And we all go ’round… «

And we all go ’round…

May 7, 2008 by Portia Rossini

****EDITED****

Alright. Let me start this entry once again.

Being in Second Life, I’ve noticed a very very strange trend. There is truly a huge six degrees of separation in the social circles of second life. You probably don’t know me, but I am sure I know you or heard of you. Now let me explain (poor poor Willow!)..

Second Life is a game platform that many users go into to socialize, make businesses and start relationships. Ever since I’ve rezzed into Second Life, I’ve noticed that SL gets about 30,000 to 50,000+ users logged in at any given time.

So why is that we all revolve around many of the same people? Is it a major coincidence or am I just completely paranoid?

I actually don’t know what is up. I just looked at my friends list and I compared it to who my friends know or are friends with. And I can safely say ” (insert name of friend), I know your friend (insert your friend’s friend’s name)”. And chances are, my friend’s friend knows a friend of mine who possibly knows, has met or has chatted or has visited my blog.

Does that mean then that we all revolve around the same groups of people? Do we LIMIT our social spheres by minimizing how tiny those said spheres are?

For example (yes, I’ll be naming names):

I know Rachelle Cortes who knows Steve Hansen who is friends with Ana Lutetia who was my neighbour a year ago in the Broadway South sim.

Another example:

I know Annette Voight who knows Elysium Eilde whom I’ve met in flickr before I met Annette Voight.

Is this all a damn coincidence or is this just really scary?

Do I know you? I probably do. Now what do I mean?

Second life is a damn small world. Everyone you meet knows someone else that you probably already KNOW, if not, they know someone that you know that they know that you know. Confused enough?

Now, I’ve been around Second Life for a very very long time. I think that I’ve seen, talked, chatted and met a lot of people. My list is not extensive but I have to say, the cycle really does happen.

I won’t go through a whole crapload of details on who I know, but I do want to let you know about WHAT I know.

Is second life just too small of a world? I think so, I mean this is a damn rant but if I know you, and you know me, and you know my friends who are friends with YOUR friends.. who know me, wouldn’t that justmean that second life is one huge spherical confusion?

Now tell me what you think.

Posted in About Me, Random-ness!, Rant | Tagged confused, confusion, friendship, portiarossini, second life, secondlife, SL, social, socializing | 18 Comments

18 Responses to “And we all go ’round…”

on May 7, 2008 at 4:51 pm1 Willow Caldera

I’m…..not quite sure I can o.O

*goes off for a little lie down*
on May 7, 2008 at 6:22 pm2 Portia Rossini

Aww =(

Sorry for confusing you hahaha

Even I confused myself, that was not a well thought out entry. *winks* Sowwy

-Portia <3
on May 7, 2008 at 9:10 pm3 Strawberry Singh

OMG, don’t I know you? LOL

In all honesty, I know what you mean. However I believe that the people that regularly do read the fashion blogs and visit fashion planet daily will all tend to know each other or at least know of each other. Obviously we all end up there because we all love fashion and have a common interest.

However, there’s a whole virtual world out there that consists of others that may not be into fashion, but errrrr, other stuff. Whatever that may be! And I’m sure they feel the same amongst their own little group, that they all know each other.

Anyhooo, I did have a point, but I think I’ve lost it now so I guess ummmmm, yeah that’s it!

/me goes to get some much needed sleep.
on May 8, 2008 at 1:05 am4 Rachelle Cortes

lol. i saw my name. haha.=P
on May 8, 2008 at 1:06 am5 Rachelle Cortes

okay back to resting haha. =P
on May 8, 2008 at 1:12 am6 Portia Rossini

Everyone seems to be resting right after reading my entry, is this some sort of conspiracy?!

Or did I just give you headaches? haha

-Portia <3

P.S. Thanks for the comment, you guys!
on May 8, 2008 at 1:56 am7 Willow Caldera

I’ve rested now and can safely say you’re right! It does seem that everyone you meet has at least one mutual acquaintance in common with you. But I think Strawberry has a good point there, the fashion circle is quite small so we readers of the feeds tend to know who everyone is.

Also I think “spherical confusion” might have to be my phrase of the week.

xxxxxxx <3
on May 8, 2008 at 3:11 pm8 IsabellaGrace Baroque

*grabs some asprin*

Maybe it should be a stiff drink after the SCD post today, but thats another story.

Well actually, its related. Strawberry is correct in that if you are interested in fashion, then you most likely come across the blogs, bookmark your favs and revisit. We see many of the same people commenting on the blogs as well, so names become familiar.

I could care less about the who’s-who virtual status of people, but I think a lot of who we meet is based on our interests. And this particular circle you are speaking of, is mostly fashion.

However….lets put this in perspective for a second. I doubt a lot of furries know any of these people. Or the folks from Gor, I’m sure they have their own Rat Pack of sorts. Though I wouldn’t know it because neither of those things interest me. So really, its not such a small world. It is a big world with several close-knit communities I’d say.

Did that make sense or is it the booze talkin? Sorry, grabbed a mojito when they were handing them out over at Tenshi’s.
on May 8, 2008 at 3:23 pm9 Portia Rossini

@ Willow AND IsabellaGrace AND Strawberry

We do limit ourselves and not because we want to, I guess when you share common interest with a group of people, you feel like a community…

JUST LIKE THE GORS. (and that was not in caps to be rude but a point).

-Portia <3
on May 8, 2008 at 3:46 pm10 IsabellaGrace Baroque

looool, i tried to tiptoe the rudeness too, but come on? haven’t we all planned a little Gor-griefing at one time or another? just me? hmmmm, i doubt it, hahaha
on May 8, 2008 at 3:48 pm11 Portia Rossini

I can’t grief gors. I am afraid they’ll take me in as a slave.. o.o

Kidding. To me, they are just shrouded in so much mystery, I rather not uncover it!

-Portia <3
on May 8, 2008 at 10:53 pm12 Jyla Sachertorte

Okay, with me….I hardly talk to anyone…so while I talk to you…do you even know anyone I know? Do I even have friends in SL :O I have like….6 people on my friends list and three of those are real life friends…one is you And the other two are people who own the land where I live.

We know (you know, I shop there I should say) the same fashion people but man, I don’t talk to anyone but you and a few others. I like to keep my life very intimate and quiet LOL

I kinda like it that way too
on May 10, 2008 at 4:10 pm13 Creag Emmons

Well, it really IS a small world, at least as of now. Take SL’s total population and you have a decent mid-sized city, or a small one and its surroundings. Take the people logged on at any one time, though and you’ve only got about half again the population of the town I went to high school in, and you better believe everyone in that town knew, or knew of, just about everyone else. Six degrees? More like three.

A related observation that came up last night is that if you’re out and about you’ll often run into the same people multiple times, even if they’re total strangers. I got the impression that a jackass who was shooting up a medieval arena with automatic weapons was a friend of a friend, because I saw them both at the same place multiple times through the evening. Turns out they were just both on the same shopping track and it was an ugly coincidence.

For times like that, someone needs to come up with a particle effect. Something you can wear that points arrows at the idiot in question, and puts a sign over you that says “I DON’T KNOW THIS PERSON!” I can think of times in RL when I’ve wanted that, too…
on May 11, 2008 at 5:12 am14 Zaara Kohime

It amuses me whn things like ‘feed’, ‘threads’, content theft, controversy (and bickering :P) draws blank responses from the non-blog variety
on May 11, 2008 at 1:06 pm15 Lixena

Hello All,
I agree that if you talk at length with some of your friends you will find how much you may have in more common than you think. I have met people who ended up being known to me in RL. So it is really imteresting. Great Post!
(¯`v´¯)
`*.¸.*´ LIXENA
¸.•´¸.•*¨) ¸.•*¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•´ .•´ ¸¸.•¨¯`•
on May 12, 2008 at 12:39 am16 Portia Rossini

@ Everyone

Sorry for the late response. O.O SCD has kept me busy lately with other business! However I thank you all for your comments, I honestly think that SL CAN be a small world, and you’ve all made very interesting points.

-Portia <3
on May 14, 2008 at 3:09 am17 Maryna Wind

Hi Portia,
There is a theory that you need only 6 chain connections to reach everyone in the world (real world). Like friends of friends of your friends etc.
I think those chains are even tighter in SL…and of course common ground of fashion addiction makes it even more tight.
on May 14, 2008 at 6:57 pm18 Portia Rossini

@ Maryna

I do think you are right. The chains of connection is tighter in Second Life, because even though the platform does hold a few thousands people, not everyone will share the same obsession as you — i.e. fashion. And the select few can be outspoken or have blogs about it, that’s why they are so well known around Second Life.

You might even see them shopping! I say someone I’ve met in SL shopping. It’s great seeing them from your Second Life Blogger and see them in the flesh or so to speak.

So Maryna, I do believe in that six chain connections theory.

-Portia <3

P.S. Thanks for the comments!