What is Second Life?

Probably the best place to start is to go over what Second Life is NOT and explain a few of the differences between what it is and what it isn't.

OK, First off contrary to popular opinion Second Life is NOT and NEVER HAS BEEN a game.  While I will grant that there are games you can play WITHIN Second Life, Second Life itself has NO levels, NO points systems, NO missions, NO quests to complete, NO big bosses to slay, in short none of the elements that constitute a game are integral to making Second Life what it is.

In terms of graphics performance in Second Life it's important to note that UNLIKE with online games like World of Warcraft or Dungeons & Dragons Online or most other online games the content you view is NOT preinstalled on your computer and must be downloaded fresh for each sim you visit, so every time you go someplace new in Second Life your Second Life viewer (the software you use to connect to and interact with Second Life) must download all of the information relevant to the virtual location you are visiting, bear in mind that while this is happening for you it is also happening for anyone else in that same location, additionally as new people arrive in the location you are visiting information about how their avatar looks (skin textures, clothing textures, attachments like hair, hats, belts, shoes etc....) is all being downloaded to not only your viewer but that of every person that is in that location with you.  When you take all this into consideration it should be easy to see why lag is a problem that will always be present in Second Life (at least until someone figures out how to perform faster than light data transfers and processing).

As for what you can expect in Second Life, let's just say that 'your imagination is your only limit'.  While most individuals get buy just fine in Second Life without using a paid subscription (myself included), some people (most notably those who wish to open up a business or some other special venue in Second Life) may find that in order to receive the kind of support from Linden Labs (creators of Second Life) that they may occasionally need it may be to their benefit to consider subscribing, on the bright side last time I looked a year subscription cost less than $100 (that's less than $8.50 per month, most of us spend at least that a week on coffee/fast food easily).

If you are a fan of the Steampunk genre you'll find plenty of interesting places to explore and places to meet others with similar interests, likewise if you're into science fiction, horror, fantasy, post apocalypse settings, Dr. Who, Star Trek, Babylon 5, you name it and odds are that somebody has made something related to it in Second Life, if not nows your time to flex those creative muscles and try your own hand at making content for use by either yourself or your fellow SL Residents, there are a number of new exciting changes coming to SL in the near future including the ability to import 3D Meshes (3D Models) into SL, it's important to note though that you need to make sure that you have the legal rights to use the meshes you import otherwise you may face legal prosecution from the original creator of the mesh.

In summary SL is whatever YOU make it!