Second Life: The Official Guide

The second edition of Second Life: The Official Guide is a terrific way to learn about the virtual world of Second Life, where residents can work, play, form relationships, create art, and generally explore life through an avatar.

As noted in one of the reviews on Amazon, "Linden Lab's Second Life has attracted a vast audience in the last year. This book is a copiously illustrated explanation of much that you can do as a new member. Most of it is non-technical. You don't need extensive computer background. One of the attractions of Second Life. But the main message is that Second Life is quite unlike most massive multiplayer games. It's not the place for twitch combat. Instead, Second Life lets you and many others explore a fantastical social environment. Where you can heavily customise your persona."

I coauthored chapter three of the book, A TOUR OF SECOND LIFE, which is (of course) a lot of fun to read. We explore what to do when one is first starting out ("Hey! I'm New Here!"), we take a look at some must-see destinations, and we point people to places they can go to participate in something (from Samurai fighting to puzzle solving). We also talk about visiting beautiful places – art colonies, museums, galleries – as well as showing readers where they can go to learn something (from learning history to trying out what it feels like to be schizophrenic) and then it's a tour of spiritual places (Second Life truly has something for everyone in this regard). Shopping being of paramount importance to many residents, we feature some somewhat outlandish purchases that can be made (your own virtual reality room, anyone?) and end with a tour of places to meet someone: clubs, bars, and general hangouts.

The book is published by Sybex, a division of Wiley Publishing, and is available wherever books are sold!