"space makes you bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online
DESCRIPTION
Plenary talk for Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Education, March 2012TRANSCRIPT
![Page 1: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/1.jpg)
“space makes you bitter”
the evolution of sandbox culturein second life and eve online
john carter mcknightvwbpe 2012
![Page 2: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/2.jpg)
“two platforms, alike in dignity…”
![Page 3: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/3.jpg)
second life• launched 2003• carefully managed real-money economy• about 50,000 concurrent users• community-driven “sandbox”• global user base• terrible UI and social tools
![Page 4: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/4.jpg)
eve online• launched 2003• carefully managed real-money economy• about 30,000 concurrent users• community-driven “sandbox”• global user base• terrible UI and social tools
![Page 5: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/5.jpg)
a roadmap1. programmer culture:
san francisco bay area and iceland
2. eve online’s emergent user culture3. second life’s emergent user culture4. y so difrunt?
![Page 6: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/6.jpg)
1. programmer culture
![Page 7: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/7.jpg)
iceland = san francisco?
• “the californian ideology”• “viking programmers”
![Page 8: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/8.jpg)
“the californian ideology”
• (wikipedia)• Fred Turner, From Counterculture to Cyberculture
• Barbrook & Cameron essay
http://www.imaginaryfutures.net/2007/04/17/the-californian-ideology-2/
![Page 9: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/9.jpg)
recipe• “a mix of cybernetics, free market
economics, and counter-culture libertarianism”
- barbrook & cameronhttp://www.arpnet.it/chaos/
barbrook.htm
![Page 10: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/10.jpg)
in california• Ayn Rand + hippie
culture + engineering culture + 1980s-1990s cyberpunk
• generally idealistic
![Page 11: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/11.jpg)
in iceland
• the californian ideology + the sagas + globalization
• more nihilistic
![Page 12: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/12.jpg)
![Page 13: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/13.jpg)
david friedman – silicon valley scholar of icelandic law
http://www.daviddfriedman.com/Academic/Iceland/Iceland.html
![Page 14: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/14.jpg)
mid-2000’s – iceland’s 60’s and 90’s
![Page 15: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/15.jpg)
linden lab and ccp• programmer’s culture (not
sales/marketing)• decline in platform use by employees• growing rift between designers and
users
![Page 16: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/16.jpg)
ideology in platform design
• negligible corporate management / governance
• weak social tools• individualism in design and coding
![Page 17: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/17.jpg)
2. eve online’s culture
![Page 18: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/18.jpg)
what is eve online?
![Page 19: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/19.jpg)
![Page 20: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/20.jpg)
![Page 21: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/21.jpg)
facebook – eve online (albums) (csm7 propaganda)
![Page 22: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/22.jpg)
![Page 23: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/23.jpg)
![Page 24: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/24.jpg)
![Page 25: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/25.jpg)
3. sl culture
![Page 26: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/26.jpg)
http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2003/07/war_of_the_jess.html
![Page 27: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/27.jpg)
![Page 28: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/28.jpg)
![Page 29: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/29.jpg)
![Page 30: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/30.jpg)
4. y so difrunt?
![Page 31: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/31.jpg)
the easy answer
• sl: making stuff = women, teachers, older
• eve: blowing stuff up = guys, younger
![Page 32: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/32.jpg)
but wait!
that’s too easy!
![Page 33: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/33.jpg)
demographics• sl as the last expression of the
techno-hippie demographic (california 1998)
• eve as the first expression of young bitter anarcho-capitalists (iceland 2008)
![Page 34: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/34.jpg)
• sl – how 50-somethings wish the world was
• eve – how 20-somethings believe the world is
![Page 35: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/35.jpg)
• sl – “your world, your imagination”
• eve – “space makes you bitter” “yummy tears”
![Page 36: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/36.jpg)
“A year in EVE will teach you more about human nature than a decade in any other MMO, but what you learn may scar you.”
http://tentonhammer.com/eve/spymaster/65
![Page 37: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/37.jpg)
mirror/mirror?
![Page 38: "Space Makes You Bitter" - sandbox culture in second life and eve online](https://reader036.vdocuments.mx/reader036/viewer/2022081518/546f1463af79593c0d8b65d6/html5/thumbnails/38.jpg)
contact me!
johncartermcknight.com
combatanthropologist. blogspot.com/
@john_carter