Disqus - Latest Comments for Sigmund

Re: Virtual Consumers Union - I don't get it!

Sigmund — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 10:41:13 -0000

I once took one of those online quizzes that purports to tell you what political leaning you have. I did it because I seem to be unable to make my mind up exactly where I should be based on the things I believe.

So when I came up as a "Social Libertarian," I wasn't sure whether it helped. The underlying problem is that although I want things like free health care for all, social programs to tackle homelessness, less interference in how other countries decide to run themselves , I also believe in the Free Market Economy and the idea of "Nature, red in tooth and claw."

Which is why I understand the desire to form consumer groups but believe that the underlying market forces will inevitably take care of things, irregardless of what people would "like" to happen.

Product pricing is fundamentally a simple concept: You have product A that you want to sell to person B for a profit. B is either willing to pay the price or not. That's about it. A product is "excessively overpriced" only if folks don't buy it. The "value" that someone puts on an item is variable and you can't legislate for taste. I spent $1000 for the Oxford English Dictionary" in real life. How many folks do you think came to me and said, "Oooh, what a bargain! Where can I get that?" The value to me is huge - but to many others, I may just as well have taken the dollar bills and flushed them one by one down the toilet.

Like any economic system, the sale (or not) of goods in the Second Life virtual world will work on the basis on supply and demand, and the willingness of folks to pay whatever it is. Product designers and creators may spend lots of hours (and these are real hours, not virtual ones!) building stuff, and so expecting some return is not unreasonable. What they charge is therefore up to them.

I worry more more about content theft than over-pricing. Being driven out of business because your stuff is ripped off is much more unfair than because you charge too much for it and no-one buys.

Re: Brits will spend nine years in virtual world - Odd News | newslite.tv

Sigmund — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 10:19:25 -0000

Always interesting to ask the question, "As opposed to what?" with studies of this type. There is a notion that people who spend time in a virtual world need to "Get a life," but no-one seems to be able to explain what that "life" might be. What people do in their leisure time is so subjective that you have to wonder what those folks who advocate "getting a life" are actually doing with their own!

I guess some might argue that at least spending time interacting in online social environments is better than spending the same amount of time watching endless re-runs of vapid TV programming. But then again, if couch potato is your choice of leisure activity...

Re: An open letter on virtual worlds for Senator Conroy

Sigmund — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 13:03:08 -0000

The effort involved in enforcing some kind of "ban" strikes me as being so huge that I strongly suspect that the suggested "law" will not come about. There is an awful lot of commerce and education going on in virtual worlds that would be affected by a blanket ban. Many universities have Second Life locations that are restricted access to the general SL public, as do some corporations/businesses. I don't know if Australia has a constitutional "free speech" clause, but any lawyer could see that banning access to a virtual world is a direct infringement of such freedom of speech. There is no way for a government to know if a citizen is in SL to meet a friend or to have simulated sex with simulated donkeys. And even if it is the latter, a gornment should have no right to decide what is or is not OK.

Of course, we should expect the argument of "it's to protect the children" to be used as a brick-bat to support censorship, but folks need to remember that the brick-bat is really a red herring. And as a mature democracy, I expect the Aussies to be able to argue against any attempts at free speech censorship by their elected representatives. If there's anything we can have confidence in, it's that the Aussies know how to put up a fight and won't take bullying from politicians!

Re: Seeya around!

Sigmund — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 01:07:08 -0000

My actual time in SL has, of late, dropped dramatically. Like most people, I too have a Real Life that makes demands of my time, and I do enjoy a real drink at a real pub with real people sometimes! My best SL friend has decreased her time even more drastically - to the point where we've probably seen each other maybe 5 or 6 times this year. Last year we would be together almost nightly.

But I still keep links via e-mail to the folks that I need to (the folks I write for) and my friend and I chat weekly via Google Chat, so the SL links are not critical.

Folks come and go. I have some names on my friends list that I keep for sentimental purposes I suspect. Every so often, I leave an IM saying "Hey, if you ever come back and see this, call me." But I never hear.

The sad thing is that people CAN just disappear. You don't know why and you are left wondering. I have even wondered - and I know this will sound bleak - but what if "I" died tonight? How would my SL friends ever know? Would they even care? No-one in SL knows "me" - my SL persona is all they know and all I tell them - so if "I" disappear, there is no way to connect Sigmund Leominster with me. He just disappears.

But let's not go down the route of sad, maudlin self-pity - I do that enough in real life. The upside is that, as you say, for that period of time you knew someone, there was pleasure - brief and brilliant.

I wrote one of my first articles for the Second Life Herald about someone who left. I used the metaphor of the mayfly, which lives for one glorious day in summer, makes love, and then dies. A tragic yet beautiful existence.

If we could only live for one day, would it be worth it? Would one day of something be better than an eternity of nothing? I know what my choice is.

Re: Good music in SL (Plurkers told me so! )

Sigmund — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:55:00 -0000

I'm a shameless devotee of SpaceJunky, who I've written about in the Metaverse Tribune (http://www.metaverse-tribun... and in my blogs. You might want to share this list with Angelico Babii at the Metaverse Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) as he's always on the lookout for musicians to play on his "Late Show with Angelico Babii."

Re: In response to 'Don't be a virtual ass, rush out this second and get a life'

Sigmund — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 21:42:06 -0000

There are so many interesting and worthwhile things happening in Second Life that don't involve sex, bestiality, or flying penises, yet it's a sad fact that the real world media gravitates toward the sensational.

On the other hand, most female avatars will tell you that it is not uncommon to have to put up with offers of sexual congress at a significantly higher rate than in real life. The anonymity of the virtual world seems to simultaneously raise a man's libido and lower his reservations.

I guess we just get used to that aspect of the world and focus our minds on the creative, exciting, and entertaining aspects of life in the metaverse.

Re: Q&A: Linden Lab CEO Mark Kingdon on Second Life’s latest evolution

Sigmund — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 14:28:11 -0000

Interesting to hear that usability and stability are high on the list. Also the recognition of potential competition from folks like Nurien, who seem to be working the NVIDIA PhysX engine to great effect in their promo clips, although it's a long way from promo clips to a fully sustainable and profitable business!

I also value the commitment to "continue to build content creation tools that let residents create dynamic content." The promotion of an environment that encourages free enterprise is, I believe, vital to the success of any virtual world.

No question about about any possible move toward an IPO ;) I guess we'll wait and see on this one.