I came here because SL DID NOT have voice

Ding dong ding dong ding dong ding... DANANA PHONE

It's a phone with "appeal"





I love that song

doot do da doo doot!

Here's the negative and positive thoughts/possibles I came up (and some are already occuring) in enabling voice chat into SL.

--Negatives--
a) More lag.
b) More bugs and things breaking and more things to fix.
c) More examples, tools and methods for griefers to abuse.
d) More ways to be inconsiderate towards other people.
e) More segregation between people.
f) More suspicions between people.
g) Others I haven't came up with yet.

--Positives--
a) More ways to communicate between one another.
b) Better ways to handle corporate meetings/etc in relation to time/etc.
c) Others I haven't came up with yet.


Now, with all of that said... To those that wish to use voice, that's up to you but I'm going to stick to the "old fashioned" method of communication -- typing.

Personally, I feel that the negatives outweigh the positives (in enabling voice) for the SL community as a whole.

Is there anyone who seriously thinks that all those perfect bodies reflect the looks of their RL owners? That's a joke. When I walk thru a RL street I see old people, fat people, ugly people, balded people and people with bad skin (and I see black and dark skinned people who also seem to be nonexistent on SL). When I walk into a SL club I see only anorexic blonde models and pro sportsmen with huge muscles. It's so boring. That`s why I chose to become furry. It's a much more colorful world where noone cares about your real looks, real gender, religion or shoe size.

Suprisingly there are a whole lot of people delusional enough that they believe a majority of the people in SL are really attractive... on the other hand though there are also a whole lot of people who believe that every attractive woman in a video game is probably a 300lb balding man named Bob, who's playing in his mother's basement, with bbq sauce dripping down his shirt.

The reason why they believe that people are attractive is based on their behavior IMHO... if they're confident, outgoing, fun, etc... they're probably good looking too! The reality of that is so limited though... many many many of us only act that way in SL because in SL it's possible... but in RL it actually doesnt resemble our behavior at all, maybe just a way we wish we could be.

Honestly... in RL I suffer from social anxiety, I cant be in groups, Im terrified of meeting people, I even avoid people I do know, and I have a hard time communicating... in SL I am confident, I have no problem communicating, I enjoy meeting people, and I have no problem with group situations... my avatar is so unlike that of the person I truly am that it's amazing how people could make assumptions based on my behavior. And I cant help but believe that there are probably lots of other people who are similar.


It's not even just in SL, it was like that in other games too... anytime someone found out that I was REALLY a woman they'd assume that for some reason I was a goddess IRL rather than the overweight, insecure, and not-so-attractive person that I truly am.


And the fact that some people claim that I have a great voice only made that worse lol... a minor factor in why I wont use voice features here.

I resemble that remark!

Er...wait.

http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~mmj29/me.jpg
(Yes, that is actually my human, picture's over a year old back when I was still in the dorms, but 'tis me )

I'm not the most organized of people, but I at least keep bbq sauce off my shirt and bath at least once a week (unlike--god forbid--a couple of people I know).

Very true. But people (mostly men) want voice to help them sort out genders. Becuase they are afeared the hawt blonde they are talking to isnt really blonde .. um I mean a woman. They assume if she is a woman she's hot.

Now, in reality these guys should be happy the woman they are worried about dont know what THEY look like. Or act like in RL, etc.


-------------------------------------------------------
Like in this Brad Paisley song.

I work down at the Pizza Pit
And I drive an old Hyundai
I still live with my mom and dad
I'm 5 foot 3 and overweight
I'm a scifi fanatic
A mild asthmatic
And I've never been to second base
But there's whole ‘nother me
That you need to see
Go checkout MySpace

'Cause online I'm out in Hollywood
I'm 6 foot 5 and I look damn good
I drive a Maserati
I'm a black-belt in karate
And I love a good glass of wine
It turns girls on that I’m mysterious
I tell them I don't want nothing serious
'Cause even on a slow day
I could have a three way
Chat with two women at one time
I’m so much cooler online
So much cooler online

When I get home I kiss my mom
And she fixes me a snack
And I head down to my basement bedroom
And fire up my Mac
In real life the only time I’ve ever even been to L.A
Is when I got the chance with the marching band
To play tuba in the Rose Parade

Online I live in Malibu
I pose for Calvin Klein, I've been in GQ
I'm single and I'm rich
And I've got a set of six pack abs that would blow your mind
It turns girls on that I’m mysterious
I tell them I don't want nothing serious
'Cause even on a slow day
I could have a three way
Chat with two women at one time
I’m so much cooler online
So much cooler online

When you got my kind of stats
It’s hard to get a date
Let alone a real girlfriend
But I grow another foot and I lose a bunch of weight
Every time I login

Online
I’m out in Hollywood
I’m 6 foot 5 and I look damn good
Even on a slow day
I could have a three way
Chat with two women at one time
I’m so much cooler online
Yeah, I’m cooler online
I’m so much cooler online
Yeah, I’m cooler online

Yeah, I’m cooler online

Too bad these guys can't wear "Paranoid Homophobe living in Mom's Basement" Tags.



ARTIST: Lou Reed
TITLE: Walk on the Wild Side


Holly came from Miami, F-L-A
Hitchhiked her way across the U-S-A
Plucked her eyebrows on the way
Shaved her legs and then he was a she
She says hey babe, take a walk on the wild side
Said hey honey, take a walk on the wild side

Candy came from out on the Island
In the back room she was everybody's darlin'
But she never lost her head
Even when she was givin' head
She says hey babe, take a walk on the wild side
Said hey babe, take a walk on the wild side

And the colored girls go
Doo, doo doo, doo doo, doo doo doo...


Little Joe never once gave it away
Everybody had to pay and pay
A hustle here and a hustle there
New York City's the place where
They said hey babe, take a walk on the wild side
They said hey Joe, take a walk on the wild side

Sugar plum fairy came and hit the streets
Lookin' for soul food and a place to eat
Went to the Apollo
You should have seen him go go go
They said hey Sugar, take a walk on the wild side
I said hey babe, take a walk on the wild side
All right, huh

Jackie is just speedin' away
Thought she was James Dean for a day
Then I guess she had to crash
Valium would've helped that bash
She said hey babe, take a walk on the wild side
I said hey honey, take a walk on the wild side

And the colored girls say...

These are either guys that are very unsecure about their sexual identity ("OMG I had CS with a MAN! this is GAY!" or they are looking for a RL partner. Of you are neither you don't have a problem with a harmless RP and you don't care about the other's gender, age or looks because there is no intent in meeting *anyone*.

/me nods endlessly, appearing very much like a bobblehead.

Well they are entitled to care. And if they want a RL fling, thats cool. But they should stick to trying to get with those who also want RL Flings. Ladies who want RL Flings with losers in this case.

Maybe they could try a Women's prison?

(sorry ladies, I'm taken in RL)

Dont care if your fat, skinny, pretty, ugly, female, male, gay, straight, furry, gorean, etc.... I'd still talk to you.

Someone who's that insecure about their sexuality shouldn't be on SL (or IM or...) looking for CS.
I'm secure enough to not give a bloody damn what between someone's legs. Could be tentacles (Mmmm....tentacly goodness...) for all I care.

Being sexually insecure is probably why they are here. Or else they'd be out in RL getting some.

This month's newletters has an editorial about the comments on voice: http://secondlife.com/newsletter/2007_07/awsi.html

Paraphrased (biased ):
Deaf people will not suffer, they can still type!
RP communities will love voice thanks to voice modulation!
Foreign language speakers will learn English just by having voice enabled!
Finally, if voice goes bad, it's the residents' fault, not ours!

Touche.

Agreed. Harsh, yes...but agreed. In a society like ours, sometimes the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.
And people who refuse to type to you knowing your disability are not worth talking to anyway.

You are wrong. I know of one large, popular sim that made the decision to keep voice off, Specifically for deaf people. It caused quite a stir amongst the people who frequented the land, and some people made the decision to leave and not come back because of it. Yet the owners still decided to keep voice off, and I respect that decision. I however am one of the people that left. A large portion of us started our own land, with voice enabled. The feeling was, we should be able to use whatever form of communication we want.

"That being said, imagine walking around in an online world where the most popular event is communication and not being able to." - I have always used voice, since I first began playing online games. If the client didnt support it, we used Skype, TS, or Ventrillo. Ultima Online, Everquest, WoW, SL...the list goes on. I feel like I cant properly communicate sometimes if I CANT speak. You have no idea how much easier it is to explain things to a noob when both parties have voice. It saves time and frustration...and almost ANYONE who has used voice will tell you that you become much closer to people this way. I have had so much fun in SL the past few months using voice. I have absolutley no problems typing to people who do not use the feature, or who cannot use this feature (whether because of disabilites or technical reasons.)

But point blank, until using speach communication is banned worldwide, I do not see why it should be banned in SL. In RL, if I encountered you and tried to speak to you, I'm sure you would let me know you cannot hear me, and then I would take steps to communicate as needed (sign language, pen and paper, whatever). I would not ignore that you are there and continue conversing with you as though you could understand me.

The same applies to SL. If I am in land, and approach you, and do not see a voice dot above your head, then I know you arent using voice, and I type.

I just dont see why anyone would think a feature should be banned from the grid because it excludes them, for their own personal reasons/disabilites.

And I would really love to hear a blind and deaf person debate this issue. This type of thing could help a blind person enjoy SL for the first time ever. But since the deaf person cant use it, the blind person, nor any of us, should. I just dont think its fair.

Once again. You're saying that talking is going to help a person who can't see the interface, or anything built to be viewed in it, to enjoy SL for the first time ever? So we understand each other.

If this person's first enjoyable experience was "just now", when voice got here, than what kept them logging in to such a "miserable" experience all this time? It wasn't the graphics.

I've heard a lot of people say they would like to hear the input of a blind resident on this issue. They're still waiting. My theory on that is that blind individuals do not pay money to partake in optional activities that are not worth doing without being able to see. In other words, I hope you're not holding your breath while waiting. FYI - I said long ago that as soon as a person in this situation came forward here I would be among the first to acknowledge. Nothing to do yet, as it were...

They don't try out for football and basketball teams. They don't race cars. They don't apply as snipers in the military. If you would only evaluate the worth to the blind of SL from the standpoint of what it was designed to be rather than as a fancy chatroom this would not be the enigma it has become to the voicer community. Either you respect them enough to expect them to choose activities they can enjoy, or you're just using them as an excuse to ignore the deaf about voice. (Not you specifically btw)

What's not fair is to change the dynamic for people who were until voice able to participate in SL activity 100% with no barriers whatsoever on a level playing field. Yes, the deaf have been doing this all along. And how many of them did you know were deaf? On the other hand, how many voicers here have spent their entire time with another resident describing the visual elements of SL in detail because only they could see it? One? Three? None? Speak up, so we can stop trying to use every irrelevant page of the medical adviser available to invalidate the concerns of an established and embedded percentage of the community.

While I can see Second Life being an enjoyable experince for someone with limited sight;

I do not see its appeal to someone who is truly Blind.

The inability to read text becomes secondary to the fact they cant even see the virtual world which someone is concerned with wanting to accomidate them.

Perhaps when Technology advances to allow 3d Worlds to be Tacile in some way ..

Until then some degree of Vision will be necessary to participate.

Like it or not, no matter what the communication media , the virtual world itself is visual.

It´s easier to understand someone writing than speaking. SL is an international community. For most users English is not their first language. Besides that I don`t want to explain my accent to everyone I encounter.



Exactly. I don't WANT to come close to any strangers I meet online. I have enough people close to me in my RL. I don't want anyone to invade my private space by whispering in my ear (the sound quality is high, so using voice is a very intimate thing to do, much more than on a phone).



The majority of non-voicers I encountered are neither disabled nor too poor to afford a headset (many own headsets and use skype with their family and friends). They simply don't WANT to talk to complete strangers on the net. I wouldn't type my phone number into a chat room either.

Wow nice points made there. All true.

I personally think the voice chat is fine, could be fun. However, I will not be using it for one simple reason. I am not the only person in my home and I can not control what other SL members say on the voice chat. I don't think anyone in my household wants to hear random comments like, "Hey baby wanna suck my #$#@?"

So voice chat is not for me, I will just continue to use Ventrilo with my friends that I know will not say inappropriate things to me and thus broadcast these comments throughout my home.

/me puts on her Coke Bottle glasses so she can read your post and agrees.

Oh yes. As I was looking into a face light last night before logging off some guy walks up within about three seconds of me getting there and says "Hi". I say "Hi how are you tonight?". He replies "Not as good as I'd be with my b@lls on your chin."

Now who wouldn't want to hear that in voice? Out loud? I know I loved it. It was all I could do to keep from dropping to my knees immediately!

Bah!

I'd have made him a counter offer, His balls on my knee.

Ooooh! Badass Brenda with an ice-cold pint of "I don't give a f---"! Love it! - Hehe