Is Neal Stephenson's "metaverse" here, and is it the Net's next generation -- or just a glorified game? Once gamer-only turf, 3D virtual worlds like Second Life and World of Warcraft are now attracting millions of players-- and millions of dollars from corporations, academia/non-profits, and government agencies, interested in the marketing, research, and prototyping possibilities. Is this the future of the Internet, and if so, where do we go from here?

Moderator: Wagner James Au Online world Journalist/Blogger, New World Notes/nwn.blogs.com