Online Worlds: Convergence of the Real and the Virtual

Contents

Introduction

World Jaunting

Plan of the Book

References

New World View

Organizing a Horde of Scientists

Session 1: Research and World of Warcraft

Session 2: Relationships Between WoW and the “Real World”

Expeditions

Conclusion

References

Culture and Creativity: World of Warcraft Modding in China and the US

Modding

The US Modding Community

The Chinese Modding Community

Discussion

References

The Diasporic Game Community: Trans-Ludic Cultures and Latitudinal Research Across Multiple Games and Virtual Worlds

The Emergence of Game Refugees and Trans-Ludic Diasporas

Trans-Ludic Identities

Methodological Challenges and Opportunities: A Call for “ Latitudinal” Research

References

Science, Technology, and Reality in The Matrix Online and Tabula Rasa

Intellectual Background of the Two Worlds

Creating Virtual Objects and Abilities

Protean Avatars in MxO and TR

Conclusion

References

Spore: Assessment of the Science in an Evolution- Oriented Game

The Spore World

Biological Evolution

Cultural Evolution

Conclusion

References

Medulla: A Cyberinfrastructure-Enabled Framework for Research, Teaching, and Learning with Virtual Worlds

A Landscape of Trinkets

An Alternative

Medulla and a New Public Media Infrastructure

The Use Cases

Medulla Prototypes

Conclusion

References

A Virtual Mars

A Personal Journey

A New Mars

Sharing the Idea

Conclusion

References

Opening the Metaverse

Today’s Virtual Worlds

Tomorrow’s Global Metamedium

Present Limitations

Learning from the Web

Defining the Technical Challenges

Defining the Technical Solutions

Conclusion

References

A Typology of Ethnographic Scales for Virtual Worlds

The Setup: From Positivism to Ethnographic Scale

The Background: From Indonesia to Second Life

The Four Confusions: Defining What a Virtual World Is Not

The Typology: Research Questions and Ethnographic Scale

The Road Ahead: Concluding Thoughts

References

Massively Multiplayer Online Games as Living Laboratories: Opportunities and Pitfalls

A Game Is a Game by Any Other Name

Life on the Screen: Who Is Really Playing?

Ill-Defined Spaces: Taking an Ecological View of the (Virtual) World

Conclusion

References

Examining Player Anger in World of Warcraft

Methodology and Development of the World of Warcraft Questionnaire ( WoWQ)

Potential In-Game Anger-Causing Scenarios

Conclusion

Appendix

References

Dude Looks like a Lady: Gender Swapping in an Online Game

Gender and Identity, Offline and On

Identity in the Context of MMOs

Motivations for Swapping

Methods and Measures

Results

Conclusion

References

Virtual Doppelgangers: Psychological Effects of Avatars Who Ignore Their Owners

Doppelgangers

Theoretical Underpinnings

Experimenting with Doppelgangers

Implications and Future Directions

References

Speaking in Character: Voice Communication in Virtual Worlds

Comparing Media and Contexts

Voice in Virtual Worlds

Managing Multiple Conversations

Technical Difficulties

Uniqueness of the Virtual Environment

Conclusion

References

What People Talk About in Virtual Worlds

Methodology: Protocol Analysis

Virtual Worlds as a Place for Learning

Communication Analysis

DesignWorld: A Virtual World for Design Collaboration

Discussion and Conclusions

References

Changing the Rules: Social Architectures in Virtual Worlds

Surface Layer Architectures

Information Access

Hidden Layer Architectures

Ending Thoughts

References

Game-Based Virtual Worlds as Decentralized Virtual Activity Systems

Case 1: Science Learning Games for Informal Life Science Education

Case 2: Game Mod for Semiconductor Fabrication Operations and Service Training

Discussion

Conclusions

References

When Virtual Worlds Expand

Saltation

Prelude and Lore

New Character Features

Population Stratification and Class

Conclusion

References

Cooperation, Coordination, and Trust in Virtual Teams: Insights from Virtual Games

Effective Teams

Virtual Teams

ICT: Social Presence, Media Richness, and Synchronicity

Using MMOGS to Understand Team Effectiveness

References

Virtual Worlds for Virtual Organizing

The Socio-technical History of Virtual Worlds for Virtual Organizing

Current Trends in Virtual Worlds for Virtual Organizing

The Future of Virtual Worlds for Virtual Organizing

References

Future Evolution of Virtual Worlds as Communication Environments

Metaverses

Immersionists Versus Augmentationists

Moving Beyond Second Life

Moving Beyond First Life

References

The Future of Virtual Worlds

Technical Innovations

The Economic Basis for Virtual Worlds

Cultural Transformation

Conclusion

References

The Authors

Index