what's your motivation to visit SL?

Being creative with the tools and the chance to meet interesting people from all over the world.

Came from the Business Week article, May 07. Ended up getting into real estate for profits and landscaping for fun. Along the way, I met some of the most lovely human beings on the planet. The landscaping is done and the real estate market got taken over by landbots, but I stay for the people.

I read an article in the Los Angeles Times back in the fall of 2004. I was intrigued by the idea of a virtual world with no script, no levels and all user created content. I wanted to see what people would do with "no rules."

Initial motivation:
I had three RL friends already in Second Life, and who seemed to really enjoy it. Plus, it worked on a Mac, and it was free

Current motivation:
I have several in-world involvements (store, etc.), I'm part of a family unit that I enjoy spending time with, I have several friends (RL and SL) I enjoy meeting up with, and I enjoy the world and its builds.

Mari

Well.... years ago when the net was just starting to offer us 'chat rooms' I was introduced to the very cool for it's day PC game Myst....
Computer graphics.....the potential of gaming....always fascinated me and I imagined at that time that 'chat forums' might evolve to something more like a cyber reality. So....when I read about SL last Fall.... I was like holy crap I was right. LOL

What motivates me over all is how fascinated I am with what people create in SL. I love exploring new regions..... I have always been in awe of creators/artists....I'm a writer/photographer IRL so I admire other forms of art which I consider SL to be....in that everything about it had to be concpetualized and created by those involved. That is my primary motivation.... sheer fascination...

Second is what I create myself in-world.....I enjoy creating new AV shapes....it's like sculpting.... and I love learning building in general...it's just my patience for tedius work is rather lacking. LOL

But...ultimately....why am I on SL..... I'm alone a lot....my fiance is over seas....My sitaution is quite similar to another responder here...no kids.....relocated 2 years ago and really haven't made good friends other than the folks my fiance knows....who are all cool...but just not 'close' to me like friends back home........work only part time right now (we're moving next year, closer to my sister, yay) and I have a LOT of free time to fill up.

Initially, it was to RP with one particular person, who was the person who invited me into SL. Unfortunately, they have now left the world, seemingly permanently.

Next, it was to explore creating things and learning the tools. But although that was fun for a while, that faded away when I realised that a) SL apparently couldn't make any difference to me not being so great at art, and b) even if you are a great artist, you still have to follow what others want if you want them to participate, and c) the scripting market was already starting to show strong negative trends towards self-destruction, which sadly are still ongoing.

So now, it's mainly to keep going the things I was doing here that were beneficial - running my island, helping newbies, maintaining the scripts I have in-world and chatting to friends.

Let's see...what are my choices?

- Ability to live my ideal fantasy life, or even lives.
- Creating new things. Self expression.
- Making friends from all over the world.
- Admiring the creations of others (both large creations like sims, and little things like jewelry).
- Shopping. Buying things for pennies that would cost thousands in RL.
- Meeting people and creatures impossible to see in real life (dragons, furries, etc.)
- The pleasure of passing on knowledge to newcomers.
- Getting paid for something I've done or created. Feeling valued by others.
- Dancing. (I have three left feet in RL).

That would be...um, all of the above.

I live in a college town where the average age is about 14. It is nice to have grown ups to talk to sometimes (I'm 3, and SL is good for that. Also, I don't get to travel much, it is nice to meet and chat with people from other countries.

I also hear a lot of music in SL that I would never have known about in RL. The building, scripting, animating, and other forms of creative expression are a draw for me too.

I guess the simple answer is that for me at least, SL enhances my RL

Enhancement!...thats the word for me
I read about SL in a newspaper....tried it with my cynical head on as always..and wouldn't be without it now.
I've got a good full RL...but i really value the people i've met in SL. I think the mind to mind contact takes away all the barriers...levels people off....so they can truly be themselves of they choose. Odd in a virtual world huh?...lol

My original motivation was to participate with the IRC community I have been a part of for 11 years (which I discovered as part of ~my~ Master's thesis research - true story! *smiles*) in a virtual world/3D environment.

After a few weeks here, that motivation has completely shifted. I now come to SL to experience activities I enjoy RL (riding rollercoasters, travelling to other cities/countries, horseback riding, ballroom dancing, etc.) and other things I would have no opportunity to do RL - furnish a dream home, own a horse, have a wardrobe of exquisite clothes, a different hairstyle for each outfit/mood that are always perfect and not affected by heat and humidity *grins*).

I have also been honored to participate in the American Cancer Society's yearly Relay for Life and met some awesome people.

And experiencing all of the above with a very special person.

Good luck with your research and studies!!

Wearing high heels without getting sore feet.

I had been reading about sl for a while but never was really tempted to get an account until I started reading about it in the 'serious' business press and rl corporations started buying into it. I figured that I better take a look, mostly as business related research. I got an account thinking that I would spend a couple of days here and figure it out enough to see if it would have an impact to my rl work and then move on. Needless to say it was not a quick trip, I ended up taking the rest of that week off just to play.

Now why I stayed? I was surprised at the social aspect of sl, making friends and flirting shamelessly is a lot of fun and there is just so much to learn and do. It is a good way to explore parts of yourself that you might have repressed in rl and to travel without leaving your desk.

There is a huge variety of things to do, where else can you be dancing to techno one minute and fighting with bows and arrows the next?, building is fun and I wish I could do more of it, scripting is just around the corner and on and on.

It's been a fun trip..

.d

Initial Motivation:

I am a Unitarian Universalist and there was an article in our UU Magazine about a UU church in SL. I'd heard about it before but it sounded silly. The article got my curiosity aroused enough to check it out. Never thought I'd stay.

Current Motivation:

Social. I consider SL a chatroom with graphics. Having been on disability for the past year, I have limited social interaction during the day. Not being allowed to drive in Los Angeles I'm pretty stuck.

Even when you do drive in LA you're pretty much stuck......

I came to visit SL because a friend was here ... and discovered building. I enjoy graphics, and the ability to create something from boxes, balls and triangles appealed to me. I love decorating too - so - building houses and then decorating them has been a great stress reducer. I do it only when I feel like it, and don't play often - just when I have time, and want to destress.

Visit my profile and check out my virtual "home." It has a "feeling" of comfort ... and home ... even in a virtual setting. I built just about everything ... =) Just to destress and have fun - I'll probably build something new in a few weeks!

My motivation, hmmm (says he, stroking his chin)...

Actor: What's my motivation?
Director: Your check.
Actor: Oh, right...

No but really--I would say there are many massive motivations mingled about. The beauty of creation, both in 2d and 3d. The ability to share (in-real-time) these features with the community. The potential to sell said creations in a fully-realized digital society and community.

Joy joy joy...can't say enough. That's my motivation.

Mostly for the social aspects. I've a bit of a reserved nature, but tbh I've not met any people in my immediate area in RL that I feel compatible with anyway. There are no cool clubs where I live either. You can't even get goth/industrial music on any local radio stations. I've played a couple MMO's that were fun and I made great friends from all over the world, but they went on to play other games that didn't really interest me, though we still stay in touch. Then one of my internet friends introduced me to SL.

I'm an internet addict. SL gives me a chance to live a great life without leaving my pc. Of course I still have to work and sleep in RL, but gotta pay the internet and electric bills somehow.

The ability to live a fantasy life. I can create a personal image, wear great clothes, and have a home that I will never have in RL. SL gives much more flexibility in these areas than the MMOs. It was never really about the battle in the MMOs for me, it was the friends and social aspects that drew me. So no, I don't think of SL as just another game.

I met a guy and started a relationship. Something I didn't plan to do when I arrived in SL, but hey, stuff happens

I Mostly go to SL to avoid Academic Hacks who keep trying to Turn my Amusements into "5:30 in the afternnoon the Day before the Paper is due in hopes of Scraping at least a C-" Papers.

I Knew a Guy in First Year who was a Hocky Nut,, Never did any of his Work, and attempted to Relate every Project topic he was Given to Hockey. He never made it to Second Year. My Point; Writing about your Hobbies is a Poor Substitute for REAL Academic research, and your Prof. won't be Fooled.

Angel.

Some certain person showed me SL with the meaning to get me laid... Sadly for that person that didn't work out as this person planned it.
I stayed and enjoyed SL for my own reasons .

Morwen.

I was introduced to Secondlife through a few RL friends who were on it already. I didn't join immediately, avoided it actually until I got tired of them asking why I wasn't here yet.

Creating a personalized avatar was actually one of my last priorities. I considered it a challenge to develop a 3d version of myself. Prior to that I was running around in avatars others created of the non-human variety.

In the beginning, when the concurrency floated around 5,000... I went to different clubs for the atmosphere, music, socializing and occasional humor. When the numbers increased and the club disappeared I joined an RP. Then the building bug bit me and I was lucky enough to meet a great group of people who let me hang out, observe and test things. I was hired not too long after that. Finally, I made something of my own, that several others who visited our early shop asked if I would be selling it and the rest is history.

My primary motivation is learning as there's always something out there you might not know yet and the feeling of satisfaction in seeing others having fun with what I make. I go to classes or blitz builds to observe others on here once in awhile, to break the usual schedule of what I do everyday with building. I always run across some great people that way and some situations that could never happen in RL.

But really there's nothing like getting an occasional message from someone who enjoys what you've made and I wouldn't trade that for anything. That and the variety of things I can do at any hour of the day or night.

None. I'm unable to log out without crashing.