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Re: [Air-L] Second Life
by Julian Hopkins 30 Aug '07

30 Aug '07

I may have got this link from this list originally: "Anthropologist: Deep Bonds Forged in Second Life" http://chronicle.com/wiredcampus/article/2287/anthropologist-deep-bonds-forg ed-in-second-life Cheers, Julian ++++++++++ Blog: www.julianhopkins.net Skype: julhop IM: jfprhopkins(a)hotmail.com ------------------------------ Message: 11 Date: Tue, 28 Aug 2007 18:35:23 +0800 From: "CHUNG Wai Keung" <wkchung(a)smu.edu.sg> Subject: [Air-L] Second Life To: <air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org> Message-ID: <C55B27DA782C554B82B8F9047417BA1DBA2164(a)EX01.staff.smu.edu.sg> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Wonder if anyone has come across any theoretical/sociological study on Second Life? I would very much appreciate if someone can point to me the relevant literature. Many thanks! ********************************** Dr. Chung Wai-keung Assistant Professor of Sociology School of Social Sciences Singapore Management University 90 Stamford Road Singapore 178903 Tel: (65) 6828 0871 Fax: (65) 6828 0833 ------------------------------ No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.484 / Virus Database: 269.12.12/979 - Release Date: 29/8/2007 20:21

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cfp + cfp + Journal of Electronic Commerce Research: Special Issue on Virtual Worlds + cf + cfp
by Marc Fetscherin 30 Aug '07

30 Aug '07

JOURNAL OF ELECTRONIC COMMERCE RESEARCH: SPECIAL ISSUE ON VIRTUAL WORLDS CALL FOR PAPERS Special Issue on Virtual Worlds Submissions due: November 1, 2007 Scheduled Publication date: August 2008 Overview: The emergence of virtual worlds and Web 3.D change the way of doing business. Web 3.D is the synonym for Internet-based virtual worlds, where people can create own 3-D virtual personalities. Virtual Worlds such as Second Life and others are undergoing an evolution similar to that of the Internet in the mid nineties and might impact profoundly the way people cooperate, communicate, collaborate, and conduct business. The recent entering of companies such as Toyota, American Apparel, Nissan, or Adidas indicate the upcoming role of this platform for the next generation of conducting electronic business. This call for papers is intended to cover a wide range of business and research topics that fall within the broad description of activities, challenges, opportunities, applications, innovations and implications associated with Virtual Worlds as the emerging new online business landscape. Purpose of the Special Issue: The purpose of this special issue is to encourage discussion and communication of important research issues that underpin Virtual Worlds as an important aspect of e-commerce and to showcase interesting and significant research work in this critical area. Specifically this issues is focusing on business and legal issues of doing business in Virtual Worlds. Of particular relevance to the described focus are papers about business models, marketing, promotion, pricing, customer integration, consumer behavior, legal, cultural and cross-cultural research. The issue, however, will not be restricted to these topics; rather, it welcomes reports of theoretical or empirical research that examines pertinent business issues related to Virtual Worlds e-commerce. This special issue will be of interest to researchers, governments, small and large businesses, marketing and PR companies among others. List of possible topics are: Product Development and Testing in Virtual Worlds Image, Branding, Advertising in Virtual Worlds Marketing in Virtual World Avatar-based Marketing Promotion of Virtual Goods in Virtual Worlds Pricing of Virtual Goods in Virtual Worlds Selling, Cross-Selling Real and Virtual Worlds Business Planning for Non-profits in Virtual Worlds Fundraising and Virtual Worlds Convergence of Real and Virtual Worlds Customer Integration and Virtual Worlds Technology, Business, Strategy in Virtual Worlds Financial Systems, Investments, Currency Exchange Real and Virtual Worlds Emerging Media Presence in Virtual Worlds Consumer Behavior, Consumer Acceptance and Virtual Worlds Trust, Cross-Cultural Studies and Virtual Worlds Intellectual Property, Copyright, Trademarks and Virtual Worlds Submission of Manustcript: JECR publishes original empirical research, theoretical and methodological articles, evaluative and integrative reviews, field research, business surveys, and application papers of interest to a general readership. A submission based on a paper appearing elsewhere (such as conference proceedings or newsletters) must have major value-added extensions to the earlier version. For conference papers, it should have at least 30% new material. The submitted manuscripts should follow the format as suggested in the Submission Guideline found in the journal website: http://www.csulb.edu/journals/jecr/s_guide.htm. Of particular note is that the manuscript should be prepared in Microsoft Word format. The names, affiliations, and contact information (i.e., phone, fax, email addresses) of all authors should be provided only on the cover page. The submitted paper will undergo a double-blind review. Contributing authors may be asked to serve as reviewers for the special issue. Authors may submit completed manuscripts electronically at any time prior to November 1st 2007 deadline. Manuscripts and questions send to mfetscherin(a)rollins.edu. Guest Editor Marc Fetscherin, Ph.D. Rollins College International Business Department Winter Park, 32789, FL, USA e-mail: mfetscherin(a)rollins.edu Tel: +1 407 691 1759 Fax: +1 407 646 1566 Important Dates: Deadline for Submission: November 1, 2007 Paper acceptance/rejection: January 15, 2008 Revised paper submission: March 15, 2008 Final acceptance following revisions: May 15, 2008 Publication Date: August 2008

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Re: [Air-L] archiving virtual worlds for social science
by Jason Rhody 29 Aug '07

29 Aug '07

> > How to virtualize the > > idea of the library? Does anyone know how the internet archive - > > http://www.archive.org/index.php - is approaching these questions? > > hmm, i don't think it is. i think the ELO is. This is a snip from the recent grant announcement about preserving virtual worlds from LOC's National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program [NDIPP] (www.digitalpreservation.gov) http://www.loc.gov/today/pr/2007/07-156.html University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: Interactive media are highly complex and at high risk for loss as technologies rapidly become obsolete. The Preserving Virtual Worlds project will explore methods for preserving digital games and interactive fiction. Major activities will include developing basic standards for metadata and content representation and conducting a series of archiving case studies for early video games, electronic literature and Second Life, an interactive multiplayer game. Second Life content participants include Life to the Second Power, Democracy Island and the International Spaceflight Museum. Partners: University of Maryland, Stanford University, Rochester Institute of Technology and Linden Lab. Jason =================== Jason Rhody University of Maryland, Dept. of English http://misc.wordherders.net National Endowment for the Humanities, Digital Humanities Initiative http://www.neh.gov

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archiving virtual worlds for social science research
by Scott MacLeod 29 Aug '07

29 Aug '07

How would an organization like webarchive.org or someone archive all of Second Life, in the aggregate in real time, as well as the rest of the virtual worlds. Might one be able to create a record of all emerging virtual worlds from day 1? Is there a way to retrieve an online SL conversation with actions from years ago? Some virtual world web-page centric archives exist, but do other kinds of archives exist? Scott -- http://scottmacleod.com This email is intended only for the use of the individual or entity to which it is addressed and may contain information that is privileged and confidential. If the reader of this email message is not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution, or copying of this communication is prohibited. If you have received this email in error, please notify the sender and destroy/delete all copies of the transmittal. Thank you.

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CALL FOR PAPERS: 27th Annual Advertising and Consumer Psychology Conference
by Guido Lang 29 Aug '07

29 Aug '07

Please note the following Call for Papers of the 27th Annual Advertising and Consumer Psychology Conference, which will be held May 1-2, 2008 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The theme of the conference is Virtual Social Identity and Consumer Behavior. Our apologies if you receive multiple copies of this message. cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + cfp + CALL FOR PAPERS 27th Annual Advertising and Consumer Psychology Conference Virtual Social Identity and Consumer Behavior The 27th annual Advertising and Consumer Psychology Conference will be held May 1-2, 2008 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The conference is sponsored by the Society for Consumer Psychology (SCP) The theme of the conference is Virtual Social Identity and Consumer Behavior. We encourage participation from a broad range of academic researchers and practitioners in such fields as marketing and consumer psychology, computer science, sociology, economics, and communications. The creation and expression of identity (or of multiple identities) in immersive environments is rapidly transforming consumer behavior – even though at this point in time many mainstream consumers have not even heard of this phenomenon! The largest social networking, Second Life, currently has over 6 million registered users worldwide, while the gaming-oriented site World of Warcraft has close to 9 million users. Consumers enter CME’s in digital form, as avatars. A user can design his or her avatar by choosing facial features, body types, clothing styles – and even nonhuman forms. These digital representations are socializing with one another in real time, taking virtual university courses, participating in corporate training programs, sharing reactions to new products, and of course shopping. To date more than 40 RL (real life) companies including GM, Dell, Sony, IBM and Wells Fargo are staking their claim to online real estate in computer-mediated environments (CME’s) such as Second Life, There.com and Entropia Universe. In April 2007 alone, residents of the online “world” Second Life spent approximately $10 million (in real money) on virtual land, products and services. Corporate America’s transition to the virtual world is an attempt to reach and entice the growing flood of consumers occupying these virtual worlds. Clearly this expanding space will be pivotal in fueling new consumer trends over the next decade. In addition, the parallel growth in spending on advergaming continues to transfigure the online C2C world. Forecasts suggest that sales of branded messages embedded in videogames will reach $733 million by 2010. Eventually, these CME forums may rival traditional, marketer-sponsored E-commerce sites in terms of their influence on consumer decision-making and product adoption. Despite this huge potential, we know very little about the best way to talk to consumers in these online environments. How will well- established research findings from the offline world transfer to CMEs? For example, can we be sure that our received wisdom regarding the impact of source credibility upon persuasion will readily apply to a situation where a “source” espousing adoption of a new product takes the form of an animated supermodel with exaggerated “attributes” or a bright green demon with fearsome horns? These new online platforms generate many fascinating research questions for the advertising and consumer psychology community. Here are some: Avatars, the Self, and Attitude Change • What does the consumer’s choice of his or her own avatar tell us about self-concept and role identity – especially since visitors often create multiple avatars to “experiment” with different identities? • How important is it for visitors to be able to customize the avatars they encounter in advertising so that they control the image that speaks to them about its products? • How effective are avatars as sources of marketing communications? • What physical dimensions influence the consumer decision-making process when shoppers encounter avatars that represent RL organizations? Should a company’s “spokes-avatar” be modeled after a real person (perhaps the viewer herself)? A celebrity? A fantasy figure? • How will the explosion in consumer-generated marketing communications now being posted in CMEs (including YouTube, Second Life and elsewhere) influence the process of attitude change and strategic communications decisions? • How does the phenomenon of “presence” (the term communications researchers use to refer to the level of immersion in a virtual social environment) relate to flow states and high involvement situations documented in consumer research? Virtual Influence and Decision Making • What are the implications for information diffusion as consumers increasingly turn to CMEs for information about new products or to read other consumers’ reviews of these products? • Can consumer researchers construct and populate virtual laboratories that will allow them to simulate RL decision-making contexts and better understand how heuristics, contextual cues, information displays and other variables will impact consumer behavior both offline and online? • Can avatars’ conversations with one another, either in pairs or in groups, be a valuable starting point for buzz-building and word-of- mouth marketing campaigns? • How will the growth in CME participation affect social interaction patterns such as dating? • To what extent do consumers in CMEs participate in risk-taking behavior, and what implications does this have for RL? • What are the implications for adolescent socialization, or for the ability of children to distinguish reality-based cues from fantasy? • What are the ethical implications of the increasingly common practice of misrepresentation whereby companies pay individuals to promote their products on websites while masquerading as “ordinary” surfers? Virtual Culture and Economies • What is the potential of online prediction markets (like The Hollywood Stock Exchange) to improve researchers’ and practitioners’ ability to forecast consumer trends? • How will norms regarding social etiquette, cheating, and gift- giving transfer to CMEs? • What are the implications for cross-cultural consumer behavior as CME residents increasingly are able to interact with fellow avatars (and companies) from around the world? • How will the integration of avatars on other internet platforms influence consumer behavior on e-commerce websites? Submissions Submissions may be in one of two categories: 1) complete papers or 2) abstracts. Preference for acceptance will be given to papers that provide extensive integration of existing work and/or provide details of a relevant program of research that takes a psychological perspective. Authors of the best papers will be invited to prepare a manuscript for a book to be published by the Society for Consumer Psychology. Complete papers that will be published in the book must be submitted in camera-ready format within 30 days of presentation at the conference. Publication of full papers based upon submitted abstracts is contingent upon satisfactory review of the full paper. Submissions must be received by December 15, 2007. Papers should be sent to Natalie Wood (nwood(a)sju.edu) electronically as an attached Word file. All papers will be blind-reviewed, so please submit your manuscript with authors’ names and contact information on a separate cover page. Please limit the manuscript to 30 pages double-spaced (excluding Exhibits) with 1” margins. Hotel Information The conference will be held at the Loews Hotel in Philadelphia (www.loewshotels.com) Conveniently located in the heart of downtown Philadelphia, the Loews Hotel is steps away from the historic district (Liberty Bell, National Constitution Center), shopping, restaurants and sports arenas. To make reservations, contact the Loews Philadelphia and identify yourself as an attendee of the Advertising and Consumer Psychology Conference to receive the conference hotel rate of $189 per night. Reservations must be made by April 1st, 2008 to receive the conference rate. For more information about The Society for Consumer Psychology or the Advertising and Consumer Psychology Conference, please see our website at http://www.consumerpsych.org or contact one of the conference chairs: Michael R. Solomon, Ph.D. Department of Marketing Haub School of Business Saint Joseph’s University 5600 City Avenue Philadelphia PA 19131 Tel: 610-660-3411 Fax: 610-660-3239 msolom01(a)sju.edu Natalie T. Wood, Ph.D. Department of Marketing Haub School of Business Saint Joseph’s University 5600 City Avenue Philadelphia PA 19131 Tel: 610-660-3452 Fax: 610-660-3239 nwood(a)sju.edu

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Second Life
by CHUNG Wai Keung 29 Aug '07

29 Aug '07

Wonder if anyone has come across any theoretical/sociological study on Second Life? I would very much appreciate if someone can point to me the relevant literature. Many thanks! ********************************** Dr. Chung Wai-keung Assistant Professor of Sociology School of Social Sciences Singapore Management University 90 Stamford Road Singapore 178903 Tel: (65) 6828 0871 Fax: (65) 6828 0833

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Job Announcement: New Media Position Comm. Dept. University of Utah
by Hector Postigo 29 Aug '07

29 Aug '07

UNIVERSITY OF UTAH: ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF NEW MEDIA STUDIES The Department of Communication at the University of Utah invites applications for a tenure-track assistant professor of new media studies, effective July 1, 2008. Strong candidates will have research and teaching interests in one or more of the following areas: digital animation; internet/web studies; critical approaches to information structures; mobile communication technologies; online communities and networks; new media arts including e-games. Highly qualified applicants will have a completed, or nearly completed, Ph.D. in communication or a closely related discipline or interdisciplinary program; appropriate technical knowledge; a record of or demonstrated potential for teaching excellence; and the promise or early evidence of a productive research or creative scholarship program. Qualified candidates will be able to teach relevant undergraduate and graduate courses and supervise graduate students. The University of Utah recognizes that a diverse faculty benefits and enriches the educational experiences of the entire campus and greater community. To this end, the Department of Communication is committed to removing barriers that have been traditionally encountered by individuals from underrepresented groups; strives to recruit faculty who will further enrich our campus diversity; and makes every attempt to support their academic, professional and personal success while they are here. The Department of Communication is an intellectual community that is committed to diversity, features a broad array of interests, and pursues a wide range of disciplinary and interdisciplinary projects. Strong candidates will be able to make connections to our wide-ranging and vibrant scholarly community. The University of Utah features a collegial academic environment, contributes to a culturally rich metropolitan area, and enjoys an extraordinarily beautiful natural setting. Review of applications begins November 1, 2007 and continues until the position is filled. Applicants must submit an application letter, vita, three letters of recommendation, samples of scholarly and/or creative activity, a complete graduate transcript, and evidence of teaching excellence to: Professor Hector Postigo, New Media Studies Search Committee Chair, Department of Communication, 255 S. Central Campus Drive, LNCO 2400, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0491. The University of Utah is fully committed to policies of nondiscrimination and equal opportunity and vigorously pursues affirmative action in all programs, activities, and employment with regard to race, color, national origin, sex, age, and status as a person with a disability. Religion, sexual orientation, and status as a disabled veteran or veteran of the Vietnam era also are protected under nondiscrimination and equal opportunity employment policies. The University of Utah is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer which provides reasonable accommodations to the known disabilities of applicants and employees. ________________ Dr. Hector Postigo Assistant Professor Department of Communication University of Utah 255 South Central Campus Dr RM 2400 Salt Lake City, Utah 84112 801-585-9898 http://home.utah.edu/~u0521227 <http://home.utah.edu/%7Eu0521227> res publica non dominetur

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Convergence, Citizen Journalism & Social Change: Building Capacity
by Jeremy Hunsinger 29 Aug '07

29 Aug '07

> > Call for Papers: > > > > Convergence, Citizen Journalism & Social Change: Building Capacity > > University of Queensland, BRISBANE > > March 25-27, 2008 > > > > CALL FOR PAPERS see http://www.uq.edu.au/sjc/docs/amisjc.pdf > > > > > > > > Much thanks for your help. > > Lincoln > > > > > > > > Lincoln Dahlberg > > School of Journalism & Communication > > The University of Queensland 4072 > > Australia > > > > Telephone: +61 7 336 51793 > > Fax: +61 7 336 51377 > > Email: l.dahlberg(a)uq.edu.au > > Web: http://www.uq.edu.au/journ-comm/index.html?page=49730&pid=8537 > > > > > Jeremy Hunsinger Information Ethics Fellow, Center for Information Policy Research, School of Information Studies, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (www.cipr.uwm.edu) Words are things; and a small drop of ink, falling like dew upon a thought, produces that which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think. --Byron

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Re: [Air-L] help on africa and computer donations
by Paul DiPerna 28 Aug '07

28 Aug '07

In terms of who is the politically (or market) connected charismatic operator in this story, I see Barrett as at least the equal of Negroponte, if not more so. The report was suggesting Intel's market power and Barrett's political power were preventing a new product (One Laptop) to be distributed in developing countries, and even introduced here in the United States. Negroponte was exerting power through discussions with foreign governments. Barrett/Intel seemed to be doing it both ways - through government channels and business channels. I don't necessarily see one approach more or less subversive than the other. Both kinds of activities need to be publicly and intuitively transparent, so consumers or public officials can base their best decisions whichever way. And for whatever it's worth, I think Barrett and Intel have done a lot of good the last 5-10 years when it comes to promoting competitiveness and the need for systemic education reform here in the states. He is a catalyst. In any case, all of my blather above is moot. In July, Barrett got a seat on One Laptop's board, further concentrating power on how laptop technology will probably flow in developing countries. And maybe this is a good thing for now.. I don't know. While a market matures in it's early stages, innovation could benefit from this kind of arrangement. But my gut tells me this is not a good thing for an indefinite amount of time. - Paul ----- Original Message ---- From: Jimmy Wales <jwales(a)wikia.com> To: air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org Sent: Tuesday, August 28, 2007 11:25:19 AM Subject: Re: [Air-L] help on africa and computer donations Paul DiPerna wrote: > The business/political dynamics at play between the One Laptop > Project and Craig Barrett/Intel are interesting. The CBS report > implicitly raises some profound questions about how oligopolies (here > in the US. for example) can actually stifle technological progress > and the diffusion of an innovation to the masses. I'm not a business > analyst by any stretch of the imagination, but that was one of my > takeaways. My takeaway is the exact opposite: a politically connected charismatic operator can hijack the governmental developmental agenda to achieve unfair advantage, destroying emerging markets with an inferior and frankly absurd product that no one wants or needs... in the name of charity. --Jimbo _______________________________________________ The Air-L(a)listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/

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Graduate Program, MFA, recommendation please
by Ed Lamoureux 28 Aug '07

28 Aug '07

I have a friend who would like recommendations for MFA program in digital arts. He is an accomplished artist in both RL and in Second Life, who wants to be able to use his SL work as the focus of his degree. DanCoyote in SL is the artist DC Spensley; his work is among THE most prominent in SL. He is a very motivated adult student and just graduated from the San Francisco Art Institute with a 3.8 average. If you have recommendations for MFA program to which he should apply, please respond to him at <spensley(a)pacbell.net> Edward Lee Lamoureux, Ph. D. Associate Professor, Multimedia Program and Department of Communication Co-Director, New Media Center 1501 W. Bradley Bradley University Peoria IL 61625 309-677-2378 <http://slane.bradley.edu/com/faculty/lamoureux/website2/index.html> <http://gcc.bradley.edu/mm/> AIM/IM & skype: dredleelam Second Life: Professor Beliveau

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