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[quote] On 17-07-2007 23:08, Foddy wrote: Hi, This was passed to me by way of Richard, in case any of our players would be willang and suitable. PUBLICATION: Book: Being Virtual JOURNALIST: Davey Winder (freelancer) DEADLINE: 25-July-2007 13:00 (GMT) QUERY: INTERVIEW CANDIDATES WITH INTERESTING TALES TO TELL ABOUT LIFE ONLINE URGENTLY SOUGHT I have been commissioned to write a book for the Science Museum in London, to be published globally by Wiley, with the working title of Being Virtual: who you really are online. As the title suggests, this will be an exploration of identity in the 21st Century, with a particular emphasis on virtual identity as exhibited online and focussing on such questions as what is identity today, how do we present ourselves online, who is the real you, what dangers are there when real and virtual worlds collide? The book will be written largely through the eyes of real people who are out there living virtual lives. Some background on me. I have been writing about the Internet, and in particular the community aspects of it, for nearly 20 years now. Ever since I was struck down with a serious illness, Viral Encephalitis, which left me in hospital for a year and in a wheelchair for a further 8 years. My wife left me, taking my very young children with her, I lost my job, my house, my car, my independence and my identity. It wasn't until I was introduced to online bulletin boards (FidoNet to start with, then Prestel MicroNet, Usenet and Cix) that I started to live again. Finding freedom and a new life online. I immersed myself in this world, eventually writing about my experiences and becoming a successful freelance journalist. Now, fully recovered, with 20+ published books behind me and as Contributing Editor of the highest circulation PC magazine in the UK, PC Pro, I have been fortunate enough to win the UK Technology Journalist of the Year and IT Security Journalist of the Year awards. I remain a highly enthusiastic and somewhat evangelistic commentator on life online. I wanted to write this book because the virtual world still excites me, more so than ever as it is now on the verge of becoming mainstream with people from all walks of life discovering the same freedoms and friends that I did 20 years ago. That said, I do not want the book to gloss over the darker side of life online, and will be exploring the dangers as well as the delights it has to offer. However, I will be doing so in a balanced and genuine way, rather than some kind of cheap and nasty tabloid expose. I am rather constrained by time, and would like to have all my interviews done by the end of this month (unfortunately I am unavailable between 14th and 22nd July due to family holidays and bad timing). If you need to verify the book commission, please contact Andrew Kennerley (AKennerl@wiley.co.uk) who will be happy so to do. I am looking to interview, by email only, people who are happy to talk about their experiences in the virtual world. This is a chance to get your self into the spotlight and your business along with it - but remember this is not a dry business book, it is aimed at the consumer of technology and the average Joe with an interest in modern life) so if you have a story to tell now is the time to tell it. Anonymity can be provided, if sought, by the way. In particular I am looking for interview candidates that can satisfy the following criteria: Teenagers using virtual worlds to create a social circle rather than the real world. Teenagers flirting with virtual friends. Mums swapping an average first life for something more exciting in second life. Middle aged men reliving their youth online. Older folk, the so called 'silver surfers' who have discovered the freedoms of virtual lives. Indeed, the older the better - I would love to talk to the oldest person with an active virtual identity. Gender benders, the people who change sex when in the virtual world. People who have fallen in love with another virtual character and got married online, but have never met in real life. People who have fallen in love with another virtual character, met up in real life and either gone on to get married or have been disappointed to discover the real person could not live up to the virtual one. People who have experienced, from either side of the situation, the break up of a real world marriage as a consequence of a virtual affair. People whose virtual identity takes a darker path than that of the real world, prompting them to become virtual Mafia bosses, thieves, violent criminals and so on. People who have found virtual worlds to be an enabling technology, freeing them from the physical shackles and real world prejudices of their disability. People who have set up business within a virtual world. People who have found work within a virtual world. People for whom one virtual identity is just not enough, and juggle multiple virtual personas. People who have been the victim of identity theft and are prepared to talk about the experience from start to finish. People for whom the virtual existence begins when they switch the computer off and are faced with 'real life' as it were. People who have learned the hard way that there are real world consequences for virtual actions, and equally people who have been surprised by unexpected but pleasant consequences also. Lawyers who can talk about legal liabilities for the behaviour of an online persona. People who discovered the Google Effect: that everything you have ever done online is ultimately traceable back to you, maybe resulting in the loss of a job, the failure of a job interview, the break up of a relationship, a costly settlement of a legal case, and even the attentions of an online/offline stalker. Someone who can explain the rebirth of the conman, how the fraudster can use a virtual identity to con a real victim out of very real cash. Someone who can talk about the moves to digitise your identity in the UK (and beyond) with regard to the National ID Card scheme, the benefits (to government, security and the individual) as well as the drawbacks (privacy issues, whether it will actually work, how flaws can be exploited by crooks and terrorists). Please feel free to pass this request on to anyone you think might be interested in participating in this book project... [/quote]
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