I like when people send me links – I really do. Jonathan Cohen first popped into my inbox a few months ago, and today he sent me a link to his well-structured essay on Second Life. Not in Second Life, on it – even though he prefaced the notification with somewhat-inaccurate information:

I know that you have an interest in Second Life, so I’d like to point you to a blog post I wrote about “Second Life: The Failed Experiment.”

I don’t really have an interest in Second Life – although I’ve written about how “I don’t get it” a few times in the past. Beth Goza made a Pirillo’esque avatar that I’ve placed upon myself, but I seldom drop into my Second Life – unless someone IMs me with an event of interest (like when Suzanne Vega did a live concert). Jonathan’s teaser continued:

My premise is that in virtual worlds, the behavior you see is a function of the world’s design – whether intended or unintentional, and that Second Life’s design has several unintended consequences that weaken the community they’re trying to build.

I’d expect SL supporters to crawl out of the woodwork any minute now, but they’re all too busy building things in a world that only exists in cyberspace (though this metaverse enables revenue generation to the point where some users are able to go full-time with it, until Linden’s structure changes and everybody becomes virtually homeless). /me is still leery.

• Second Life: I Don’t Get It
• Get a Second Life
• Second Life Ate My Balls
• What Will the Internet Look Like in Ten Years?
• Do You Remember When Life was Simple?
• How to Create or Edit an Avatar
• How to Change Avatars on the iPhone
• What Information Should You Put in a Social Profile?
• Is your Avatar a Gravatar?