I decided to jump headlong into online communities recently by joining the gaming community of World of Warcraft. I have, in my teens, played the original Warcraft, a single-player, PC-based game. World of Warcraft is an online game where players interact with one another, as well as work together in campaigns against the environment as well. Specifically, World of Warcraft, WoW, is an MMORPG, a mass multiplayer online role-playing game. According to the game’s developer, Blizzard Entertainment, there are nearly 11 million monthly subscribers to WoW, making it the most popular online game ever .
I can now count myself as one of those 11 million subscribers. Just a few weeks ago, I signed up for an account for the nominal fee of $39.99. To get started, I set up my account, and had to choose a server to play on. I really didn’t know what I was doing, so I joined a server on which one of my friends currently plays, hoping he might be able to help get me started. Next came selecting my character. Again, not knowing much about the game, I chose one that was visually appealing to me, the Orc Warlock. Now that I was all set up, I started my campaign.
The game was utterly confusing, which I certainly was not expecting. Having played various videogames on gaming consoles as well as PCs, I was expecting to be able to pick things up quickly. However, I have found it quite difficult to get going. Each player is rated according to their level of progress, from 1 to 70. Just starting out my rating was 1. It seemed that so many players I came across were level 60 or above. This did very little for my confidence, but stubborn as I am, I was determined to make some progress. After a little advice from my fellow gamers, I can now proudly proclaim that I have advanced to level 6!
But the real reason for joining was to get a sense of an online community. I must admit that I was skeptical at first, but have seen the light. While I wouldn’t consider any of the players I have met on WoW true friends, I do feel that they fall into a special class of friends: Warcraft Friends. I look forward to getting online and meeting up with my Warcraft friends. We help each other while in the game by giving each other advice, leading one another to items and power-ups, and battle together. There is a unique kind of trust that comes with being Warcraft friends.
Trust is the key to any strong friendship. While I wouldn’t call one of my Warcraft friends to carpool to school, or pick me up from the airport, or bail me out of jail, within the confines of virtual reality, I trust these people implicitly. Should I face an ambush from fiendish, drooling, undead wizards, there is no other group of people I would rather have at my side. There are eight consistent members of my Warcraft gang, with a handful of friends-of-friends who join us occasionally. We play together, we text chat within the game, as well as speak to each other through the game using headsets connected to our PCs. There is an allegiance to one another, but how strong is it?
I had only intended to play WoW for a short time, but am now considering keeping my account active for at least another month. This is, to some degree, due to my friendship with these players. However, given the current state of my personal finances, I may have to say goodbye to my Warcraft friends. While considering whether or not to re-up my account, I never considered continuing my friendship with them but canceling my WoW membership. I think this speaks to just how strong our bond is. Apparently, examining my decision-making process, our bond is potentially not worth an extra $14.99. Since I am on the fence as to whether I will continue my gaming experience, I must conclude that our friendship, our little community, is only worth about that much. I must ask myself: would I stay in the game if it only cost $10.00? Where is the price point at which the benefit of the community and the joy of the game are considered worth the expense? As yet, I do not have an answer to this question. But I do know this: no amount of money can make me even remotely consider giving up on any of my true friends.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Monday, September 15, 2008
Is internet use a right?
A right can be defined as a moral or legal entitlement to something, or to act in some way. A privilege is a right that is granted or available only to specific persons. However, our common understanding of the term “right,” especially in the United States, would preclude us from describing anything granted only to some persons, but not others, as a right. So, I believe it would be more accurate to describe a privilege as and advantage, or possibly as an entitlement. Given these definitions, it is my view that internet use is a privilege, and not a right. However, that is not to say that our rights do not apply to our actions or interactions on the internet.
The rights we have are not granted to us by our government or each other, but in virtue of our existence as humans. In the United States, our rights include, but are not limited to those enumerated the Bill of Rights. I think of internet use in much the same way as I see driving. It is often explained to new drivers that this newfound freedom is not a right, but a privilege. If one abides by the rules and regulations associated with obtaining a driver’s license and operating an automobile, then they are granted the privilege to drive. Internet use is , in fact, much easier to take part in; there is no age limit, there are no licenses or permits to be obtained, and there are fewer laws governing what a person may and may not do while engaged in the act. If driving were a right, the government would be required to provide reliable transportation, money for fuel, roadside assistance, and comprehensive coverage in the case of a accident. Similarly, if internet use were a right, the government would be required to provide computers, reliable internet connections, and technical support.
I believe that many people have come to regard internet use as a right simply due to the level of availability of internet access. Since the internet has become a standard means for carrying out so many actions and processes that were previously performed in person on by phone, it often seems as though the internet has become a necessity, rather than a convenience. But consider the notion that, at one time, the telephone replaced the standard means by which many interpersonal interactions were carried out. For instance, there was a time when purchasing an airline ticket required going to an airport ticket counter or the office of a travel agent. Later, reservations were placed most commonly by phone, and in some cases through automated phone systems. Now, booking airline reservations via the internet seems to be the standard mode of operation for most people. This is just one of many examples of such an evolution. When the preferred method of carrying out a multitude of transactions evolved from in-person to by-telephone, it did not become the responsibility of the government to provide telephone handsets and phone lines to all citizens. In the same, it is not the right of the people to partake in use of the internet.
I am sympathetic to the argument that the government does ensure, however that citizens are granted reasonable access to utilities such telephone service, and may even place sanctions private companies requiring them to provide such access to all people, and therefore they should do the same for the internet. However, this merely ensures access to available services for everyone, not a right to use them. Such laws or sanctions are put in place only to ensure fair opportunity for all.
While I believe that internet use is a privilege, I also believe that that does not mean that one’s rights do not apply to one’s actions and interactions on the internet. For example, one’s right to free speech is not dissolved simply in virtue of the fact that the speech act was made via the internet. Also, though use of the internet is not a right, one’s rights must be protected while on the internet. For example, one’s right to privacy, or one’s right not to be slandered or libeled. To put it as succinctly as possible, I believe that internet use is a privilege, not a right, but rights are absolute and cannot be suspended online. Given this privilege, however, we also have a duty to make responsible use of the internet.
The rights we have are not granted to us by our government or each other, but in virtue of our existence as humans. In the United States, our rights include, but are not limited to those enumerated the Bill of Rights. I think of internet use in much the same way as I see driving. It is often explained to new drivers that this newfound freedom is not a right, but a privilege. If one abides by the rules and regulations associated with obtaining a driver’s license and operating an automobile, then they are granted the privilege to drive. Internet use is , in fact, much easier to take part in; there is no age limit, there are no licenses or permits to be obtained, and there are fewer laws governing what a person may and may not do while engaged in the act. If driving were a right, the government would be required to provide reliable transportation, money for fuel, roadside assistance, and comprehensive coverage in the case of a accident. Similarly, if internet use were a right, the government would be required to provide computers, reliable internet connections, and technical support.
I believe that many people have come to regard internet use as a right simply due to the level of availability of internet access. Since the internet has become a standard means for carrying out so many actions and processes that were previously performed in person on by phone, it often seems as though the internet has become a necessity, rather than a convenience. But consider the notion that, at one time, the telephone replaced the standard means by which many interpersonal interactions were carried out. For instance, there was a time when purchasing an airline ticket required going to an airport ticket counter or the office of a travel agent. Later, reservations were placed most commonly by phone, and in some cases through automated phone systems. Now, booking airline reservations via the internet seems to be the standard mode of operation for most people. This is just one of many examples of such an evolution. When the preferred method of carrying out a multitude of transactions evolved from in-person to by-telephone, it did not become the responsibility of the government to provide telephone handsets and phone lines to all citizens. In the same, it is not the right of the people to partake in use of the internet.
I am sympathetic to the argument that the government does ensure, however that citizens are granted reasonable access to utilities such telephone service, and may even place sanctions private companies requiring them to provide such access to all people, and therefore they should do the same for the internet. However, this merely ensures access to available services for everyone, not a right to use them. Such laws or sanctions are put in place only to ensure fair opportunity for all.
While I believe that internet use is a privilege, I also believe that that does not mean that one’s rights do not apply to one’s actions and interactions on the internet. For example, one’s right to free speech is not dissolved simply in virtue of the fact that the speech act was made via the internet. Also, though use of the internet is not a right, one’s rights must be protected while on the internet. For example, one’s right to privacy, or one’s right not to be slandered or libeled. To put it as succinctly as possible, I believe that internet use is a privilege, not a right, but rights are absolute and cannot be suspended online. Given this privilege, however, we also have a duty to make responsible use of the internet.
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