Modeling Reality with Virtual Worlds

What are different ways these virtual worlds can be used? What are the pros and cons? Be specific. How do virtual worlds foster creativity? What do you think the future of virtual worlds will look like?

A virtual world is an interactive simulated environment accessed by multiple users through an online interface. Virtual worlds are also called "digital worlds," "simulated worlds" and "MMOG's." There are many different types of virtual worlds, however there are six features all of them have in common:

1. Shared Space: the world allows many users to participate at once.

2. Graphical User Interface: the world depicts space visually, ranging in style from 2D "cartoon" imagery to more immersive 3D environments.

3. Immediacy: interaction takes place in real time.

4. Interactivity: the world allows users to alter, develop, build, or submit customized content.

5. Persistence: the world's existence continues regardless of whether individual users are logged in.

6. Socialization/Community: the world allows and encourages the formation of in-world social groups like teams, guilds, clubs, cliques, housemates, neighborhoods, etc.

http://www.virtualworldsreview.com/info/whatis.shtml

In the Forbes article "After Second Life, Can Virtual Worlds Get a Reboot", it says that "You can use virtual worlds in education, in delivery services, or as an advanced form of telehealthcare that offers so much more than videoconferencing. Virtual worlds can give us social connectivity, built-in support groups, and ways to avoid ever being alone again. There is a fundamentally positive aspect to this kind of connectedness we have not yet leveraged to the extent we can. But children are already figuring it out. There are about 2 billion accounts registered for the 100 or so virtual worlds in use today. Children age 5-15 own at least half of those accounts—they’re using these worlds for entertainment, social connection, and learning. And that’s because the physical world “roaming radius” we grant them has shrunk to less than a block. In the 1950s, you played with everyone on your street. Now the only chance kids have for free exploration without a parent hanging around is in these virtual worlds" http://www.forbes.com/sites/dianemehta/2013/04/30/after-second-life-can-virtual-worlds-get-a-reboot/ I think that this is a con of the virtual worlds. No parents hanging on to see who you are talking to. In the virtual world people can hide behind an avatar (their virtual person) and you never know who they are. They can create an avatar that is a child but it could really be an adult that the kids are talking to. My son and nephew love Minecraft which is a game for kids where they use blocks to build there world. They have friends they talk to on there at times. I tell my son that he can just interact with the players in the game but he is not to speak to them. These worlds are made for interaction. Another problem I think about virtual worlds is that the fantasy can be more appealing than reality. It is easy to get caught up in these worlds if you are not careful. My brothers used to play World of Warcraft. They would be interacting with people all around the country. The game was so addicting that they would be lost in it for weeks. They only interacted with people in the game forgetting out the people in the real world. To the players in the game it was serious business.

In the article on CNN "Going to the Virtual Office in Second Life"
"The company's Enterprise tool will let employees' avatars -- animated alter egos -- meet in virtual worlds from the privacy of a company's own network, rather than the public networks used in standard Second Life. That extra security could encourage more companies to take up the technology.
The ability to collaborate effectively using virtual tools may now become an increasingly important skill as technology offers more options than, say, video conferencing." http://www.cnn.com/2009/BUSINESS/11/05/second.life.virtual.collaboration/index.html This is a pro to using virtual worlds. This allows for even more creativity in employees. They get to think outside the box in the virtual world.

I think the look of virtual worlds in the future will be whatever people can create them to be. I think there is no limit because the world is based on what you make of it. It can be a world of fantasy of someone or it can be created to mirror life. It's an escape from the real world but I think that everybody needs to get away for a little why. I think the test will be finding a balance between reality and virtual reality.