crayonville bedlam

Neville Hobson tipped me off about a coffee afternoon at his offices in Second Life.

I thought a few people might turn up and have an interesting and civilised conversation.

This is what actually happened:

And that was after it had quietened down a bit.

Flicking on the chat history, revealed a conversation of sorts. But, to someone (like me) unused to this kind of thing, it sounded like total mayhem. Here's a one-minute extract to give you a flavour:

[6:13]  Shel Witte: The organization creates the ethical foundation -- beginning with the tone set by leadership.
[6:13]  Jangles Junot: part of an ethicasl foundation is transparency/
[6:13]  Doug Hayashi: right--it's not just about blogs
[6:13]  Katicus Sparrow: we've been talking about how marketers do or don't need to be transparent w/ their audiences
[6:13]  Katicus Sparrow: when using new media like blogs, etc.
[6:13]  Praja Rahja: And the lines around transparency
[6:13]  TheDiva Rockin: I didn't say Hi - So Hi All (On slow ass pc)
[6:13]  Hanko Florio: transparent?
[6:13]  Divo Dapto: so here's my thought....have we become too anal about transparency
[6:13]  Kim Chihuly: is it similar to the problems with product placement in television programs?
[6:13]  Jangles Junot: a fake blog isn't necessarily unethical
[6:13]  Jangles Junot: depdfnsds on transparcneyc, among other things
[6:13]  Katicus Sparrow: disclosure ..
[6:13]  EvansMom Goodspeed: not really divo
[6:13]  Lynette Radio: agreed shel, this is why i think it's important to make a decision on this before going 'public' and sticking to it no matter what
[6:13]  KaneTFM Abel: absoulte transparency is necesary in todays "age"
[6:13]  Divo Dapto: don't get me wrong....honesty is ihonesty
[6:13]  Cleon Goff: not a question of ethics....it's about disclosure
[6:13]  Shel Witte: Depends on the fake blog, doedsn't it?

That was one of the less busy times. Just nineteen comments - they peaked at over 30 in one minute.

I found it exceedingly difficult to read, think, seek out the author's avatar, maybe find out more about them, compose a reply and keep track of whether the conversation had already moved away before hitting the 'Enter' key.

Brain-numbing stuff.

On the other hand, it was a lively gathering and I'm sure some new friendships were formed. I noticed one or two suggesting they slope off elsewhere for a private chat.

This sort of thing probably requires a strategic approach, just like going to a networking meeting or a conference. Figure out what you want to achieve, have the chatter as a backdrop and home in on those with whom you hope you have a mutual interest.

I think I'll just nip back and see if I can nail someone...

... too late. The party's over. Oh well.

PS You can download a full transcript, courtesy of C.C.Chapman on the crayon blog.

Comments

[David Tebbutt]

Strumpette: your link to a 1359-word repetitive and irritating blog post is not doing readers a favour. IMHO.

Having said that, and having visited the Text SL presence, I will opine that it is clueless. No wonder you got wound up.

[Amanda Chapel]

With regard to "game," here read this: Aedhmar's Got Game, http://tinyurl.com/2afjq8 .

- Amanda

[David Tebbutt]

Nice to hear from you Amanda (? - I'm still not convinced). And interesting comments too.

We're obviously in agreement about the madder aspects of IM, but I have to say that I've met some really interesting and helpful people one on one. (Maybe because I'm masquerading as a young woman there.)

Also, I believe that SL offers some interesting potential for navigating and sharing information.

Apart from those who want to play games, I would say that SL is definitely not a game.

[Amanda Chapel]

David,

Sans all the hype, SL is a simple chat tool. What people caught up in the hype fail to keep in mind is that what you’re looking at in SL adds ZERO relevant information as to who you are talking to. It's make believe. It’s entertainment. It’s a cartoon!

Now, if future iterations could be made to include voice and actual genuine human expression -- of the actual person behind the avatar -- that would be quite compelling. But for now, it is primarily a game.

That aside, the value as a communication medium needs to be evaluated as chat. The limitations of that type of tool is that it tends to promote superficial conversation and can, as you accurately point out, lead to bedlam if too many people are chatting simultaneously.

- Amanda

[David Tebbutt]

Yes - I had "chat history" open, except when I closed it to take the screenshot.

[C.C. Chapman - Managing the Gray Marketing Podcast]

Thanks for swinging by. It can be quite chaotic indeed. What I've found works best for me is to actually open the "Chat History" window because then I can see more online at any given time. And in a heated discussion like that you have to focus more on the conversation then the actual happenings going on around you.

Now imagine all the IM conversations happening as well. I tried to ignore them for the most part actually because that's even a little too hectic for me.

Hope you return and visit again.