My name is Cosmic Finucane. I have lots of money, a body to die for and I’m building my dream house on an island with an ocean view. At least, that’s my alternative persona — sadly, a far stretch from the real me. He inhabits the internet’s hottest new phenomenon, the virtual world of Second Life. Cosmic is an ‘avatar’ — a computer-generated 3D human lookalike who makes friends, throws parties, goes shopping and has the potential to help me earn real money.
Launched by San Francisco-based Linden Labs in 2000 with backing from the founders of eBay and Amazon, Second Life is now hitting the big time. Its population has just exceeded the million mark and it is receiving increasing real-world media attention. It even has a US Congressional committee investigating whether to tax its activities.
Given the mixed reputations of online social networks such as MySpace and Facebook, you’d be forgiven for assuming the worst about Second Life.
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