Value of Second Life to law firms is over : Real Lawyers Have Blogs

Link: Value of Second Life to law firms is over : Real Lawyers Have Blogs. Kevin O'Keefe is right that Second Life isn't ready for prime time; at least, insofar as virtual law offices are concerned. I toyed with Second Life for a while; and, I found it difficult to use, very difficult to navigate, difficult to find property, and difficult to build in. Since it was so labor intensive, it stands to reason that serious hobbyists were the only denizens. In addition, the bandwidth and computer power necessary to support 3D online virtual worlds just doesn't fit with attorney client interaction. When the technology becomes easy to use, and virtual worlds are as easy to navigate in as the real world; then, virtual lawyering in 3D might become a reality. However, don't hold your breath.

Comments

[Benjamin Duranske]

Marketing a law firm in a virtual world isn't going to generate instant returns, but if you take the long view, it makes a lot of sense for attorneys to be familiar with these spaces, particularly attorneys with high tech clients. The key that posts like Kevin's miss is that in the long run, it doesn't matter if Second Life succeeds. As computers get faster and bandwidth gets cheaper (both widely considered inevitable) users will demand the most life-like interface possible. It has always been that way -- from punchcards, to DOS, to a graphical user interface, to, now, a 3D graphical user interface.

Second Life has absolutely experienced growing pains, and may well end up failing, but suggesting that means that virtual worlds in general aren't going to be a big part of the future of computing is folly. I think it's particularly bad advice for lawyers, as lousy, as a profession, as we are about adopting new technology anyway!