Online virtual worlds could soon be accessible to blind people thanks to research by students at IBM in Ireland.
Two researchers at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln have completed a study on “deception in cyberspace,†and they’ve hit on something pretty interesting: In text-based chat rooms, people who are lying generally get anxious. But in virtual worlds that let people create avatars, that edginess seems to fade away. “This suggests that ‘wearing a mask’ in cyberspace may reduce anxiety in deceiving others,†the researchers conclude.
Tom Boellstorff, an associate professor of anthropology at the University of California at Irvine, talks about his research and his forthcoming book about the virtual world Second Life.
Linden Lab is pressured from all sides. They are being sued (along with ten Internet Service Providers) by French parent-teacher group Familles de France. Their Terms of Service have been found to be legally unenforceable by Judge Eduardo Robreno. German TV News Magazine Report Mainz has raised a scandal about Second Life and child pornography.
According to a post from Nuschi Martynov that arrived on our desks, and a babelfish translation of this German blog post political activists opposed to the G8 are meeting in Second Life to avoid the big fence and 16,000 policemen stopping them protesting up close and personal in meat space.
Now maker Linden Lab is trying to lay down the law regarding what is and isn't permitted in Second Life...
In a blog posting the company noted it would not tolerate certain activities within the virtual world, including "real-life images, avatar portrayals, and other depictions" of sexual acts involving children, sexual violence including rape, and other "
Many people are watching this case closely, because it represents the first virtual-world property dispute to make it this far in a legal proceeding. If the eventual result is a ruling that Linden Lab has to give back the property, valued at around $8,000, it could have major implications for Linden Lab and makers of online games like World of Warcraft and many others.
Second life officials are outlining what is not acceptable behavior on SL and sanctions to be taken
Second Life is being investigated by German police following allegations that some members are trading child abuse images in the online world.
It is another of the Internet's most cutting-edge applications outside the Web: the online community of surrogate identities in the 3D realm of Second Life. It's a virtual world supported by real dollars from companies that lease virtual space, providing the service with real revenue. But just how many real users does it have?
RSS for user "trustteam: second life"
Online virtual worlds could soon be accessible to blind people thanks to research by students at IBM in Ireland.
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