building things
Groups
2
Groups and guilds play a huge role in the society of the virtual world. In Second Life, groups carry an important role of helping others connect with one another. Groups also help users identify their interests, understand their selfhood, and feel in a place of belonging. In Second Life groups can be categorized as events, temporarily formed social gatherings, and the formation of guilds.
Groups are extremely common on Second Life and can be found on many areas of the world map. Groups can be free to join, or may require an invitation that sometimes includes a fee or payment. Once a user joins a group, they are then given the opportunity to display it above their screen name for others to see. Groups can be created around almost anything, including topics, places, and identity categories. In Second Life, users are also given the liberty to customize their avatars appearance to represent their subcultures and groups.
An important aspect of a group on Second Life includes the formation of different roles and the ability to buy land. Some of these positions include a range of official and leadership roles. Residents of a group can also contribute to the ownership of their appropriate guild’s land. By providing a monthly payment, Second Life offers its user the ability to purchase private land in the virtual world. Groups and guilds are commonly seen owning different parts of land to build their communities and connections with others.
Within a group, one may associate themselves as being part of an online subculture. This subculture carries a significant role in displaying the interactions among avatars on Second Life. It is also important to note that these groups carry many characteristics of a “virtual community”. Although users are depicting themselves as avatars on Second Life, they are still associated with the human tendencies to socialize with others around them to form communities. These communities can be seen all over the areas of Second Life and help form a balanced online society for its users.
Things are created in Second Life using “prims” which are short for “primitives.” Everything in Second Life except for the avatars, and the natural environment are created from prims. People “rez” prims on Second Life, meaning that they create them or pull them from their inventories. When someone creates a new prim, it comes from the “magic wand” building tool. Prims are the tools through which you can express your creativity. Prims cost zero linden dollars and there are no limits on the amount of prims you can create. There are limits to the number of prims a parcel of land can hold, and if you wish to build on someone else’s land, you will need their permission. You can also build on your own land or in public sandboxes.
prims