SecondLife.com - Your World. Your Imagination

Bored with your first life? Tired of everyday routine? Why not try a second life? Second Life is a 3D online digital world imagined, created and owned by its residents. The most important thing about the world of Second Life is that it is constantly changing and growing. New residents join each day and create an avatar. An avatar is your persona in the virtual world. Those avatars explore the World and meet people. But, where do I start exploring? You’ll find three helpful tools to start exploring this virtual world: the map, where you can view for example upcoming events' information; the search menu and profiles of other people. These people discover the thousands of ways to have fun. Once you meet people you like, you find it's easy to communicate and stay in touch. At any time there are dozens of events where you can party at nightclubs, attend fashion shows and art openings or just play games. To find something to do at any time of the day or night, simply open the search menu and click on events. You'll see a listing of discussions, sports, commercial, entertainment, games, education, arts and culture and support groups. Some people decide to purchase virtual land, which allows them to open a business, build their own virtual paradise, and more. Your first basic account is free, and includes access to events, shopping, building and everything you can do in Second Life. A premium account, starting at $9.95 a month, allows you to own land on which you can build, display, entertain and live. You'll be given a small weekly income of L$ (Second Life's official unit-of-trade) when you sign up for a premium account. Plus you can earn L$ by making and selling goods and services, holding events, and playing games. Because shopping is a big part of the Second Life experience for many residents, you can buy and sell anything that can be made in-world, from clothes, skins, jewelry, and custom animations for avatars, to furniture, buildings, weapons, vehicles, games, and more. Outside the Second Life world, there are official discussion forums, available to members.

“Since opening to the public in 2003, it has grown explosively and today is inhabited by a total of 8,456,638 Residents from around the globe. From the moment you enter the World you'll discover a vast digital continent, teeming with people, entertainment, experiences and opportunity. Once you've explored a bit, perhaps you'll find a perfect parcel of land to build your house or business. You'll also be surrounded by the Creations of your fellow residents. Because residents retain the rights to their digital creations, they can buy, sell and trade with other residents. The Marketplace currently supports millions of US dollars in monthly transactions. This commerce is handled with the in-world unit-of-trade, the Linden dollar, which can be converted to US dollars at several thriving online Linden Dollar exchanges. Welcome to Second Life. We look forward to seeing you in-world.”

Second Life provides an advanced level of a social network service. It’s the size of a small city, with a resident population of over 8,000,000, and it will sure continue growing. The huge popularity is Second Life may stand in the fact that it is all about personal expression. This world really is whatever you make it, and your experience is what you want out of it. Besides, a growing list of major businesses, including IBM Corp., Sun Microsystems Inc., and the National Basketball Association, have set up virtual offices in Second Life.

Is this the future of the Internet? How many members does it really have? The question of how many people actually use Second Life has always been hotly debated, in particular because it is free for anyone to join. The number of total residents it’s not equivalent with what is commonly considered by most online businesses as "active users," in large part because many people who sign up for Second Life try it once and never come back, and because individuals can have as many as five different avatars, each of which would count as a "resident." While near 42,000 people pay for premium accounts that number pales in comparison to the more than 7.5 million people who pay for subscriptions to “World of Warcraft”.