COMP 380-003, Spring 2008                              

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT: 
Virtual Worlds - Second Life (SL) or Zwinky

Date Due:   MON APR 21--paper copy due start of regular class; electronic copy emailed to pozefsky@cs.unc.edu and cisarano@emil.unc.edu by 6 pm

Read through EVERYTHING before you start; you will have some choices to make and lots of questions to think about as you explore your virtual world.

Many of you have heard of the virtual community of Second Life (SL).  Some of you may be very familiar with it: an almost endless world of neighborhoods, houses, shopping centers, playgrounds, landscapes, and avatars (the animated people or creatures representing SL participants), all created and built by its users.  UNC Chapel Hill has islands there.  In SL, you can be anyone or anything you like, build yourself a better house, have a better job (or no job), date, spend money, fall in love, get married, even have children!  You are free to represent yourself exactly as you wish.

SL is one of a number of virtual worlds that have been created.  It has received a lot of publicity for several reasons:  it was designed for an adult community, it has been embraced by a number of companies and universities, and it is by far the most sophisticated of the virtual worlds.  Because of all these design points, people have used SL for a number of real purposes:  holding meetings, teaching classes, and earning money.  Other systems (such as GaiaOnline, Zwinky, and There) have been designed for a younger population.  This can be seen in the graphics, the environments provided, and the activities that are provided.  For example, game playing is a significant aspect of GaiaOnline or Zwinky, but is not part of the basic SL environment.

This assignment therefore is designed to have you investigate the issues of virtual worlds and avatars, using either Second Life or Zwinky.  You rae not required to use both.  You will  build an avatar, meet class members, chat with others (via a chat bar where you type, much like IM), complete a series of tasks, and reflect on and describe your experience. You should plan on spending at least an hour exploring either SL or Zwinky!

We encourage you to try Second Life, which has many advantages over Zwinky:  the avatars are far more appealing; the virtual environments are much more sophisticated, with many more places to visit; and you are far more likely to meet others from around the world who are in your age group, hopefully providing better interaction and a richer experience all around.

Unfortunately, with the sophistication of SL comes software complexity, and in the past some students have had problems with installing and running Second Life on their machines. If you run into problems installing or running the SL software on your own computer, another option is to use one of the computers at the Davis Library computer lab, or at the HSL, SASB, or SPH computer labs, where the software is already installed.  (Computer lab hours) Just find the SecondLife icon on the desktop and launch it. (Be aware that during busy SL times, the software can sometimes crash on occasion even at the campus labs.)

If you prefer, you may instead choose to use the simpler Zwinky environment.  While Zwinky is much quicker/simpler to install and to use, you will find the avatars look a little like paper dolls, and the virtual environments do not have nearly the visual appeal or richness of SL.  In addition, its activities are created for younger teens--age 13 through 19.  On the other hand, it requires that you download a lot less software. Zwinky is only an option for Windows users (not Mac or Linux) and requires that you use Internet Explorer as your browser. 


JOIN SECOND LIFE (SL):

     CREATE YOUR ACCOUNT, CREATE YOUR AVATAR, CHANGE YOUR PASSWORD:  You must do steps 1-2, 4-5 even if you are using the Second Life software in the computer labs.
  1. Visit:  http://sl.nmc.org/create.php
  2. Follow the instructions on that page to create your avatar's name.  Select a first name that is unusual so it isn't taken yet (e.g., sound out your real-name initials:  if your name is Katie G. Black, your first SL name could be KayGeeBee).   Once you've created an SL name that is accepted, WRITE IT DOWN. 
    1. YOU MAY DESELECT the "I wish to join the NMC Community in Second Life" button.
    2. After you've completed all the boxes, click on the Create My Account button.
  3. You should receive an email confirmation with a very long password.  Copy the password, then go ahead and download (save!) and install the SecondLife software on your computer.  Be sure you remember where you are SAVING the executable file so you can open it to install the program   OK, moving on....
  4. Next, visit:  http://secondlife.com    and log in to your account (Resident Login link, upper right) with your new SL name and paste in that long password from the email message.
  5. Now, CHANGE that long password to something you'll remember.  Look under the right-hand pane under Your Account, and click on Password.
If you have problems with this method, registrar through the standard Second Life site and simply follow those instructions.

    LAUNCH SECOND LIFE AND CHANGE YOUR AVATAR:
  1. OK, you can now launch the Second Life program-- there should be a pale green icon on your desktop.
  2. Sign in, using your SL name and new password.  Then click CONNECT.
  3. You'll see a very plain avatar that you can change by right-clicking on it and selecting Appearance.
  4. Personalize your avatar. To do so, right-click on your avatar and select "Appearance."   Think about it. Does your avatar look like you or not? Why did you make the choices you made?
CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING:  The freedom that virtual worlds provide raises a number of difficult questions.  What happens when people are free to enact desires that wouldn't be possible in "real" life? What is the nature of identity and relationship in virtual worlds? What are its dangers and joys? What role does anonymity play?  What is the relationship between your real life and your avatar life?

    TAKE NOTES AS YOU DO THE FOLLOWING:

  1. Spend some time moving around in SL.  The arrow keys direct your walking. Type F to fly, C to land gently.  Move the mouse to shift your gaze.  (HINT:  to see your avatar's face, Hold down the ALT key while you press the arrow keys.)
  2. Open the Map function and perform a search for and visit the following locations:  Orientation Island Public, Help Island Public, UNC-CH.   Click Teleport to visit those locations.  Orientation Island Public is a great place to start learning about the many functions of  Second Life:  a guided tour leads you through descriptions of many of its features. There are guides on Orientation and Help Islands who are happy to answer your questions.
  3. Visit at least three locations besides Orientation, Help, and UNC-CH islands. You can get recommendations on the Second Life Web site or by typing random search terms into the map's search box, or by simply flying around.  Some interesting places include Free Dove,  Image Reflection, Money Island, and Fisherman Cove.  To look for PLACES TO VISIT:  Click the Search button, then click the Places tab.  E.g., type UNC in the search box and see what you find.   Select a place from the list, then click the Teleport button.  Try out different search categories.  Explore!
  4. Strike up conversations (or respond to) with at least two other SL inhabitants (excluding  COMP 380 people).  Ask questions!
  5. Change your appearance in a significant way and explore/strike up additional conversations. You might make yourself more and then less conventionally "attractive," change your sex or skin color, or try to be less or more "human"-looking.
  6. Look at the SL End User License Agreement http://secondlife.com/corporate/cs.php  and other information that SL provides about privacy.  Think about why the EULA is written this way.  This is as close to a virtual world code of ethics as SL has.   What do you think of these standards?  You may also find the incident reports informative:   http://secondlife.com/support/incidentreport.php
  7. Plan to spend at least an hour exploring different locations and meeting other avatars BEFORE you come to a session of virtual office hours, and be prepared to discuss some of the questions and tasks listed in red in this assignment.
  8. OK, see the VIRTUAL OFFICE HOURS section, below, and JOIN US for at least ONE SESSION (required).
To find out when SL is offline (taken down for maintenance, for example), visit http://secondlife.com/status/    Remember to refresh your browser window.

For help, technical support, suggestions, directions, navigation, and other tips., visit  http://secondlife.com/support

JOIN ZWINKY:

Even if you are successful at Second Life, we encourage you to  join Zwinky anyway and do a little exploring, for fun and for comparison with SL.

      CREATE YOUR ACCOUNT, CREATE YOUR AVATAR
  1. You must use Internet Explorer, not Firefox.  We strongly recommend you download the LATEST version of IE before you do anything, and then reboot your machine**.
  2. Visit:   http://home.zwinky.com/zwinkyhome/main.jhtml
  3. Follow the Need to Register link and follow instructions on that page to create your account and avatar name.
  4. Close the info window and click on Let's Go!  It will ask you to download some software.  You will need to accept the installation of an ActiveX control.  This is a very small piece of software and among other things will create a toolbar for you, which will give you quick access back to the site.  When it's done, click the Finish button and you'll come to a page with a number of options.  Click on Register now!
  5. Next, follow the steps to build an avatar.
  6. When you save the outfit, it will take you to a registration page.  Select a name that is unusual so it isn't taken yet.  Note that if you enter a name that is taken and need to try another, the error message will not clear until you go to the next field.  After you've completed all the boxes, click on the Join Now! button. 
  7. You should receive an email confirmation with a link to complete your registration.  Receiving this email will take a few minutes; I recommend that you do something else while waiting.  Once you have completed that task, your account is complete.
  8. Whenever you want to log into Zwinky, visit http://home.zwinky.com/zwinkyhome/main.jhtml   and simply log in, then click on the green Go Now!
  9. When you are ready to enter Zwinktopia, you will need to choose a server.  Because you will want to interact with other people, I suggest you choose the one with the most people on it.  (To meet someone in Zwinktopia, you need to be on the same server.  For class meetings, we will use the Entrepreneur server.)
  10. You may not see your avatar (often it's hiding behind another avatar).  Just click your mouse somewhere and he/she will find that spot.
**IF YOU HAVE TROUBLE using Zwinky:  You may need to change some of your Internet Explorer settings: 
    SOME INTERESTING POINTS ABOUT ZWINKY:       
CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING:  The freedom that virtual worlds provide raises a number of difficult questions.  What happens when people are free to enact desires that wouldn't be possible in "real" life? What is the nature of identity and relationship in virtual worlds? What are its dangers and joys? What role does anonymity play?  What is the relationship between your real life and your avatar life?

     TAKE NOTES AS YOU DO THE FOLLOWING:
  1. Personalize your avatar.  Think about it.  Does your avatar look like you or not?  Why did you make the choices you made?
  2. Go to Zwinktopia and move around.  Simply click on the world (Map) icon to go to another area of Zwinktopia.   To move your avatar, simply click on the place or spot you want it to go or move to.  Notice that some of the items in your environment are clickable, and will open a game.
  3. Visit at least three different locations in Zwinktopia, and try some of the activities.  Spend some time moving around.
  4. Strike up conversations (or respond to) with at least two other Zwinky inhabitants (excluding  COMP 380 people using the chat feature).  Ask questions!
  5. Change your appearance in a significant way and explore/strike up additional conversations. You might make yourself more and then less conventionally "attractive," change your sex, or try to be less or more "human"-looking.
  6. Look at the End User License Agreement (EULA) and other information that Zwinky provides about privacy.  Think about why the EULA is written this way.  This is as close to a virtual world code of ethics that Zwinky has.  Compare this to the code of ethics for SLhttp://secondlife.com/corporate/cs.php    What do you think of these standards?  (You may also find the SL incident reports informative:   http://secondlife.com/support/incidentreport.php
  7. Time to learn more about SECOND LIFE and some of the issues that have arisen there.  Specifically, learn about the Second Life economy at http://secondlife.com/whatis/marketplace.php  What are the implications of a virtual economy?
  8. Plan to spend at least an hour exploring different locations and meeting other avatars BEFORE you come to a session of virtual office hours, and be prepared to discuss some of the questions and tasks listed in red in this assignment.
  9. OK, see the VIRTUAL OFFICE HOURS section, below, and JOIN US for at least ONE SESSION (required).




VIRTUAL WORLD OFFICE HOURS  (more hours will be POSTED soon--I'll indicate here when the list is complete)


You are required to select at least one of the meeting times listed below and come and join other class members in the discussion.  You must come AT START TIME to the office hour session you've chosen--if you choose a 3:30 session, for example, you must arrive at 3:30 to be marked present--and you should plan to stay and take part in the discussion for between 10 and 30 minutes.  You do not need to reveal your real life identity during these sessions, but you must include your screen name in your paper. 

IN SECOND LIFE--MEET AT ONE OF THE FOLLOWING START TIMES AT THE OLD WELL ON THE UNC ISLAND:

DATE:
START TIMES:
TH, Apr 10
8:00 pm (Pozefsky)
SU, Apr 13
3:00 pm and 3:30 pm (Pozefsky)
M, Apr 14
2:00 pm and 2:30 pm (Aman)
TU, Apr 15
7:30 pm  and  8:00 pm  (Walsh)
W, Apr 16
11:30 am and 12:00 pm (Aman)
2:00 pm  and  2:30 pm (Tessa)
3:00 pm  and  3:30 pm  (Walsh)
TH, Apr 17 4:30 pm, 5:00 pm and 5:30 pm (Walsh)
8:00 pm and 8:30 pm (Pozefsky)
F, Apr 18
2:00 pm (Walsh)
4:00 pm and 4:30 pm (Russ)
S, Apr 19
10:00 am, 10:30 am and 11:00 am (Jason)
4:00 pm, 4:30 pm and 5:00 m (Jason)

If you're having trouble getting to the Old Well, visit:  http://slurl.com/secondlife/UNC%20CH/128/128/0


IN ZWINKTOPIA--LOG IN to the Entrepreneur Server, and MEET AT ONE OF THE FOLLOWING START TIMES AT THE JAVA JOLT


DATE:
START TIME:
TH, Apr 10 8:30 pm (Pozefsky)
SU, Apr 13
4:00 and 4:30 pm (Pozefsky)
M, Apr 14 2:00 pm (Tessa)
F, Apr 18
2:30 pm (Walsh)

OUR SCREEN NAMES IN EITHER VIRTUAL WORLD: 

Aman Nadhiri:                 
Amani Zhora
Tessa Joseph Nicholls:     TeeJay Nicholls
J. Walsh:                          Uwharra Paine
D. Pozefsky:                     Honest Oceanlane (Second Life), dianedivine (Zwinktopia)
Russ Gayle:                      Echo Hyde
Jason Cisanaro:               Jason Sammet

Note in Zwinktopia, screen names are shown as ONE word and lower case.


FINALLY, WRITE YOUR PAPER: 

Include at least three or four
of the questions posed within this assignment as you develop a well-integrated 3-4 page essay.  Be as detailed as possible about your experiences.  A successful essay will be well-developed, well-organized and coherent, free of mechanical and grammatical errors, and show evidence of a thoughtful, analytical engagement with your virtual world experience.  Please see the rubric for a more detailed description of a successful essay.  Remember to include which world you visited and your avatar's SCREEN NAME!

GRADING RUBRIC

9 April 2008