Integrated voice is coming next month?

http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6162410.html?tag=st.num

Integrated voice for a few residents in March? I haven't seen this anywhere else ...

Well, this certainly is FANTASTIC news, all of the students and teachers at my island have been asking for solutions to the voice issue, skypecasting, and others just didnt seam to work that well... and also very difficult to get everyone using it properly. I hope this news story is true! If so Linden Labs, please include English Village in your Beta test group!!! We'd love to try it out!

Here's the article I read from the last post:
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6162410.html?tag=st.num
"If you are a user of the virtual world Second Life and find yourself wanting to chat up that cute avatar across the room, you will soon be able to try to lure them over with your voice rather than text chat. That's because, starting next week, Linden Lab, the publisher of Second Life, plans to unveil a small trial beta initiative in which, for the first time, users will have access to integrated voice chatting.

The company plans to roll the beta out to all users by the end of March, it said.

Until now, Second Life users wanting to communicate with each other have had two basic choices: text chat--either personal or in a group setting--or employing a third-party voice application like Skype.

But starting March 6, a limited number of users will be able to try out the new integrated voice chat, either in group mode--in which anyone with the feature enabled will be able to hear voice conversations in their immediate proximity--personal voice chat, or group voice chat.

The latter two options don't require users to be near each other to have a voice conversation.

And because Second Life is a virtual world in which almost all land is privately owned, Linden Lab plans to give land owners the power to decide whether to turn on voice on their property.

For many Second Life users, integrated voice has been one of the most wanted in a long list of sought-after features. That's because it could allow them to have conversations that are more natural and free-flowing than is text, and potentially more reliable than a third-party option.

"I will be using it a lot, an incredible amount," said Terry Beaubois, the director of the Creative Research Lab in the College of Arts and Architecture at Montana State University. "It can actually extend your functional use of Second Life. When I'm in Second Life talking to someone with a headset, I can go longer periods of time before I feel like I have to take a break."

To be sure, Second Life isn't the first virtual world to integrate voice chatting. In fact, There.com has had that feature since late 2003.

By comparison, many Second Life residents have been clamoring for voice since its launch in 2003, and especially since There.com rolled out the feature.

And until now, Linden Lab has been vague about when or if it would incorporate voice directly into the Second Life client software.

But with the proliferation of Skype and other applications like TeamSpeak or Ventrilo--which users often pipe into Second Life and into online games like World of Warcraft--the technology has appeared more possible, and it seemed more like a matter of when--not if--Linden Lab would get on board.

"We've been working on this for quite a while," said Joe Miller, Linden Lab's vice president of platform and technology development. "I think there was some skepticism that we'd be putting something out this soon. It's been in the works for eight to ten months in earnest. Voice has been viewed as a key missing piece to the overall solution."

Of course, as any Second Life user who has been around for a while knows, new features are often buggy or their implementation breaks some other feature.

But that's why Linden Lab plans to beta test voice with a small group of users for several weeks before making it available in a grid-wide beta in late March.

The technology is being provided by two Linden Lab partners: Vivox and DiamondWare.

Miller said voice would be available free of charge to all users during the beta period, and would work on any computer that can currently run Second Life. Afterward, owners of mainland property as well as island owners who pay the current $295 monthly maintenance fee will continue to be able to utilize the feature on their property for free.


But he added that those residents who own older islands with lower fees may be required to upgrade to current pricing in order to enable voice on their land.

"It is a significant added value, and we thought long and hard about offering it to (those with lower) pricing," Miller said. "But, as I say, we may change our thinking around this based on the beta phase. So I would be reluctant to say that that is a hard and fast decision."

And while many users are likely to be happy about the new feature, there are those for whom voice may present more problems than it solves.

One of the groups most likely to object to it is those whose gender identification in-world is different than in the real world. And that's because it would be startling for some to hear a male voice coming from a female avatar's mouth, or vice versa.

"I'm a transgender male," said a Second Life blogger whose in-world name is Noche Kandora. "I identify primarily as female. For me, it's an extension of me in 3D cyberspace."

Kandora suggested he worries that some people are not ready to divulge their real-life gender, and with text chatting being the norm, have not had to.

He pointed to a situation recently in which he was invited to be a guest on an in-world talk show that feeds in audio using third-party tools.

When he e-mailed the host about his real gender, Kandora said the host didn't respond and the invitation appeared revoked.

Kandora also said that he is interested in third-party tools that allow users to mask the sound of their real voice. But he added that such tools are not yet very advanced.

Miller agreed.

"The technology there, frankly, isn't ready for prime time," Miller said. "They turn your voice into an orc or a troll. You can sound like Darth Vader on a bad day with a bad cold."

At the same time, Beaubois, who has been teaching architecture classes in Second Life since 2005, said he appreciates the fact that text chatting--which can be easily saved--allows him to get exact transcripts of discussions between him and his students, something that voice doesn't offer.

To Beaubois, then, integrated voice is a nice option because it provides a hybrid of communications features.

"It's like if you had a pliers and a got a hammer," Beaubois said. "You don't throw your pliers away. It's another tool in your box. (Sometimes) it's nice to do it by voice. Other times, typing is great."

He also pointed out that Second Life users with hearing or speech problems might want to skip voice, as might foreign language speakers who are able to get by with text chatting, but for whom real conversation might prove too hard.

Still, Kandora thinks that once it's widely available, voice will likely take over.

"It may become the norm of communicating, the accepted form of communicating," said Kandora. "And the people who stick to text only may become the fringe of Second Life, because they're nervous about interacting with people." "

Cheers

>>Miller said voice would be available free of charge to all users during the beta period, and would work on any computer that can currently run Second Life. Afterward, owners of mainland property as well as island owners who pay the current $295 monthly maintenance fee will continue to be able to utilize the feature on their property for free.

If this is true, it's disastrous.

I'm about as big a fanboy of Second Life as can be found, but this... is an incredibly bad move.

Making 'second class sims' out of the older rate, older hardware sims is deadly.

Maybe I'm being foolish, but I had thought island communities were valued - this will be a hard, hard thing to absorb.

We took the risks early on, and yes, we were part of what compelled the millions to try Second Life.

I can't begin to tell the number of people who stayed because we were here, we were helpful to new users for countless hours, we retained users.

I really hope this isn't done to us.

It's rare that I squawk, but somebody has to say something.

Power corrupts. Absolute thinking with your posterior corrupts absolutely.

I'm waiting for the time when LL makes features inaccessible if you have the wrong gender, or skin color, or hairstyle.

Fantastic development for teachers of foreign languages!!! Now pronunciation can also be practiced. A mix of audio and chat will likely be the ideal scenario for most people.

Im still hating the idea of Second Life sounding like a teleconferenced meeting.

But since it literally will cost 100$ MORE to use this service - I doubt it will be all that popular except for those already paying the new prices / or those who would benifit enough to pay it.

I wonder if you own more then one island, thus making your total fee more then $295 a month, you get to use this feature? What if you have a mix of new and old sims? Then only the sims that are 295 get the voice? Just make it free to all. I am sure by the end of the year all the islands will be paying 295 anyway.

Not only would I never pay that kind of money, but if I wanted everyone to hear my dorky-ass-geek voice I would just publish my Skype info.

Why I can understand the egalitarian arguement if youd read the other thread it seemed like a lot of people didnt want SL voice chat at all anyhow. So limiting it to pricier islands (whith the better computer equipment) probably isnt so bad to begin with.

It seems logical since they mention it comes for free on $295 islands it will be availble for a small fee to others? I dont know.

I do hope whatever the system is it doesnt hurt SL performance -its kinda marginal at best on busy nights now.

The price is certainly far too high for most people. It would help to lower the price and make it more accessible to everyone.

Very true - There will be people who are very charming and outgoing in the text based world who will be very much hurt by a change to voice.

Im much more introverted in real life than I am on the net - so it will affect me too.

As the option to use either chat or audio will remain, and Slitizens tend to exercise their own free will whenever possible, I think people who prefer chat will be able to stick to doing that without having to worry too much about coming up with a good excuse as to why they don't want to "talk". This will not prove true for all scenarios, i.e. exclusion from events which require one to "speak", but for the most part, the experience should go unaffected. Or am I wrong? Am always open to a bit more enlightenment.

This is unrealisitc.

Any woman who refuses to voice chat will be accused of being a gender bender.

Others will be asked what they are hiding? Are they married IRL and lying about it? why wont they voice?

Even those who give perfectly logical explainations will be dismissed in many cases as liars.

Its sad that enough people have lied/do lie on the net that theres a basic undercurrent of suspicion amoung many.

Since all these things already happen - why would adding voice chat somehow aleviate them?

I still think that there are plenty of possible excuses one can come up with as to why one doesn't want to use audio.

I, for example, have a kid and cannot always make use of audio. He tries to steal my headset! LOL : )

But hey, why feel the need to come up with excuses? I mean, if you prefer chat and people just jump to conclusions...well, who cares! But I will agree that my position is not as precarious as another person's may be. : ) For that reason, I can empathize with people who find the move to audio unpleasant.

This is the end of the world. Of warcraft.

Er, Second Life.

Voice coming to SL will only further some divides as well as create new ones. Not everybody wants the voice, and I'm trying to understand "landowners can use it on their land for free" meaning that their voice chat only works while standing on their land, or voice chat can be enabled for everybody on their land for free? Or....?

I am merely telling you what people say NOW when they pressure others to Skype.

People already jump to these conclusions.

I was telling you since you seemed oblivious to the fact it occurs frequently.

You are already showing some bias that you do a little of the same by your language. You use the word "excuses" rather than 'Explaination' , or 'reason' for example. (perhaps you dont mean this that way)

This is what Osprey and Ace were getting at in the other thread by Pressure. Enough other residents will pressure those who dont like voice that they will feel complled to use it, or to find something else to do with much of their online time.

A great quote by Argent in the other thread -
****



****

While some of us will feel pressured into using voice and probably use it- (i wonder if my 1990's era microphone even still works lol)

Others will leave. I can think of quite a few.

Those who a lot who push for voice fear but wont admit it on these forums - gender benders.

Also Married people having virtual affairs.

People who are uncomfortable with voice chat - and equally uncomfortable having to defend themselves.

Deaf people.

*****
Id like to agree with Kip's probable intent in that a large number of people will be totally neutral about others using voice chat. I just kinda think hes being a bit idealisitc on that.

In my opinion, it's important to attempt to be non-confrontational when expressing different views. In most all of my posts, I have expressed understanding for persons who do not like the idea of using audio. Please see my posts. I simply chose to participate in this forum because I generally find the exchange of ideas attractive. As I said in my last post...

"I can empathize with people who find the move to audio unpleasant."

What more shall I say? I'm on your side too!

In an earlier post, I also expressed that I may be naive about deciding that audio is a great development - so basically stating that I may be ignorant on the subject and not able to see every perspective.

I wrote...

"Am I wrong?" & "I'm open to enlightenment."

So, I think you may be misdirecting your frustration a bit. The need to choose an adversary in a forum seems a bit odd to me. I think we miss out on the main opportunity at hand when we do this...i.e. fruitful exchange of ideas and opinions.

Respectfully...

PS Your experiences with Skype have been far different from mine. I have had several persons tell me they are not able to skype due to hardware deficiencies. I've even had Skype crash my system on a several occasions when running simultaneously with SL. So my general experience is that people know that not everyone is able or willing to skype. As with everything, experiences vary. No need to over-analyze my use of the word excuses. If you look the word up, you will realize that it can have both a negative and neutral connotation. I was not implying the former. Regarding bending to pressure...it's a tragedy that unfolds itself on an almost daily basis. Pursuit of free will is neglected and one subjects oneself to the will of the masses. This is something that occurs in Second Life anyway...so we are not just discussing the topic of audio in SL...if you desire to discuss this. Social pressure plays itself out in many many ways.

it does too. skype cliques already exist and are difficult to mix with due to awkward action & conversational gaps when they are using voice. a cosy lil bunch of friends i hung out with last year fragmented when some of them discovered skype. apparently people want to type or chat but they don't want to do both. voice is so divisive in sl.

This was your experience and I respect that. Please respect that other's experiences may vary. I would never exclude a person from a conversation bc he or she chose to not skype with me. I have no doubt that such "cliques" exist. It's a real pity that they do. It's really sad. But, people are excluded from participation in various "cliques" based on many different criteria...not just the use of audio. I wish such cliques didn't exist. A solution I have chosen for myself is to not strive to be a part of a clique which would exclude me based on such ridiculous grounds. I think real friends don't do this. But yes...I may be utopic...somebody's got to be...otherwise we are all just bending to the will of others...

In the case of such cliques, I would make the case that it's often not the mere use of voice that is divisive...it's the people who are divisive - whatever the reason may be. Sad indeed...

Looking forward to even more lag. Gets better by the week.

Good point Zeris...have been thinking the same. Am curious how an increased use of audio will affect the lag. Will be interesting to see what kind of an audio "solution" they have come up with.

kip. i totally respect your views. =)

i probably should've said, "voice can be divisive in sl."

cliques form because its difficult for users to co-exist during particular activities* when half the group is skype-ing. uneasiness is also inevitable if one bunch of people are having a conversation from which a number of others are excluded. just my opinion. =D

* i find group exploration slow and difficult when skype users are with us.

(they will be so p#£$*# with me when they read this. lawl.)

Where's the bandwidth for this coming from? Even in a perfectly stable sim I can get packet loss up to around 10% which becomes pretty horrendous (1% can be bad enough). I despise voice chat in Unreal Tournament 2004, all we'll get is a load of 9 year olds running around calling people 'poo heads' with no way to prove it unless it's recorded. Chat logs are easy to keep and report someone for, audio is not so easy.
If it gets implemented all I will do is turn it off, and if people complain that I'm ignoring them then I'll tell them such, if they try to pressure me into using it I'll mute their chat as well and go back to doing whatever I want.

I mean really, of all the millions of features we could be doing with, this is not one of them. In fact, this ranks as one of the worst, it steals bandwidth, for a feature that will be mostly unused or will be rampantly abused. Or hell, even people trying to use it genuinely will annoy hell out of me because no-one seems to have a decent microphone, or can't bloody speak coherently. Or (as I already said) is 9 years old and retarded.

/chocolate fueled rant

Since you are bringing up the dictionary-

When people choose excuse over reason the implication is the condition given isnt valid. "The dog ate my homework" is the classic excuse where "I stayed up too late to do it" the reason. People generally use excuse in the negative and reason or explaination in the positive. Often touted phrases are: "dont make excuses" - "Thats a likely excuse" - "Excuses, excuses."

Wheras Reasons or Explainations do not have the same often accompanying negative.

It rarely is used as a neutral term - Particualrily since you were in the midst of dismissing my concerns. .

My reading level is higher than the average Dictonary contributer, thank you.

However, I will concede you didnt mean for it to be as I have interpreted it. I didnt mean to sound neccisarily confrontational, but rather point out there will be a bias towards pressuring people to conform without all the participants even realizing that is what they are doing.

A large number of people who socialize online are less able to resist pressure such as we are describing. Many are socializing online becuase socializing in real life is difficult for them for numerous reasons.

Im not necesarrily opposed to voice in Second Life -
I saying that people will not be able to just say "no" without reprecusions. I am sure of this becuase of experince on this very subject as has existed in Second Life in the 2 years I have been here.

I of course am more familiar with this pressure than you are, obviously. {I am assuming "Kip" to be a man's name.}

Again, I dont think Ive been confrontational. If you feel I am being so Im sorry. I am simply disagreeing with you on the subject of the peer pressure.

And agreeing with Ace, Osprey and Argent in what will likely happen.