unfiltered. The best contributions appear on CNN itself.

Rosedale Out As Second Life CEO

Mitch Wagner — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 13:09:56 -0500

Philip Rosedale, the co-founder of Second Life, is stepping aside as CEO of corporate parent Linden Lab, and the company will begin a search for a CEO with more operational and management experience. This could be great news for Second Life and its community -- the service is, in many ways, brilliant, but it often trips over its feet when trying to execute some of the functions that are basic to any business, like communicating with big customers and processing payments.

Visiting Roma In Second Life

Mitch Wagner — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 18:32:47 -0500

Second Life's Aberystwyth Lane recently visited one of the best areas in Second Life: Roma, which is dedicated to role-playing the ancient Roman Empire. She posted a terrific photo essay, which highlights all the detail and creativity that went into the build.

Top 6 Words And Phrases To Use In Internet Discussions To Prove You Are A Jerk

Mitch Wagner — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 19:03:54 -0500

Are you a jerk and do you want people to know it? In real life, it's easy to prove you are a jerk: You can talk loudly during movies, cut in line at Starbucks, or tell new mothers their babies are ugly. But on the Internet, it's harder to prove you're a jerk.

Don't Discount The Threat Of Web 2.0 Terror

Mitch Wagner — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 12:57:37 -0500

We've recently seen silly articles hyping the threat of terrorists using virtual worlds and other Web 2.0 sites for recruitment, planning, and training. And we've seen equally silly articles ridiculing the idea. The truth is that Web 2.0 tools are great for terrorism, for the same reasons they're great for legitimate projects. That doesn't mean we should shut down Facebook and Second Life to protect ourselves from instant, horrible death. But we do need to rationally evaluate possible threats.

Join Us For GridTalk Friday On The Future Of Motorati Island

Mitch Wagner — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 02:23:50 -0500

Join us Friday to look at one of the most active communities in Second Life: Motorati Island. The sponsors, headed by Pontiac, recently turned the island over to the United Spinal Association. Renamed Motorability, it's headed up by Patty Streeter, who will be our guest for GridTalk noon SLT.

Turning Work Into Play Is No Game

Mitch Wagner — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 12:51:22 -0500

It sounds like techno-utopian silliness to say that businesses need to learn from online games how to make tedious knowledge-work more enjoyable. But many knowledge-work jobs are so deadly dull that the typical worker lasts just nine months -- in call centers, for example. Extend that by a few months, and businesses stand to save piles of money, said Byron Reeves, a professor in the department of communication at Stanford University.

Using Virtual Worlds For Social Therapy

Mitch Wagner — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 14:11:27 -0500

Stanford University researchers discovered that users of virtual worlds like Second Life with attractive avatars were more confident in real life.

Join Us For GridTalk On Friday With Wagner James Au, Author Of "The Making Of Second Life"

Mitch Wagner — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 18:48:53 -0500

Join us in Second Life and on the Web for a conversation with Wagner James Au, author of the new book, The Making Of Second Life, a history of the virtual world, its creators, and residents. The book is a terrific chronicle of a four-year technological landmark and cultural phenomenon.

Learn About SOA And Virtualization Later Today At InformationWeek Live

Mitch Wagner — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 13:36:58 -0500

Join us at 3 p.m. Eastern time today when we'll be talking with my colleague, senior editor Andy Dornan, about virtualization and service-oriented architecture at the official launch of InformationWeek Live.

Join Us For GridTalk With Futurist And Science-Fiction Writer Karl Schroeder

Mitch Wagner — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 16:24:00 -0500

Join us in Second Life and on the Internet Friday at noon Pacific time for a live Q&A with Karl Schroeder, a futures researcher, blogger at WorldChanging.com and science-fiction writer.

Join Us For GridTalk Tuesday With Intel's Stephen Fischer

Mitch Wagner — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 14:48:37 -0500

Join us in Second Life or on the Web for a live talk with Intel's Stephen Fischer, senior principal engineer, Intel Corp. Fischer will talk about Intel's desktop processor strategy and technology, including the brand-new Penryn processor.

Bad News Keeps Coming For Second Life

Mitch Wagner — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 21:17:41 -0500

The bad news keeps coming for Second Life. Linden Lab, the company that develops and operates the virtual world, released October and November economic stats yesterday, which show that total user hours in-world actually declined in November, for the second-ever time in Second Life history.

Electric Sheep, A Leading Virtual-Worlds Content Company, Shears 25% Of Employees

Mitch Wagner — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 17:25:45 -0500

The Electric Sheep Company, a leading content-creation company working in Second Life and other virtual worlds, this week laid off 20 people, or 25% of its staff. Coming on the heels of the departure of AOL from Second Life, and CTO Cory Ondrejka’s departure from Linden Lab, the events invite the question: What’s going on in Second Life? Is something wrong?