“I Rolled the Dice with Trade Chat and This is What I Got”

Author(s):  
Wendi Sierra ◽  
Doug Eyman

In this chapter, the authors extend Warnick’s (2007) appropriation of Toulmin’s (1958) “field-dependency” as applied through an ecological lens to examine credibility and ethos in the virtual world of a massive multiplayer online game. The authors theorize that ethos in such virtual environments is context-dependent—that it is in the interaction between designed game and user action/communication that ethos is engineered in a process that is fundamentally different from both websites (which are static) and other social media (where the environment is not nearly as much of an actor in the development of ethos/credibility). To better understand how players (as inhabitants of the game ecology) view the establishment of ethos, the authors collected in-game chat and near-game forum posts that included responses to requests for assistance or invitations to join a guild, and we asked our participants to evaluate these texts. The chapter uses the data collected about the perception of ethos to identify three key elements for successful demonstration of credibility in multiplayer games: specificity, demonstrated expertise, and experience.

Author(s):  
Robyn Henderson

This chapter builds on James Gee’s (2003) description of the playing of computer games as the learning of a new literacy. To investigate this form of literacy learning from a player’s perspective, the author created an avatar and joined the online community of the Massively Multiplayer Online Game, the World of WarcraftTM produced by Blizzard Entertainment®. This autoethnographic approach to exploring the game’s linguistic, visual, audio, spatial and gestural elements of design provide an insider’s perspective of the meaning-making resources that were on offer. The chapter concludes with a tentative consideration of how understandings about the literacies used within a virtual world might inform the learning of literacies in schools and other educational institutions.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 140-149
Author(s):  
Levent Eraslan ◽  
Ahmet Kukuoğlu

Living in the age of constant technology developments shifted social communication patterns and shifted social relations to virtual environments. The socialisation process that takes place in digital platforms also transferred many negative elements experienced in social life to the virtual environment. That is, the aggression behaviours concerning these negative processes have also been transferred to the virtual communication. The current study examines the effects of social media aggression (SMA) regarding digital platforms on the social relations in human life in the context of various variables. Results of the study revealed that the counter-comments towards participants’ values have a significant effect on participants’ demonstration of aggressive tendencies. In other notable finding participants reported that they aware of their rights f=75 (33%) against negative SMA, while f=150 (67%) of participants do not know them.  Keywords: Virtual communication, social media, aggression.


2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 624-644
Author(s):  
Sara M. Grimes

According to various media and academic sources, the virtual worlds landscape underwent a profound transformation in 2008, with the arrival of numerous new titles designed and targeted specifically to young children. Although a growing body of research has explored some of the titles involved in this shift, little remains known of its overall scope and contents. This article provides a mapping of the initial “boom” in children’s virtual worlds development and identifies a number of significant patterns within the ensuing children’s virtual worlds landscape. The argument is made that while the reported boom in children’s virtual worlds has been exaggerated, a number of important shifts for online gaming culture did unfold during this period, some of which challenge accepted definitions of “virtual world” and “multiplayer online game.” The implications of these findings are discussed in light of contemporary developments and trends within children’s digital culture and within online gaming more broadly.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-43
Author(s):  
Gabe Dimas Wicaksana ◽  
Maman Abdurohman ◽  
Aji Gautama Putrada

Online multiplayer games require internet networks to play with opposing players more exciting because multiple players can fight each other. The game experiences lag, which is expressed as the quality of experience (QoE), is one of the most common problems for online multiplayer games, causing the games less exciting to play. This study examined the implementation of Message Queue Telemetry Transport (MQTT) as a communication protocol in multiplayer online games using Arduino and compared its performance against HTTP. QoE used data collected using the mean opinion score (MOS) method. The MQTT resulted in an average QoE score of 3.9 (Pingpong) and 4 (TicTacToe) MOS units, while on HTTP 3.8 (PingPong and TicTacToe). The use of the MQTT communication protocol can improve the QoE of multiplayer online game players compared to HTTP.


Author(s):  
Caleb T. Carr ◽  
Paul Zube

Network autocorrelation occurs when individuals receive assistance from others which regulates their own behavior, and it can be used to explain how group members may improve their task performance. This study explored how network autocorrelation, via informal communication within a virtual group, affected an individual’s task achievement in the online game World of Warcraft. Informal interactions between guild members during a 4-year period were collected and analyzed to assess how informal interactions with other group members affected an individual’s in-game achievement. Findings indicate informal communication from other group members (specifically the experience and helpfulness of the other members) positively predict an individual’s task performance, while tenure with the group negatively predict individual achievement. Findings are discussed with respect to network analysis and influence in online groups.


2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 151-156
Author(s):  
Andrei Șandor

AbstractSince the emergence of Internet and social media, new Intelligence branches have flourished, like CYBERINT (Cyber Intelligence), OSINT (Open Source Intelligence) or SOCMINT (Social Media Intelligence), with the aim to exploit different dimensions of the virtual world. These Intelligence-related disciplines may inquire personal information, statements and conversations posted voluntarily on websites or social platforms in order to profile people, identify social networks and organizational structures, and uncover vulnerabilities and threats/risks that can jeopardize the security of individuals or organizations. In this respect, the Internet - as environment - can provide valuable information from both technical and social side. This is why the World Wide Web is and will remain an important place to search for data and information that can be processed into Intelligence, and represents the reason why people working in sensitive domains (e.g. Intelligence) should be aware of their vulnerabilities and the risks and threats posed by this environment.DISCLAIMER: This paper expresses the views, interpretations, and independent position of the authors. It should not be regarded as an official document, nor expressing formal opinions or policies, of NATO or the HUMINT Centre of Excellence.


Author(s):  
Silvia Francesca Maria Pizzoli ◽  
Dario Monzani ◽  
Laura Vergani ◽  
Virginia Sanchini ◽  
Ketti Mazzocco

AbstractIn recent years, virtual reality (VR) has been effectively employed in several settings, ranging from health care needs to leisure and gaming activities. A new application of virtual stimuli appeared in social media: in the documentary ‘I met you’ from the South-Korean Munhwa Broadcasting, a mother made the experience of interacting with the avatar of the seven-year-old daughter, who died four years before. We think that this new application of virtual stimuli should open a debate on its possible implications: it represents contents related to grief, a dramatic and yet natural experience, that can have deep psychological impacts on fragile subjects put in virtual environments. In the present work, possible side-effects, as well as hypothetical therapeutical application of VR for the treatment of mourning, are discussed.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1326365X2110037
Author(s):  
D. Guna Graciyal ◽  
Deepa Viswam

Virtual engagement of lives has been made possible with the advent of social media. Almost 80% of the day are spent virtually on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, Snapchat, etc. Usage of social media to connect to and communicate with the ones we care about is always healthy, termed as social networking. Social dysfunction occurs when the constant communication leads to the point where our real or offline life gets replaced by virtual or online life. There is a slight boundary between social networking and social dysfunction. When social networking is advantageous, social dysfunction affects emotional well-being. When emotional well-being is affected, many users experience a compulsion to dissociate from the real world as they find virtual world, full of fantasy and enjoyment. When the Internet was created, perhaps no one was aware of its potential. More than the convenience for sharing of information it has brought the world so close to crumbling the geographical boundaries. The more people-to-people communication is, the more is the strengthening of relationships, bonds grow stronger with ‘more’ social media platforms. Being on ‘more’ social media platforms has become a benchmark for living amidst the younger generation. Either as an activity of happiness or as an activity of pleasure, users tend to use social media at varying levels. This paper aims to conceptualize the the intricacies of social media in young lives and to discern whether their association is happiness or pleasure activity. The research method of this paper has a mixed-methods research design combining data from structured survey with information outputs from in-depth interviews.


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