So I was reading through my normal RSS feeds and came across this yesterday: Apparently Second Life is banning virtual banking (I'm still not exactly sure how it works, so please if anyone knows respond and give some background), and it is on the same ban list as gambling and bestiality now. What's really interesting is that there is a "run" on the virtual banks like would happen in real life if a bank announced that it was closing... kinda reminds me of a virtual version of Mary Poppins. The banks are being shut down because there have been too many banking scams recently. Anyway the article can be found here
Going along with crime in Second Life, I was surfing the website yesterday and found this interesting page: Police Blotter of the last 25 infractions to take place in Second Life. Assault, harassment, littering, along with of course the horrible crime of "crashing a region with physics" can be found here and the penalties imposed upon the users.
Another link mentioned in one of the blogs I read is a new website called WeGame.com where like youtube users upload videos. The difference is with WeGame you download a program that lets you record what happens in your games. They have sections on the website for Half Life, CounterStrike, Warcraft and a bunch of other games including a section for Second Life simulation videos. There's no videos uploaded to the Second Life section yet so I propose we become the first. I've created a username there for us UFSecondLife and if you want the password just leave your email in a comment here or email me.
Lastly I wanted to share a short story from a few months ago:
I was casually checking my email one day when I saw something arrived from a Second Life character (I had a character a few semesters ago but only used it once or twice) . I'm trying to find the email so if I do I'll post it but basically it was from someone named Janet (I think) telling me that if I wanted to see her naked to click on a link that would open Second Life and take me to her Island where I could watch her dance. I didn't click on the link but I googled her email out of curiosity and it turned out she was a Second Life Madam and you could pay to visit her island and see the avatars that work for her dance exotically shall we say... Has to be one of the strangest SPAM emails I've ever received. Of course since switching from Yahoo to Gmail I don't get any SPAM anymore anyway. ^_^
4 comments:
Thanks for this post, it brings quite a few questions to the fore (or forum:-). On the issue of virtual banking it is simple. As you know the Linden is the local currency, and although "virtual" (aren't credit cards and all our economic system virtual as well?) they do have a value outside of SL, in other words you can exchange your Lindens for dollars or Euros at the current rate like any other currency. Very early on a series of "banks" sprouted and ATM's could be found littered around World. Some worked pretty much like a bank (except unregulated of course) but other were more like shark loaners. So abuse quickly dominated the field, just like in the real world. Remember that some people in SL have actually made millions of actual dollars! (mostly in Real Estate) and wouldn't you invest on something with a 50 or 60% return? (I guess not, because it is too good, right?)
On the crashing a region with physics I myself have been inadvertently of course, responsible for such a thing. It happen while testing a script that allowed me to create "prims" bigger then 10x10 meters which are the norm. Sort of like building with megabricks. So GatorIsland blew up and we had to call Linden Labs to restore it. Fortunately it is a virtual world. However virtual or not hundreds or thousands of man (avatar?) hours are put into building regions, so you can imagine what a cyber-terrorist can do! Of course now some regions have security measures that prevent you to go near or penetrate the area without permission, just like a sci-fi "force field". But as anything that has been built by a human, another human can break. The old story all over again.
Lastly, SL is like any other society, except in a nascent form. So rules, laws and regulations have slowly evolved as needed.
The most important one (historically) is the user "revolt" a veritable revolution started by members who though unfair that their in-world creations were "owned" by Linden. Linden in a stroke of genius decided to grant ownership to users on whatever was created (therefore enabling an entire economy). Not long afterwards they went open-source, a most intelligent and effective decision. Since then SL has been growing exponentially. Which has created other problems, like coping and managing growth, bandwidth bottlenecks and the rest.
Your WeGame link is interesting. I think you should lead the way and upload the first video and repor on the process.
Lastly on you SPAM story, I know of another "Madam" (who like most of them is actually a man) who has a very fancy lair, lots of clients and makes a fair amount of Linden, enough to have a comfortable life in SL:-)
Keith, the madame aspect is one I had not even thought of. Perhaps our class should build a brothel? :) I suppose this is somewhat like atomic energy, it has amazing possibilities to improve the world, as well as horrible potential for crime. I wonder how it is being policed. Can these banking scams be exposed and the individuals responsible be arrested? Being removed from the community is one thing, but if actual money is lost then isn't it considered theft? As you have to buy Lindens, it would seem to me that all money lost would be theft in the real world as well as virtual.
My hubby and I used to play EverQuest (Ever-Crack for those that have played it) and often people would offer trades or to buy objects, then not follow through. The community started to police itself by posting people to shout who theives were. Eventually, a moderator would remove them. It makes me wonder if a truly Anarchist society could ever really exist.
Terapyn, while Lindens remain In World it is up to Linden Labs to "police" and the punishment (like in old times!) is banishing from the promised land. And like you mentioned, the community starts to regulate itself.This is similar to native American nations or some Chinese communities, like the one in Vancouver, that have their own internal laws and regulations, sometimes quite different from the rest of the society in which they are embedded (or is it the other way around:?)
Of course, once the money is taken out of SL it is akin to a crime being committed outside the reservation. This brings to question what relationship the virtual worlds (VR) have with real life (RL)?
Think about this concept: the question of VR in general is one of access, not of possession. This is a very important aspect that is under great scrutiny at the moment. How does capitalism for example deal with matterless information? This is why there is such a problem right now with copyright and other related issues. Open Source gives the likes of Bill Gates the creeps, and for good reason, because that is the way an advanced society will develop in a more fair and sustainable way, by sharing the knowledge instead of hoarding it until it is no longer worth a bit (pun intended:-).
Keith,
Your last comment reminds me of a conversation I had last week with Arturo, when he mentioned a colleague who has done extensive research in SL on red light districts, madams, and the like. You can link to his page at http://www.arts.ufl.edu/bio.asp?PID=286. If there is an interest, he may share about his work in class.
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