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For some ideas on this, you only have to consider Second Life, which has its own currency, which can be traded in and out of meatspace currencies; and in which real world corporations have set up outposts and have meetings and press conferences and where it is possible to make a partial or complete living selling goods and services in the virtual world.
Not to derail a good thread, but has there been any documentaries or specials on things like Second Life? When I first heard of it, I was amazed (but not surprised) at how many people basically traded in their real lives to exist in the game.
Not to derail a good thread, but has there been any documentaries or specials on things like Second Life? When I first heard of it, I was amazed (but not surprised) at how many people basically traded in their real lives to exist in the game.
Google is your friend here. I haven't seen this but it popped up right away and looks pretty informative:
I am not an addictive personality but if I were, city-data and similar would be my undoing. As it is I probably spend more time here than I should, although, if work or personal demands intervene I have no trouble disappearing for a few days.
I am in agreement with the other poster who basically said, "you ain't seen nuthin' yet, wait until virtual reality comes into its own" ... and it's not far away. Once a fully immersive 3D experience is available, even without touch input or holodeck-like seeming solidity, maybe even with the need for bulky 3D helmets at first, I think some people will decide that their virtual world is better than the real one. Their only forays into the real world (aka: meatspace) will be to do what's necessary to sustain their preferred virtual reality and keep Real People at bay. The halfway measures will be devices like Google Glass where you are at least somewhat engaged with reality but always jacked-in at the same time.
I predict people will not get married in the Real World in preference for virtual relationships and exploits. I predict mental breakdowns and suicides when a virtual world becomes unaffordable or goes offline. How pervasive it becomes depends on a variety of factors ... I don't foresee the End of Society As We Know it (necessarily) but I am very curious to see how it plays out, and how the real world and virtual worlds intertwine.
For some ideas on this, you only have to consider Second Life, which has its own currency, which can be traded in and out of meatspace currencies; and in which real world corporations have set up outposts and have meetings and press conferences and where it is possible to make a partial or complete living selling goods and services in the virtual world.
Or you could read the novel, Snow Crash, for an idea of how it could play out if there was a dominant virtual reality evolving alongside the real one. Virtual realities don't have to be alternate realities, they can be adjunct realities that supplement the real world.
These are interesting times to be living in -- both absolutely, and in the sense of the old Chinese curse.
I agree 100% with this post. I mean imagine all the possibilities we will have with VR. This is most defiantly the most interesting and in my opinion the best time to be alive.
Well I don't know about the worst addiction I have ever seen (my brother deals with drug abusing youth) but it surely is an addiction and I'm an addict. I use the internet about 6 hours a day and I can't seem to control myself =/. Maybe not the most harmful to your body addiction, or detrimental to society addiction, but it is definitely an addiction.
I agree 100% with this post. I mean imagine all the possibilities we will have with VR. This is most defiantly the most interesting and in my opinion the best time to be alive.
I'm not sure how excited I am to personally participate in VR. I'm not even into gaming. The real world seems enough to handle, and I don't see any point in escaping it. Yet ... I am definitely curious about the more practical uses it might have and how it might impact the world. And to the point of the OP, it will definitely be very addictive for some folks. If it's pretty affordable and realistic, it will in fact be very addictive for many, many folks.
I do spend a lot of time on the Internet, but much of it is obtaining information - I was one of those kids who used to pick up an encyclopedia volume and read whatever article the book opened to - so being able to Google for information is a great benefit to me (though you need to be able to evaluate the quality of the information you're reading). I haven't had cable TV for years, so the only TV shows I watch regularly are two that I can watch online, Mad Men and Breaking Bad (and now that's over, so I'm down to one). I'm not sure I consider my internet usage any worse than my neighbor's retired husband who is computer illiterate but spends at least 8 hours a day watching TV, much of it total junk. I also live in a rural are that's 45 minutes from a department store, Costco, etc., so I shop online for the things I can't buy in town. The internet is like a lot of other things - it is what you make it, for better or worse.
I do spend a lot of time on the Internet, but much of it is obtaining information - I was one of those kids who used to pick up an encyclopedia volume and read whatever article the book opened to - so being able to Google for information is a great benefit to me (though you need to be able to evaluate the quality of the information you're reading). I haven't had cable TV for years, so the only TV shows I watch regularly are two that I can watch online, Mad Men and Breaking Bad (and now that's over, so I'm down to one). I'm not sure I consider my internet usage any worse than my neighbor's retired husband who is computer illiterate but spends at least 8 hours a day watching TV, much of it total junk. I also live in a rural are that's 45 minutes from a department store, Costco, etc., so I shop online for the things I can't buy in town. The internet is like a lot of other things - it is what you make it, for better or worse.
Good points. I spend a lot of time on the internet but much of that time is displaced from time I used to spend doing the same tasks offline. I used to sit at the kitchen table and pay bills, balance the checkbook, and tend to other financial matters. I used to start the day off reading the newspaper, several hours on Sunday. I used to read magazines for articles of interest, book to pass the time. I used to get out the phone book to look up businesses and paper maps to find routes. I do much of my shopping online and seldom watch TV. So for all the time I spend on the internet, I'm not sure I'm wasting any more than than I ever was before.
I'm not sure how excited I am to personally participate in VR. I'm not even into gaming. The real world seems enough to handle, and I don't see any point in escaping it. Yet ... I am definitely curious about the more practical uses it might have and how it might impact the world. And to the point of the OP, it will definitely be very addictive for some folks. If it's pretty affordable and realistic, it will in fact be very addictive for many, many folks.
Today I don't really play games as I don't see the point of moving some avatar around in a "cool" environment. Sure it was fun as a kid and I do play two games on my I Phone, I build cities shocker shocker since I am on city data lol. However once we get virtual reality where you can actually be in the "cool" environment then that is a game changer, pun intended. I mean the possibilities are endless. Here are just some ideas:
No more reading history in a book now we can live it. Rome, the Civil War, Titanic, etc. Talk about bringing history to life.
Your favorite movie now you can have a role! Think about all the movies and TV shows you have seen now you can actually be a part of it as if it were real.
Re live your life but with simple modifications on the parts you did not like. This way you can live the perfect life and while you do it not know its just a "game".
Or since this is city data imagine coming up with your perfect city and living in it. Even if its just the city you live in but the way you think it should have gown. I know I am going to do that with Pueblo, and have Colorado Springs only be about 50,000 people .
Plus the gaming industry can come out with many games where we actually live it.
The possibilities are endless and that is why I have been saying when it comes to internet addiction "you an't seen nothing yet!"
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