Big community in a small world

With today´s technology, people rarely give a second thought to connecting with others all over the world. On line networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn allow us to reach out to long-lost friends, meet new people, and develop important professional relationships. A popular tool for this global communication is the virtual world. A virtual world is a computer-based simulated environment where users create an online identity, appropriately called an avatar (defined as embodiment or personification long before it was used for computer games and communities), and use it to explore, create, and communicate with others. With more than 15 million users, Second Life (SL) is one of the most popular three-dimensional virtual worlds, with an interactive environment (referred to as inworld by its residents) that lends itself well to social networking, collaboration, and learning.