NASA Goddard CIO Blog Visiting Virtual Worlds: A Short Weekend Road Trip
My old boss Skip, used to say that people who spend time in Second Life need to get a First Life. Well, there has clearly been a lot of hype surrounding virtual worlds such as Second Life. Perhaps the hype has many wondering about the practical aspects or business benefits of such environments.
Many associate virtual worlds with gaming and social activities. Even with this Web 2.0 science project that I’m in, I hear nuances of time-wasting garbage technologies. There’s no doubt that many of these applications are for social purposes. But look at these examples:
- Wii Technology Used in Brain Rehabilitation
- Wall Street Turning to Game Technologies to Speed Analytics
- It’s Not All Fun and Games: Virtual Worlds Abound in Useful Business Applications
There are some real applications. Technology strategists need to get past the hype, begin to look for real applications and find ways to measure the value.
In Gartner’s Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies 2008 (Whit Andrews, et. al), Web 2.0 and Virtual Worlds are in the Trough of Dillusionment… “because the technology does not live up to its over-inflated expectations, it rapidly becomes unfashionable and the press abandons the topic.” This stage precedes the Slope of Enlightenment where … ” [f]ocused experimentation and solid hard work by an increasingly diverse range of organizations lead to a true understanding of the technology’s applicability, risks and benefits. Commercial off-the-shelf methodologies and tools become available to ease the development process.” Nevertheless, Gartner has predicted that by 2011, 80% of all Internet users will be members of virtual worlds.
As I’ve said in previous posts, I learn kinesthetically. It’s been my goal to learn about the value of these virtual worlds by actually getting in and trying it. When I was asked by 1105 Government Information Group to do a panel on Second life, I figured I had to learn about it quick. Frankly, I welcomed the opportunity to moderate and to stop procrastinating about it and learn. So I decided to go visiting this weekend … traveling to virtual worlds.
Here are a couple of virtual spots I checked out this weekend:
Explorer Island is founded and maintained by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The island houses many interactive mission exhibits and several meeting places. I picked up a tee-shirt, but I can’t seem to find it.
The virtual CoLab is a dedicated “island” in the “Second Life” online virtual world. NASA CoLab is a member of the SciLands “continent.” Provides educational content and helps to foster communication of NASA’s mission. I sent my husband a postcard.
Virtual adventures where you can soar through a hurricane, rise gently through the atmosphere atop a weather balloon or search for a hidden underwater cave on a side trip from a NOAA submersible. This world was content rich, but being a rookie in SL, I seemed to have “picked up” something I can’t figure out how to put down.
Those who know me, know I hate shopping, but since I was in the “neighborhood, I did stop by a friend’s store. My friend is a business owner, builder and explorer of Second Life. He owns this particle effects shop in Second Life. These are pretty cool visual effects that people can buy. I didn’t buy anything though.
IBM – Innovation in Virtual Worlds
Provides advice to customers about doing business in a virtual environment. Offers guidelines to its customers about how to conduct business in a virtual environment. Gives advice for leadership in a virtual environment. In particular, lessons learned from the gaming industry.
It was kind of fun doing this exploration, safely from my kitchen table. I have barely mastered walking, I got ejected off of someone’s island (I think I got offended, but I’m not sure), and my Second Life client kept crashing. Though I did run into (literally) someone in the Electric Pixels store and I didn’t interact with anyone. I do see the practical possibilities here though. I look forward to traveling around some more.
