Australian reporter Ticky Fullerton is our woman on the (virtual) street for this interesting look at the online interactive gaming world of Second Life, the brainchild of San Francisco-based entrepreneur Philip Rosedale, who is interviewed here along with various scholars, critics, and online denizens. After first creating an avatar (an animated figure representing the user in the virtual world), Fullerton customizes her character (one of the settings includes “breast buoyancy”) before setting out to—what else?—shop. Turns out that Second Life is not only the 3D equivalent of an online chat room, but also an environment in which you can buy items (with real money) for your avatar, including real estate, chic gowns, and cybersex (Fullerton drops into one sex shop where the proprietor offers a demo of an avatar couple having missionary position sex). More intriguing are the wide range of sticky questions posed to interviewees such as Wired cofounder Kevin Kelly, virtual property development millionaire Ailin Graef, author Julian Dibbell, critic Clay Shirky, and Stanford Law School's Lauren Gelman. To wit: should virtual sex crimes be prosecuted? How are intellectual property rights protected? What are the tax implications of running a business in the virtual world? Reportedly, some 20,000 users are logged on at any given time; however, that number could eventually begin to grow exponentially worldwide. A thought-provoking look at a brave new e-world, You Only Live Twice is recommended. Aud: C, P. (R. Pitman)
You Only Live Twice
(2007) 47 min. DVD or VHS: $129.95. Films Media Group. PPR. Closed captioned. ISBN: 978-1-4213-7822-0 (dvd), 978-1-4213-7821-3 (vhs). Volume 23, Issue 6
You Only Live Twice
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