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Sweden will open the first 'diplomatic representation' in the virtual reality of web-based Second Life, a fantasy world inhabited by computer-generated residents, on May 30, the Swedish Institute said Friday. "The Second House of Sweden, the world's first virtual embassy in Second Life will be inaugurated on May 30," the institute said in a statement. Related Articles Swedish taxman sets sights on Second Life 31st January 2007 Sweden to set up embassy in Second Life 26th January 2007 Article Options Send to a friend Printable version Submit to Digg.com Sweden's Foreign Minister Carl Bildt and Director General of the Swedish...

FBI investigators have visited Second Life's Internet casinos at the invitation of the virtual world's creator Linden Lab, but the U.S. government has not decided on the legality of virtual gambling. "We have invited the FBI several times to take a look around in Second Life and raise any concerns they would like, and we know of at least one instance that federal agents did look around in a virtual casino," said Ginsu Yoon, until recently Linden Lab's general counsel and currently vice president for business affairs. Second Life is a popular online virtual world with millions of registered users...

A lawyer for the virtual world Second Life has responded to a parody with something that's quite different from the usual corporate cease-and-desist letter. Vancouver-based blogger Darren Barefoot had put up a one-page site, GetAFirstLife.com, that imitates the look of SecondLife.com but promotes a real-life existence where you can work, reproduce and perish — all for free. The site purports to answer frequently asked questions such as "Why can't I build a dirigible with my mind?" That's a dig at Second Life, where users with sufficient skill in three-dimensional modeling can build almost anything. The site includes a logo that's...

NEW YORK--If you are a hard-core player of virtual worlds like World of Warcraft, Second Life, EverQuest or There, IRS form 1099 may someday soon take on a new meaning for you. That's because game publishers may well in the not-too-distant future have to send the forms--which individuals receive when earning nonemployee income from companies or institutions--to virtual world players engaging in transactions for valuable items like Ultima Online castles, EverQuest weapons or Second Life currency, even when those players don't convert the assets into cash. Most governments are only beginning to become aware of the substantial economic activity in...

"Second Life," the fast-growing online site where hundreds of thousands of people play out fantasy lives online, has suffered a computer security breach that exposed the real-world personal data of its users. Linden Lab, the San Francisco-based company behind the "Second Life" site, said in a letter to its 650,000 users this weekend that its customer database, including names, addresses, passwords and some credit card data, had been compromised. All users--or residents in "Second Life" parlance--are being required to request a new password. Some 286,000 residents have used the site in the past 60 days, according to a count on...

This monthly thread is dedicated to Freepers who also enjoy online gaming. Post here to find fellow gamers, arrange online games, or share screen shots, reviews, helps and tips. Separate Ping lists are created and maintained for each game.Official game site links are available for most games listed. We currently have 92 gamers playing over 95 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (19 gamers) World Of Warcraft (16 gamers) Unreal Tournament (9 gamers) City Of Heroes (10 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 86 gamers playing over 60 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (19 gamers) World Of Warcraft (15 gamers) Unreal Tournament (9 gamers) City Of Heroes (10 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 84 gamers playing over 60 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (19 gamers) World Of Warcraft (15 gamers) Unreal Tournament (9 gamers) City Of Heroes (10 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 76 gamers playing over 60 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (17 gamers) World Of Warcraft (14 gamers) Unreal Tournament (9 gamers) City Of Heroes (9 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 74 gamers playing over 60 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (16 gamers) World Of Warcraft (13 gamers) Unreal Tournament (9 gamers) City Of Heroes (8 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 72 gamers playing over 60 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (16 gamers) World Of Warcraft (13 gamers) Unreal Tournament (9 gamers) City Of Heroes (7 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 71 gamers playing over 60 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (16 gamers) World Of Warcraft (12 gamers) Unreal Tournament (9 gamers) City Of Heroes (8 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 70 gamers playing over 60 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (15 gamers) World Of Warcraft (12 gamers) City Of Heroes (8 gamers) Unreal Tournament (8 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 68 gamers playing over 60 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (15 gamers) World Of Warcraft (12 gamers) City Of Heroes (8 gamers) Unreal Tournament (8 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 61 gamers playing over 60 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (14 gamers) World Of Warcraft (11 gamers) City Of Heroes (8 gamers) Unreal Tournament (8 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 59 gamers playing over 60 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (14 gamers) World Of Warcraft (10 gamers) City Of Heroes (8 gamers) Unreal Tournament (8 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 57 gamers playing over 60 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (12 gamers) World Of Warcraft (9 gamers) City Of Heroes (9 gamers) Unreal Tournament (8 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 53 gamers playing over 50 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (12 gamers) World Of Warcraft (9 gamers) Unreal Tournament (8 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 50 gamers playing over 50 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (10 gamers) World Of Warcraft (9 gamers) Unreal Tournament (8 gamers)

If you are a Freeper, and also like online gaming, post here to find fellow gamers, share screen shots, reviews, helps, and tips. Gamer tables are updated and published weekly. We currently have 44 gamers playing over 45 different games. Top Games: Battlefield/Battlefield 2 (9 gamers) World Of Warcraft (8 gamers) Unreal Tournament (7 gamers)