How many kids use second life?

@ JustChris Maybe this is all a plot to get secondlife some media attention and make it one of the fastest growing communities out there. After you are told it is so popular everyone jumps on the bandwagon and the next thing you know...it is!

"they perceive as government over-regulation"

I'm sorry... is this even up for debate? *Looks for memo*

The fact of the matter is that even though Second Life is dripping with possibility, the actual community itself is very split up. You're just not going to find cyber-sex on accident. Additionally, what kind of predator would be looking for underage players when you're supposed to be at least 18 to play? As if they're going to lure them out into the open and then cyber-rape them in a game where you can just teleport away at any time?

Additionally, SL is not an easy game. The controls are tricky, the game lags constantly, the scripting language is complex, building anything takes a lot of time, patience, and a little bit of math knowledge. Face it, SL is just not kid friendly and any kid that did slip onto the Adult grid just to look for pr0n has probably already used Google to do that before.

I understand the concern to protect children from the Age of Internet Anonymity, but harassing the makers of a somewhat successful, but not all that wonderful, online game isn't the way to do it. The easiest way is to simply have the parents check on their retarded rape-bait children every once in a while, rather than sitting in the other room writing Mr. Kirk letters of support and praise.

@ Neeneko And hey, if they die they never have to find out about sex! Win!

I'll be honest. I love Second Life. It's easy once you get used to it, but the learning curve on it is a bitch. However, as ChrowX stated, you don't just stumble upon the sex accidentally. Can you find it if you look? Sure, just as easily as you can find porn websites by doing a google search. Yet, I'm on almost daily and never come across any of these sex sims or sexual situations that seem to be the one thing looked at. Regulation will never happen though. Second Life is a worldwide program. If they try, LL could just pack up and move their servers out of the US, and maybe (please!?) bring back gambling so I can play Texas Hold'em again.

Now, I'm only stating this here because I know how this can go. For those of you that want to sit and go on and on about how disgusting SL is and how its just a place for people to have rampant amounts of sex and so on...I just have one thing to say. You are now Jack Thompson.

And.. on a slightly different note..

I wonder how many parents would rather trust their child alone with a politician vs any random stranger. It would seem that people with skeletons in the closet are 1st pick for advancement. They are easy to manipulate. /shrug

"show me on this digital paper doll avatar, where the bad man executed his malicious GreenerWeener script on you."

Thinking back, I can only remember one case that came about with potential "damage done" to a child in Second Life, which really wasn't even damage as much as it was a mother going balistic over what her son was doing. Her 15 year old son was having cybersex at a virtual gentlemen's club and she caught him. She ended up attempting to sue the woman who controlled the other avatar, other members of the club, the owner, and Linden Labs. Last I remember, it never even hit the courts. But she sued over sexual conduct with a minor.

Second Life is just like damn near everything else online when it comes to "verification". It's on an honor system, really, that is more to save their own ass. If someone lies on the sign-up, LL and those inside Second Life are not responsible if they are underage. That's not their job to begin with. So if someone age 16 claims they are 18, then according to the EULA that you agree too, you are the only one liable, not them. You are forced to agree to it, if you decline then you don't play. Simple as that. So most are under consideration that everyone there is atleast 18. If someone finds out they aren't, expect all of the following to happen within 20 minutes if they are at a mature place.

1. Report turned in by atleast one person, stating user is underage
2. Linden's review logs referring to given points that show a user stating his real age
3. Linden's ban the account
(and if this isn't the first offense on the same IP)
4. Linden's ban the IP

They're pretty good about making sure to keep underagers out. They don't even have to, because of the EULA and the sign-up process. They still do, though. Kudos, I say. Oh, and that case? After LL slapped them with the EULA and showed they were not liable, nor was anyone else involved, she tried changing the case to say her child was emotionally scarred. If I remember right, that was dropped when they found no mental or emotional damage done at all to the child.

This is something I'm really pushing in "Blame the Game"...parents, don't just try to lock your kids away from everything. Be there with them. Explain things to them. The world isn't so scary if you know what's hiding outside, and how to deal with it. If you tell a child they cannot have any involvement in something like that, without showing them why, they will only want to do it more. I had my mother sit my brother and I down when we were 8 and 10, and say "If you boys ever smoke cigarettes or do other drugs, I know in my heart I cannot stop you, but realize the effects they have on your health...and how much money you save by NOT getting addicted." To this day, neither of us smoke, have no reason to and understand because we were told the reasons why. It wasn't just "DONT DO THIS BECAUSE I SAID SO!". And it worked.

As for drinking, that's another story.

Second Life is amazing in the way that it truly can expand a person's creativity, no matter what they want to get into. The social structure of it is AMAZING. I talk with people from all walks of life all around the world every day. I also find time to go out and enjoy life in RL (something thats a punchline to many SL addicts). If I've had a stressful day or just have alot of creative juices flowing, I'll hop on Second Life and build whatever is in my mind. I get about $500 a month extra, non-taxed, from things I make and sell. It's nice. That's a car payment or half of rent right there. Oh, the last time I've been to a "sex" sim or anything sexually related? 9 months ago at a strip club for a friends bachelor party before he married his rl girlfriend (he had a real bachelor party later that night). 9 months, almost daily usage of Second Life, and no sexual "jump out and grab you" events?

Again, this is completely uncalled for and unnecessary. They should just stop putting money into this and start putting it all into child services. If you can't do enough good for your kid that you feel it would be better to shield them from everything in the world, maybe you aren't ready to be a parent yet. Or maybe you just need to relax...maybe...play some video games?

He's calling SL a website? Ooookay...

Well speaking as a rebellious child [and arguably rebellious adult]... I responded to open debate on rules. If an authority figure provided an explanation for the rule [why it exists, what it's meant to accomplish] and an opportunity for me to ask questions and compromise, I almost never had any problem keeping it.

Inversely, if a 'Because I said so' rule was handed down, you can be damn sure that I scoffed at their arrogance and quickly went to work to circumvent it. If only out of spite.

IME... most parents are of the 'Because I said so' camp.

They don't have the tools or perhaps the ambition to assess the learning style of their children. They cannot deal with the dangers of a free society, and so, I strongly encourage them to leave it instead of attempting to hijack it and warp it to their inherently flawed means.

Second Life is a website now?

LOL I'm glad I'm not the only one who noticed that he doesn't even realise it's not a website.

So..second life is dangerous somehow? Second life is like reality without danger, and shitty graphics.

What the hell do these people want from the gaming industry!? A happy learning game, with crappy graphics so as not making people think the game is real, without any offensive material or online mode? Yea that seems like a super phune thyme i would buy.

Yes, there is a Teen Grid, which is completely separate from the main grid where much of the world exists. Basically, if a person who is under the age of 18 is found out to be underage, he or she is usually "banished" to the TG where that person will remain until they turn 18.

While it's cool and all to have a teen grid for the younger folks, a lot of people there complain that it's really sort of a wasteland compared to the main grid (more people on there). So temptation to go on the main grid is rather strong. After all, there are a lot of kids these days that want to feel like they are "grown up".

If Mr. Kirk did his homework, Linden Lab is about to introduce a verification system which if you head out to a mature area you HAVE to prove that you are 18 or older (and no, it's not by just verifying your age with a drop down menu) by having some sort of ID connected to you. I don't know how it will work, but apparently, a lot of residents don't like it.

lol oops i meant 2002, not 2003, so 6 years!

Excuse me but “one of the fastest growing websites”? Secondlife.com has actually had a DECREASE in traffic in the last 6 months, both in rank and reach.

I find these stats rather misleading.

First, it's Alexa, which only counts those people who have the toolbar installed, not the entire internet. Second, most people who experience Second Life on a regular basis DON'T go to the website. In order to experience SL, you must download a program. These "stats" are meaningless and very much like what the Yankee Group did by claiming that people only spend 10 minutes a month on the site, but in reality they spend more time IN WORLD. There are over a million active users (those that have logged on the site in the last 60 days).

how would SL be fertile ground for online predators?

if someone tries to approach you, you can just fly away...

Not to mention that there are a lot of users yet there are quite a number that only log in for about 5 hours a week, generally. I myself log in for about 3 or 4 hours a week on friday night for a DJ night at Mako's Club to chat with friends, though I havnt done that in a few months. Personally I would say its not quite growing, nor quite decreasing, and remains at a steady level of users.

as for ingame money, there are other ways to get money in game, such as money camping, hippypay, gambling (which requires money in the first place), just to list a few.

so its not entirly impossible for underage users to get the linden bucks to get the stuff they want. Though if they were smart, they would learn to do the scripting and only use the linden money for uploading textures, then from there setup a shop to sell the items. Which I wouldnt be surprised if there arent minors that do that.

That link is bullshit. That isn't Second Life hitting a new low. That's a person's idea being presented through Second Life hitting a new low. Hell, if thats the case, I say we just blame every bad, disgusting, shocking idea that people bring to life on the world. Michael Vick was abusing dogs and having them fight? Wow, the US has sure hit a new low.

I said it before and I'll say it again, if some kid finds something worthwhile on Second Life let me know because I still haven't found it.

@ Illspirit,

You know, every time somebody says something like Kirk just did, I want to say that but I'm always too busy doing something else.

So thanks, you spared me that.

Also, it is easier to blame the internets than to blame your brother of molesting your child.

From how I see it, the only way predators can even think of getting at the kids is... well, I'm not gonna say it because perhaps there are some that frequent this site. Not saying there are, but rather there might be.

This is more election year politics. Make an issue out of nothing that can villify ANYONE who opposes it. "Look! I'm saving your children from a game that none of them play!"

I hope that those in his district are smart enough to turn it around on him and ask, "So why are you doing this instead of working on making it possible for me to get another job?"

As to the author of the Team America's 10th District Blog: you are a souless sheeple who needs to stop letting others do the thinking for you.

"Parents should be worried about one of the fastest growing websites on the planet called Second Life."

Um last I heard SL was in decline.

How is Second Life an important issue. If someone wants to spend their free time on it then let them. They're no more at risk from childhood predators than they are walking down the street.

All anyone needs to tell them is avoid females named Steve who ask for your address in the game, and to avoid blacked out vans with the sign "free candy" on the side in real life.

Calling this pandering impressive is ridiculous.

@Quentin

It's true that Alexa is not totally accurate at tracking stats (nothing is), but for a popular enough website it is still a reliable generic estimate to get from the people that use Alexa. You are correct that the SL website is not really used to experience SL. But you must still visit the site if you're a first time user in order to download the program. I guess the only reasonable conclusion we can draw from the stats is that the number of new SL users is decreasing steadily (and the SL community is still growing, but at a slower rate)

Seems like more congressional fear-mongering, if you ask me.

Ummm there is strong resitriction for age becuase for teen second life they are able to go to your page and see how old you are. Also it will give you a warning if you are to old for teen second life.

I contacted Second Life to say maybe we should have some minimum standards here but they responded by sending their $60,000 a year K Street lobbyist to tell me everything was okay…

Wait, the SL people can afford $60,000 lobbyists?? Seems like a waste if they are really spending that much on the moron.

Funny how a congress critter is complaining about lobbyists, but I bet we could find some interesting lobbyists he does support(I'm not going to bother looking them up).

Guess all the good "games" to raise a fuss over already got taken or the hyped over died off(GTA), and this was only one leftover for them to pick up.

And just like the internet and gaming in general, parents need to actively watch their kids and what they are doing. Reminds me of how the old "don't talk to strangers, or give them any of your personal information" bit still applies to todays online world.

I spend a significant amount of time in Second Life (20 to 40 hours a week). My 5 younger children (the oldest is in college) spend a significant amount of time in other virtual worlds, mostly Webkinz and the Disney sites like Toontown, Pirates Online, and Club Penguin. Between my own experience and that of my kids (whose activity online I do monitor), I would say that I am better prepared than Kirk to comment on which sites or virtual worlds present a greater danger to children.

The bottom line is a child predator in real life goes to where the kids are - he or she circles schools and parks. He or she does not hang out in the nursing homes or local bars where adults are. Why would a child predator do anything else just because it is a virtual world.

Kids are not supposed to be on Second Life, nor are they encouraged to go there by any sort of advertising. I am sure a few may find their way to Second Life, but because only adults are supposed to be there, I cannot imagine that Second Life would be a child predator's first location for finding kids to go after. The would be predator would have to spend a lot of time developing relationships with avatars just to be able to find out their age and even then how would they know for sure it was a kid. It could be an adult lying about their age.

However, if a child predator goes to the types of sites my kids go to that I mentioned above, the probability that the person behind those avatars is a kids is pretty high. I am surprised that no one has brought this up. Kirk in particular. I can't understand why he isn't more concerned about protecting kids from using those sites. Perhaps Linden Labs is an easier target than Disney. Good think Kirk wasn't in charge of deciding which public areas convicted child molesters could not live by. He would have them living next to the school, but miles from the local sports bar.

Many of the other commentators are right - the most important thing a parent can do is monitor their child's activity online, stay involved, and educate them about what is acceptable and what is not and how to handle someone acting inappropriately. Imagine that - teaching our children how to handle themselves in real life against the evils in our society.

I'm just an armchair lawyer here, but how can the interstate commerce clause be stretched to cover non-commercial use of a free product?

Is any action by the FTC really constitutional in this case, seeing as no commerce is taking place?

Kids don't even play Second Life...

BAN SECOND LIFE

Not because it poses any risks, mind, just because it's so darn fugly.

You found the wrong blog in the IL Tenth, the one written by a well compensated Kirk stooge. The IL-10 is well aware that whenever election time rolls around Mark Kirk makes hay scaring parents about the Internet. What he won't do is help parents out so they don't have to work 2 and 3 jobs each just to keep their homes so someone could be home to make sure the kids use the internet responsibly.