Hotel in Second Life?
August 16th, 2006 by dmirliss
Is it possible that I could go on vacation in SL and stay at a swanky hotel? :) The article Second Lifers get first look at new hotel chain describes the project undertaken by Starwood Resorts to build a 3D replica of the real-world Aloft Inn scheduled to open in real-life in 2008. The SL version is being contructed by the Electric Sheep Comany, the same development group that built the NMC Campus. It is interesting to consider why the hotel chain would consider replicating a hotel in a virtual world. Electric Sheep’s Constable stated:
“It’s one thing to go to a Web site and look at some pictures of a design, but its another thing to be able to walk into a space, immerse yourself in the space, and then to walk into it with a friend and have a debate and talk about what works and what doesn’t work.”
What strikes me as interesting is that this statement is so similar to a converstation that we had this morning with a faculty member. The question was “Why use virtual worlds for education?” For much of the same reasons that Starwood is looking for an immersive experience for potential customers, educators want to create an immersive space for students. How many of our students just clicked through the content we created on the web just to get through it? How many of use skimmed a chapter in a text or read the last page of the book first? When carefully contructed, activities in virtual worlds can be much more engaging and time on task can increase (among lots of other benefits). Looking forward to more innovative spaces being accessible to SL residents.
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