Flutterby™! : virtual realities

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virtual realities

2000-11-21 18:46:33+00 by Dan Lyke 1 comments

[ related topics: Web development Games ]

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#Comment made: 2002-02-21 05:30:36+00 by: Dan Lyke

I almost made this an entry in on the main page, but I think it groups well under here and maybe it'll be stimulus to some discussion. Columbine talks about online socialization. Some random notes that I don't really have time to expand upon: Socialization in a role-playing environment is just that, it's like talking with a clown in a Haight street bar, or a goth in an appropriate SOMA club. It's a way of culling some of the less interesting folks because you instantly get someone who's put some effort into their interactions, but it doesn't give you any indication about how you'll relate to these people outside of these environments. Similarly, mailing lists and news groups are like conferences and user's groups, although perhaps a little less so because there's no easy facility for group breakout (individuals can converse one-on-one easily). Some newsgroup software has tried to make this easier, but newsgroups are so hard to interact in nowadays that I haven't pursued that very far. Oddly, I'm on the other swing right now from where Columbine is, but I've also been playing a few more computer games recently, notably Counter Strike, and I can see how a forced common basis for interaction isn't solving much.