Hello and welcome to the first ever edition of ‘Reality’ Check. While I have joked about being the “Captain Bringdown” of StudentAvatar.com, that’s certainly not my intent. The title ‘Reality’ Check encompasses two broad themes. What I do hope to do in upcoming columns is to examine issues that instructors should consider before bringing their classes into an online environment like Second Life.

Some of these issues might concern the online environment itself. One example that springs to mind is the “bugginess” of Second Life. It requires computers with enough firepower (video cards, memory) to run properly. It is often down and therefore unavailable, either on announced days (Wednesdays are typical update days), or unexpectedly. This can be a source of frustration – though it can also offer a chance to interact with users in other settings such as chat boards. Another example is the changing environment of Second Life itself. As composition instructors we are interested in the written element of communication in Second Life when communication is via the keyboard. How will this change in a chat-enabled Second Life, when communication takes place vocally?

The digital divide is a related concern. My current institution has a great deal of technology, and most students have their own computers. What about campuses that aren’t as well equipped? How is having easy access to up-to-date technology like, or unlike, requiring students to have access to a typewriter was back in the mid to late twentieth century?

I also hope to report on how the media portrays online settings such as Second Life; how Second Life communities operate in settings outside of SL, in places such as LiveJournal; how users of online communities portray (often humorously) their interactions; and anything else that I can shoehorn into the the broad category of examining online environments from other perspectives.