Dell opens virtual outpost in Second Life

Dell has formally kicked off its entry into Second Life with a press conference to open Dell Island, its in-world location.

Dell plans to sell virtual PCs to Second Life residents but it will also allow them to order new PCs for their first lives, all the better to run the demanding Second Life application.

Second Life is a virtual universe created by Linden Labs - or as some call it, a "metaverse" - that lets people create digital representations of themselves.

Second Life and big business

Click on the links below to see pictures of some of the real-world businesses that have set up in Second Life.

Adidas
Nissan
Sun Microsystems
Reebok
Penguin
American Apparel
Reuters
CNET Networks
PA Consulting
Yankee Stadium
Bartle Bogle Hegarty

Ro Parra, Dell senior vice president, said: "We want to be where people are gathering." Second Life had 1.39 million residents as of Tuesday morning, with 533,825 having logged on in the last 60 days. Just a month ago, it welcomed its millionth resident.

For Dell, the idea seems to be to push the company's high-end XPS line of PCs within Second Life. These systems come with more powerful components and flashier exteriors than Dell's regular PCs, and also come with better support options. The XPS 1710 gaming laptop was available for order within Dell's Second Life island, and Parra's avatar wielded a notebook for demonstration purposes.

Second Life residents can use the in-world scripting language to configure their new virtual Dell PCs to perform a number of simple tasks, such as alerting a resident when their friends are nearby, said Second Life creator Philip Rosedale. But for the most part, the virtual PCs are "accessories", he said.

Dell Island features a factory room, where residents can configure their real and/or virtual PCs, as well as a walkthrough model of a Dell XPS 710 PC and a mock-up of Michael Dell's University of Texas at Austin dorm room, where the company was founded.

Commercial entities, including Nissan and Toyota, are quickly setting up shop within Second Life. So are venerable technology companies such as IBM and Sun Microsystems, a move that sometimes puts them in direct competition with residents who have set up their own shops that sell virtual hip cars or the latest PCs.

Tom Krazit writes for CNET News.com