[Air-l] question about interview language for online/offline distinction

[Sal Humphreys]

I too have been interested in how to frame the distinction or lack of 
distinction between on and offline spaces. One of the things that struck me 
in a recent set of interviews with online gamers, was that some had a kind 
of instrumental use of the terminology 'RL'. It seemed to be a way of 
resolving what would otherwise be some very troublesome contradictions in 
their lives. For instance, a woman who is 'happily married', has an avowed 
commitment to monogamy, and who spends up to 40 hours a week in the game, 
where she has about 6 different characters, all married to other players' 
characters, some with an accompanying intense emotional involvement, most 
with online cybersex involvements. For her, invoking RL also allows her to 
rationalise her in-game involvements as not RL and therefore not at all 
contradictory to her stance on marriage and monogamy. Granted, game worlds 
specifically give people a licence to create and live fantasy, unlike some 
other online environments spoken of in the list discussion, but the 
convenience of the term RL for people living with a series of 
contradictions about their lives did strike me as a possible reason for its 
use. Not suggesting it is a universal....just a small observation.
cheers
Sal Humphreys
Creative Industries Faculty
Queensland University of Technology