First, I observed that people in Second life really care about their appearance and dressing. To be honest, I was no exception. After I was in a relationship with Davdaman, my boyfriend in second life, he started to give some "suggestion" for my dressing. He asked me to take off the gloves ( I admit that they are not good)and changed jeans into the skirt. His look was nice. He was dressed in fashion. He wore the shining necklace and the fashionable watch. The following is the conversation:
d: those gluves are ugly...take thim off
d: you need to change outfits
d: mabie a skirt
C: i only have this kind of skirt
d: its better
d: lets go shoping
Second, I observed that the sexual implication will sneak into the conversation. For example, some people flirted with my friend Luna, who has white shining hair, by saying:
F: Wanna fuck?L: No thank you.
I was a little shocked when hearing that and finally understood what my instructor Emma said "harrassment". Perhaps in the virtual world, some people think they do not have to take responsibility for what they say.
On the other day, I met the Indian guy, Yeti. During our chat, he had some sexual implication in his words. The following is our conversation:
y: i'm planning to rent an appartment here .. but I'm alone to stay
C: i don't know we can rent appartment here
C: it's cool
I diverted the attention to another topic in order to avoid the embarrassment but still to try to keep the friendship.
Third, I observed that there is a connection between second life and real life. As a new player, I asked my boyfriend in second life some questions:
C: where do u live in real life
d: in south carolina
d: what time scale are you on in real life
C: 5:35 pm
C: how about u
d: its 4.36 am here
It was kind of paradox because we were in the virtual life but we ask about the things in real life. Maybe in Second life, we can let go of who you are in real life and start a brand-new life in Second life. I think it is one of the reasons that Second life is so attractive for the people around the world. Besides, emails build the bridge between second life and real life. If you join the club in Second life, the owner will send the email in order to notice you the upcoming event. Therefore, even though you are offline, you can still get the information and participate in the event you are interested in.
Fourth, I think one of the differences between Second Life and Real Life is that people here like to help and share with others more, compared to the real life situation. For example, I met a friend there, whose name was Tinx. (The girl who wore white outfit ) The following is our conversation:
C: i m new here
t: u need any help like with clothes and skin?
C: ya i need a new clothes
C: thx:)
t gave you Shy-CaramelleSkin13.
C: it asks me to teleport
C: should i click
t: no just wera the skin hun
t: and wear the hair but wear the bold base first i send u now
Tinx was very nice. She gave me fantastic outfit, which made me look brand-new and hot!!! She was also patient to give instruction on how to wear those items since I was new. She even invited me as a member of this club. I was so happy to be here. It made me feel at home.
What's more, people in Second Life will greet with you even if they don't know you. Living in the real life, sometimes I feel upset about the indifference of people. But in Second Life, it makes me feel warm and valued.
The characteristics of interaction in Second Life
Second life is not only a place to play but a place to learn. In our chat, I have learned some linguistic features. First, because we have little time to formulate the ideas and respond to the partners, we use a lot of abbreviation. Besides, in order to type fast, we ignore some spelling or grammatical mistakes as long as the meanings can be understood. Here are the examples:
What's more, people in Second Life will greet with you even if they don't know you. Living in the real life, sometimes I feel upset about the indifference of people. But in Second Life, it makes me feel warm and valued.
The characteristics of interaction in Second Life
Second life is not only a place to play but a place to learn. In our chat, I have learned some linguistic features. First, because we have little time to formulate the ideas and respond to the partners, we use a lot of abbreviation. Besides, in order to type fast, we ignore some spelling or grammatical mistakes as long as the meanings can be understood. Here are the examples:
C: hi u look cool (abbreviation)
w: i want a buatiful out fit > < (misspelling)
Here are some abbreviations I have learned in SL:
1. frm: from
2. b: be
3. 1m: first message
4. wen: when
5. ya: you
6. hun: honey
7. bro: brother
8. sis: sister
9. gtsy: glad to see you
10. nps: no problems
11. cyl: see you later
12. wtg: win the game
13. ty: thank you
14. xx: hug twice
Second, we used a lot of facial expressions like smileys. It requires deliberate action. When your partner says something funny, you laugh in front of the computer. Then you want your partner to know your feeling so you will consciously type it out to interact with them. The following are the examples:
A: >////////////////<> <>
Also, I found there is code switching during our chat. Some of our peers change to use native language when we are short of vocabulary in the target language. Here is the example when we told the peers some instruction for setting:
A: i m nor sure if i succeed to set it
C: press 即時通
C: and there is log chat
In the meeting with TA, because of different register, which is in the conference room with TA, the use of language becomes more formal compare to the chat between the peers. TA gave several questions for us to discuss. The interaction was going well. We shared our opinions and gave some feedback with each other. Sometimes TA would ask us to elaborate our ideas more and guide us to discuss further. Here is the example:
C: press 即時通
C: and there is log chat
In the meeting with TA, because of different register, which is in the conference room with TA, the use of language becomes more formal compare to the chat between the peers. TA gave several questions for us to discuss. The interaction was going well. We shared our opinions and gave some feedback with each other. Sometimes TA would ask us to elaborate our ideas more and guide us to discuss further. Here is the example:
TA: Are you satisfied with the tools/page elements Blogger offered?
A: not really
C: not realyy
TA : why?
TA : does dome functions bother you?
C: it's hard to edit if u wants to post pictures
i: strange in their tools
A: i get used to the usage of Taiwanes Blog so .....i don't think blogger is convenient as pixnet or other blogs in TW
TA : i thought it was much the same as the wretch blog?
All in all, I like Second life a lot. I like to have a virtual class here. It is so free and so fun. What's more, I can make friends around the world and learn some real language use here. I have a strong motivation to go to Second life. Every time I go, I learn a lot from it. I believe in the future second life will become a trend for mutable purposes: entertainment, education, business and whatever you think of in real life.
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