I put it to you that it cannot. Not that it will not, but that it is actually unable to do so.
It depends on what you think of as Second Life. (Get your philosophy hats on for a minute. I’ll keep this short)
What actually is it?
An evolving technology platform that is only broadly similar to itself from year to year?
A set of ever-changing administrative policies?
A USA-registered trademark of Linden Research Inc, a Delaware company?
A constantly changing circle of friends?
A digital economy?
A limited license to utilize server resources?
It’s all of these things, certainly.
I think, however, that it is a concept – or a dream, if you prefer. Something we can’t quite name or put our collective finger on, except to call it Second Life, for want of any better name.
The existing service could fail but the dream lives on in software, on blogs, change, relentless activity, striving, hope, grand ideas, petty behaviour, conflict, frictions and friendships, and in an increasing number of forms and expressions.
Linden Lab might fail Second Life, but the dream itself is as immortal and unfailing as we want it to be.
Hey! Are you channeling John Lester – Pathfinder?
Not intentionally, but I understand that John and I think along similar lines once in a while
Agreed. Worse case scenario, and LL closes up someday, projects it inspired like OpenSim will keep the spirit of it alive for decades. Look at MUDs. They may be one heck of a niche now, but they haven’t died yet. And speaking personally, part of the appeal of OpenSim is that it reawakens some of the same fond feelings I had operating BBSes back in the late 80′s and early 90′s. So even before SL style VWs become an antique, I’d like to think that the next big thing would have come along. (It won’t be Blue Mars. Hehe)
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3D virtual worlds will be a viable niche technology in education. I suspect that more and more of us, in this economy, will go to OpenSim projects. I’m seeing that constantly.
We continue to use SL for critical mass–meetings, mostly.
Marcus has made a great analogy; OS reminds me of BBSes and MUDs used be educators just before the “real” Internet came along. I miss that “DIY” feeling from those ways of networking. Perhaps OpenSim will be a great way to recapture that magic.
Sure it could. All Phillip has to do is destroy the fashion business by destroying the ability to use attachments the way we do today. Eliminate/alienate the fashion business and all those customers that paid real money for all that stuff and make it so SL avatars look like the crap in other worlds and video games and the reason so many are in SL will cease to exist.
Simple business suicide of wiping out why your customers exist because you have no clue why people use your product. So that is what LL will do.
We are spores, portable creators, we will go anywhere necessary to find fertile ground, Second Life, InWorldz, call it what you will, brand loyalty is easily killed. The urge to create in 3D will never die tho, you are right, and friends stick together…
Ann Otoole says:
Sure it could. All Phillip has to do is destroy the fashion business by destroying the ability to use attachments the way we do today.
Making a right “mesh” of things is he Ann?
I’m with soror