By Lotto Chancellor
My avatar has a 7.5 soft, looks like the late Vonnegut Jr., and speaks French. And he can make all my delusions of grandeur come virtually true.
For those who don’t know: an avatar is a simulated, pixilated, entirely customizable web identity rendered by the programmer gods in the image of man. Websites like SecondLife.com give users the chance to guide their avatars through virtual worlds in search of racy online chatting, or perhaps a pair of those brand name cybersneakers. As real-life simulators, virtual worlds exist as meticulously detailed, fully discoverable environments, and they feature all the benefits of user-to-user interaction. You control every move your avatar makes: setting up an intimate chat with the cute avatar over there in the assless chaps, for example, or taking a stroll across town to the virtual salon, saloon, or bird sanctuary. Yep, it’s just like the real world, but one step removed.
Most controversial among virtual world sites right now is RedLightCenter.com, offering its users oodles of hedonistic cyber-experiences: puffing cheeba, fondling a paramour, or executing Cleveland Steamer…and now making money.