What to do than to continue about identity verification of second life residents? Not that I can offer much answers. It is up to Lindens to answer our concerns, and it is obvious that they don't want to answer, don't know the answers, that they're buying their time or just play another stupid strategy. There is one thing we can be sure about: it is not going to work.
They banned gambling explicitly. And? And nothing. We don't have big ugly camping casinos anymore. If you want to gamble you meet people who give you a landmark to the friend's place ;) And you go to gamble. Actually, I believe that atmosphere in the gambling community has radically improved after the ban. That is one of the vices that missed me (well, I do have to miss something, right?) so correct me if I'm wrong.
And it will be even harder to ban sex. Much more people are into it. Not the whole population of second life, but large percent of it is into one or another sex related practice. More important, sex is something that is considered a birth right. Couple of blog posts and bureaucracy against civil disobedience? I know where I'll put my bets.
Also, sex needs less software than gambling. Just a couple of scripts, handful of anims and opened IM window. If you want to do it and have a friend/partner/stranger with who to do it, there is not much left to think about it. Just jump into those balls and each other's pants. No way that Linden Lab can spy all the posing scripts on the grid.
Sex also doesn't need to be advertised. Big sex sims will be for verifieds only, but now they are mostly places for griefers and idiots. Specialized places will go underground, and be advertised viraly. That goes for both sims and for the shops. Shops also have flatworld solutions like OnRez and SLexchange. We'll have more semi-private places to gather. Entry to the groups will be by invitation only and once you're in, you'll think twice about who to invite next. Consequence will be raising quality of those places.
And sure, there will be private homes. We'll have to go to the sky, but we already do that. We'll have to protect our land from potential peeping toms willing to fill abuse reports, but hey! if you never tried to shoot somebody during the foreplay, it is time to try. And get that orbiter! Full pleasure guaranteed. For those that want to remain peacefull, just make your private property inaccessible to anybody but your group of friends.
For the end, here's an image that was plundered from the walls of Club Reactor. It says it all…
Whoa.
I adore this. Your passion and Galatea Gynoid’s levelheadedness? I’m fired up and ready to go again, and I didn’t think that would happen. Thank you.
And, I’m gonna use that graphic too… :)
Woooooooooooooo-hoooooooooooooo!
This is talking girl!
Cannot wait to get back online and load up my flamethrower… And or course orbiter!!! Ah! Useful again, after all I spent!
;)
We should all get together, get an island and (that is even ok with LL) set our own rules. Access by invitation, shooting and orbiting allowed just as sex is…. It woild be cheery place just like any pirate inn after “free rum for everybody!”
:D
@ dandelliion…. talk to me! :)
@ dK & Soph… count me in ;)
I love love love this post.
Of course, the whole key
is to rely on your friends.
You can personally
verify me anytime. Hugs.
This sounds like an excellent idea. Getting a SIM and setting your own rules would be one way to create a world resembling old SL.
Anony Mouse
“The price of freedom is blood and suffering”
@ Eidur and Anony –
Stay tuned to my blog. I’m hopeful we’ll be able to announce some plans soon!
I was roaming the blog and surfed this page after a while… Now, two months after Soph’s last comment I can verify one thing: that sim is the oasis of free pleasure. :p
@ dande: Success!!!! XD
“I am who I am”…
So, identity validation is upon us “soon”. Having let the message sink in — after all, it’s no surprise, Linden Lab has been talking about it for quite a while — it’s time to try to understand the implications. In other wo…
Well, I agree with your point, but your article is written with blinders on.
You mention the gambling ban as having no effect. Well, it does have the effect in that it bans games of chance but not games of skill. Games of chance present players with an “even playing field” where each person has an equal chance of winning the game. Whereas games of skill discriminate against people who have disabilities, slow connections, etc.
It also removed a very popular and exciting way for groups of good people to meet and share some L$s with other players while playing their favorite games. It was a great way for newbies to make some decent L$s while being active and not zomby-ing in a camping chair for days just to make less RL$ than it costs in their electric bill to run SL for that time.
Now, “gambling” (as they call it), is relegated to only the sleazy, hard core gamblers who run clandestine games on the grid. You can find hundreds of these games at any time, but they’re in no way as much fun as it used to be back when it was considered a great socializing event for people to meet and have fun. Now, it’s scammers and grumbly old goats with cigars and L$500,000 bets on the table.
Sex in SL? Well, whatever floats your boat. If some paper-trained basement troll yanking his crank to your cartoon character constitutes sex, then yeah. But I don’t consider that sex or even x-rated, just possibly demented – which is something we encourage around here. But I certainly don’t think it should be seriously considered “sex” – not even CLOSE to what Bill Clinton was accused of.
But the sad part of this isn’t whether or not someone can watch you pixel-humping and report you. If virtual “sex” is taken seriously, then LL will have to make the default skin clothed. As it is now, all people who make skins are considered purveyors of porn (they are all categorized as “mature” products even though everybody, even a nun, needs one).
Now, let’s say a user Age Verify (ID verify, actually) to shop for a skin. Let’s consider that down the line, this person might need to appear in court for divorce proceedings. I don’t think this person has much of a chance once it is revealed that they voluntarily signed up for something explicitly designed to allow them to access pornography and hold sexual encounters online. Even worse if this person is ever falsely accused of sexual crimes in RL.
To some, it may seem to that 98% of the people in SL are there for “sex”. It makes for sensationalist “journalism” and gets clickies on your website, but from my experience most people try the sex thing in SL as a newbie and “grow out of it” after they discover all the many exciting, amazing and creative things that can fill a person’s time spent on the grid.
You’ll always have your security-orbed bedrooms, dungeons and drama, but a real socializing and equalizing aspect of SL has been eliminated in the “gambling” ban.
Diddlytvat, thank you. I stand corrected. Gambling ban did change the things that it is now transfered to professional gamblers and forbidden only as a social event.
If virtual sex is to be considered sex… I don’t know and I am not going to run into that discussion because there will be no end. Some people will say yes, other will say no… and the both groups can be right, each from its own perspective and definitions of sex and virtuality. I am fine if there is that word “virtual” or cyber, so each can pick own definition and attitude about it.
But, as with gambling, there are more layers of cybersex. It is not just what is going on in secured rooms or sex club. It is also all the public flirting and private flirting in public space, it is shopping not only sex toys and skins but also clothes and whatnot, it is dancing (well, some of dancing) it is huge spectre of social events and activities.
As I said, I don’t believe that age verification will hurt virtual sex in second life. Nor it will significantly make a direct impact on economy. But it will change the community. For the good or worse? We’ll see.