Being a Dell user for my entire life, I chose to critique Dell City for this assignment. On this organization's islands, there is a factory, Dell Museum, and conference center. Pictures and more information can be found on Dell's Websitewhich describes their Second Life Island shows users how to visit and what can be found there.
Being on Dell Island is similar to being in a real town. The center of the buildings is like a town square with small "shops" and stores to visit. This central area is accented by a large rotating Dell logo. I first went up to the Dell Museum. There was a large auditorium that played a video. Then I proceeded up the stairs only to find a dead end. I suppose the museum was that auditorium.
One very interesting thing about the Dell City (there are multiple islands) is that there is a white pod that can transport your avatar from island to island. I used this to go to the Dell Factory and the Dell Large Computer, which is a large scale Dell XPS computer. It was pretty fun walking around in a desktop PC. It was set up so that it was like a tour, with directional arrows and a staircase. The Dell Factory was really cool, however it is probably not really what a Dell factory looks like. It served as a place for SL users to build their own Dell computer by selecting a processor, memory, hard drive, and operating system. It can then be purchased online. The factory also has a lot of advertisements for Dell products.
The only thing that frustrated me while I was visiting this presence was just Second Life being difficult and freezing up or moving infinitely. The first time I visited Dell Island I was flying and when I landed I was stuck in the ground. Only my head was revealed. Also, I do not like how Second Life does not load buildings/structures until you are very close to them. It would be helpful to see where you are going. At the central "hub" of Dell Island there is a model-map of Dell City and I tried using that to find places I wanted to go but it was difficult because i couldn't see anything at a distance.
The Dell City is amazing, but could still use some improvements. It could be more of a concentrated place. I found Dell City to be extremely large and a lot patience was needed to explore every aspect of this space. They could've squeezed their locations a little bit closer. Other than that, I think Dell City is doing great in advertising and keeping users interested.
If I knew of a Second Life user who is looking to buy a new computer, I would definitely recommend Dell City. It is fun, interactive, and informative. Dell makes their Second Life presence a new and interesting way to shop and explore products.
I then visited IBM Business Center to compare with Dell City. First of all, I had trouble finding the exact IBM location for consumers and regular Second Life shoppers. When I searched IBM in the map, I found a lot of different company "solutions" and labs. One or more of the places were for specific users, which I'm guessing are IBM workers. At the Business Center Teleport Arrival, there was a 4-way sign giving directions to the Business Center, Conference Center, Info Trail, and Briefing Center. This is similar to Dell City, being navigational throughout the space. Along the sidewalk there were many displays allowing users to go to other IBM places in Second Life. This is something a little different from Dell. I liked Dell's transporting pod a better than this. IBM did not have a factory or museum, like Dell City.
I found Dell Island to be a beautifully-designed and interactive place in Second Life. I think Second Life users who visit Dell Island will be impressed with what they've done and would be interested in their products. I would choose Dell over IBM mainly because of the design and look of the place. They are both equally interactive and fun. Dell City was a little more user-friendly and easier to use.
Logitech G15
